Game: Most Shocking Aspect Of Trucker Life?

Patrick said:

I never realized how much having a weekend off can hurt pay.

Yeah I think this one got me too.

I also found out the hard way that I actually really dislike being strapped to a chair for 10 hours a day every day, no matter how great the view is.

Now im thankful.and excited when a hotel or truck stop.has cheap laundry.

i get excited to see a family owned restaurant.

the smell of a clean truck de stresses me.

I would say this isn't shocking to me, more disappointing.

The lack of commradery or brotherhood. Truckers can be down right nasty to each other.

I would say this isn't shocking to me, more disappointing.

The lack of commradery or brotherhood. Truckers can be down right nasty to each other.

truckers can be downright awesome as well. i expected to be treated badly as a woman. "if you want a mans job, then dont expect help" type of thing. thats not true.

an old crabby guy yelled at me while helping me back. "you obviously havent been driving long or you wouldnt have done that. come on come on, go faster". i started crying out of frustration. he yelled more. so i hugged him and kissed him on the cheek "damn women, had to go and ruin trucking. added kissing and crying to the road."

kill them with kindness. ;)

Seeing so many husband wife teams or at least passengers.

I didn't realize how stupid people get around big trucks... seriously.. I was in complete disbelief...

Never thought that when your QC or similar device says, "your destination is on the left." It might actually be on the right or around the corner.

Shocking? I can't think of anything that really shocked me, but a lot of things surprised me. I started on TT long before I pulled the trigger and started the whole process in earnest. So I was well prepared to know what to expect because of all the great advice and insight that is available here.

That being said, I was, and still am, surprised at how complicated the entire process of being a driver is. And I say that from a beginner's perspective because I'm sure the process seems less complicated as one gains experience. But there is a heck of a lot to learn in a relatively short period of time. I still get messages from my company about things I forgot to do from my tablet or MCP. I still do rookie things at shipping and receiving offices that make me feel stupid. I still get in the wrong lane or forget to turn off my signal. The good news? These things are happening less frequently as time marches on.

And that, my fellow rookies, is why it is preached over and over again here to stay the course for at least a year before making any major move.

Bruce you aren't the only one that still makes dumb mistakes. I will get through crap I can't even imagine I was able to do whether it be driving through a ice storm, an Incredibly difficult backing Etc... And then I will get to a shipper or consignee and do something really stupid when it comes to dealing with paperwork, the Qualcomm... Just yesterday I had to pull into a receiver, leave the doors shut... it was kind of a tight backing but I put it right in. So proud of myself. The red light went on and I'm thinking I'm going to get out of here in no time. 5 minutes later one of the guys came out and asked me for my padlock key... I was so embarrassed period.

Honestly as someone who had just started driving last year my biggest shock was the weather, and how fast it can change on you. I knew that as a driver you had to adapt fast to many situations and boy does that happen alot. You can have several days where nothing happens and can lull you into a sense of false safety and then bam!!! Curveball! This job has taught me to be on my toes 24/7 and thats saying something since i was a correctional officer for a few years and i feel like im on my toes now driving a truck more than i ever was around convicted murderers and rapists.