Why do most owner operators fail?

Heard a driver say the other day to make money you have to drive 70+ and NOT use your cruise so you will get better fuel mileage. Old school I suppose

 

How many miles you average each week?

 

Now that right there is funny. Must be why I've lost 20 lbs since being on the truck regular. PS: better glasses prescription makes it easier to spot those turn-offs before the last minute. Just sayin'...



My truck is months away from an in-frame and is gutless when hitting a hill at < 65 mph. It'll hold speed decently at 70 and I usually run that if speed limit and traffic cooperates. Otherwise it's a roller coaster ride. I do admit to not being in a hurry leaving stops, esp when heavy. People behind me probably have time to read the paper when I move out LOL. I generally don't abuse my equipment, even when I'm not trying to squeeze a few more months out before a major shop visit. Better mileage is a bonus.

I doubt going faster would net an extra load for me. In order to do that I'd have to prebook all the time. On the spot market prebook == cheap. So not worth the higher road speeds for my operation. Besides I'm too lazy to run that hard anyway.

 

Driving fast to get that "extra load" is what those drivers believe when they don't use common sense and basic math skills. Your only burning what could have been profit. But hey your passing people

 

OK, so I am beginning to see the disconnect here. $6k on 4k miles?! Are you kidding me? That 4, 000 miles was 2-weeks worth of driving for me. For me it is about working smarter and not harder. You keep you $1.50 per mile, racing form customer to customer, poor fuel economy, high repair bills, etc. I couldn't afford to run at that rate with my fuel economy.

 

It's alot like a newlywed couple. They want to start out where mom and dad r at. With the nice rides,big tv,leather furn,big house and all the toys. Same as alot of want to be O/O. They see alot of seasoned O/O in the nice rides and that's what they want. But they did'nt see that same guy yrs ago in the first old cabover he could afford and keep together while he learned all the skills it would take to make it in this business for the long haul.

 

Snowwy.

I run three trucks. They average 3000/week. I also do the fuel tax reporting and I know exactly what these trucks have been averaging in fuel, this over the last 10 years. . These trucks are not speed restricted other than the drivers foot.

We do less than full load, so the drivers do need to scoot from time to time in order to get the last pick up , or the alternative is having to stay put and wait until the next morning, they may have another 3 /4 hours left to put on their log.

When not required to hurry up the drivers prefer to cruise at around 67 mph. Our Pete with the Cat engine needs to run a little faster through the mountains in PA and Upstate New York. We save a great deal in fuel this way.

In your earlier post you state that you earn $4000.00 more a month in profit this way. You are mistaken here in that what you earn is $4000.00 more in Gross revenue.

As in my earlier post , you are spending $1000.00 more a week in fuel , that equates to your $4000.00 in gross revenue.
You must add to this the added stress on the truck for working harder as well , opening yourself up to speeding violations ( where operating above the limit) and a greater chance of having an accident.

 

Hows Tn Bill. Things doing good there for ya . RW

 

P

You should hear some of the stories lol.. Hey you ought to consider trading or parking the reefer for a van and doing some research on the dry van around you. If you're going to be full time driver for the time being. I don't know how Shorthaul reefer works or if it is lucrative but I could give you some scoop on how I operate and how things fall into place sometime. Preplanning doesn't have to be cheap it takes a long time to see what works, what doesn't, networking with local contacts etc.

 

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