Truckers, lets see your rigs!

BRE said:
We had a falling out and I'm tired of the business side of trucking. I'm essentially not cut out for it because I don't like being that puppet on the end of the string.

I love trucks.., boy do I love trucks. Love driving as well, but I can't be that guy anymore. Had to make a decision and after sleepless nights and hard hard decisions I decided it's probably best for me to give up what I love.
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I am not sure what you mean being a puppet? I do know the business side of trucking well. I also know what it costs to have nice shiny iron and fancy trailers. Trucks need to run close to 6 days a week, it helps off set the fixed cost of the equipment. Meaning the cost of ownership ie payments repairs, there is also above and beyond that insurance, plates and administrative costs per truck operated. Trucking is a lifestyle not a job, until you are ready to give up your Saturdays and some Sundays it isn't the life for you.

On a different note I just picked up this 2013 Reitnouer step, I love the built in strobes and flag holders for doing oversize loads.
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6.4 F-350 said:
I am not sure what you mean being a puppet? I do know the business side of trucking well. I also know what it costs to have nice shiny iron and fancy trailers. Trucks need to run close to 6 days a week, it helps off set the fixed cost of the equipment. Meaning the cost of ownership ie payments repairs, there is also above and beyond that insurance, plates and administrative costs per truck operated. Trucking is a lifestyle not a job, until you are ready to give up your Saturdays and some Sundays it isn't the life for you.



On a different note I just picked up this 2013 Reitnouer step, I love the built in strobes and flag holders for doing oversize loads.

89B101D2-5CBD-44DD-B0CE-76907C109C82.jpg


452777A5-3C50-46A7-92B4-4D055ADD14B0.jpg
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Straight out of Birdsboro PA! I had to wait in line for lunch behind the entire Reitnour assembly team yesterday.

And I'm willing to bet Rick is probably sick of getting pushed to run WAY over hours. I know I get snaps all times of day from him. Puts a lot at risk...


Sent from my flashscan v2
 
BRE said:
We had a falling out and I'm tired of the business side of trucking. I'm essentially not cut out for it because I don't like being that puppet on the end of the string.

I love trucks.., boy do I love trucks. Love driving as well, but I can't be that guy anymore. Had to make a decision and after sleepless nights and hard hard decisions I decided it's probably best for me to give up what I love.
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Like I said the other day it's not so much the trucking part, it's the type of work you're doing. Pulling hopper makes me yank my hair out unless you're doing local and even then it's a never ending rat race to be first in line so you can get that extra load. Personally I'm an open road kind of guy, load the wagon and don't stop for 1200 miles which is why I like what I'm doing now. 8-10 days out and 5-5400 miles, 4 days home and I can fill in local runs and be home every night and then head out again. But there still is no set schedule, sometimes I end up being out for 3 weeks straight. That's just trucking. Always has been since I was a little kid waiting on my dad to get home. Whenever you stop, you sleep, even if it's only 30 minutes cause that might have to last you another 24hrs.
 
will24 said:
Straight out of Birdsboro PA! I had to wait in line for lunch behind the entire Reitnour assembly team yesterday.

And I'm willing to bet Rick is probably sick of getting pushed to run WAY over hours. I know I get snaps all times of day from him. Puts a lot at risk...


Sent from my flashscan v2
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That's no joke!! He's a snapping M-fer!!:hehe: but that sucks to hear Rick! Good luck on the journey after this.
 
I'm not trying to make myself look like I was doing anything outta the norm. Like I said, I'm no hero that's done things every other driver hasn't. I'm just simply not cut out for it.

Sunday broke the straw that was being stressed. I was off Saturday about noon, told to start again Monday morning. When I got hung up on because I wouldn't stop what I was doing with friends from several 100's of miles outta town staying at my house to go deliver his load... It broke that straw.
I've gave up my weekends, missed alota things, and that's fine. I'm telling you, you'll be damn hard pressed to find someone that likes trucks and trucking more than me. I'm tired of not sleeping and being told a load is in severe need of getting there after I had to wait hours upon hours to get loaded with it, and drive all night long after I'd been up all day... Just to get it there and find out they won't even take it yet. I'm tired of the truck I was running, keeping 2 other trucks afloat while the boss took week long vacations, while I would get 1 day off or be home 3-4 days every other week. Etc etc etc.

Not looking for anyone to think I've done anything special and think I've just been totally screwed over or whatever, it just simply doesn't work for me.

Also went from being friends with my boss, to him flipping a switch and turning into the largest prick I've ever had the pleasure of talking to when I quit.

On edit: driving 15 hrs a day on average, sleeping 5-6, was never what I signed on for, or the days where I had been up for over 24 hrs straight. No thanks. I'd had enough of being the hero.
 
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lorendiesel5.9 said:
I could probably do long distance hoppering work like you did but fvck local work. Running 3 or 4 or 9 loads a day into the same place is absolutely horse dooky.
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2-3 loads a day is fairly normal around here for local hopper, depends on which elevator you end up at as well.

Dad took a break from that and is pulling a fertilizer tender trailer while its booming right now, crazy hours for someone that is 63 but hasn't drove more than 100 miles a day since starting it, truck gets paid by the hour.
 
will24 said:
Straight out of Birdsboro PA! I had to wait in line for lunch behind the entire Reitnour assembly team yesterday.

And I'm willing to bet Rick is probably sick of getting pushed to run WAY over hours. I know I get snaps all times of day from him. Puts a lot at risk...


Sent from my flashscan v2
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I have always wanted to go tour the facility, I was told by Bud Reitnouer that they would walk anyone around the facility that owns one of their wagons. I agree that running compliant is a very important thing these days, I wouldn't ask any of my drivers to do anything over hours or weight. Running local work is a tough gig and not a easy life, IMHO it's a ton harder than long haul.
 
lorendiesel5.9 said:
I could probably do long distance hoppering work like you did but fvck local work. Running 3 or 4 or 9 loads a day into the same place is absolutely horse dooky.
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Yeah it was an unload/reload once a day mostly, drive 7-800 miles and repeat, not a bad gig.


I love where I work now because I bust ass for 14 days at the beginning of the month, then I go home and get the rest of the month off. With the regional hauls I was doing pulling hoppers, some weeks I'd have a pretty easy 3000 miles and it was good, some weeks I'd fight for 2000 because of load issues, truck issues, etc.......that's just truckin. In the spring it was bad, I'd be out two weeks at a time turning 4500+ miles per week tearing my hair out trying to make a book look legal among all the other crap.....in a lot of ways I miss it, and in a lot of ways I don't. The only thing that will get me out of a truck is if a spot comes open with the Idaho state police, a total 180* change in careers, but its something I've always wanted to do
 
SmokinCAT said:
2-3 loads a day is fairly normal around here for local hopper, depends on which elevator you end up at as well.
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We're preparing to go down to Kansas for the wheat harvest again this year in June and while I as a driver make decent money working 5am to 11pm 3 weeks straight 7 days a week it gets old really fast. On an excellent day you can get as many as 15 loads to the elevator.

6.4 F-350 said:
I agree that running compliant is a very important thing these days, I wouldn't ask any of my drivers to do anything over hours or weight. Running local work is a tough gig and not a easy life, IMHO it's a ton harder than long haul.
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My boss just says if you do run over hours don't tell me about it cause I want deniability lol but he won't force me to do it. It's my choice of getting home every weekend or running legal and being gone every other weekend.

4x4dually said:
Can I get a gooseneck version of this please. :)

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It's called Crossman trailers. Built just like big truck with matching price tag.

Mr.T said:
Yeah it was an unload/reload once a day mostly, drive 7-800 miles and repeat, not a bad gig.


I love where I work now because I bust ass for 14 days at the beginning of the month, then I go home and get the rest of the month off. With the regional hauls I was doing pulling hoppers, some weeks I'd have a pretty easy 3000 miles and it was good, some weeks I'd fight for 2000 because of load issues, truck issues, etc.......that's just truckin. In the spring it was bad, I'd be out two weeks at a time turning 4500+ miles per week tearing my hair out trying to make a book look legal among all the other crap.....in a lot of ways I miss it, and in a lot of ways I don't. The only thing that will get me out of a truck is if a spot comes open with the Idaho state police, a total 180* change in careers, but its something I've always wanted to do
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Like I said 10 days out 4 days home is perfect for me.
 
Typical schedule was leaving Sunday night/Monday morning and getting home Friday night, really only getting one full day off sucked, I couldn't go back to doing that
 
lorendiesel5.9 said:
We're preparing to go down to Kansas for the wheat harvest again this year in June and while I as a driver make decent money working 5am to 11pm 3 weeks straight 7 days a week it gets old really fast. On an excellent day you can get as many as 15 loads to the elevator.



My boss just says if you do run over hours don't tell me about it cause I want deniability lol but he won't force me to do it. It's my choice of getting home every weekend or running legal and being gone every other weekend.



It's called Crossman trailers. Built just like big truck with matching price tag.



Like I said 10 days out 4 days home is perfect for me.
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How long is your ride to the elevator, shortest one around is around 25 miles but has the worst wait usually then the rest are around 60 miles out.
 
SmokinCAT said:
How long is your ride to the elevator, shortest one around is around 25 miles but has the worst wait usually then the rest are around 60 miles out.
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Anywhere from 2 to 60 miles. And the unload time is less than 15 minutes. You don't even need to get out of your truck, they'll open and shut your trap doors for you and the scales are RFID tag operated.
 
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lorendiesel5.9 said:
Anywhere from 2 to 60 miles. And the unload time is less than 15 minutes. You don't even need to get out of your truck, they'll open and shut your trap doors for you and the scales are RFID tag operated.
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That's nice, most of the cargill plants are okay around here but some have turned into a total cluster.
 
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I don't even know how to run a log book legal!! Lol

If typically get home Saturday sometime, and leave Sunday night or early early Monday morning.

The last deal was getting home Saturday at noon. I was told to tell the plant that they wouldn't get their load till Monday, Sunday night, he calls and wants me to take that load...

Chit really hit the fan when I quit. They also classified my job as abandonment, threatened my paycheck, etc
 
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