Driving Routines

Of course you can call and give a heads up that you are delivering if you have a contact number. Not only is it a courtesy but you can also quiz them on the earliest delivery time, which may be earlier or possibly a bit later than regular opening hours. You can also find out through google or similar by searching the company and city to possibly find opening times. Another useful tool is google maps. Search the company on the map, then go to satellite mode. Then you will see the destination and how the shipping area is set up and the building configuration. Then when you get close to your stop you know exactly where to go or at least a safe place to park to find the shipper.

Hey Roxi. I don’t think there’s such a thing As a dumb question. I don’t know how it is everywhere but most companies will send you some sort of load info. This will have all kinds of details and we have to read all of it so we don’t screw something up.

Contained in this info will be my appointment time or my delivery window.

With what I do, flatbed it’s mostly delivery windows. Like 0700 to 1400. . The load info I get is reused for years and sometimes these places change addresses and their delivery windows. Because of this I can’t trust my load info. If it says I have an appointment for 9am chances are good I could of gone in at 5am. I’ve learned this all the hard way so many times. I’ve showed up at my 9am appointment and asked them what would of been the earliest I could have came in and they have said 5am.

I pretty much have to call these places all the time. If I’m going into a place I never been I like to call them and ask them what’s the earliest I can come in and if they have overnight parking. If it’s someplace crazy I’ll ask for some directions from my last major road. Most of the time in the bigger city’s the garmin will have me making 30 turns when all I really needed to do was make a few. In the beginning of your career I wouldn’t recommend trying to maximize your clock. If you find a nice safe place to park up for the night that allows you to make your appointments on time go for it. I was a solar powered trucker for my first 6 months. And then my first 2 accidents happened in the dark. Be safe.

Maybe a dumb question but how do you know when they open? Do you call?

I only ever stop for 10 hours unless it doesn’t hurt my money to stop longer. My clock works around my money. I don’t start it or stop it unless it makes me the most money possible. Say I stop 30 minutes away from consignee because there is nowhere at consignee to sleep. I got 3 hours left to run. I might get up in 8 hours if that puts me there 30 minutes before they open. Then I’ll do a two hour break there while they unload me and away I’ll go. I always want to be the first truck everywhere I go.

I.havent quite figured out the split yet.

I only ever stop for 10 hours unless it doesn’t hurt my money to stop longer. My clock works around my money. I don’t start it or stop it unless it makes me the most money possible. Say I stop 30 minutes away from consignee because there is nowhere at consignee to sleep. I got 3 hours left to run. I might get up in 8 hours if that puts me there 30 minutes before they open. Then I’ll do a two hour break there while they unload me and away I’ll go. I always want to be the first truck everywhere I go.

Thx!

Of course you can call and give a heads up that you are delivering if you have a contact number. Not only is it a courtesy but you can also quiz them on the earliest delivery time, which may be earlier or possibly a bit later than regular opening hours. You can also find out through google or similar by searching the company and city to possibly find opening times. Another useful tool is google maps. Search the company on the map, then go to satellite mode. Then you will see the destination and how the shipping area is set up and the building configuration. Then when you get close to your stop you know exactly where to go or at least a safe place to park to find the shipper.

When I was “48 states” with Schneider, I usually started about 4-5am & tried to shut down by 4:30-5pm. Did I leave $ on the table? Maybe, but I was often running on recap hours & didn’t wanna sit for a 34 on the road. I was always doing 2,500 miles per week.

Now I mostly run FL MS LA & and sometimes start later. Today I’ll start around 11am. I rarely do my 10hr at a truck stop. FL scales are my favorite place to park, always room & quiet.

I hope this helps.

Steve, who do you work for?