What are some mistakes or blunders you've made as a newbie?

I had to go through a smaller town and didnt notice a bridge,and with enough time i noticed it was a low bridge
Well it was around 5pm with traffic and i wouldnt budge and had 29 cars behind me and i couldn't back up if i could.
I called the city police and when they got there and was very rude,but after pointed out there was no sign(somebody tore down the sign)
Well the two police squad cars had the cars go around me and after 1-2 hours they blocked off the streets and motion me to back out and hit the other exit.
Btw the height sign was on the other side(sigh).
God i need a trucker gps that has height bridges.
But the funny thing(not really) another truck came through just as i got turned around and went right through it and it caught the top of the van and it peeled the top off like a sardine can.
They said it happens 3-4 times a year
Just wonder since the sighn was on his side what hapened to him??

It all worked out for me and like i said i will make sure these over passes are at a correct height (lol)

 

At a paper roll plant in Springfield OR, Qualcomm said pickup trailer number 43501 for delivery in Seattle. So I grabbed trailer 45501 and headed north..... Discovered the mistake at MM57 on I-5. 45501 was to deliver in Portland, OR. Well, at least it wasn't going to LA.

Oh and both were 4 axle trailers... which only start with 453 or 455....

 

we was at a Loading dock in Northern,Ca & I had just woken up ((( Sleeping in the passenger Seat )))..... after we were loaded.....my partner told me teh pull forward & closed the doors.....i pulled out of the loading dock with the wheel chok still under the trailer.....the chain came outtah the wall ((( it Happened at Nighttime ))).....i knew i was sapposed teh check it....but i thought my trainer removed it from under the trailer because i saw him goin back there,but it was for sumthin else....so it was a misunderstanding right there.....

i told myself i shouldah went back there and double checked .....

 

Don't remember where it was but I pulled in and dropped my trl and started hunting for the one I was picking up, found it and hooked it and headed to the gate the guard said "didn't you just bring this one in?" DOH!!

 

ins gurus say most accidents happen w/in 25 mis. Of hom e..go figure?

 

TRY THIS ON FOR SIZE.WE HAD A DRIVER GO PICK UP A PRELOADED WAGON..IT WAS BACKED INTO SHIPPERS DOCK WHERE THEY LOADED AND SHUT DOORS,PUT ON SEAL.HE FOUND THE RIGHT TRAILER NUMBER, HOOKED UP FOUND THE CORRECT BILLS,CHECKED THE SEAL NUMBERS ON BILLS AGAINST WAGON, AND PUT 'ER IN THE WIND..HIS TRUCK HAD JUST CAME OUT OF THE SHOP WHERE THEY HAD DONE AN OVERHEAD..HE HAD BEEN OFF FOR A WEEK, SO HE WAS HOT TO TROT..HE RAN ALL NIGHT WHEN ORDINARILY OUR OTHER DRIVERS WHO PICKED UP THOSE LOADS WOULD HAVE HOOKED AND MAYBE RAN 100 MILES..HIS CELL PHONE STARTED RINGING ABOUT 08:00..NOW, REMEMBER, HES DONE EVERYTHING RIGHT,EXCEPT THAT HE GAMBLED ON THE (CANDY) LOAD BEING LEGAL SO HE DID'NT SCALE OUT. THE SHIPPER PUT THE WRONG SEAL ON AN EMPTY TRAILER...THE LOAD ACCORDING TO THE BILLS WOULD HAVE BEEN IN THE 44K RANGE (REEFER FREIGHT)..OWNER ASKED HIM IF HE DID'NT NOTICE HIS TRUCK WAS PULLING HILLS EXCEPTIONALLY WELL AND HE SAID "SURE NUFF,i THOUGHT SHOP DID A HECK OF AN OVERHEAD"..YA'LL ABOUT KNOW THE "REST OF THE STORY"..
Same driver different issue. He picked up a pre-loaded wagon, went to weigh her out...She scaled on the money..Hes tired , so he decides to catch 40 winks..its dusky-dark , so he heads for the back of the lot..He makes a round through, sees a hole and does a quick u-ie so as not to blind side and heads for his hole..He backs her in next to a car hauler and gets about 2/3 rds in an she stops. He figures he hit a rock or a piece of timber that dropped off a flatbed, so he pulls forward and gives her the gas backing up..He got a little further, but not much, so he figures hes pushing whatever was holding him up , so he goes for round three. Just as he slammed a brand new Silverado, the driver of the car carrier appears in another new Chevy Pickup..He was rearranging his load on the back row, left the P/U next to his wagon, took another P/U and went to fuel desk...OOPSY?

 

Well me count the how many i had in trucking life, theres too many, every day you get up , you face anthor one, like when i got load out mich going too wis greenhouse , i got too wi, got too the town looking for a greenhouse , nope, called him up , it was outa town on his old dairy farm in the hills, o- great i just said, pulled up in front the farm, he meets at the gate, first thing i lern in trucking is too walk the route , you want the truck too go,this driveway was qauter mile long and windes around this way and that way down to the barn weres he wants this load of mulch, okay this a dirt drive with 2 foot dicth on both sides barely wide enuff for my tractor-trl, so i pull forward , now this drive entrance was also was on the corner of the hyway,so that mean im going over a crest , cause the hyway slopes down the wroung way , i was backing over the hi side of the crest, well i got it going line up my tadem got the rear of trl in drive , o-o got stuck almost the landing gear hits the crest of the road, o- ch*******t i said i just gunn it hope for the best, and popped loose, but not with big gouge marks in the roadway, i wind this way and that way , i never seen a steering wheel turn so fast right down right too barn,he said too that was mighty fine driving, now can can you help me unload it, i just looked at him and wanted too bop him on his bald head, i got it in there, its your problem now, i went check my landing pads i bent a corner up on , told trl shop about, says it happens all time when drivers go there, i told him well im not too happy about it , i know he told me , you only that care of your truck ,trls, even my truck was old it was always wash up and clean inside out and i dont like anyboby near it , and what i mean by that i wacth a guy tinkle all over it, by right flaring one night at 2 am , i wacthed him in the mirror,that made me mad,the time i got dressed he was gone.

 

Should have really scared him and not bothered to dress .......just kick his butt bare naked!

 

In my first year i was making a RH turn and did'nt check my mirror and caught another truck with the rear of my trl. that was a 15k dollar oopps.

another time i had got loaded and scaled out the load at the shippers property then proceded on my merry way, about 200 miles down the road i hit the brakes a little stiff and the trl. tandems attempted to come out from underneath the trl. forgot to lock them in. that was a inhouse repair as far as i now after the intial temp. fix at 6oo. it was a older trl. i wonder if they just turned it into storage. ?

 

for 14 yrs I was a 100 hundred mile radius driver.No log book,just a daily time record
we never filled out Saturdays or Sundays in it
hit the Ga scales,they was checking log books and guess what?
I forgot to fill out sat and sun
no ticket but they shut me down for 10 hours behind the Ga weigh station

they also had to explain to me how to fill out a log book because they had found a violation from the week before.I was never taught nor did I ever try to learn how to really fill one out.Now I know