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06-01-2008, 07:44 AM
| #1 |
| I wanna be Dave Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Cleveland, OH
Posts: 8,009
|  Adios, amigos!
Leaving for truck-driver school tomorrow morning, 5 a.m. (WTF, I thought this was supposed to be a cushy job?) All projects are cancelled or on indefinite hold. No time anymore. Andy's gonna build my Ute chassis, we'll probably see a Scout become a Chevy. I even cleaned off the workbench. That tub of Vaseline looks sort of lonely without 20 pounds of styrene chips, gooped-up M3 screws, and cut-off brakeline flares all around it. I'll stop in from time to time just to give a little  to those in need.So if you see an 18-wheeler sporting an RCC sticker out on the road, move the hell over, cuz I never drove one before!  |
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06-01-2008, 07:47 AM
| #2 |
| 2006 2.2 National Champ   Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Big Bear Lake
Posts: 8,328
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Good luck with the new venture Stu, don't be a stranger.  |
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06-01-2008, 08:16 AM
| #3 |
| Rock Crawler  Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Connellsville PA."fayettenam" lol
Posts: 739
| Big wheels keep on turnin'
Stu, Good luck with your new job. I hope that once you get the hang of it and figure out your schedule you may still find a little time to wrench  ....@ least I hope so. It's cool that you got to do the montana trip before this new job came about. Keep in touch and have a good one my friend |
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06-01-2008, 08:17 AM
| #4 |
| RCC Addict Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Eden Prairie, MN
Posts: 1,202
| Good luck with the 18 wheeler... I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Coincidently, I just drove my first 18 wheeler (around the LARGE lot at work) this week. Very interesting. It takes more skill than you would think. I pulled it out from the dock, drove around a few obsticles (another parked semi and other cars in the lot), drove in back to find a parking spot for the trailer, drove it to the other end of the yard cause all the normal spots were full, backed in the trailer (that was the hard part), disconnected the fifth wheel, drove around again looking for the next trailer, and then finally connected up to another trailer. Last edited by Cake Eater; 06-01-2008 at 08:32 AM. |
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06-01-2008, 08:29 AM
| #5 |
| RCC Addict  Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: On The Lake
Posts: 1,449
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Good luck, Stu! Watch out for those crazy 4 wheelers and nasty lot lizards |
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06-01-2008, 09:01 AM
| #6 |
| R.I.P. Chip  Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: The Crawler State
Posts: 13,938
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Day or so had passed when I popped the clutch, gave the tranny a spin and slid on into The Stinky Pinky Gulp N' Guzzle Big Rig Snooze-A-Stop. There I was browsin' through the latest issue of "Throb", when I saw Bambi starin' at me from the back of a milk carton. Well, my heart just dropped. So, I decided to do what any good Christian would. You can not imagine how difficult it is to hold a half gallon of moo juice and polish the one-eyed gopher when your doin' seventy-five in an eighteen-wheeler. I never thought missing children could be so sexy. Did I say that out loud? |
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06-01-2008, 09:03 AM
| #7 | |
| MODERHATER™  Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Colorado
Posts: 10,939
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LOL!!!! Take care Stu! Keep an eye out for Bambi! | |
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06-01-2008, 09:03 AM
| #8 |
| Quarry Creeper Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Rats nest Grafton ND
Posts: 381
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Truck driving school that has got to be the funnist thing ever. I can't say it is a cushy job. 70 hrs a week gets to be some long hours since you will use them up in 5 days for the most part. Bach when fuel was not as expensive I had my own tractor and trailer. Had to give them up when fuel started skyrocketing. Now I drive for another company. My time with this company may be short lived unless they get me into a rig that doesn't break down all the time. So don't get behind the wheel of a Volvo or a Freightshaker as them things are utter junk and do nothing but leave parts along the side of the road. You will be sitting more then moving and this means you will not be making any money. |
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06-01-2008, 09:17 AM
| #9 |
| MODERHATER™ Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Colorado
Posts: 10,939
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06-01-2008, 09:21 AM
| #10 | |
| I wanna be Dave  Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Under the 4444
Posts: 2,345
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06-01-2008, 09:21 AM
| #11 | |
| RCC Addict Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: On The Lake
Posts: 1,449
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06-01-2008, 09:24 AM
| #12 |
| I wanna be Dave Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: In Cali.
Posts: 4,109
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There is plenty of room in the back of those big rigs for a build area. A buddy has his Dyno and comm lathe set-up and stops at tracks on the weekends to race through out the country. That Vaseline container can trek with you!! Good luck with the new job. Hope all goes well! Keep it between the line and watch out for those low clearance signs. |
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06-01-2008, 10:57 AM
| #13 |
| Quarry Creeper Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Rats nest Grafton ND
Posts: 381
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Yeap, the HOS rules are actually killing me for what I am currently doing. This is usually how one trip starts out. Leave home and drive 4 hours to a grower, Wait till morning when he can start loading me. Drive for 4 or 5 hours to the production plant and wait 3 hours to unload. I then have to try and get back to the grower to get loaded again in the morning. This is not an easy thing to do with the 14 hour rule. Since your clock starts ticking the min you turn the key and you can't stop it unless you take an 8 hour berth break. That and there is no real way to split the berth time anymore so you can actually get somewere the next day. No more stopping for lunch anymore. Have a headack and need to lay down for a few hours. Forget it unless you don't need to be somewere the next day. One of my biggest complaints is that in our state we have a 75 mph speedlimit on all interstate highways and a 65 mph speedlimit on all state roads. The company insists on casterating the trucks down to 60 mph. The rig I currently run gets the same fuel economy no matter how fast I drive with a load on. It used to go 77.8 GPS mph but not any more. Now I can't safely pass anyone or any slower moving vehicals without having a 2 or 3 mile window of opportunity. They also have many POS volvos old and new and they can't make a week without needing to be in the shop. They won't buy anything with a hood on them anymore because some of the idiot drivers they had could not judge distance and get bashing the hoods in on the w900s and 379s. The good thing is the big boss says he can't afford to loose any drivers and is begging for drivers. Especially drivers that can enter Canada. So my request is in for a truck with a hood on it. A newer trailer with a wider spread and longer bridge and a pusher axle on the tractor so I can leagally haul 60,000+ in the box. These are the trailer we pull but they have tripples on them and domed tops with heaters in them to keep the product from freezing in the winter time. http://www.trinitytrailer.com/ I haul raw potatoes to a plant in South Central ND that makes all of the Wendys french fries along with makeing fries for other franchises such as Burger King etc. |
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06-01-2008, 11:24 AM
| #14 |
| I wanna be Dave  Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Happiness is a warm AK.
Posts: 12,563
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Good luck Stu, keep it shiny side up! |
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06-01-2008, 11:24 AM
| #15 |
| Adilynsdad too!   Join Date: May 2004 Location: G ville
Posts: 8,844
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If while on the open road you happen to run across some kids that look like me don't mention my name and don't tell me about it!
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06-01-2008, 12:14 PM
| #16 |
| I wanna be Dave  Join Date: May 2006 Location: HONDURAS...ROCK HEAVEN
Posts: 5,076
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MG, good luck with this new chapter in your life, try to make some time and check on us, i for one will surely miss so many projects of yours and your witty comments and fine sense of scaleness |
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06-01-2008, 12:44 PM
| #17 | ||||
| I wanna be Dave Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Cleveland, OH
Posts: 8,009
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06-01-2008, 02:27 PM
| #18 | |
| RCC Addict Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: On The Lake
Posts: 1,449
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06-01-2008, 03:35 PM
| #19 |
| Quarry Creeper Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: um, Houston?
Posts: 361
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I planned to drive trucks long enough to pay off bills and save some money...that was 15 years and more than 1.5 million miles ago (95% daycab miles...much harder on the body). Don't let the "truckers" pollute your mind about other companies, especially the big companies. I worked for JB Hunt on a dedicated fleet (home every day) for 6 years. It's a good company, and their dedicated fleets are growing. I only left because of the 100 mile daily commute in my car. I'd still be there if the yard was closer to home. Be a driver, not a trucker. You'll learn the difference over time. Good Luck! |
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06-01-2008, 03:57 PM
| #20 |
| RCC Addict Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: On The Lake
Posts: 1,449
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No difference between a "trucker" and a "driver". I, too have been a "truck driver" for almost 15 years. I've worked for big and small companies. A big company is great if you want to be treated like a warm body, or as others would say... a number. I work for a small company (3 trucks) now and have for the last 4 years. Big companies give you enough training to throw you out there well before most "truck drivers" are ready. I can't remember how many times I've had to help a big company truck driver chain his truck up. I used to pull a super-b flatbed and was up on Lolo Pass (US 12, Montana/Idaho border) one winter chaining up my truck, with 2 sets of 3 railers on my drives and one set of drags on my lead and one set of drags on my pup, and I had a Swift driver stop at the chain-up area and ask me to show him how to chain his truck up. He said his trainer never showed him  Having been a long haul truck driver for most of my career, I can say with confidence that the big companies don't offer adequate training, and they generally don't give a crap about their employees.Stu, if you signed a contract with one of the big companies, the best advice I can offer you is to stay long enough to fulfill your contract and then look for a smaller company... I think you'll find that you'll be much happier doing that |
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