How Long Should A Rookie Stay Out For At A Time
Topic 2336 | Page 1
It's all up to you.
You stay out as long as you want. Your DM will not look down on you if you decide you want to stay out for a month at a time.
The general rule is, the longer you stay out on the road the more you make. So it depends on factors like:
Your financial situation.
How much loneliness and time away from family can you handle.
Married? Your wife won't appreciate you being gone 8 weeks at a time.
Personally, I go home every 4 to 5 weeks and stay home for 4-5 days.
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.
Married yes...we are both OK with the away time. Was looking into doing barge work on the rivers. Schedule time is anywhere from 25-30the days out at a time. Live too far away from companies to. get hired. Ive been driving class B for the last 6 years. I enjoy driving. Driven alot of trucks from, the ones with just a few miles away from the big truck stop in the sky lol, to brand new automatics. Driving just seems right to me. I understand OTR is a totally different ball game.
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
I wouldn't honestly aim to stay out a month at a time. You don't want to get burnt out.. It's easily possible.
So after a week or so do ya try to start takings loads heading towards home. Or after awhile just eat the unpaid miles 200-300away to get home? I get starting out it doesnt help to build a good relationship with DM if ya turn down too many hauls
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.
Never turn down loads unless you have a very good reason to.
For three weeks you're all over the place. But for that last week you're given loads that will take you in the direction that you need to go in order to get home on time. You'll never drive 200-300 miles to get home. They'll always have a load that goes closer to your home. The longest distance I've driven after a delivery to go home was only 130 miles.
Appreciate the infor. And ya taking the time to answer. What do ya do if ya dont have a load lined up after ya drop one. Do ya sit at the last drop or go to the nearest terminal , or just go to a truck stop and wait for one
Terminal:
A facility where trucking companies operate out of, or their "home base" if you will. A lot of major companies have multiple terminals around the country which usually consist of the main office building, a drop lot for trailers, and sometimes a repair shop and wash facilities.
Exactly, if you don't have a load lined up then just park and wait. If I'm near a terminal ill go there and wait. If I'm near a truck stop ill go there and shower. If I'm near a drop yard ill wait in the drop yard to get an empty trailer and sweep it out. You're the captain, you do what you want.
But, any good DM will always have a load lined up for you. I haven't had a load lined up for me ever since I can remember. Sometimes I have two loads lined up for me. Get your DM respect and trust and you'll hardly ever sit.
Terminal:
A facility where trucking companies operate out of, or their "home base" if you will. A lot of major companies have multiple terminals around the country which usually consist of the main office building, a drop lot for trailers, and sometimes a repair shop and wash facilities.
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.
I was told by an older person when I got into the oilfields that my Hitch on my rig is a per se' of being deployed in the Miltary. So at first it was hard not seeing my wife for 7 to 14 days at a time. It was even harder when I got home to leave again. But as the honey do list got bigger I enjoyed my long days away. It made it more of a vacation away from the daily grind of being Mr. FixIt Now Man.. LOL I would think as the hauls get farther from the house I peronally know she has a good family base to help her when or if a fixit now problem happens. I currently live in a home that has Daddy Gone.. He's Active Duty USMC. I am the role model until Daddy return's a few time's a Year. I was at first scared to go OTR due to losing time with the kids. I have a 2 year old neice thats my little buddy. Missing time away from her will for sure bug me more then being away from my Wife. How I see it if you can handle being gone 4 or 5 week then you have 4 or 5 days to spend time with the wife, or do the Mr.FixIt Now Duties...LOL
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
My first 5 months with the company were 'out' ... now, before you say 'That's insane' ... let me qualify. I did get home for a night or so every two or three weeks because my home terminal is on a main route. Then, at Thanksgiving, things kind of went to pot. I was asked to take a load to L.A. which HAD to go, and meant I'd miss Thanksgiving at home. I took it, and due to subsequent loads didn't see home for 5 weeks. I was really scared toward the end of that period, because I ended up with another load to L.A., then one to North Carolina. I figured I was going to miss Christmas too! But I did make it home, on Christmas Eve. If I hadn't made it home, I think I would have been better just to stay away as my wife would have killed me! (just kidding!...well ... maybe she would have only killed me a little)
So...my first hometime in 5 months was at Christmas. What's really funny is our Qualcomm Hometime Request Macro has a place for 'Days Out' and it only goes to 99! I was well past that.
My new year's resolution is not be out more than a month at a time, and try to get home every three weeks. I feel putting in that time initially helped me establish a reputation with Dispatch as a 'can-do' guy. Our dispatch is different than many other companies...we are smaller and have specific people dispatch for different areas of the country....they all know me now, and I have NEVER been late with a load, and have only turned down one load because I felt I could not have made it with the hours I still had available.
So...there is another opinion for you. I decided early on I was going to stay out on the first go until I couldn't stand it. Fortunately I had those trips though home to help, and managed to stay 'out' from July 18th through Christmas.
Tracy
Terminal:
A facility where trucking companies operate out of, or their "home base" if you will. A lot of major companies have multiple terminals around the country which usually consist of the main office building, a drop lot for trailers, and sometimes a repair shop and wash facilities.
Qualcomm:
Omnitracs (a.k.a. Qualcomm) is a satellite-based messaging system with built-in GPS capabilities built by Qualcomm. It has a small computer screen and keyboard and is tied into the truck’s computer. It allows trucking companies to track where the driver is at, monitor the truck, and send and receive messages with the driver – similar to email.HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.EPU:
Electric Auxiliary Power Units
Electric APUs have started gaining acceptance. These electric APUs use battery packs instead of the diesel engine on traditional APUs as a source of power. The APU's battery pack is charged when the truck is in motion. When the truck is idle, the stored energy in the battery pack is then used to power an air conditioner, heater, and other devices
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Just curious how long should a rookie OTR driver stay "out" for? Two weeks, 4weeks?
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.