Whats A Reasonable Expectation For Weekly Miles And What Am I Capable Of?

Ill use the split berth frequently, but I found (the hard way) that I need to be cognoscente of when I shut down for the day, because that will effect when I can drive again the next day as I will still have to take a 10 hour break to reset my 14. I can only pause it with the split berth. Yesterday, I had a live load, I got to the dock at 5pm, I had about 6 hours left my 14. I knew it would take a few hours so I hit sleeper berth and then the split button. my eld showed the 14 hour going down, but as soon as it hit 2 hours of SB, it stopped it and gave me those two hours back to it. I got out of there at about 8 pm. In this case, my receiver was about 100 miles away, so I was able to make it there and find a place to shut down afterwards. That would have been really tight if I hadnt been able to pause my 14 hour clock while I was getting loaded.

Ive had times where I paused it using the split berth, and then ended up shutting down at 2 or 3 am. That meant I couldnt drive until noon the next day which ended up putting me late for an appointment. Ive found I really need to think several moves ahead if Im going to use it.

Ive found I really need to think several moves ahead if Im going to use it.

You are exactly right about thinking ahead. I am sometimes thinking four or five days ahead with my clock management. It is something that is important. I don't ever want to tell my manager I don't have enough hours to do something. I have even had my dispatcher call me saying, " I have this load going to xxxxx, but it looks like you may not have enough hours to make it." Because I have already been considering all my options, I will come up with a plan off the top of my head, and be able to explain to him why I can do the load. I sometimes think he is impressed easily, because he will be so amazed I can do that. After years of dealing with the limits on the clock, it has become quite natural for me to think in terms of the clock and the rules. Understanding how it all works and how it affects you several days in advance becomes an asset that helps you greatly.

Yes, Old School, that may be the reason, I was off duty for 1:50, I'll watch my 14 clock next time when it will be over 2 hours. The whole idea of splitting time doesn't look attractive to me though. I like a simple schedule, and I am ready to pay with a smaller check for being comfortable. I wake up at 5:15 am, begin driving at 6, have my main meal around 2 pm, and after 6 pm I start looking for a spot at a rest area or a truck stop, depending on my need in a shower. Yes, and my week is Monday through Friday, I very rarely have a morning delivery on Saturday, and when I have it is under 50 miles from home. So I don't care about my 70 clock that much :-)

I agree Andrey. If you don't need the split sleeper, then don't bother with it. When you do have the need, it is a powerful tool to understand.

We were at a governed speed of 63 mph but i think that has been increased, so maybe I will break the 2500 barrier this time around.

Governed speed really has nothing to do with how many miles you can run. This is all about time management. You have to conserve hours for driving. When rookies are having trouble turning very good miles we always want to know how much time they are spending "on duty." If they are bumping up against 70 hours and can only get in 2,500 miles then they are probably stealing time from themselves by spending too much time in the "on duty" status. There is no reason a person with a few months experience can't turn 3,000 miles during a 70 hour period. It has nothing to do with how fast you drive. It's all about knowing when to put yourself off duty or sleeper berth. I never spend more than 20 minutes or so in the "on duty" status. Why would I want to burn up the time that I get to earn money? Understanding the rules and how they can work to your advantage is how you get to the point of turning the big miles more consistently.

Davy, there's nothing wrong with the results you are getting. In fact what you are doing is excellent. You are going to have some weeks that are more productive than others - that's trucking. I never tried to measure my performance by the week. It's okay to look at the numbers, but don't expect every week to be a home run hit. Look at it monthly or even better do it quarterly, Set yourself some goals for a month and for a quarter and start seeing if you can get close to those goals. I would even have an annual goal. You can see how you are doing better with those because they take in all the various things that happen and delay us. They also average in our home time and things like that. If you can run 125,000 to 130,000 miles for the year, you have had a great year. If you average that out it is going to be around 2,500 miles per week.

I think you are doing great. You have to realize there is a limit to what you can accomplish. You are limited by regulations designed to keep you safe. You can certainly accomplish more, but there is a balance to all of this. I have watched a good many people burn themselves out early trying to be like the old timers who seem to rack up all the miles possible with ease. There is a lot to learn at this. Walk first, and run later. This learning curve doesn't happen overnight. You are still a rookie, a Squire. Even as a full fledged Knight driver you will still be learning how to do this. I am still learning and adjusting. You are doing a great job. Go have a cold beer and quit beating yourself up. Wait till you get to enjoy a 34 before you hit that cold beer though!

I as just scouring the trucking company tags looking for any useful nuggets I could find on various carriers when I came across this post.

Truthfully, this post is a treasure trove of useful information for people like myself trying to soak up as much information as possible.

Old School, I really appreciate all of the experiential nuggets of information from you that I have read, which is probably a tiny percentage of all that you have contributed over the years. I have commented that the rookie drivers sharing their experiences and triumphs are what inspire me and motivate me, but that is not yo take away from the value of knowledge that is gained from all the experienced drivers like yourself who regularly--or even irregularly--share insight and perspective.

Sometimes I post comments like I know what I am talking about without having experience, but in truth I am often pulling thoughts from something that I have read from an experienced driver.

Anyway, I just wanted to give this comment some attention because someone knew here who just reads and doesn't post might benefit from Old School's wisdom.

~Kerry

We were at a governed speed of 63 mph but i think that has been increased, so maybe I will break the 2500 barrier this time around.

Governed speed really has nothing to do with how many miles you can run. This is all about time management. You have to conserve hours for driving. When rookies are having trouble turning very good miles we always want to know how much time they are spending "on duty." If they are bumping up against 70 hours and can only get in 2,500 miles then they are probably stealing time from themselves by spending too much time in the "on duty" status. There is no reason a person with a few months experience can't turn 3,000 miles during a 70 hour period. It has nothing to do with how fast you drive. It's all about knowing when to put yourself off duty or sleeper berth. I never spend more than 20 minutes or so in the "on duty" status. Why would I want to burn up the time that I get to earn money? Understanding the rules and how they can work to your advantage is how you get to the point of turning the big miles more consistently.

Davy, there's nothing wrong with the results you are getting. In fact what you are doing is excellent. You are going to have some weeks that are more productive than others - that's trucking. I never tried to measure my performance by the week. It's okay to look at the numbers, but don't expect every week to be a home run hit. Look at it monthly or even better do it quarterly, Set yourself some goals for a month and for a quarter and start seeing if you can get close to those goals. I would even have an annual goal. You can see how you are doing better with those because they take in all the various things that happen and delay us. They also average in our home time and things like that. If you can run 125,000 to 130,000 miles for the year, you have had a great year. If you average that out it is going to be around 2,500 miles per week.

I think you are doing great. You have to realize there is a limit to what you can accomplish. You are limited by regulations designed to keep you safe. You can certainly accomplish more, but there is a balance to all of this. I have watched a good many people burn themselves out early trying to be like the old timers who seem to rack up all the miles possible with ease. There is a lot to learn at this. Walk first, and run later. This learning curve doesn't happen overnight. You are still a rookie, a Squire. Even as a full fledged Knight driver you will still be learning how to do this. I am still learning and adjusting. You are doing a great job. Go have a cold beer and quit beating yourself up. Wait till you get to enjoy a 34 before you hit that cold beer though!

I was just scouring the trucking company tags looking for any useful nuggets I could find on various carriers when I came across this post.

Truthfully, this post is a treasure trove of useful information for people like myself trying to soak up as much information as possible.

Old School, I really appreciate all of the experiential nuggets of information from you that I have read, which is probably a tiny percentage of all that you have contributed over the years. I have commented that the rookie drivers sharing their experiences and triumphs are what inspire me and motivate me, but that is not yo take away from the value of knowledge that is gained from all the experienced drivers like yourself who regularly--or even irregularly--share insight and perspective.

Sometimes I post comments like I know what I am talking about without having experience, but in truth I am often pulling thoughts from something that I have read from an experienced driver.

Anyway, I just wanted to give this comment some attention because someone knew here who just reads and doesn't post might benefit from Old School's wisdom.

~Kerry

Agreed, Kerry!!

Great BUMP!

~ Anne ~