Tough Local Backing For A Newbie

I love backing into enclosed docks, especially on bright sunny days, lol. Can't see the enclosed dock to save my life, and the dock opening spacing is just enough to squeeze the trailer into with open doors. Talk about guestimating if my trailer end is square with an "invisible" dock. Thankfully, those places usually will have enough space in front to pull up as much as needed to. Thankfully, I am in a day cab , which makes a HUGE difference. At one place, they have poles on the sides of the trailer space, so not only can I not see the dock from the outside, I cannot see those poles inside while in the cab. if I go in just a little bit crooked, I could hit either one.

One of our locals. Back in off the main road between two rows of cars and then jack about a 300 degree angle into the dock in the back.

I have done it... but definitely not as a newbie

Actually I read my angle wrong. The jack around that tree in the back is only about a 160. And if they have another truck in the back loading then you have to wait in the parking lot, dodging cars the whole time.

Actually I read my angle wrong. The jack around that tree in the back is only about a 160. And if they have another truck in the back loading then you have to wait in the parking lot, dodging cars the whole time.

And dispatch will not send a newbie there. Not that there is anywhere else to prepare a newbie for that but they try to not send a newbie there.

This may not look hard, but it is a slant and you have to cross all the traffic lanes to set up. when trucks are in the dock it is hard!

The evil trainer that I am had Splitter do it his first few weeks. hahahha

Here is one that was tough for me as a newbie.

It looks like you can go around the arch, but trucks were there. Also, cars were directly in front of the docks so i had to back from the street and wind around stuff

Here's one I did recently. The yellow arrow is where I started. You can get in from another curb cut that can't be seen here. The orange dot is about where your nose has to be when you are set up to back. Did I mention there is constant car and truck traffic as well as trucks parked along every curb. The blue is where there are cars parked.

I had to hit the middle spot. There was only the trailer on my right as I backed. There was a guy who backed into the spot to my left as I was finishing my back.

I would have had a very hard time getting in there as a newbie.

Wasnt too bad for me now.... but the me of 4 years ago???? heck no! I would have paid one of the local guys to back it in hahahhah

Hi Rainy, I once had a local driver, not employed with my company, offer to back my truck in when I was getting stuck in an alley in NYC. But I turned him down mainly because I thought it would be a violation of company policy. Your company at the time would have allowed it, or you wouldn't have worried about it? (Eventually I got backed into a door next to the one they wanted me in. It was full of empty pallets and trash. I said, "sorry, that's the one I can do." They cleaned up the door.)

Yard dogs... i paid lots of yards.

sometimes i dropped trailers and asked other prime drivers to put it in.

i was scared and i sucked :(