New Job And A Bit Of What I Have Been Up To.....

It has been a while since I have posted though i have been around reading.

As most folks know I was with JB Hunt and I stayed there over a year and a half. I really loved it there and would gladly go back to work there any time. Basicly had to get a different company which goes into why I left JB Hunt. They don't run teams or allow pets. That is the ONLY reason I left. I had an awesome dispatcher and a great dedicated account. My brother wanted to come back over the road again and run teams and since he was going to be out here also I would need to bring my dog with me. I looked at a lot of places including Prime but the team pay where I am at now suited me best. So now I am driving for Werner. Got a brand new truck also. But that makes sense to give the new trucks to teams due to the miles we run each month.

The account we are on are called HSEV JIT loads. High Security Extreme Valuable Just In Time loads. Can't say what we are hauling but the freight requires constant monitoring 24/7 till delivery which is mostly 1200 miles a day or basically over night next day delivery.

Anyway most know on the forums that I have been driving almost 16 years and so the new guys/gals also know. I have driven for the big companies that people like to list as "bottom feeders" and they would be wrong with that title. Since all the large companies are pretty much the same I have yet to find a bad company. Just a few bad dispatchers.

Dispatcher I have now is great. His fleet is made up of experienced driver teams that don't require hand holding. The loads we get are simple. You pickup at point A and deliver at point B and its up to the driver to plan his own route and fuel stops. No company preplanned routing. At least in our fleet that is how it works. As long as we are 98% on time with our JIT loads with allowance for delays for weather or unforseen things happening they leave us alone. As a company driver I have the best of both worlds. I am a company driver with a company truck and they pay all the bills and I get to act like the adult I am and plan my day and routes like I used to when I had my own trucks but with zero risk this time. ;) Life is good.

So far no one at Werner has lied to me and things are going great but I mainly put that up to my relationship with my DM mainly. Now that is not to say I dont get a bit upset sometimes but I yell and cuss out my brother :) and let the sweet talking go to my DM. Lol that is what co drivers are for right? But seriously as long as my DM and I are good with each other then all is right with the world.

Guyjax, I hate to ask. But I can't help but wonder. With all the experience you have and since you're hauling highly time sensitive high value loads how much are they paying you guys per mile?

I make .20 a mile. That's .40 to the truck spilt. But before ya say hey that's not enough money let me say a few more thingsthat make it add up and somebody can do the math....

.20 a mile and we average 5k a week. Equal about what a solo company driver makes. About $750 a week take home after taxes. Its about right.

Now at 18k miles a month its .21 a mile. 19k a month is .23 a mile. 20k a month miles is .24 a mile. 21k a month is .25 a miles.

Right now we are looking at 20k plus miles a month.

I am totally debt free thanks to CR England and so is my brother. What few bills we do have we spilt. I own my own house and vehicles out right. Again thanks to CRE. So basically everything we make goes into the bank and collects dust. :D

So what if I am making less in the short term (cpm)? Weekly paychecks tell the story I like reading about. Teams turn more miles on average than solo drivers.

But let's look at a larger picture in trucking. End of December freight will slow down across all trucking sectors. The people that will be moving during that slow time (end of December through end of March) are the ones that can deliver on a companies promise to their customers....Faster on time delivery. A lot of overnight stuff. That is where I will more than make up the difference in pay.

Last few years I have not even noticed the freight slow down. Companies love experienced teams and pretty much handle them with kid gloves.

Has anyone noticed how appointments are getting tighter and tighter with less leaway? Its a customers market right now in trucking. What a customer wants they get...within reason. Right now customers are demanding faster on time freight deliveries that only teams can deliver.

As has been said before its hard to stand out in trucking when everyone is doing the same thing exactly the same way. So be safe and reliable team truck that is not afraid to throw chains if needed and run when most people would rather hide in their sleepers will make my truck very desirable when it comes to loads during the slow times.

I am like the trucking mailman. Rain,sleet,snow or shine the load must go through if it can be done safely. Running in bad weather (snow or bad storms) or weather that plain sucks are what allows me to gets loads that others can't deliver.

Last year I ran out west i threw iron well over 52 times in 1 months time. If the road is open i shall go. Got to love I80,I90,I84. Cabbage sucks in the winter and so does Forth of July pass and let's not forget about Guyjax Pass err i mean Donner's Pass.

All of the above adds up to say I am totally awesome :D just kidding...or am I? *gives seriously goofy look* But all kidding aside. After almost 16 years I will be the first to admit I am still learning. Though in a different way. I know how to delivery loads in a safe manner and how to drive with only a few gears that remain whole. :D Yes we all make transmissions cry sometimes. What I am learning now are ways to make myself valuable to my company and standout amoung millions of other drivers in the trucking industry all while doing it in a safe and professional manner.

Wow I think I may have rambled a bit much in this post but hey its been building up for a few months and I could not help myself. So maybe SOMEONE learned SOMETHING from this post. :D

Guyjax...Its good to see ya on here again....I know that I, for one, have missed your imput, when I draw a blank...Stick around a little more....we need to pick your brain..... I'm glad you are back to teaming, and at Werner...they are a good company, who values their good drivers....

Wow congratulations. You just joined and they gave you a new truck and put you on a HSEV JIT fleet. They must like you from the start! You are doing excellent man! Glad to hear from you!!

Great to hear from you again!

Congratulations on the new gig, I'm sure your dog is quite happy about it too!

I'm running a high value load up to Connecticut right now. We are required to run these loads with another truck, and it seems like I always get paired with a nut! I met up with my other driver yesterday only to find that they hadn't planned their hours very well so now we're sitting and waiting on their re-start. AAAARggghh! It's only going to screw up my re-caps because he had already been sitting for a while when I caught up with him, and we are going to have to roll as soon as his hours re-set to make our delivery schedule.

My plan was to get in there early and then grab another load before things shut down for the Holiday, but it's starting to look like I'll be sitting up in the far North East eating Pop-Tarts and Beef Jerkey for Thanksgivng!

Really glad for you and your brother and Fido! Sounds like an ideal situation for you guys.

Hey that's great news Guyjax!

I never liked the expression "starter companies" when used in a derogatory way because I always felt those were the best companies to work for. Trucking companies are not like grades in school where you "graduate" from companies that hire students and go to companies for experienced drivers. I always felt trucking companies that hire inexperienced drivers were the best places to work. They tend to have the largest fleets, great finances behind them, great equipment, and the best variety of opportunities. So I'm glad to hear you're with Werner and you're obviously in an awesome division. You guys should do great there!

Hope to hear a lot more from ya and I hope things work out great with Werner, which I'm certain they will!

Welcome back, GuyJax! Maybe sometime if you're at the Indy terminal I'll buy you a cup of that awesome vending machine coffee and chew the fat. This time of year the HV loads tend to take up a great portion the yard making it difficult to navigate the rest of it, but I'd tolerate it for a chance to meet the legend and pick your brain.

Oh btw i am on the forums connected through my qualcomm. its a slow 3G connection but hey at least i can surf the net and still use the satilite connection of qualcomm if i need to. ssort of awesome if you ask me. though my phone is much faster. anyway just thought i would mention this awesome feature of my qualcomm.

Good to see you back on here. Glad you found something that works for you and your brother and your dog lol. Drive safe.

It's all about how you look at it. Any company can be a good company. This job is not about the company it's about the driver. He can make or brake himself.

Good dispatchers are hard to find. I know. I was one. I still believe all dispatchers should be made to ride in a truck several times in his career. I got a program started like the with Heartland back years ago. I here they still do it from time to time. I used to tell my drivers that our relationship with each other is just like our relationship with God, but neither of us is God!

Great to hear you are doing well with Werner. They are a great company. I loved the look they had and the equipment back in the late 80's. Many drivers wanted to get on with them then. J.B. Hunt is a good company too. Used to hear all the names they called the drivers, but that was out of jealousy. J.B. Hunt allowed many a truckers to become O/O's. That say a lot for that company.

Good Luck. Prayers for traveling mercies.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Cool! Thanks for the update. I was wondering were you'd been. I got my start with Werner and enjoyed it. Good equipment and good pay. The only reason I left is because I was offered a local job. If I ever felt the need to get outta my cutrent local/regional gig and go back over the road , I'd probably go back to Werner. Even though the don't run Classic XL's anymore... :)