Looking Forward And Slightly Obsessing On A Few Things

When I feel like Ive gotten solid enough at dry van , theres a few other things in the future I want to try. I dont necessarily know theres much point to it, but nonetheless, its things I obsess on.

Flatbed, obviously, theres a wealth of information here, when I feel like Im solid and comfortable with most situations, I do want to learn flatbedding, Of course I want to do so in my cautious slow approach to it, but I question if thats a realistic expectation? My guess is that, especially after a year or two in the industry, it would be expected for me to pick it up quickly and start producing as soon as possible with it. Also, Im still very weak in the early morning department.

loosing the auto restriction, Its just something I want to do. One thing that bugs me though is the question of if I take the road test for manual and fail for some reason, would it then void my CDL that I have? Or would I just continue to have the restriction. I dont really have a justification for loosing the restriction, and I dont have any plans to go anywhere else that requires it, but its just something I want to learn and master.

Cabover and older conventional trucks. It probably sounds silly, but I just want to drive one to see what its like. Not for a job or anything, I just think it would be a cool experience. Eventually, purely as a hobby, Id love to get one and restore it, Id also like to see what its like to drive one of the old beasts.

And finally, Carhaulers, pneumatics and dumps. I dont necessarily know that I would want to do any of those long term for a job, but I find myself constantly wondering what its like to drive them and how the days go. If it makes any sense, I just like to try things out for a week or two. I talk to a lot of car haulers frequently, mostly just ask questions. I find building the load interesting, like a jigsaw puzzle. Mostly I probably just spend too much time overthinking things lol.

I can’t say much about the other things you mentioned but as far as flatbed, the thing is it seems daunting from an outside perspective but as soon as you start doing it you realize it’s got its challenges but it’s easy to catch on quickly. I thought I was gonna be using our load help email all the time when I first started (System has an email we can send pics of the load to and they’ll tell us how to secure it) and I haven’t used it once. I’ve called my trainer a few times here and there but most loads are fairly straightforward.

We both live in the Springs and I’m home every weekend. I’d be happy to exchange contact info with you if you’d like and you could even ride with me at some point if you’d like. I’m regional but do a lot of local loads too so it wouldn’t be difficult to arrange that even just for a day.

Davy, that’s one of the cool things about the trucking industry is that you have the opportunity to experience so many different styles of freight while pulling a multitude of different trailers. I think it’s good for people to want to experience different things because it allows you to find something you may truly enjoy and without branching out, you could have overlooked it. I totally agree with wanting to get rid of that auto restriction. While the majority of your larger carriers have switched to auto shift, the vast majority of other companies out there have not and you might miss out on an opportunity. Heavy haul is and always will be my favorite thing to do. However, the drawback is home time unless you’re in a day cab doing local work. I’ve found my home pulling hopper bottom though because I’m home when I want and make very good money doing something I truly enjoy with a great company. Never sell yourself short.

Yes, car hauling is different and yes its like a fine puzzle. It takes a couple of weeks to learn the hydraulics and all that and give yourself about 6-months to get good at putting the 'puzzle' together.

When I feel like Ive gotten solid enough at dry van , theres a few other things in the future I want to try. I dont necessarily know theres much point to it, but nonetheless, its things I obsess on.

Flatbed, obviously, theres a wealth of information here, when I feel like Im solid and comfortable with most situations, I do want to learn flatbedding, Of course I want to do so in my cautious slow approach to it, but I question if thats a realistic expectation? My guess is that, especially after a year or two in the industry, it would be expected for me to pick it up quickly and start producing as soon as possible with it. Also, Im still very weak in the early morning department.

loosing the auto restriction, Its just something I want to do. One thing that bugs me though is the question of if I take the road test for manual and fail for some reason, would it then void my CDL that I have? Or would I just continue to have the restriction. I dont really have a justification for loosing the restriction, and I dont have any plans to go anywhere else that requires it, but its just something I want to learn and master.

Cabover and older conventional trucks. It probably sounds silly, but I just want to drive one to see what its like. Not for a job or anything, I just think it would be a cool experience. Eventually, purely as a hobby, Id love to get one and restore it, Id also like to see what its like to drive one of the old beasts.

And finally, Carhaulers, pneumatics and dumps. I dont necessarily know that I would want to do any of those long term for a job, but I find myself constantly wondering what its like to drive them and how the days go. If it makes any sense, I just like to try things out for a week or two. I talk to a lot of car haulers frequently, mostly just ask questions. I find building the load interesting, like a jigsaw puzzle. Mostly I probably just spend too much time overthinking things lol.