What is the cpm you would want for this type of work?

Pipe 40, it pretty much has 3-5/day, all year. The contingency I have in effect would be to not have to have any one person run more than 3/day. More can be done, but I'd rather play it by ear and have someone designed to pick up at least 1 and possibly 2 loads if necessary. My friend can do 5 where he is, but it's a slightly different setup so can't directly compare. The point is just 2 day cabs and access to a rental in an emergency for the 3rd to go with up to 4 trailers would be all that is required...to cover every contingency imaginable. The good thing is that all of that cost to pay and make plans for adding/maintaining current and additional eqpt seems to be in place. And as you say, you can always give yourself another 10% just to be safe and reasonable.

Just was curious if people would run toward or away from prices at $170-200? I know going in what the margins are, but see everyone has such a varied opinion on what even maintenance and fuel costs would be...those are the two, and only two, costs that seem to have wildly different estimates (probably all my fault as I wasn't particular specific that it was nearly all interstate highway driving). It's so different than OTR as a business model, but not really as it is still all highway. If I cleared it up, maybe it makes more sense...if not, I'd like to hear it also.

 

That is great...but I don't make that and can't find work to get 130,000 miles/year consistently as you can. And there is no way I would even get close to $75k salary as you can pull. The numbers for this project work for me at 5mpg, and if I were to get 5.5mpg, that would put me over the top.

Monthly, you drive 10,800 miles and get 1.43cpm for a total gross of $15,432/month...this is for everything.
Monthly, I'd drive 11,440 miles and get 1.68cpm for a total gross of $19,240/month...again, for everything. (This is calculated at $185/load)
$3,808 difference, with that much more for me monthly

Even if you were to get 7mpg on every single one of you 10,800 miles (which you definitely don't as you do some 'local' work, you use 1,543 gal of diesel. I just calculated your actual fuel mileage. I suppose your short trips do catch up with you. If $7478.20 was paid at an avg $3.75 last year, you used 2021 gal of diesel, only getting 5.34 overall. You probably paid less so your actual fuel usage is even higher. You may want to consider limiting idling and getting an APU...but still, considering all other things, you are still doing fine.

And if I only get 5mpg, over 11,440 miles (2,288 gal of diesel)...I use only 267 gallons more keeping your numbers. Even if diesel is $3.75/gallon in the future, that is just $1,000 more in fuel costs for me.

So the $3,808 monthly I make more than you is now only $2,808. Do you see how I tried to give myself as terrible numbers as possible? Our overall mileage is almost identical, but, here is the question: Are my maintenance costs going to be that much more than yours per month??? If you breakdown, do you have a second rig ready as I would that is less than 50 miles away from me at all times? Do you get paid when you are not on the road waiting for repairs in BFE who knows where waiting for a mechanic?

Plus, that $2,808/month, if I multiply by 12 months, gives me $33,696, just the amount I need to hire someone as I joked above to work 2 loads/day for 6 months out of the year, and 2 months completely outright as I am off on vacation. You are actually making the case for this stronger if you go strictly by these numbers. Of course, I am skeptical and would never leave something unattended for so long but the numbers are correct as I hope you will verify. Plus, I would get the same exact salary as you...but work 'local', never doing more than 3 loads/day for only 10 months out of the year for what you earn in 12.

Even if things are tighter as I anticipate, I can see how my friend is doing well now.

Shoot me down on this, please. I may have missed something here.

Here is the big difference:
you are calculating your truck expenses at $0.86 cpm
I am trying to handicap myself in every way to assume my truck costs will be over $1.09. Do you really think it can even get that high? I don't think so either, even if registering/insuring another truck, that may add $15,000/year for that and maintenance care for an idled truck, and that would almost get me to $0.97cpm.

Total cpm is 1.68...but it's for more miles than you on top of that.
your cpm 1.43, 0.57 for salary.
my cpm is always 1.68, but if the truck exp is 1.09, it is still 0.59 for salary, the same as you for even more miles...and that is worst case.


Even at $1.09 cpm ($150k for expenses alone, no salary), I am still doing pretty great, clearing $80k salary
But at only $0.97, I am doing an even $100k salary
If my cpm is actually like yours because the big issue of gas mileage is moot as you get the same as me, at $0.86 cpm, I make $113k per year salary. This is close to what my friend makes doing this. And I can see how he can generate enough cash to want to expand.

MNDriver, confirm this yourself...your mileage, your cpm, my cpm, the cost of me having an idled truck nearby and whether repairs slow you down/leave you stranded and scrambling. Plus, it's home every night. Every day, I am in town...my town, being able to control spending because I am in my own place cooking if I want to...or having some girl cooking for me. That alone has to be worth something, right?

 

There is so much there, I have to take it piece by piece. 365 days * (6 out of 7 days) = 313 days/year working

I expect better than 5mpg, but I'll take it and say gas is $85/load right there also. Diesel yearly will still be $106,000 this way...not going to change much

I know what you are saying, but it still comes out the same with a little variance because we are rounding monthly and daily. Buying an extra day cab: a $1,00/month for a 2010 seems reasonable, including insurance? That can be financed. I no longer need IRP and IFTA for all around the country so that lowers it just a little.

The fixation on hauling loads is simple: people don't think they are 'there' in terms of numbers. They are. End of that discussion. But the loads is where you earn pay and I don't think anybody should accept anything similar to this without some provision for that, etc...or a minimum monthly even if you don't pull enough. Easy.

Where do you get the $135?:
Daily Fixed cost * profit margin + $135 per load per day
($85 for gas?, $50 salary? or something like that)

313 days working
Fixed cost should be $55,000 for the year (for 2 newer day cabs with payments, maintenance (1 truck mostly idled), all insurances, permits, licenses)

$55k/313days = $176
$135*4 loads = $540
$716 not including profit margins of 10% = $788

That is at $179/load right there exactly...10% profit puts it at $197/load for you. Alright, good to know. Now is that a "####, I'm going to jump on that" or a "I like what I'm doing right now" type of price???

$50/load salary * 4 load/day average * 313 days = $62,600
$17.90 profit/load * 1248 loads = $22,340

Total is $85,000 for the year in salary/profit...so that is what you would need to make it worth your while then? More or less?

 

Oh ok, it's just I think someone else suggested to put 10% in an earlier post. If you want to put down 40%, you are up to charging $250/load + $176 daily fixed expenses (averages to $294/load then)...about $1176/day * 313 days = $368,000/year. Ok, so you would need to have a salary of $207,000 to do this. For that, ####, I wouldn't even drive at all and just hire two part-time drivers for the whole thing and live full-time in Costa Rica. I can see with big margins like that, why these contracts don't come around too much. Everybody wants a turn-key million dollar operation with no risk or effort...just give me the biggest check I ever made. If everyone was throwing those around... It just comes off to me like the person that is on welfare that doesn't want to work unless she gets a company car and $60,000/year...with no skills needed. If I got the contract you stated, I guarantee you I would not work a day of it. I'd sign some papers and be on the first flight out looking for vacation homes. I'd be slightly surprised if you wouldn't do the same.
People keep talking about more people with fingers in the pie...this is the perfect example of it. I'd be one of them.

 

I'm just surprised how many people would need to get triple their normal salary to work the same or less hours than they are doing now...and enjoying it due to lifestyle considerations. To each his or her own. I could get by doing $80k+...the plus depending on how much I want to work.
Doing this opens doors for other things is the way I see it. It's more than just a job at this point.