Semi-Retired ;-) CDL B To CDL A, Lord Willing!

Still working on those safety and fuel efficiency metrics. I managed to get to the number 8 spot, so my goal of breaking into the top ten has been achieved. Now headed for the number 1 spot.

It must be fierce competition in the top ten because the names move in and out fairly quickly. I dropped back to the middle teens from number 10 then back down into number 8, in the same day.

This week I was in the 20's. Weird. But on the whole, fuel efficiency has been going up.

I'll keep working at it. Probably gonna be one of those things where you get it dialed in then just keep it consistent and try to improve all the time.

Plenty of miles this last week. I let my FM know I'd be available for Saturdays, if needed, so he was able to accommodate and I put in around 3k, finishing up at home Saturday morning around 8:30.

A bit of a tough week, though, as my start times were in the early morning hours; which isn't too bad since I enjoy the lesser amount of traffic on the roads at those times. But the sleep schedule got a little skewed to accommodate the delivery times. It's all good. It's one of those challenges of driving.

I may have finished up my 6 month contract, as my safety bonus has increased as of this last week. Maybe a week early? I have recorded going into my 24th week this next Monday, the 17th. Yeah!

Pet peeve that has crept in is traffic merging into the highway. Seems they don't know how to press on the go pedal.

Another pet peeve is the auto brakes on the truck as they seem to have a mind of their own from time to time. I've picked up on that the radar tracks a vehicle further into an adjacent lane than my old truck, and if they're slowing down, my brakes may be activated. So I've adapted to that occurrence pretty good and keep a good eye on the tracking. It can be defeated by pressing on the go pedal.

Another time is those hard shadows from bridges that come out of nowhere and scare the crap out of you.

And if I'm too close to the vehicle ahead of me, and they start braking too quickly, those brakes may activate, which is annoying and makes my blood boil as I'm in complete control of the situation when this occurs. But I do have the radar looking as far ahead as possible, which is about a 10th of a mile. The fix is for me to react sooner to the following distance, and in most cases is just what I do, but occasionally you have some motorist jump in front of you and jam things up. Still, in the big picture, I need to adjust the following distance and all will be good. So I'm working on that so it doesn't happen that the brakes apply automatically.

Until later...

Working on those metrics and hit the number 3 spot for a short time this last week! I should mention, that this rating can be viewed in a 7-day, 30 day, or custom time span. The rating I've been talking about is for the 7-day span and thus the more competitive nature of staying in the top 10, as the list is a little more "live," you might say. Last I checked, which was early last week, I was holding the number 7 spot on the 30-day list, where that number is a lot more stable, due to the length of data reporting over the course of 30 days. This gives you a bigger picture of your overall driving habits.

This last week I focused primarily on achieving hitting the speed limits more closely. My usual driving consists of driving 5 to 7 over in a 55 mph zone, but this week I maintained a solid 56 instead. Also a big goal was to hit the next slower zone at precisely the marked mph, instead of aiming for being 5 over and slowing down from there. And, just for the fun of it, maintain the speed limit all the way to the next speed limit increase sign. I have a hunch that this will further improve the metrics.

Last week I was lucky enough to make a few stops earlier than dispatched. In one case, I would've had to wait 24 hours to make the delivery. I had made good time getting a previous dispatch completed and I was ahead on time. Called my FM and asked if I can arrive early to the next stop. Sure enough, it was a go, and could arrive in time before running out the drive clock.

Until later...

The last couple of weeks have been rather short on miles. Seems the freight volume plummeted for us, I guess.

Happy to keep working on my metrics, though. I'm getting them dialed in and figured out how to get the coasting score up. I was messing around with the cruise control and I could get the truck to do more coasting, but it wasn't having any affect on the metric. I figured out that I have to cancel cruise control and just manually coast to actually increase the points in that metric. Sounds simple enough, but it had alluded me for a while; silly me.

Also figured out the ranking, like to be in the top 10, has a lot to do with how many miles are driven during the week. I suspect the pecking order is down to miles and the best metrics. Though I'm not entirely sure, since I placed #2 one week and my metrics weren't nearly as good as they are now, but I had a lot of miles.

Went to a place I'd been to before and was sort of dreading it. Well, maybe dreading is too strong of a word, but was thinking about it and hoping for a particular dock that would be easier backing in to. Turns out the dock I wanted was in use. Doh! But I surprised myself with maneuvering into the other with ease. Actually got to back up to both. I had accidentally jumped ahead of another driver, so I apologized and moved so he could take that spot. Overall, with more experience, the backing is improving.

Until later...

Ah ha! Figured out the ranking chart. It appears to be only mileage related. So the miles driven in a particular time frame, determine your relative ranking.

As for the metrics, got them figured out and are working on making them all 100 in score. It's a bit tricky and depending on the time frame I pull up will determine the scores for that time frame. However, the 30 day view keeps getting better all the time, as long as I'm working towards those metrics.

Received a call from Keller one morning 1 week ago. He explained that he normally calls on drivers that are low in fuel efficiency metrics and offers some advice on how to improve. Only this day he decided to flip it around and call on drivers who are doing good and give them an atta-boy. Well, it turns out that I have all 100's and that I'm number one in the fleet! Woo hoo! I was excited to hear this news as I have been working on it for quite some time. He asked for some advice on how I was managing 100 in the idling metric. We then discussed some strategies that he could pass onto the others.

Driving and backing continues to improve. Amazing how many times I back in with limited pull ups, and such, compared to a few months ago. Not to toot my own horn, because I still can screw up a slam-dunk back in once in a while. ;)

The covid scam will be pushed out again. Though many of the lies surrounding this plandemic have been uncovered and debunked, for whatever reason, they are again trying to assert their tyrannical control of the population. DO NOT COMPLY. It only works for them if we do. Our freedoms and rights are at stake, to say the least.

Until later...

Well, well, well... What do we have here? A one year anniversary?! Already? Time flies when you're having fun learning the duties and responsibilities of an OTR truck driver.

Actually, it was Nov. 21st, and a couple of weeks ago I received a call from the company informing me that my one year is coming up. Then received a text on the day of the anniversary.

Met a few more employees during my travels. Sometimes at the same business or along the way at a rest area. Also on the CB. It's always a joy for me to talk with other drivers, whether from the company or not. Seems we're a talkative bunch of people once you get going on a subject, which in turn may lead to another subject; then another subject; and then another... until it's time to part ways. Then I'm left wondering if, or when, I'll ever see them again. Depending on you're kind of trucking job, I suspect one could go years before bumping into the same driver again, if ever.

I continue to enjoy driving and living on the road 5 days a week. (Kudos to those drivers that stay out for longer periods of time!) I get to talk to my wife while on the road every day and that makes this job easier for both of us.

Interacting with the people at the guard shacks/offices is always fun, except when I experience a really grumpy one, but they are definitely not the norm. In either case, I hope I make their day a little bit better by the time I leave.

Until later...

Ten months, and then some, have gone by since I started driving solo. Now 2024 is upon us.

I received a text from my dispatcher earlier this week letting me know that I'll be routed to the yard for a meeting at 1500 hours on Friday. That was the message. So, should I be nervous? I'm thinking, "What did I do wrong that I need to be talked to?" Couldn't come up with anything too bad, so I put it out of my mind.

Thursday he texts to let me know it will be a Driver's Awards ceremony. Well, that's good to know; but what awards are available? Guess I'll find out on Friday.

At the ceremony there were 5 drivers present, 1 visiting remotely via video, and 6 that couldn't attend.

12 awards available; Best Attitude, Cleanest Truck, Best MPG, Rookie of the Year, Driver of the Year (local), Driver of the Year (OTR), and 6 others I can't recall at this time.

First award presented was for "Rookie of the Year." And the recipient was... Me! There were a couple other contenders, but my Driver's Scorecard score put me at the top.

I'm quite thankful for the recognition and explained that I was grateful for the opportunity to be a driver, that I take my job seriously, and try to do my best everyday.

And with that, I'm looking forward to another good year of driving in 2024.

Until later...

That's a great achievement for any driver at any job, but especially for the things we go through daily. Congratulations!

Thanks!

That's a great achievement for any driver at any job, but especially for the things we go through daily. Congratulations!

"License and registration..." "Yes sir." "Do you know why I pulled you over?"

Well, it happened; I received a citation for being in the third lane. Thought I had a valid reason for being there, but he wasn't swayed at all. No problem. I'm definitely not going to argue; just be as polite and courteous as possible.

Called my company to let the Safety Dept. know of the incident and I'm left with the knowledge of losing the safety bonus for four weeks. Big bummer! But, that's life and I own up to it and will do better going forward.

Had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day at a shippers soon after that. Waited 11 hours and 15 minutes before I got out of there. That was a big example of how a little communication could've saved me a bunch of headache and time.

Another day, going down the interstate , I get pulled into the scale. There the officer found there was a weight distribution problem between the trailer tandems. One was over the legal limit and the other hardly carrying any of the load. So with that, he had me swing around the building where he informed my of that condition with the axles and happily announced that he would do a full inspection.

There! I had my first Level 1 full inspection! Actually really liked the experience. The officer was really nice to interact with and I was glad to be helpful in any way I could.

Essentially everything else checked out good with the exception of one trailer light being in-op (that I had informed him about prior to his inspection) and stated that I had already reported in the DVIR to be fixed during pre-trip this morning.

The officer informed me right away that I'm not leaving until it fixed. No problem. I'll call my work place and get the ball rolling. Well, that ball rolled for a very long ways as it took over 5 hours to get back on the road! Doh! The joys of trucking!

Until later...

Still working on those safety and fuel efficiency metrics. I managed to get to the number 8 spot, so my goal of breaking into the top ten has been achieved. Now headed for the number 1 spot.

It must be fierce competition in the top ten because the names move in and out fairly quickly. I dropped back to the middle teens from number 10 then back down into number 8, in the same day.

This week I was in the 20's. Weird. But on the whole, fuel efficiency has been going up.

I'll keep working at it. Probably gonna be one of those things where you get it dialed in then just keep it consistent and try to improve all the time.

Plenty of miles this last week. I let my FM know I'd be available for Saturdays, if needed, so he was able to accommodate and I put in around 3k, finishing up at home Saturday morning around 8:30.

A bit of a tough week, though, as my start times were in the early morning hours; which isn't too bad since I enjoy the lesser amount of traffic on the roads at those times. But the sleep schedule got a little skewed to accommodate the delivery times. It's all good. It's one of those challenges of driving.

I may have finished up my 6 month contract, as my safety bonus has increased as of this last week. Maybe a week early? I have recorded going into my 24th week this next Monday, the 17th. Yeah!

Pet peeve that has crept in is traffic merging into the highway. Seems they don't know how to press on the go pedal.

Another pet peeve is the auto brakes on the truck as they seem to have a mind of their own from time to time. I've picked up on that the radar tracks a vehicle further into an adjacent lane than my old truck, and if they're slowing down, my brakes may be activated. So I've adapted to that occurrence pretty good and keep a good eye on the tracking. It can be defeated by pressing on the go pedal.

Another time is those hard shadows from bridges that come out of nowhere and scare the crap out of you.

And if I'm too close to the vehicle ahead of me, and they start braking too quickly, those brakes may activate, which is annoying and makes my blood boil as I'm in complete control of the situation when this occurs. But I do have the radar looking as far ahead as possible, which is about a 10th of a mile. The fix is for me to react sooner to the following distance, and in most cases is just what I do, but occasionally you have some motorist jump in front of you and jam things up. Still, in the big picture, I need to adjust the following distance and all will be good. So I'm working on that so it doesn't happen that the brakes apply automatically.

Until later...

One trip into hilly/mountainous terrain can cause a significant dip in fuel economy. Do your best to hit that top spot, but know that where you rank may have more to do with who had longer stretches of straight/flat highway with no traffic delays. No matter where you fall in that ranking, you are a great asset to your company because you are focused on the right things. Fuel economy and safety are tied at the hip because the drivers who most frequently have the best fuel economy are the drivers who have the best safety record.