6 On, 6 Off. Months?

I didn’t mean to hijack another thread, so I moved here. I drove OTR for Con-way/XPO in 2016. What I’ve been doing mostly since then is working as a Class B driver/tour guide in the summer season (alternating between Napa Valley and Alaska), then taking the winter season to travel internationally while working as a digital nomad web designer. Currently I’m in Siem Reap, Cambodia (home of Angkor Wat and 50 cent beer). I’m heading back to the US on Monday, and have several good options lined up, but I do miss the life of a trucker.

A couple of times I’ve decided to return to OTR, and Western Express has made me some good offers over the years. Their refresher course is a good fit, and they have been understanding about my seasonal work history. But each time some tour company has made me a better one. Part of that is I convince myself I’ll drive for 3-5 years, but when I get offered a 6-month contract I jump at it.

I’ve come to realize that, ideally, I’d like to find a company that would be fine with me driving 6 months, then taking off for 6 months. My trainer did this, but he’d been with the company for 16 years and was a top driver (I’m so blessed to have trained under him.) I’d be willing to work a full year to establish my worth. But is this a realistic option? Or should I just accept that if I want to work a 6-months-on 6-months-off schedule then I will be shuttling tourists around town instead hauling freight cross country?

RJ mentioned on the other thread that Knight, Swift, and Roehl have flexible options, but are they this flexible?

I know from experience that the fact that I work both as an employee and a freelancer in the same year confuses many entities to the point of breaking. I worry this may be an issue with employment verification. I’m also a bit worried that my international travels may be problematic. And after my recent research, I worry that even if this is all theoretically feasible, that now might not be a good time for it since hiring has slowed.

I don’t care about home time. My residence is just a mailing address, home is where I hang my hat. My safety record is crystal clear and I’ve had multiple advanced Smith System and other driving training. My reputation is always the go-to guy for getting things done right while being kind and cheerful. I understand if I am able to find a company willing to work with me it’s a privilege and not a right.

So folks, what do you think? Keep trying to get back behind the wheel of a big rig, or move on and remember those days fondly?

I think it's going to be impossible to find a really flexible trucking job like that.

If I wanted to pursue something like that, I would look into trucking jobs connected to seasonal operations like harvest seasons. Pulling a fresh harvest of corn from the fields has to be done in a time slot. There's a certain time of the year they do that.

It starts in the southern states and gradually moves northward until it's all in storage.

Grain operations are the same. There's a critical time period when specific agricultural products must be dealt with. That's what I'd look into.

Typical OTR jobs are not usually interested in seasonal workers.

Wasn’t there a member here some time ago who only drove half the year? If my memory serves me correctly, I think he spent the other half year on a cruise ship.

Was it Dave?

You should contact a driver placement agency. They usually have dozens of customers that need drivers. The nice thing for you is that your relationship is with the agency - not the company. Next year the agency will still need a driver even if the company you drove for last year doesn't.

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