On My Own & Driving Solo

Isaac, I'm not trying to be contentious. My main concern is that we have reliable information in these conversations. There are going to be a lot of new drivers read these comments for a good long time, and if you're confusing me, someone who has been utilizing and understanding the split sleeper berth rule for years, I know you're confusing the newbies.

Splitting your breaks let's you use 100% of your drive time.

For example if you have 4 days to do 2200 miles and each day you drive 9 of your 11 hours and shut down with 2 hours left on your clock. Those 2 hours disappear when your clock resets and you essentially lose those hours. Over 4 days you'll lose 8 hours of drive time!

That makes no sense to me. Explain why you think you lose eight hours after four days, or two after one nine hour day. Those hours don't vanish. They're available when you finish your break.

You don't add or lose hours by using the split sleeper or not.

I feel like Ricky Ricardo arguing with Lucy... "You've got some splaining to do!"

Well, if your plan for taking long loads is to do itusing 10 hour breaks that's up to you.

I'm just saying there's an alternative. But if you don't want to learn it or don't care than that's what you have to work with.

I just pulled a 2600 mile load Virginia to las Vegas solo. 4 days. Split breaks. 2 tire blowouts and still made it with 4 hours extra.

When they have those long loads they're not going to give it to someone that can't get it there because they ran out of hours. And i have a hard time believing a dispatch would give you a load without the 70 hour clock to do out in. But i guess it could happen.

Rainy says:

And if I shut down after 6 hours on day one, I'm going on break earlier which gives me my new clock earlier.

Thanks Rainy. This is exactly what I'm talking about.

Actually yes as a company driver I HAVE been given a load and told to take it as far as I can against my 70. My company is all about customer service and they will have the nearest driver pick up the load then relay or "repower" it. So that does happen.

Stating that I don't know how to use 8/2 or implying I'm not ambitious enough to learn is incredibly prejudicial. I think you are trying to help, I do. But as a driver who understands and uses the 8/2 regularly, your informed thread you started is confusing.

I get plenty of miles thank you.

I'm still wondering how Phoenix is doing?

Ok. You drive for 9 hours. You get tired. You decide to shut down for the night. There's 2 hours left on your clock, correct?

After 10 hours your clock resets to 11 hours available drive time. What happened to those 2 hours that you ended with? Poof. Gone. You'll never see it again.

Do that for a few days and that's 2 hours your losing every day you do that.

Yes, you can keep driving tired and durdling along but whatever time is left on your clock when you shut down at the end of the day is lost.

Split breaking says. Ok, you took a break of 8 or 2 hours now let's see what you have left to drive from a full 11/14 clock so we are going to subtract what you're driven already and give you what's remaining. That way nothing is lost.

Isaac, I'm not trying to be contentious. My main concern is that we have reliable information in these conversations. There are going to be a lot of new drivers read these comments for a good long time, and if you're confusing me, someone who has been utilizing and understanding the split sleeper berth rule for years, I know you're confusing the newbies.

Splitting your breaks let's you use 100% of your drive time.

For example if you have 4 days to do 2200 miles and each day you drive 9 of your 11 hours and shut down with 2 hours left on your clock. Those 2 hours disappear when your clock resets and you essentially lose those hours. Over 4 days you'll lose 8 hours of drive time!

That makes no sense to me. Explain why you think you lose eight hours after four days, or two after one nine hour day. Those hours don't vanish. They're available when you finish your break.

You don't add or lose hours by using the split sleeper or not.

I feel like Ricky Ricardo arguing with Lucy... "You've got some splaining to do!"

I'm still wondering how Phoenix is doing?

Me too, and I feel like a goon for hijacking this thread over Isaac's comments.

After 10 hours your clock resets to 11 hours available drive time. What happened to those 2 hours that you ended with? Poof. Gone. You'll never see it again.

You see, that's completely wrong. Those hours are in your seventy hour clock. They don't go poof and be gone. You'll see them again if you know where to find them - in your seventy hour clock. Remember if you're running re-caps that seventy is a "rolling seventy."

Rainy everyone learns things differently. For me i need to see charts and formulas instead of big blocks off text.

And Rainy I'm sorry if i offended you at all. I didn't read your responses completely and you can't edit your posts here but you clearly understand how it works and i didn't want to waste any more time on it.

Well, if your plan for taking long loads is to do itusing 10 hour breaks that's up to you.

I'm just saying there's an alternative. But if you don't want to learn it or don't care than that's what you have to work with.

I just pulled a 2600 mile load Virginia to las Vegas solo. 4 days. Split breaks. 2 tire blowouts and still made it with 4 hours extra.

When they have those long loads they're not going to give it to someone that can't get it there because they ran out of hours. And i have a hard time believing a dispatch would give you a load without the 70 hour clock to do out in. But i guess it could happen.

Rainy says:

And if I shut down after 6 hours on day one, I'm going on break earlier which gives me my new clock earlier.

Thanks Rainy. This is exactly what I'm talking about.

Actually yes as a company driver I HAVE been given a load and told to take it as far as I can against my 70. My company is all about customer service and they will have the nearest driver pick up the load then relay or "repower" it. So that does happen.

Stating that I don't know how to use 8/2 or implying I'm not ambitious enough to learn is incredibly prejudicial. I think you are trying to help, I do. But as a driver who understands and uses the 8/2 regularly, your informed thread you started is confusing.

I get plenty of miles thank you.

I'm still wondering how Phoenix is doing?

Well, yes. They didn't get taken off your 70 but how is that going to help you get the load there on time?

You're going to be late with your load with a giant 70 hour clock which is even worse.

After 10 hours your clock resets to 11 hours available drive time. What happened to those 2 hours that you ended with? Poof. Gone. You'll never see it again.

You see, that's completely wrong. Those hours are in your seventy hour clock. They don't go poof and be gone. You'll see them again if you know where to find them - in your seventy hour clock. Remember if you're running re-caps that seventy is a "rolling seventy."

Okay, I give up!

One minute you say this...

What happened to those 2 hours that you ended with? Poof. Gone. You'll never see it again.

Then we challenge it so you say this...

Well, yes. They didn't get taken off your 70

I can't tell if I'm too dense to understand you, or if you just can't layout a logical explanation, but your original statement saying, "If it can't be done with 8/2 splits, it can't be done at all" is simply not true.

It's probably my explanations. I'm not too good at explaining things which i guess is why i drive trucks.

And it's hard to explain the split break but when you do it on long trips you really see it shine and what you get out of it.

The 8/2 split let's you drive on 100% of your drive time. It's almost equivalent to pulling into a truck stop with 0:00 left on your clock without actually doing that.

Okay, I give up!

One minute you say this...

What happened to those 2 hours that you ended with? Poof. Gone. You'll never see it again.

Then we challenge it so you say this...

Well, yes. They didn't get taken off your 70

I can't tell if I'm too dense to understand you, or if you just can't layout a logical explanation, but your original statement saying, "If it can't be done with 8/2 splits, it can't be done at all" is simply not true.

How are you doing out there Phoenix? My eyes are starting to glaze over with the split sleeper berth discussion. I've never needed to use them........yet!

Managing a solo clock is mmuch different than a team clock. I sounds as if your Dispatcher is trying to keep you on recaps. Never really works for me. Too many variables out here to do the textbook 8.75 hrs per day. My drive line usually hovers around 10-10.5 hours per day on a long run. On duty line around 11- 13.