Decembers in Hawaii are much like Spring days in Florida. Warm ocean breezes. Swaying palm trees. Tourist roasting in the hot sun. Lazy easy going times.

This December Sunday started off the same as every other Sunday in the Island state. In Pearl Harbor was moored the American Pacific Fleet.

Life aboard every ship there was beginning the same as it had every Sunday before. Sailors and Marines alike where waking up some headed toward the Mess-deck some toward a Church service others moaned and groaned about the pain in their throbbing heads after drinking all night before.
A few Sailors and Marines are headed to their appointed duties. Some are sweeping the deck some are Standing watch on the Quarterdeck.Others assume duties that keep the ship ready to leave or get underway at a moments notice.

Every day every ship performs “Colors” it is the raising of our nations flag with honor.
On-board the bigger ships the beginnings of every day in port started with “Colors” and a small orchestral accompaniment playing our Nation’s Anthem ( I hope you know what our Nation’s Anthem is).

Now all the men on all the ships looked toward one ship which was appointed as the leader in “Colors”. Each man waited and watched for the ‘Color Guard’ on the appointed ship to begin the ceremony so that all the ships began and ended at the same time…such is the life aboard Navy ships in America.

The ‘Color Guard’ aboard the appointed ship looked to the Navel base an it’s ‘Color Guard’ to begin its Ceremony.
Now when all this is done correctly its a beautiful thing to behold, especially for those who believe in freedom and love the country that provides that freedom and believes God protects that country.

At the time the “Officer Of the Day” blows his whistle and then the flag is ran up it’s pole.The anthem is played and every person stops and turns toward the nearest flag being raised.They place the right hand over the heart and stand at attention if you are wearing a hat it is removed from the head and held over the heart by the right hand.If you can’t see a flag around you then you just stand at attention until the ceremony is complete. This is done Rain or Shine , Snow or Hurricane.
As I stated before it’s a thing of beauty when done right…When it ain’t its a train wreck and leaves one feeling in a bad-mood.Well that is if you care for Honor an Patriotism. If you don’t give a damn about such things you just continue your miserable existence pissed at the world for your own miserable life. 

I can’t say that this is still being done around Navy Bases anymore…I haven’t been on a Military base in many years now…I can only hope and pray that our Military honors this Honer and they instruct it’s volunteers on the meaning and importance for it all.

OK… On with the show.

According to my Grand-dad “Colors” aboard his ship was about over. He heard the low rumbling of hundreds of airplane engines growing ever closer. He thought “what in the hell is the Army up to”? (For those of you who don’t know there was no “Airforce” until after WW2. It was the”Army Aircorp” until then)
He heard the a few planes roar in just over head still he didn’t give it any more thought, until there were so many planes buzzing by he couldn’t hear when “Colors” ended. So he looked up expecting to see Army Aircorp emblems on the planes overhead, But there were none.

Instead the red circle of Japans rising sun adorned these planes. Still it wasn’t connecting to anyone what was about to unfold. They all stood there dumb founded at this strange site and audacity of foreign aircraft flying in American airspace.

My Grand dad and the men aboard his ship watched as the planes began to circle the harbor and a few dropped down close to the water flying in at about 30 feet and approaching from the entrance of the harbor. Some thing fell off the first plane into the water then the others that followed. At that time they heard the screaming of dive bombers and their deadly payload being unleashed.
It was like everyone was frozen in place. The first explosion tore a hole in it’s target and those who were frozen became thawed in a moment of terror.
Then the Torpedoes hit their intended.

Hell, now placed a bid on paradise.

“General Quarters” began ringing out across Pearl. Men and women dropped what they were doing an took up tasks they were trained to do.
Yes…they were all scared.
None knew how long this would last.No one knew if the next bomb or bullet would stop them.They did what was above and beyond the call.They sacrificed to save.

Aboard my Grand dad’s ship Small arms were being handed out and 50cal.Machine guns were put in place. Ammo loaded and instructions to fire at will given. The mooring lines holding the ship in place where cut and the ship eased away from her pier and headed into the fray.

Minutes became like hours.

The Captain of my Grand dad’s ship fully intended to risk life and ship to help those of the Main fleet under attack in Pearl.Each man knew he would want that done for him should he be trapped or injured and under fire.

Fire hoses were manned and the ship headed for a Battleship that was blazing in the morning sun, bellowing black clouds and fire into tropical air. As the little ship made way toward the bigger, the bow of the bigger ship was raised out of the water 20 feet and cleft in two as she took a bomb into her powder magazine. The rain of water from the explosion was like a monsoon. The heat from the explosion warped iron. The concussion knocked men from their feet and some went overboard into oil slick water. The “USS Arizona” is now all but a memory.

My Grand dad didn’t know how many planes they shot down if any at all. He didn’t know how many shots were fired. He didn’t know how many thousands of tons water his ship pumped to put out fires. I don’t believe he knew how many lives were lost. All he knew was his ship and it’s crew did what needed to be done even through fear of injury and loss of life.

I asked my Grand dad{I called him PAWPAW} did he receive a medal.

“Nope,…” he said as if almost offended that I should ask such a question, then he laughed and placed his huge hand on my nappy little head,

“PawPaws, …well…PawPaws don’t ask for medals”.

Now my Grandchildren call me “PawPaw”.   

As you are likely aware, there are easily tens of thousands of trucking companies nationwide. There are some as small as one truck and some that have tens of thousands of trucks. There are local, regional, and over the road companies, and some that are a combination of two or even all three. There are tanker, flat bed, reefer, dry van, dump, and a multitude of other types of trucks you can drive. There are companies that specialize in one type of truck, and some that have a combination of several different types.

So with all of these choices presented to you, how do you know where to go next with your career? To tell you the truth, it’s not that hard. Here are some of the key points we will be focusing on in this series that will help you choose the trucking company you would like to work for. Once you can answer these questions you will be able to narrow your choices down to a much smaller pool of trucking companies and then you can pick the one that seems right for you.

• How often would you like to get home?
• What areas of the country would you like to run in?
• What would you like your work duties and lifestyle to be like?
• What size company would you like to work for?

Let’s start this series by debunking a few myths and giving you some generalizations and insights into all trucking companies, the trucking industry in general, and you as a driver and what you can do to put yourself in the best position to be happy and successful. Without understanding these factors, all of the rest of the above questions will not help you be happy and successful at any company you choose.

The Elusive “Best Trucking Companies” and the Mythical “Perfect Trucking Company”

Let me make one important generalization first. There is no such thing as the “perfect company” or the “best company to work for”. To be more precise, you could label a company “the perfect company for me” or “the best company for me”, but there are no “best trucking companies” or “perfect trucking companies” for everyone. At times I have worked at companies that I would not have recommended to other drivers, but I absolutely loved working there! I really had it made! And then at other times, some of the best trucking companies I have ever worked for were just a nightmare for a small percentage of the other drivers. Why? There are a number of reasons for this.

The Trucking Industry Is Very Dynamic

For starters, trucking companies and the trucking industry itself is very dynamic and the competition is fierce - both within your own company and between the companies themselves.

Competition and Politics Within Each Trucking Company

Different Divisions Working Together, or at Times, Working Against Each Other

Trucking companies, especially the larger ones, are often times comprised of many different divisions that all must work together, but at times by nature must work against each other. For example, many companies have dispatchers and load planners. The load planners will generally decide, with some input from the dispatchers, which trucks get assigned to which loads. The dispatcher’s main job is to handle all communication with their drivers and convey information to the load planners about the driver. The dispatcher can “campaign” for certain loads for certain drivers. Maybe one driver has had 4 straight runs in the northeast, so he/she can let the load planner know that it’s time to give that driver a run to a different region. Or maybe a certain driver has been running really hard and isn’t feeling well, but can still handle a short run for the day. The dispatcher can let the load planner know this. As you can see from this example, the two divisions - dispatchers and load planners - must work together for the good of everyone.

On the other hand, you have the logbook department. Man, I cringe just saying “logbook department”. It’s like the principal’s office of the trucking world. You never just go there to say “hi” or see whassup. You go there knowing bad things are about to happen to you!

Anyhow, the drivers, dispatchers, and possibly the load planners - depending on the structure of the company - are mostly looking to get as many miles as possible. For some of them, that means cheating the logbook at times - many times for some drivers (innocent look on this writer’s face). So the logbook department by nature must keep the dispatchers and drivers in check. Even though the more miles you run the more money you’ll make, you still have to abide by the Federal Hours of Service Rules and so the logbook department must at times work against what the drivers and dispatchers would like to do.

Competition Within The Company

Most drivers get paid by the mile. So the more miles you run, the more money you make. Often times, dispatchers and load planners may get paid bonuses or commissions based on the number of miles their drivers are getting, or at least the efficiency at which their drivers are executing their loads. Things like on-time service and deadhead (empty) miles factor heavily into their final rating. So everyone is looking to make all the money they can make by generating the best statistics for themselves.

Well, this naturally breeds competition within a company. Dispatchers are jockeying for the best loads for their drivers and the load planners are trying to run things as efficiently as possible. In the meantime, drivers are pushing their dispatchers for the best loads they can get. Well, there are only so many “desirable” loads to go around - so who gets the best ones? It depends on a number of factors:

• Efficiency - the load planners want to keep the deadhead miles to a minimum
• Reliability - dispatchers and load planners want to make sure the hardest running, safest, and most efficient drivers get assigned the most important or most difficult freight so that the chances of on-time, safe service are as good as they can be
• Individual Driver Circumstances - They have to take into account how many hours a driver has available, how the driver is feeling, what types of loads the driver has been getting recently, and whether or not the driver is due for hometime soon, amongst other factors
• Politics - unfortunately this is one of the realities of truck driving - or life in any company. Whether or not the driver gets along with the dispatcher, and whether or not the dispatcher gets along with the load planners will be a factor in determining who gets what loads. Should this be a factor? Ideally, no. But it is. That’s the reality - and an important one. If you refuse to accept this reality based upon your ideals, then you’ll soon find out the hard way just where your ideals end and the realities of the job take over.

So as you can see from these few examples, competition, cooperation, and politics can play heavily into your success and happiness as a truck driver in any company. The next topic I will cover will discuss what the driver can do to help his/her chances of finding success and happiness within any company you may be working for, including how you will be affected by the people you surround yourself with, how important it is to get to know the right people, and the proper attitude and expectations a driver should have.

Any and all comments are very welcome and appreciated! If you’ll tell us what you think, we can improve our site and the content we produce for you! Thanks!

A cold December morning. Christmas card perfect. Dad and mom with two young boys on their way to visit Grandma an Grandpa. Mom has the map out, giving directions to dad as he navigates the family car toward a Christmas Day meal with all the fixin’s.

72,000 pound rig with a driver at the wheel who stayed a little too long at his Girlfriend’s home. He thinks of that special moment when he revealed his feelings toward her. He picks up the cellphone and begins tapping in her number, one call just to reassure her that he was being truthful and he would be thinking of her every moment this trip. His thumb presses the last number, but he never hears her answer.

On her end she hears a horn blowing. It’s kinda like in the distance, but it’s not the air-horn like on his rig. It’s more like that stupid car horn that is blown when he pushes that emblem in the center of the steering wheel. “How odd”, she thinks as she checks the number calling her. Yes…yes, it’s his number. Then she presses the phone back to her ear and hears him crying and saying over and over “God, noo…Ohhhh God, NNNOOOO!”

Yeah … I was there. I was Southbound. The family and the rig were Northbound. From my vantage point, unfortunately, I was able to witness this entire thing. I saw the impact. I watched the rig begin to slide. I witnessed the snow being knocked 50 feet into the air. It was all in a slow motion to me, almost like I could get out of my rig, run across the highway, and take part in the incident. 

Later, as the Driver was ‘cuffed an stuffed’, I heard the Driver asking a Highway Patrolman, ”How could this happen to me!”

As I gave my account to another officer, he shook his head in disbelief. He said, “I have a feeling that man will have a long time to answer the question of “why me” for himself.”
We were standing next to the overturned rig. The Officer and I shook hands as he finished taking down my info. I turned to head back to my rig, and I was stunned to hear a small voice crying and repeating “Gary…Dear God Gary please answer meee Gary”. I looked back and down to where the tiny voice was coming from….and there, in the still-burning headlights of the rig, was the driver’s cellphone.

Traffic was backed up on both sides of the highway. I remember some lunatic in a rig headed South becoming enraged and layin on the airhorn to let the rubberneckers know he was not happy at being delayed. I thought to myself, “whata idiot”. And as I climbed back into my warm home away from home I thought, ‘Thank God it wasn’t me”.
 
Over the course of my life as a driver I have seen horrible accidents that would make even the hardest of hearts turn to mush.
I myself have been spared of these tragedies, but I have come too close for comfort many times.

Driver, now I’m talking straight to you. If you’ve read this far, I hope and pray you would learn a lesson.

I could sit here for another hour or so and pound out on this keyboard all the statistical numbers that are used to prove why you should never have your attention off the road for even a split second. I could also be far more brutal in my descriptions and details. But it doesn’t matter how something is demonstrated if you don’t care.

YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE for your actions. Every one of them. Even one so small as to call someone you love.

I welcome your response to this.

You want to become an owner-operator, huh? Have you lost your mind? Well, maybe not. Maybe you’re just wondering about it because you don’t understand the trucking industry or you’re looking for a new challenge. Maybe owning your own business sounds perfect to you. Maybe the romantic idea of cruisin the American highways in your own big, beautiful, shiny rig just sounds so damn cool you can’t take it anymore! Well then do it! But wait…wait…wait…..come back here a second. Get out your wallet. Give me all your money. No I’m not robbing you! You’re a giver! You’ve decided that having money isn’t important to you anymore so you’re going to buy a truck so that you can throw it all away! Well, I need it! So if you’re gonna lose it all anyhow you outta just give it to someone who needs it - like me!

You don’t understand what on Earth i’m talking about? Well then you better keep reading. There must be a lot you don’t understand.

I get questions quite a bit from people about becoming owner-operators, especially (ironically enough) since the economy has slowed and fuel prices have dropped. I figured since this guy sounds rather intelligent, opportunistic, and ambitious, I thought I’d share this with you guys.

Email I received:

Brett,

After reading through your website I see that your primary focus is on new drivers. However, due to your experience and exposure (e.g. website) and your obvious communication skills, I’m betting you can give me some insight - and perhaps some contacts - that will allow me to take “the next step” into the owner/operator world.

I’ve been trucking over-the-road (this time) since 1998, have nearly 2 million miles behind me as a company driver (3 companies), and I want to get into my own truck. As you rightfully point out on your website, most of a trucker’s world is an isolated one, and that includes even from other drivers. I got real tired of the filth on the CB very early-on and I spend maximum time in my truck taking college classes, reading and blogging politics. Thus, I actually know little about the entirety of the trucking industry.

Right now the loads are far and few between, but I’m figuring that with the low fuel prices, as well as the relatively low truck prices, this might be a good time to buy a truck. What do you think?
Secondly, how do I find a quality broker? Should I at first stick with a large company to dispatch me? I am currently with (note from Brett Aquila: company name witheld - not applicable). What do you think about buying a truck through a trucking company? What pitfalls should I look out for?

Bruce “Barracuda”

Brett Aquila’s response:

Note to readers - you did see that he explicitly asked “what do you think?”…right? I mean, hey, if you’re askin my opinion, then I’m tellin it like it is! So here goes…..

Hey Bruce!

My friend, I’ve gotta be honest with you - as I always am with everyone on the site - I know next to nothing about becoming an owner operator for one simple reason - the chances of ever making a nickel doing it are one in a million, so I’ve never tried it and never will. Trucking is a commodity business - the only thing that matters to anyone is price. So the lowest price wins, and everyone else loses.

I once took a small business course that was offered by the Small Business Administration and the speaker was a retired gentleman that spent 26 years in upper management at General Electric (not General Motors! LOL!). He said something that he was dead serious about and wanted it to stay with us throughout our business careers, and it has always stayed with me. He said “If you’re going to go into a commodity-type business, remember that there is only one winner - the one who offers the lowest price. Even that person barely wins because their profit margins are always razor-thin and on the edge of breaking even or losing money. So if you’re going to do it, you better be the low-cost provider, because the second lowest cost provider and everyone else behind him goes out of business.”

Listen, Bruce - you’re taking college courses and reading all the time. You sound like me - I taught myself computer programming during my years on the road. Besides truck driving school, I have also graduated from Motorcycle Mechanics Institute as a Harley mechanic, I’m a certified welder, and I’ve owned a tree service ( I was the crazy climber!). I love to learn and challenge myself. That’s why I’ve had so many careers! It sounds to me like you want to push forward in life - challenge yourself, make your life better. There are very, very few people out there like that anymore. Life has been too easy for an entire generation of us now. I’m 37 years old - and the only suffering I have done is self-inflicted. Sports, physical training, bad decisions, and working injuries. To this point there has been no World War in my lifetime. There has been no economic depressions. I’ve never gone hungry. And believe me, I was not raised by rich parents. A bookkeeper and a factory worker. Blue-collar all the way baby! Just your ordinary, perfectly wonderful small town upbringing. A dream life for sure. So for my generation and those that have followed, toughness, ambition, and hard work is something we were either born with or taught by our parents. It wasn’t burned into us by the hardships of world wars, economic depressions, and moral dilemmas - like the way Vietnam divided the country and spawned the hippie generation who tired of constant war and pain and suffering.

For people like us, hardships that test and forge our character and push us to our limits must be self-generated. Rock climbing, scuba diving, skydiving, running, and weight lifting in the physical realm. Spiritual reading, starting a business, or going to college in the cerebral realm. There are many ways to generate hardship for those of us who are so inclined.

You want hardship? Become an owner-operator. Obligate yours for years in the trucking business and lose all of your flexibility in life when you buy that truck. Struggle and suffer through the anxiety of making a huge investment in something that will likely never make you any money over time. Try to be a one-man-band offering the lowest price by beating out the competition from the large companies who are getting volume discounts on fuel, tires, parts, and mechanical work. Who have services to provide that you can’t - like dropped trailers, flexible scheduling when loads suddenly increase or decrease from a shipper, and team runs coast to coast in 48 hours. Who have gigantic pools of financing behind them from bond issuance, private equity, public equity (stock offerings), and collateral-based financing from the equipment and real estate they own that allow them to operate at a loss for years if need be.

And maybe down the line if trucking doesn’t work for you anymore then you could open up your own little department store right between a Wal-Mart and a Dollar Store.

Everybody has skills and abilities that make them unique. Traits that set them apart. Strong points that help them overcome their weak points. Find your strong points and carve out a niche in life that gives you an advantage over most of the competition. Do something that you’ll love to do, but make sure that not many people will be willing to work as hard at it or become as good at it as you will. Then attack! As one website I frequent states (www.compete.com) - “Track Your Rivals. Then Eat Their Lunch”. LOL! I love that.

I love to compete. I love to push myself to my limits. I love to learn. I love to run my own business. I’m just that type. And from what I know of the trucking industry, becoming an owner-operator is a game that most people lose in a big, big way. Sure, some win. But what is winning? Breaking even? Making a few grand a year after expenses? I don’t know - I never tried it. I never will. There are lot of “next steps” you can take in the trucking industry. You can become a trainer. You can work your way up in the offices of a larger company. You can become a freight broker. You can become an advisor. You can learn computer programming and write software for the industry. You can make money blogging for TruckingTruth (I’m serious about that! We need people. If you’re interested, here’s the scoop - http://www.truckingtruth.com/trucking_blogs/admin/2008/12/02/make-money-with-your-own-blog-at-truckingtruth - let me know). But becoming an owner operator had been a mission of financial suicide for the vast majority that have gone that route. Look at it from the shipper’s standpoint - what advantages will you offer that they should use you instead of the companies they’ve been using for years?

“What about these companies like Landstar that are only owner-operators? Will leasing on to them give me an advantage?” you ask. Well, it will surely be better than staying independent and trying to find your own freight and discounts on products and services. But if owning a truck is so profitable, then why do so many companies allow owner-operators in their fleets? Anytime someone offers me an opportunity to get into business with them doing what they are doing - like becoming an owner-operator and leasing on with them, or raising Alpacas, or starting my own home-based business - I always ask myself the same question - if being in that business is so profitable, then why don’t you just scale it larger yourself? Why do you want me to do what you’re already making so much money doing? It doesn’t make any sense! I’ll give you an example.

Krispy Kreme used to be a bigshot. Their donuts are delicious for sure. I mean, my God! Amazing! I used to own their stock and did quite well with it for a while. Krispy Kreme was a company that offered franchise opportunities - anyone could start one. But you had to use the company’s recipies and buy your equipment from them also. Well, Krispy Kreme has since collapsed. Why? Because it turns out that owning a donut shop is not really very profitable. What was profitable was selling the licensing rights, food, and equipment to the franchisees! The vast majority of the money that the company itself made was not from selling donuts (maaaaaaaaan those glazed donuts were insane!!!), it was from selling franchises. Well, owning a franchise became more and more expensive because the company had to continue to grow their profits to satisfy Wall Street. On top of that, the market became saturated once a huge number of franchises were opened and they began selling donuts to every gas station, convenient store, grocery store, and restaurant that wanted them. Eventually, the business model collapsed.

If owning a truck was so profitable, companies wouldn’t want other people owning their own trucks. If raising Alpacas was so profitable, people raising them wouldn’t want other people raising them. They would just raise more themselves! There are a million business opportunities out there, and all of them offer fierce competition and endless challenges. But owning a truck is nearly a financial suicide mission. If you love trucking, then keep on lettin those companies pay you $55k/year to drive their big, beautiful, shiny trucks - and let them suffer through all the headaches of running a commodity business. Licensing, fuel, permits, breakdowns, insurance - blah!!!! You just kick back, enjoy the ride, and make a killer living viewing the sites across North America in your company’s dream machine. And if you get tired of trucking - quit. A company driver can always just quit and return later at anytime - I did it a thousand times over the years. Drive for 6 months, quit that job, party for two months, run out of money, go back to truckin. LOL! There are advantages to those of us who have never been married and have no children!

But if you buy a truck - maaaaaaaaan are you in it up to your eyebrows now! But if I can’t change your mind, then my best guess would be to talk to one of the larger owner-operator companies like Landstar. Actually, first talk to their drivers. Get the real scoop on life as an owner-operator. And don’t be shy about telling these guys to be straight up with you. You’re not there to hear any fairy tales, you’re there to get the truth about owning a rig. Talk to a bunch of drivers, not just one or two. See what they say.

Then, when you’ve heard a million opinions on becoming an owner operator, you’ve discussed all the strategies, and you’re certain you’ve gathered all the information that is most critical to becoming an owner-operator, don’t just walk away from the whole thing - RUN! Run for your financial life! For the love of God, man, get outta there while you can!

Hey Bruce, I sure hope I’ve made myself clear. Sometimes I’m not real good at expressing my opinions.

I sure hope this helped. Let me know if you have any other questions. That’s what I’m here for!

Best of luck to you in all your endeavors,

Brett Aquila

www.truckingtruth.com

Well, there you have it folks. So if you’re going to get into the owner-operator business, then get out your wallet. And please email me at brett@truckingtruth.com so that I can instruct you how to send me all your money - while you still have some! Do not skip this important step in your career! I need your money!

I remember one day the owner was being nasty to everyone he came across. On those days I would usually stay away and busy myself with cleaning my truck up or something. This was one of those days when I had nowhere to go and nothing to do to keep away and out of line of fire. I mean, after all there is only so much cleaning you can do on a truck. The boss leveled off at me walking all the way across the parking yard just to make sure he was going to get full affect on me with his raging tyrant.

Now If I’m in the wrong then I will except whatever the consequences are and deal with them accordingly. I’ve never been afraid of being wrong but I would prefer to be right. Well, this boss started off by accusing me of stealing time from him … Folks, this man was askin for something he couldn’t pay for, even with all his possessions. When I unloaded a southpaw to his nose he crumpled to the ground and began cursing me and threatening to have me arrested. I calmly ask if he was sure he wished to proceed with his threat. He then shot back in no uncertain terms that he would have me put away and sue me for all I was worth. I told him he left me no other choice but to take outta his ass what I figured he would cost me.

Still to this day I don’t think I ever got enough.

What I learned from this, no man can buy. This type of wisdom only comes in two forms. The first being; having the experience yourself and dealing with it the best you know how. The second is; listing to someone who has been there. If you chose to do the first then you may be in for a long hard stay at a place where steel bars greet your every waking  moment.

Just take my advice and let the boss rant and rave. He is only showing you that he is screwed up. If you’re in the right then let him raise hell … just stand there and when he’s through he may fire you or he may feel like he has proven himself.

What to do if he fires you? Well if you’re in the right then hire an attorney to sue him. Finding an attorney that will do what it takes to serve justice is almost impossible. If you find one great. If you don’t then try drawing unemployment. If you cant draw unemployment then you need to think about letting it go and chalking it up to experience…I know - I know - It’s hard to feed a family on experience… But with the way the court systems are today, it really leaves you no choice.

 Honestly… If I had it all over to do again … I would do it the same way.  BUT … I would make sure I got enough!     

At TruckingTruth, our entire purpose is to help people who are interested in becoming truck drivers, and those who are new to the industry, understand the realities of being a truck driver a bit better and survive that first year! And chances are, you can help by simply hosting your own blog on our site! Why would you want to do that? Well, if just helping other people out isn’t enough, how about having the chance to make money??? I’ll tell you how it works in a minute. But first, let me tell you who we’re looking for, and why.

Who Are We Looking For?

There are several different groups of people we are looking for:

• People who are preparing to go to truck driving school
• People currently in truck driving school
• Drivers that are new to the industry
• Experienced and retired drivers

Well, that pretty much covers the spectrum, doesn’t it? You bet it does. Here’s how each of you can help:

People Who Are Preparing To Go To Truck Driving School or Have Already Begun Their Schooling

How can you help? In a big way! As you already know, one of the biggest questions people ask when trying to determine if they should become a truck driver is “What will it take to become a truck driver?” Well, we’d love to follow along with your endeavor! It would be a tremendous opportunity for those coming behind you to be able to follow along with your story and ask you questions about your journey as you make your way through the process of finding a truck driving school, attending school, getting your CDL license, finding that first truck driving job, going out on the road with a trainer, and finally going solo in your own truck! You know the questions!

• What is the schooling actually like?
• How hard are the tests?
• What is it like trying to back up a truck?
• What was it like the first time you every drove a big rig?
• Is it hard finding your first job?
• and a ton of other questions!….

Well, now you get the chance to help people find out! It will be a ton of fun sharing your story, answering questions, and blazing the trail for those who are following close behind!

Drivers That Are New To The Industry

Oh man, is your help ever needed! Students, and future students, are dying to know what it is like when you first get out there??? Well, nobody knows better than you! Now you can help everyone coming behind you avoid some mistakes, know what to expect, and find out first hand what life is like in your first year on the road. That first year is a crazy one! There’s so much to learn, so much to look out for, and more than anything (at least for me, anyhow) was how crazy and exciting it is!!! I loved my 15 years on the road and that first year back in 1993 stays fresh in my mind like it was yesterday! I remember more from that first year than any other year of my life - including last year! LOL! It really was amazing and overwhelming! So why don’t you share your thoughts with the group behind you and let em know what awaits them just a short time down the road!

Experienced and Retired Drivers

Like I really need to tell you guys where you fit in here! You guys and gals have been through it and you know what it’s like getting started in the trucking industry. And I’ll bet a million bucks you would do a lot of things differently if you knew then what you know now. Of course you would! And so would I. Believe me, so would I. That’s why I started this site and that’s why I’m asking for your help. Not because I need it, but because they need it! I can’t think of anything I’ve ever done that took longer to learn and understand than life on the road. You know what I’m saying - scheduling, routing, logging, traffic, weather, laws, dispatch, equipment, and everything else. You’ll get a chance to talk about anything you’d like to talk about - because it all will help a ton!

What Restrictions Would There Be?

Fortunately, very few. First of all, I would rather we didn’t specifically mention trucking company or school names. This isn’t one of those sites where everyone goes to complain about their company. We’re here to help people out. Complaining that your company stinks and your dispatcher is a jerk doesn’t help anyone. LOL! So no names is a rule I’d like to stick with.

What Can We Blog About?

Anything and everything! Your thoughts, feelings, insights, ideas, and opinions on anything regarding the trucking industry are all in play. Listen, at TruckingTruth we don’t belong to any organizations or promote any hidden agendas. This site is about giving people the raw, honest truth as we believe it to be about everything regarding a career in the trucking industry. You can discuss anything, including:

• Choosing A Trucking School
• Choosing A Trucking Company
• Debating Company Policies
• Debating Hiring Practices and Minimum Requirements
• Discussing The Training Drivers Get (or don’t get)
• Debating DOT Laws and Procedures
• and whatever else pertaining to trucking you think needs addressing!….

$$$ So You Say I Can Get Paid For Doing This??? $$$

You better believe it! Since this blogging platform is being hosted on TruckingTruth, we can set the rules. Well, we’ve decided that anyone who would like to blog for us can place their own Google ads on their posts alongside of our ads. The system is automated so that all you’ll have to do is write your post, hit “publish”, and your ad will be displayed on your posts. That way the money goes straight into your account and not through ours. You can monitor your own ad account to see how often the ads are being displayed, how often they are clicked on, and of course how much money you are making. The more you write and the better your writing is, the more ads you’ll have out there, the more they’ll be displayed, and the more money you’ll make! Simple as that!

So What’s The Catch?

There’s no catch! I’d love to elaborate on this, but there’s no catch! What else can I say? LOL!

TruckingTruth’s Stats

I don’t believe there is anyone in America, or a multitude of other countries for that matter, who hasn’t considered becoming a truck driver. We’ve all wondered from time to time what life would be like traveling the highways day in and day out … living on the road, seeing the sites, meeting people from far and wide, and watching the sunrise and set from one coast to the other…what would it be like?

I did exactly that for the better part of fifteen years and I can tell you one thing - I wouldn’t trade my time on the road for anything in the world. I was blessed with the ability to do any number of other things. Becoming a truck driver was never any goal or consideration of mine, and I never knew anyone who had done it. I simply came across it by chance once upon a time on a hot summer day in Atlanta….and everything changed in my life from that day on.

Working for $5.50/hr in a warehouse as a 21 year old man-child. I arrived at work one day to find a Ryder truck parked in the lot. I was told we had to haul some pallets of literature downtown and exchange them for yet another group of pallets to bring back. It was the largest straight truck that Ryder offered….and I had never even seen the inside of one. But I was determined to be the one to make the trip in it. So how was I going to convince them to let me do it? The only way I could- I was gonna lie my brains out. I told the boss my aunt had moved twice and my grandma had moved once and all three times I drove thetruck…same size truck as the one out in the lot.

Amazingly enough they gave me the OK to take it downtown. What were they thinking???? So away I went. The trip went perfectly and I did what I was supposed to do. I went downtown, they unloaded me, reloaded the truck (after their lunch break of course), and I returned safe and sound. Upon arrival I immediately went to my best friend and joyously exclaimed that not only was that a lot of fun, but I didn’t even have to do any work that day….”all I did was drive” - and the light bulb came on.

I went home and looked up the only trucking company I knew of and found out that I would start at $40,000/year. I was making $15,000 at the time…including overtime! Becoming a truck driver was exactly what I was going to do….and a month later I was in trucking school.

I graduated, got hired with a great company on graduation day, and had an awesome career. I made excellent money, met thousands of people,saw many of the most famous sites in America, and many others that were just as beautiful but mostly unknown. It’s not an easy life - but ifyou’re the right type of person for it there is no other job like it in the world. You’ll learn so much about yourself, your country, and the people you share it with. You’ll experience the differences in culture from city to city and region to region. You’ll make very good money,have a ton of fun, and have a career that keeps our economy moving and makes you feel like you’ve accomplished something worthwhile….and you have.

The moral of the story? Lie. Lie like crazy! No, I’m just kidding.The real moral of the story is that sometimes you have to take chances in life. If you ever want to get anywhere worth going it will take risk, courage, and faith in yourself to get there.

How Do I Know If Trucking Is For Me?

How do I know if trucking is for me? For somebody considering a career in the trucking industry, this is the million dollar question. I mean, how many people have ever experienced being a truck driver? Pretty much nobody. So how are you supposed to know if it’s for you?

To say “try it and see” isn’t realistic. You need schooling. I’veheard “ride with a driver for a week and see if you like it.” Oh, OK,let me reach into my pocket here and pull out that truck driver I have so I can cruise around with him for a while. Seriously, most of us do not know any truckers that will take us cruising around the country. So how do you find out if it’s for you?

The best way is to talk to someone who has done it for a long time. Like me. Almost 15 years and about 1.5million miles. I absolutely love driving truck. Love it. In looking back, I believe there are two main reasons I’ve loved it so much - because if fits my personality, and because it fits my lifestyle.

I’m going to tell you one thing right away - if you want to be successful and make really good money driving truck, it is notan easy job. The hours are very long, it takes a lot of self-discipline, and you spend the vast majority of your time alone.I’ve written other articles about the truck driving lifestyle and never will you hear me say that I love truck driving because it is easy. Even if you are cut out for it, trucking is rarely easy, and I would dare say that it is not for most people.

I have always been an independent,hard-working, adventurous guy. I don’t like people looking over my shoulder, I don’t like routines, and I love a challenge. I wanted to really see this country, and really know what it was all about. And I don’t mean know it from television - I wanted to really know from experiencing it - meeting the people and seeing the places myself. And what a grand adventure truck driving is!

It’s not uncommon to be in five different states in a day! It’s not uncommon to speak with hundreds of new people in one day.I’ve left Los Angeles in the middle of the afternoon when it was 72degrees out only to find myself way up in the mountains of Utah late that night and the temperature was 15 degrees below zero! I’veseen most of the famous sites in our country and a million of em that nobody has ever heard of. I’ve experienced countless numbers of priceless moments like watching the sunset over the mountains of Wyoming as the elk graze on the high plain. Or the sun rising over the ocean on a humid, salty-aired morning heading south along the coast of Florida as the gulls circle overhead. Moments that were priceless to me because I knew how many people were never going to see so many of the things I’ve gotten to see, nor enjoy their lives day to day and moment to moment the way I’ve gotten to enjoy mine. But see, that’s just me.

When you’re on the road, you’re pretty much on your own. I mean,sure you can call someone with a tow-truck when you break down. And sure you can stroll into a truck stop for a meal and a conversation whenyou’re wanting one. But when you’re lying down to catch a few hours of sleep at night and you’re alone somewhere in the middle of the Nevada desert, there isn’t anyone to encourage you that tomorrow will be a better day. There isn’t anyone to comfort you if you’re feeling a bit down. And three hours later when it’s time to get up and it’s still as dark as it was when you went to sleep, there isn’t really anyone around that cares. And I didn’t mind that a bit.

I’ve loved the adventure, I’ve loved not having a boss looking over my shoulder, and I’ve loved the tranquility of my home on the road.I’ve gotten to know this country from one end to the other, I’ve gotten to know myself inside and out, and I would say there are no greater blessings on Earth than to have accomplished those two things…..but ya see, that’s just me.

There are a ton of questions in the mind of anyone considering becoming a truck driver. Questions that won’t be on any tests at any schools - and won’t be discussed by the recruiters at any of the trucking companies. Questions that can only be answered by each individual for themselves. But the problem is that most people have no information to use for making their decision. There are tons of things that one must know about life on the road if he or she is going to make the right decision - things you may not even consider if you had never been out there. So how can you find out?

Read through site and see all of the great materials we’ve gathered - tons of articles, blogs, jobs, schools, and trucking directories - all of them free, all the time. Use our search engine to quickly find materials on any subject you can imagine related to the trucking industry. And feel free to email me with any questions you might have. If you’d really like all the info you can get from someone whose been on the road for a long,long time - it would be well worth a few bucks to buy my book. There’sa money-back guarantee with it because I know how valuable the information in that book is - you won’t want your money back, I’mcertain of it.

Will I Enjoy Life On The Road?

If you’ve never been a truck driver and never really had the chance to talk extensively with someone who is, it’s nearly impossible to guess as to whether or not you would enjoy the lifestyle of being on the road. What are the hours like? What about driving through bad weather?Is the food any good at truck stops? Am I going to meet a lot of interesting people? What will I do for entertainment? There are a ton of questions and the answers are often hard to come by if you don’tknow any truckers. Let’s talk about a few aspects of life on the road.
Lets start with the hours.

What kind of hours will I be putting in?What about the DOT rules that limit a driver’s time behind the wheel?Well, I’m not going to go deep into the DOT right now. Thats for another day. But I will say that you will likely be getting paid by the mile. So the more you work, the more you make. So if you’re looking to make as much as you can while you’re out there, expect to be putting in very long days - a lot of em. The hours are erratic too. Sometimes you will deliver in the middle of the night, sometimes in the middle of the afternoon. Sometimes you will get loaded much later than you expected and you’ll have to drive most of the night through to deliver on time.And of course when it’s finally time to go home - you’re not stopping unless you’re so tired you cant remember who you are - but that’s rare when heading home. The energy and excitement of knowing you’re finally going home will keep you going day and night - believe me it will. So if you want to make good money and have your company be pleased with your performance, expect a lot of very long days and erratic hours.This is no nine to five job. But I liked that aspect of driving. I liked that everyday was different and unpredictable. That kept it interesting and challenging for me.

As far a driving through bad weather goes you always have an out - your company will never say anything to you if you tell them it’s not safe to drive right now and you’re shutting it down. Safety is first for everyone in trucking. It must always be. As you become a better driver over the years you will find that you are shutting down for bad weather less often. After a number of years I found that I rarely ever stopped for bad weather. Computers make it easy to keep up with the weather and either drive around a storm or get your driving in before it arrives so that when it hits you’re safely parked and ready to eat and hit the sack. So as a new driver, don’t be concerned at all about what you’ll be faced with on bad weather days - if you aren’t comfortable driving,don’t drive. Simple as that. You have your life, the lives of motorists around you, and your career to think about. Don’t jeopardize any of it trying to push through bad weather - especially heavy snow and ice. You cant expect to shut it down in the rain, unless its a hurricane, but the snow will depend on your experience and comfort level.

What about the food? Believe it or not, truck stop food is almost always excellent food. They know drivers love to eat and because of the CB radio word travels fast. A restaurant will get a reputation quickly and will do great if the food is great, terrible if it’s terrible. So generally you will be very happy with the food. And unlike restaurantsyou’ll usually eat at around home, the big chains have the best food.Sometimes you’ll find a small family-owned truckstop with good food,but often the small places aren’t as good.
Finally, entertainment. Parking is the biggest problem when it comes to having fun. Going to the movies, the mall, sporting events, and bars is all in the realm of possibilities if you can figure out a safe, legal place to park the rig nearby. Taking a cab from a nearby truckstop is generally the best way to do it. Often times you can find places to park within walking distance if you get on the CB and ask the local drivers that know the area well. They can often clue you in. If you’restaying out on the road over the weekend you will generally have a ton of free time to have some fun.

So in general, life on the road is a lot of fun if you’re the adventurous type. The hours are long, the weather is tricky, and you’reaway from home a lot but it’s always interesting, challenging, and fullof possibilities. If you prefer the safe environment of steady hours and a simple job, you wont like trucking. If you’re hearty, full of adventure, and looking for a life thats fun and challenging - trucking may be just perfect for you.

Will Life On The Road Be Lonely?

There’s plenty of information out there that talks about the technical aspects of becoming a truck driver. Things like “How to get your CDL”, the requirements for getting your CDL, and list after list of trucking companies looking for drivers. But what about all of the other aspects of being on the road? What is life really like? Are the meals good in the truckstops? Is there anyone to talk to in the evenings? Is there help when you need it with routing and mechanical issues? Will I be homesick all the time? There aren’t too many places to find answers to these, but after almost 15 years on the road I have a lot of them.

Now I can’t tell you if it’s right for you or not, but I can give you an idea of what it’s like. For starters, the first thing that comes to mind is the amount of time you spend alone. It’s a ton. I can honestly say you will be alone, mostly in your truck, for an average of about 18 hours per day. The other six you will spend talking to waitresses, dock workers, and other drivers. But the vast majority of the time you’ll be alone. I came to the realization in the early months of my career that I could either learn to enjoy being alone and make the best of it, or I could suffer through it, but I really couldn’t do much to change it.

Back then, you didn’t have computers and the Internet to keep you connected and entertain you. The information, emails, pictures, fun websites, news sites, and all the goodies that come with being online just didn’t exist. After years of being on the road, the Internet and computers started to take hold. Slowly the truck stops began coming outwith connections for cable TV and internet in your truck, and that really changed everything.

Nowadays, most truck stops and many of the places you’ll find yourself will have some sort of wireless Internet connection. Laptops have gotten far less expensive, and you can add to that the ease ofputting satellite television in your cab, and of course cell phones.The ability to stay connected to the news, entertainment, and your loved ones is a thousand times better than it was ten years ago. A thousand times.

But the one thing you cant replace is the amount of time you’llspend away from your family and friends. A lot of companies can get you home on the weekends. Some will keep you out for two to three weeks ata time. The choice is yours. Generally speaking, the longer you stay out at a time, the more money you’ll make. There are jobs that will get you home every evening in fact, but you’ll put in fifteen hour days and be lucky to bring home $150 per day. You can stay out one to three weeks at a time and make $50,000/year pretty easily, but there’s a lotto consider when it comes to being gone that long.

I’m going to tell you something flat out - if you have a family,especially if you have children, please do not consider a job that keeps you away from home for more than five days at a time. I’ve heardcountless stories, and I mean countless stories, of families that fell apart from the time spent away from each other. It’s too hard on the spouses, and devastating for the children. Even being gone five days aweek is hard on everyone, but there is a huge difference in the moneyyou’ll make being gone five days at a time compared to being home every night, and life is always a compromise. Sometimes you won’t have a choice.

I was young and single for most of the years I spent on the road,and I wasn’t a bit lonely. There were truck stops, the CB, books, and places you could go in your free time like malls, night clubs, and sporting events to keep you entertained. It really was a ton of fun!But to have a wife and children to leave behind would have been almost too much to bear. In fact, probably more than almost too much. I justdon’t think I could have done it.

Every decision we make in life is a compromise, and every compromise has its side effects. We all need the money to get by, but there’s so much more to it than that. Be prepared to spend an enormous amount of time out there alone. If you have a family, especially children, please set a limit of five days gone at a time, and try to get by with even less. Time spent away from your family and friends has been made a million times nicer with the technologies that have come along, but holding your wife and children in your arms can never, ever be replaced, and neither can the time you lose without them by your side.

I also have a book called Becoming A Truck Driver: Your Guide, that covers a million topics that will help you decide if trucking is right for you.

Comments,ratings, and reviews on this blog sure would be greatly appreciated!!!

I have been researching different options for people who want to find free, or nearly free, CDL training to become truck drivers. I have a section on the website for it so you can go there to find out which companies offer free CDL training. The link will open in a new window so you won’t lose your spot here. The list is growing continuously and I’m getting the impression that I’ve barely scratched the surface in this arena. And when you look at the dynamics of the trucking industry, I expect the opportunities for free truck driving school will continue to grow for many years. Here’s my thinking on it.

It only takes a few weeks to learn enough about backing up, steering, and shifting a tractor trailer to be able to get your class A CDL license and head out on the road with an experienced trainer by your side. With the help of this trainer for several weeks (preferably about 6), you’ll have a much better understanding of how to drive, handle your logbook, and schedule your days so that you can function by yourself out there in your own truck. Now understand something - it takes years and years to really become a good driver. Anyone can shift and steer under quiet conditions, but I’ve had my fully loaded rig go almost completely sideways and begin to jacknife on a patch of ice you couldn’t tell was there at about 50 mph. With a couple of gentle, subtle tactics I was able to regain control in less than 3 seconds and continue down the road like nothing ever happened. Is someone two months out of school going to be able to do that? Only if they are the luckiest person on earth! And we all need a little (or a lot) of luck sometimes! But within about 3 weeks of starting truck driving school you are working for a company, out on the road making money. And within 2 months or so, you are alone in your own rig, cruisin down the higway!

Now if you weren’t already aware, there is a huuuuge turnover in the trucking industry. In fact, it’s over 100% on the average. Which means a company with 1000 drivers will have to hire over 1000 drivers per year to keep most of their trucks rolling. That’s how many people quit each year. It’s mind-boggling. And the lifestyle of a truck driver is certainly no easy life to be sure! So for these, and various other reasons, there is always a huge demand for drivers. Trucking companies spend thousands of dollars for each driver that they hire. Back in 2004, an orientation manager at a large company told me that they spend an average of $3200 for each driver they hire. That includes recruiting costs, paperwork, transportation, orientation, initializing worker’s comp, and various other costs. So having to hire a large number of people every year is an incredible expense, and it gets worse every year!

Now if you put some of these factors together to get an overall picture of the trucking industry, you’ll see that the combination makes the industry a perfect candidate for free schooling. How do I come to that conclusion? Because a new driver can start making plenty of money to pay back a loan pretty much as soon as he is through with the training period and out on his own. The schooling only takes a few weeks, and then the training takes a few more. So if trucking companies are desperate for drivers, and they are going to spend a ton of money bringing in experienced drivers and paying them more per mile with no way to really keep them from leaving, then why not find a way to spend that money on drivers that you will pay much less per mile and be able to give them a great reason to stay with the company for a while? Well that’s exactly what companies are doing more and more these days.

By offering to cover most, if not all of the upfront costs of going to school, and requiring a new graduate to pay back little or no money for the schooling itself, they can in turn keep the driver working at the company for an extended period of time. They simply require that the driver remain with the company for a specified amount of time. If they do, the cost of schooling will either be free, or almost free, because the majority of it will be paid for by the company. In return, the company gets a new driver that earns much less per mile than an experienced driver and good reason to believe that the driver will remain with the company for longer than an experienced driver would. After all, for the new driver to quit it would cost him/her thousands of dollars. To stay on for a year or so would give them good experience, a good paying job, and basically a free ticket into the trucking industry. So everybody wins.

I expect the amount of opportunities for free CDL training to continue to increase in the coming years and I am going to focus more and more of my time and effort on finding these opportunities and promoting the idea to trucking companies and truck driving schools alike. The number of partnerships between the companies and the schools should be increasing, and so should the creativity that goes into structuring these plans so that they are effective for everyone. There are a number of interesting dynamics involved, including the internal debate at the larger trucking companies over whether they should be running their own private schools, or whether they should be getting into partnerships with existing independent schools? Should trucking companies be sponsoring drivers by covering the cost of schooling up front, or offering to pay back student loans as long as the driver remains with the company?

Stay tuned in the coming weeks and months for more coverage on this topic, and keep checking back with our section on companies that offer free CDL training to see what’s new and how the process is evolving. In fact, I believe I’m going to put out an RSS feed just for that section alone, so that people can stay up with the new companies and opportunities that enter the arena.

Thanks for reading and until next time, take care!