Transition Out of Trucking...

as far as the drivers who "love trucking", ask them if they didnt get paid if they would show up. if they would its probably only because they are homeless and need a bed lol

 

Buy a vacant lot, get approvals with town etc and sit at the guard shack and many of us will pay you for parking in area where no parking is...you get the message, ....right?....bring your smartphone, laptop, cash box, and us girls will smile and say thank you...gotta think outta the box....good luck on whatever you decide, and Happy New Year

 

Quit giving actual practical advice, dang it.

 

More than one way to make a living. Trucking isnt for everyone.

I was not married and hauling mostly local when I first got into it. Started going OTR the road more and more as time progress. Started out with just a few days,.. then sometimes a week to 2 weeks at a time. When your young,.. I was 26 at the time with 2 babies at home,.. 1 yr old and a 3 yr old. Being away from my wife and kids like that, plus missing out on social time with my buddies really took its toll on me.

So I understand 100% where you are coming from. I love trucking,. I am good at it,.. always had been. But its not for a man who loves to be with his family or needs more social interaction with close friends. Unless you can score a well paying gig where you are home each night and not working 16 hours a day 6 days a week to do it,.. your best bet is to find another line of work.

It can be done. I always had a knack for anything mechanical. I was transporting a lot of construction equipment and doing heavy moves at the time. So when an offer came my way to get on with a site development company,.. I jumped on it. It wasnt long there after than I landed in with the Teamsters local 77 and I was doing really well by then.

So you dont have to be educated or the smartest guy out here to be able to provide for your family. Just keep a level head and figure out what you really like doing and you will be just fine. When you enjoy what your doing and like going to work every day it makes your life a whole lot easier. If you hate your job,.. then you end up as one miserable schmuck.

Hurst

 

Is there any such thing as an 8 hour per day local driving job? Kind of hard to go to school if you're expected to run 12-14 hour days.

 

Yup. Mine.

 

I don't get it, you hate it but then you still want to work in it?

Seriously, why are you ranting about you leaving?

 

In `99 I was working at an LTL company that I really liked. Out of the blue they sold us to Old Dominion, who in turn did not pick up anybody's options, unless you wanted to work the dock 4-hours a day, 2-days a week... Completely soured, I turned to another LTL company. But my dad said to me, the trucking industry is crap, and soon this company too will sell you out, and you will be on the road again! He offered to pay for me to go to school, so I left trucking in 2000. 17-years later, with school completed, and tiring of my desk job, I am answering a call to come back to the industry that was not very kind to me. You can remove yourself from trucking, but you cannot escape the trucker in you! Whatever you do, do not let your CDL go away... like most any divorce, it is "cheaper to keep her" Getting away is good. Also, getting a third person view of the industry will help you set a better path, should you want to return...

 

I'm looking into doing the same.
I hate the Hours of Service, wish I had more freedom to work how I wanted.
I hate that I make less money than a rookie in the 90s.
I hate being governed to 65... Being packed with the idiots and not being able to pass them.
Hate having my pay and earning potential capped by the government (hos) and company (speed limit)
Hate all the intrusion and harassment towards us in the industry. Hate rude ### garbage you have do deal with at pu/del.
Etc....

I hope you're able to do something else, I'm planning for an exit as well. If I could drive 72-78mph 40-47cpm with hos being a guideline not the law. This would be the best job in the world. I'll be doing 850-1000 miles a day safely (as long as weather permits) because $350+ a day average makes for a juicy living

 

Move to Colorado and grow pot.