Customers That Showed Appreciation

[danske]

Have you ever had a customer that went over and above to show their appreciation for a trucker? I remember several customers that really made a difference!

When I was picking up a load of hay in Roberts, MT, I met a rancher at the town grain elevator to get my empty weight. Before we headed out to his ranch and hay shed, he bought me lunch at the town cafe. It was only a hot turkey sandwich, mash potatoes and gravy, but boy it was good!

With my truck and trailer(53' Dry Van) parked at his ranch, I wasn't need for loading. I had a long hand unload early that morning in Billings and I needed a clean change of clothes. When I mentioned this to him, he handed me his pickup truck keys, pointed out across a field where his house was, invited me to use his bathroom, and be back in an hour. That hot shower sure was great!

Another time, I delivered a load of ice cream sandwich wafers to Blue Bunny in Le Mars, IA. I had an open appointment and arrived at the plant at 1am. The graveyard foreman directed me to a dock. While his crew unloaded my trailer, he showed me the company breakroom and instructed me to help myself to orange juice, milk, and ice cream that were in several refrigerators and freezers. Unfortunately, I didn't have a cooler in my truck at the time, but what a treat that was!!

I have a few more stories that I remember, but I would like hear from other drivers their experiences.

[silvan]

I used to have several customers who remembered me at Christmas with gifts of greenbacks. The most notable was Patsy in Greenwood, SC, who used to write me two checks the last truck before Christmas, with the second one made out to me, instead of the company, in the amount of $100 USD. Wow! I miss her. She was good looking too! Went out of business years and years ago though.

I used to deliver to a good bunch up in Quakertown, PA. They were good ol' boys, only Yankees. I remember one time I lost my belt tensioner running up I think it was PA 668 or 663 or something. Some little gray road between Pottstown and Quakertown, with about one good town along the way. I heard a thunk pulling into that town, and figured I would be finding out what the thunk was shortly. Sure enough, I made it about another mile before the truck shut down. As it happened, there was a fleet repair place for Ryder or Penske or something a half mile from where I shut down. I let it cool enough to start up and make it that far, and they drove down to Philly to get me a part, and put it on. (Another good bunch there, come to think of it.)

When I finally got to Quakertown, I was late, late, late. They waited up on me, and since I was going to have to lay over there and finish my route the following day, the guy and his wife invited me to come back to their house for dinner, a shower, and sleeping on the couch.

Come to think of it, there was a bunch in Summer Hill, PA too. A big family living in a warehouse beside a furniture store in the middle of nowhere, on some weird road you could only get to from the northbound side. I used to get there about dinnertime, and after they unloaded me, they invited me upstairs to join about three generations of the family for dinner. Nice people.

[Sabine]

one of the first loads my hubby and I ever took. To a place way up in Napa Valley, CA. We got up there late, they unloaded us on the street, got talking to them.

We were stuck for the night right there, too scary a road to go back on after dark. The guy gave us car keys with directions to the local bar, where we all closed the place down, place to sleep and a shower and then breakfast in the morning.

[BanditsCousin]

I got an $800 tip once. My shippers have taken me to eat too.

One shipper was marketing director at a Casino in Elko Nevada and comped me a room and a $50 card for meals because I got there early and he couldn't take delivery till the next day.

On a Florida load, the shipper let me and my helper (ride along) swim and BBQ after we unloaded. We played Pool volleyball with their sons (almost our age) till dark.

Man, I'm gonna miss HHG for that reason only Shippers tha appreciate us rock 8)

[Uturn2001]

Picked up a load in Kentucky, though I can not recall where. Everyone was super nice and friendly.

This warehouse had a driver's room that put most terminals to shame. There were 5 private showers (driver's had to supply own towels) and the room was located on the opposite side of the employee's break room/cafeteria with an order window so drivers could get something to eat which was offered at a 20% discount over what employee's paid. There was also a TV hooked into a sat dish and several easy chairs in addition to the well padded dining chairs at the tables.

You had the option of waiting in that room or in your truck while you were loaded/unloaded and when they were done someone came and got you and brought your paperwork to you. Same thing went if you had to wait in the staging yard for a door. None of this wait by the CB crap. They came out and got you.

[Fredog]

Have you ever had a customer that went over and above to show their appreciation for a trucker? I remember several customers that really made a difference!

When I was picking up a load of hay in Roberts, MT, I met a rancher at the town grain elevator to get my empty weight. Before we headed out to his ranch and hay shed, he bought me lunch at the town cafe. It was only a hot turkey sandwich, mash potatoes and gravy, but boy it was good!

With my truck and trailer(53' Dry Van) parked at his ranch, I wasn't need for loading. I had a long hand unload early that morning in Billings and I needed a clean change of clothes. When I mentioned this to him, he handed me his pickup truck keys, pointed out across a field where his house was, invited me to use his bathroom, and be back in an hour. That hot shower sure was great!

Another time, I delivered a load of ice cream sandwich wafers to Blue Bunny in Le Mars, IA. I had an open appointment and arrived at the plant at 1am. The graveyard foreman directed me to a dock. While his crew unloaded my trailer, he showed me the company breakroom and instructed me to help myself to orange juice, milk, and ice cream that were in several refrigerators and freezers. Unfortunately, I didn't have a cooler in my truck at the time, but what a treat that was!!

I have a few more stories that I remember, but I would like hear from other drivers their experiences.

Iams pet food Aurora Nebraska
one of our drivers got stuck there last year for 3 days during an ice storm, they took him to a motel in the bosses pickup, gave the motel a credit card and authorized him to charge all his meals on it, they came back and got him when it cleared up, unloaded him and then wrote him a check for 15 bucks an hour detention time..

[Wild Bill Pete]

I had a load for a feed store, in Nebraska, can't remember the one horse town it was too, but the place hadn't got a road going to it, so I had to follow a mud road over a field or two, then through a farm yard. - The ground was real firm so no problem, but it took me a while. I got to the feed store, just before they were closing, and it was about 7 when I was done - I didn't feel like driving through the field again in the dark, so was going to bunk down right there. No place for food, as they were all shut, so I just curled up and ignored the rumbling of my belly for an hour or so. Then the feed store owner showed up with a tray full of home cooked food, a power lead, electric heater, and a bottle of beer.. That is about the best I've been treated.

[TruckerChris]

I once got unloaded within an hour and didn't have to wait 5hrs for 2 pallets...

[Fredog]

I once got unloaded within an hour and didn't have to wait 5hrs for 2 pallets...

Now you're just spouting bull :dung:

[line_transporter]

I havn't come across many appreciating customers (I can't back up that trailer to their dock on the first shot :shock, however, all the store clerks that I've dealt with were all quite nice and friendly. They deal with truckers every day and ultimately develop an interest in them I guess

[Blind Driver]

When I used to lump trucks at Mother's cookies in Louisville, Ky, they would give the driver cookies if they got loaded late for any reason. Many of the drivers didn't need/want that many cookies.

Several days my entire truck was full of cookies. Biggest haul for me in one day was almost 15 boxes

[Southron]

2 days before Christmas I took a load of mattresses from Corsicana to Seabrook, TX. After I finished unloading, the mattress store manager gave me $10.00! May not sound like much, but it was the day before Payday and I was out of food and out of money, so that bought me a decent meal when I shut down for the night.

[JewelsnTools]

When I went in, one receiver's office manager thought I was a salesperson--I had to assure him that I was, indeed, a truck driver! heehee
Anyway, it must've cracked him up because when I went to get my paperwork, he'd left me "samples" of what I'd be hauling--2 BIG TUBS of my favorite peanut butter!!
My mouth was stuck together that whole darned trip!
Some of these posts are incredible---it just goes to show that, even though it doesn't always seem like it, there really ARE some decent folks left in this world!

[Musicman]

Like BanditsCousin missing HHG, I miss the finer points of enclosed auto transport.
One time we picked up a Hummer H2, 2 quads, a motorcycle, an ultra-light airplane and a $20k m
assage chair for a guy in Vermont and after we delivered his stuff to his cliff-side La Jolla home, not only did he tip us $600, but offered to let us use his shower and hang out in the Jacuzzi that overlooked the ocean while he ran out on business.
We delivered a custom Mercedes S550 to then Orioles pitcher Daniel Cabrera out in front of Camden Yards. He was like a little (well, as little as a 6’ 9” guy can be) kid trying to get a peek of his car as we moved the four Lotuses that were blocking it in. As soon as we got his car out, he tipped us $180 and hopped in it and took off. The team concierge gave us his cell number and told us to call anytime we were in town and wanted great seats to a game.

We delivered a $1.6 million 1997 McLaren F1 to a guy in Oregon who had me drive the car behind him over twelve miles to his house... at over 100+ mph down a curvy Wilsonville, OR road. I didn’t get a cash tip on that one, but getting a chance to drive the hell out of one of the 100 of these cars made was truly priceless. To top the deal off, the guy gave me a ride back to our truck in an Enzo, one of the thirty or more Ferraris he had on his property.

With enclosed auto transport, just about every day was an adventure. Unfortunately, with a $2,500 insurance deductible on the cars you haul, sometimes the adventure can get expensive. One time we picked up “the world’s fastest Lamborghini Diablo”… one previously owned by Jose Canseco… and got accused of not only chipping the front spoiler (even though the inspection report signed by the shipper clearly showed the chips), but we also got blamed for the clutch going out on the car. Days like that are why I’m now pulling a reefer unit.