Some observations ive made on this site

[bjs24]

Hello all ill try to keep it brief to allow for your comments. Ive been on this site now for a couple of months and being a new driver in a new career i love it. When im home for my 4 days a month i sit and read and learn and appreciate everyone who contributes , as im sure all newbies do. BUT i do have some comments on a couple of different subjects

Politics.... Jumping around this site you see alot of debates about the government , the election and so on. does the government have to much control in some areas yes , does the economy suck right now yes but its the only government we have and you cant change it unless you stop bitching about it and vote. (not to say new people will be any different).
In my personal opinion come november we are screwed for a couple of reasons. This is the U.S of A. and its not going to elect a black man to head the country. now relax thats not a racist statement thats a reality. Thay leaves us with McCane a republican, no changes, its nothing more than a 3rd term for bush with someone else driving the bus. Now lets say Obama does win, what do we have there we have inexperience and at this point in the game no one knows what this man stands for. We do know there will be CHANGES??? What changes?? If he would make his position clear on some issues it would be easier to vote for him. All you can do is do some reasearch and try to make an informed decision. Keep in mind when the democrats left office (clinton) the economy was great there was a surplus of money and you were happy. (he also kinda made oral sex a work activity) At this point in the game i will vote for Obama because its gonna take the democrats to fix the economy and that works for all of us.

My next point has to do with being on the road driving OTR. Where did manners(if thats the right word)go on the highways. On my last couple of loads i started counting how many drivers say thank you after i flash the lights to let them back in. i consistantly got maybe 30 - 40 %. If someone sneezes do you say godblessyou?? if you bump into someone do you say excuse me? Im not ashamed to say i drive for Swift and im getting tired of being talewhipped when i get passed WTF is that all about. Ive heard about the Swift reputation but ill tell you this im almost a year in starting from no experience at all in trucks , and from going thru Swift school to now , Ihave killed noone , ihave hit noone, i take my time backing in so i dont hit your truck and i am very courteouse when im on the road. Just because you guys who were born behind the wheel of a semi dont like swift you should not hold all swift drivers responsable for the reputation.
I love what im doing and im not sorry i changed careers at 41 years old and im happy with who i work for so cut swift drivers a break we aint all bad.

and the last point i would like to make is about safety.
all day and all night you see on the road trucks on the bumpers of 4 wheelers and other trucks , speeding thru work zones ECT. everywhere on this site theres posts about accidents with attached links to articles and then theres commentary on said accidents. truckdrivers talk a good game but do we see that on the highway?? i think most of the time we dont. you know whats screwed up im harrassed for working for swift all day on the CB( yes i am listening) because if you work dor Swift " you were not trained right and shouldnt be driving a truck" and 9 out of 10 trucks i see are doing the things they harrass me about and im not doing them. We are all just trying to do a job. Instead of slamming someoneone for who they work for why dont you try offering advise and help.

on the other side of the coin your not all bad.
I was in IL last week at a small mom and pop truckstop. I went into the restaurant ordered my food and when it was done pulled out a credit card to pay for it. well they didnt take credit cards and i had no cash. I told the waitress i was going out to my truck to call the company to get money on my CD card ill be back in about 10 minutes. well about 5 minutes go buy im sitting in my truck waiting for my advance and i see the waitress come out carring my food. she comes up to the truck and says one of the other drivers payed for your food. By this time my advance just came over the quallcom so i had the money. i went in and payed hime back for my food and gave him 5 extra just for helping out. its not a big thing but it meant alot to me seeing a starnger step up like that. ive also need help at truck stops or had questions and gotten help so your not all bad.

well im on home time now and i had some time to kill just decided to ramble on a bit. if anyone is offended im sorry these are just my opinions
you got an issue PM me hell ill give my phone # im allways looking for people to call while driving. thanks for your time BJS

[BigDiesel]

Well Bj24 or whatever your login name is...... You used somewhat decent grammar and paragraphs..... But, try to use capital letters when you start a sentence.....

In regards to your " observations about this website ".......

[DaveP]

Well Bj24 or whatever your login name is...... You used somewhat decent grammar and paragraphs..... But, try to use capital letters when you start a sentence.....

In regards to your " observations about this website ".......

..... ..... ..... ......

[NotSteve]

yes, eye agree. i used to bee reely bad at first butt i started using spell cheek and krammer programs.

i can now put two gether proper sentances with the right strukcher like a real truck driver.

keep treye'ing and some days use will be as good as me

[Roadhog]

Glad to have you as a member BJS.
You point out some things no doubt other new members see and feel, when coming here. When you look at the size of our membership, a very small percentage are regular members who care enough to stay, and offer their advice, opinions, humor, debate, and even arguments. When you consider how boring it would be for us regulars, to simply talk about Trucks and the Trucking Industry, over and over, everyday, then you may realize why we enjoy a greater variety of subjects. The occasional arguments and scrapes actually increase the attention and logins. If I hear someone yell “fight!!” :shock: …I will drop in mid-sentence instructing a noobie how to shift a truck…for the 300th time since I’ve been here…and dash over to see the fight. Hopefully, I will not miss it…and even get the chance to jump in…and get some.

I guess its hard for some new members to navigate here. It gets kinda hard to search for the gold with so much mud. I highjack more than most, but I kinda look at it as bumping the thread back to the top.

The regular members here are the ones you see on the road and at the truck stops, behaving professionally, and always offering help to others. Our character and willingness to give of ourselves on this board is proof of that. I won’t go into detail, but I help other drivers all the time, and civilians as well. I honk the air horns for the little kids, smile and wave at people as they are passing, (most smile and wave back) I offer friendly conversation and humor to the dockworkers, and keep my dispatcher in stitches, sometimes spitting out his coffee. I am courteous to other drivers and don’t worry about anything in return. The best way to give, is give freely.

I’m glad you love your new driving career. I hope you still love it a year from now too. I’ve been driving for 7 years and I still enjoy myself, but I gotta tell you, that first year is a honeymoon. You have the right attitude though, to go the distance.

I see our opinion about Swift is a sore spot for you. I noticed you got in the spirit of the humor in one of your posts. We realize many Swift drivers are top hands. Can’t help the reputation Swift has made for themselves though. The trucking industry is in an image crisis, and if you want the unadulterated truth about trucking, you have found the right place. The Swift drivers we have as members here are drivers any company would hope for. You know there is always going to be a popularity contest though…right?

There is close to 2 million CDL drivers in the USA. We are doing our part here to educate and improve the industry in our own small way. But it’s like a big coffee break here. For the most part it is drivers yakkin' and yukkin' it up. With so many forums, you can also join in whatever you are in the mood for. I learn a lot from these guys here. My opinions evolve with the discussions as I read them. For the most part I come here to offer some humor, and I like to laugh. I get that, and friendships too. Hell of a lot of good people here. I’m proud to be a member, and I’d wear a CAD patch…if/when someone starts to sell them. :P

I remember in my first year, I had to cope with these things you mention too. My hardest was developing patience. I wanted to develop that right away! :evil:…but it took me a while. …go figure

[Jumbo]

If you don't like us ripping on Swift you could go to work at Werner. We NEVER say anything bad about them.

[Fredog]

yes, eye agree. i used to bee reely bad at first butt i started using spell cheek and krammer programs.

i can now put two gether proper sentances with the right strukcher like a real truck driver.

keep treye'ing and some days use will be as good as me

kongratulathuns i new yew culd do et

[Fredog]

Hello all ill try to keep it brief to allow for your comments. Ive been on this site now for a couple of months and being a new driver in a new career i love it. When im home for my 4 days a month i sit and read and learn and appreciate everyone who contributes , as im sure all newbies do. BUT i do have some comments on a couple of different subjects

Politics.... Jumping around this site you see alot of debates about the government , the election and so on. does the government have to much control in some areas yes , does the economy suck right now yes but its the only government we have and you cant change it unless you stop bitching about it and vote. (not to say new people will be any different).
In my personal opinion come november we are screwed for a couple of reasons. This is the U.S of A. and its not going to elect a black man to head the country. now relax thats not a racist statement thats a reality. Thay leaves us with McCane a republican, no changes, its nothing more than a 3rd term for bush with someone else driving the bus. Now lets say Obama does win, what do we have there we have inexperience and at this point in the game no one knows what this man stands for. We do know there will be CHANGES??? What changes?? If he would make his position clear on some issues it would be easier to vote for him. All you can do is do some reasearch and try to make an informed decision. Keep in mind when the democrats left office (clinton) the economy was great there was a surplus of money and you were happy. (he also kinda made oral sex a work activity) At this point in the game i will vote for Obama because its gonna take the democrats to fix the economy and that works for all of us.

My next point has to do with being on the road driving OTR. Where did manners(if thats the right word)go on the highways. On my last couple of loads i started counting how many drivers say thank you after i flash the lights to let them back in. i consistantly got maybe 30 - 40 %. If someone sneezes do you say godblessyou?? if you bump into someone do you say excuse me? Im not ashamed to say i drive for Swift and im getting tired of being talewhipped when i get passed WTF is that all about. Ive heard about the Swift reputation but ill tell you this im almost a year in starting from no experience at all in trucks , and from going thru Swift school to now , Ihave killed noone , ihave hit noone, i take my time backing in so i dont hit your truck and i am very courteouse when im on the road. Just because you guys who were born behind the wheel of a semi dont like swift you should not hold all swift drivers responsable for the reputation.
I love what im doing and im not sorry i changed careers at 41 years old and im happy with who i work for so cut swift drivers a break we aint all bad.

and the last point i would like to make is about safety.
all day and all night you see on the road trucks on the bumpers of 4 wheelers and other trucks , speeding thru work zones ECT. everywhere on this site theres posts about accidents with attached links to articles and then theres commentary on said accidents. truckdrivers talk a good game but do we see that on the highway?? i think most of the time we dont. you know whats screwed up im harrassed for working for swift all day on the CB( yes i am listening) because if you work dor Swift " you were not trained right and shouldnt be driving a truck" and 9 out of 10 trucks i see are doing the things they harrass me about and im not doing them. We are all just trying to do a job. Instead of slamming someoneone for who they work for why dont you try offering advise and help.

on the other side of the coin your not all bad.
I was in IL last week at a small mom and pop truckstop. I went into the restaurant ordered my food and when it was done pulled out a credit card to pay for it. well they didnt take credit cards and i had no cash. I told the waitress i was going out to my truck to call the company to get money on my CD card ill be back in about 10 minutes. well about 5 minutes go buy im sitting in my truck waiting for my advance and i see the waitress come out carring my food. she comes up to the truck and says one of the other drivers payed for your food. By this time my advance just came over the quallcom so i had the money. i went in and payed hime back for my food and gave him 5 extra just for helping out. its not a big thing but it meant alot to me seeing a starnger step up like that. ive also need help at truck stops or had questions and gotten help so your not all bad.

well im on home time now and i had some time to kill just decided to ramble on a bit. if anyone is offended im sorry these are just my opinions
you got an issue PM me hell ill give my phone # im allways looking for people to call while driving. thanks for your time BJS

courtesy is dead..
one question, no 2 questions, number one, when you are tailwhipped after being passed, are you in the middle lane? number 2.. do you drive your truck at it's top speed at all time including in construction zones?
almost everyday a swift or jb that I have passed a while back in the 70 mph zone passes me in the construction zone, they dont slow down at all, then when we get out of it, there he is in the way again, not saying you do that, but that's why your company has a bad rep.

[wot i life]

Extremely......illogical

[NotSteve]

Extremely......illogical

What Wot?

Lol, I've been waiting to say that.

[Roadhog]

Extremely......illogical

What Wot?

Lol, I've been waiting to say that.

it took me a minute too.
He's been "Spock posting."
Remember the vulcan on Star Trek?

Dry British humor..no humor--humor.
...quite illogical really. :?

[bjs24]

I'm sorry I really did'nt want to offend anyone. I look to this site to help me in a new career that im still not all that familier with. I looked around there are other sites but this is by far the best tool online to help me, ill always use it. What I take from this site I do use on the road and i do try to do the right things out there.
Do I speed in work zones , no I dont. Do drive in the middle or in the hammer lane , no generally I dont. I dont care about the Swift reputation in general only how it affects me when im out there. I'm Still learning and always will be I guess. I have met great guys out there , guys who have helped me at times when i put myself in a situation I didnt think I could get out of.
I pulled into a small pilot one night pulled around the corner and bam I'm facing the fuel line coming at me. I see no way out , theres no room to turn around and i'm real nervous cause all you guys are sitting there thinking what a dumb ass.
A guy comes over from the fuel line and says look what you did and heres how your gonna get out of it. The solution was fairly simple but as a new driver I didnt see it. It amazes me still how you guys who have been out there along time can see things that I cant. I want that knowlege , I want to be the guy to help when I have the experience. I want to be one of the guys on this site 5 years from now with a name you recognize as someone that can help. This site is like having a handbook in the truck.
Let me say again im sorry if I offended any of you, please dont hold it against me because it's a safe bet im gonna need your help out there. BJS

PS::: I hope my spelling and grammer was a little bit better but I grew up and was edjucated in Boston so you cant expect to much.

[BIG JEEP on 44's]

I don't think it's Barrck's skin color that puts most white people off ,Howver his ties to people that openly express discontent towards white people does put them off ...And while Barrack's skin may be dark this doesn't mean he's African ...Which it seems there is some debate with this as well ,as it seems he's more Arabian than African ...and then you have his relgion ...Barrack has made the poor decision of assocating himself with people an practicies that make him politcaly unviable as president ...For instance if Mcane had placed himsef in a position of hanging out with the kkk his crusade towards the White House would have been over instantly due to politcal suicide ,but with the double standard we have in America regarding racism a candidate like Barrack can still be in the running despite his association with people who openly express racist beleifs...But when those political mistakes slow him down you hear cries of racism , but if not for the racism double standard which allows non whites to express racial discontent towards whites Mr.Barrack would have been done months ago .

[Fredog]

I'm sorry I really did'nt want to offend anyone. I look to this site to help me in a new career that im still not all that familier with. I looked around there are other sites but this is by far the best tool online to help me, ill always use it. What I take from this site I do use on the road and i do try to do the right things out there.
Do I speed in work zones , no I dont. Do drive in the middle or in the hammer lane , no generally I dont. I dont care about the Swift reputation in general only how it affects me when im out there. I'm Still learning and always will be I guess. I have met great guys out there , guys who have helped me at times when i put myself in a situation I didnt think I could get out of.
I pulled into a small pilot one night pulled around the corner and bam I'm facing the fuel line coming at me. I see no way out , theres no room to turn around and i'm real nervous cause all you guys are sitting there thinking what a dumb ass.
A guy comes over from the fuel line and says look what you did and heres how your gonna get out of it. The solution was fairly simple but as a new driver I didnt see it. It amazes me still how you guys who have been out there along time can see things that I cant. I want that knowlege , I want to be the guy to help when I have the experience. I want to be one of the guys on this site 5 years from now with a name you recognize as someone that can help. This site is like having a handbook in the truck.
Let me say again im sorry if I offended any of you, please dont hold it against me because it's a safe bet im gonna need your help out there. BJS

PS::: I hope my spelling and grammer was a little bit better but I grew up and was edjucated in Boston so you cant expect to much.

you havent offended anyone, if you keep up the good attitude, maybe you can change some drivers perception of your company.
some times other drivers want to help and they dont because they figure the driver will be offended or be a butthole. for instance one time a church bus came down an exit ramp and ran the stop sign and went right in front of me. I had to hit the shoulder to miss him, he pulled in the truckstop and I pulled in, I went over and I said, I am hauling 40 thousand pounds of poison which would have killed everybody on the bus had I hit you. You need to stop at the stop sign and look before going ahead. The CHURCH BUS driver.. said. stick it up your ass!!

[DaveP]

For instance one time a church bus came down an exit ramp and ran the stop sign and went right in front of me. I had to hit the shoulder to miss him, he pulled in the truckstop and I pulled in, I went over and I said, I am hauling 40 thousand pounds of poison which would have killed everybody on the bus had I hit you. You need to stop at the stop sign and look before going ahead. The CHURCH BUS driver.. said. stick it up your ass!!

Well. Did you?

[Snowman7]

bjs24 dont worry too much about mistakes. EVERYBODY makes them. Including the drivers here. The fact that it does bother you shows your willingness to learn and thats a good thing. If it makes you feel any better I made probably my worst ever a couple nights ago. I almost started a thread telling about it but I didnt want to listen to all the crap from the experts on here who never do any wrong. Anyway its actually funny now thats its over. I made a wrong turn off a busy street onto a residential street. It was one street too early. By the way, I pull doubles. I was very screwed! With no other real choice I crept down this tiny street with tiny houses and tiny driveways scrapping tree branches, watching for low wires, and hoping it went around the block. It was a beautiful summer evening and the residents were all out, staring in bewilderment. After about a half mile, the road ended, with no way out, and a low hanging cable tv wire in my way. I bowed my head and mumbled a few expletives. Well a couple of awesome residents made a pole to lift the wire and moved two cars off the street so I could get around my trailers as I split them and one by one backed them and the converter dolly to the top of the street and turned them around. Each time the two neighbors walked to the top of the street to block traffic while I got turned around and rehooked. Some neighbors on the small street and some motorists on the larger street weren't so nice. They had some choice names for me! I just smiled and nodded. All in all no one was hurt, no property was damaged, and I lost about an hour of time. But the embarassment still stings. Although I'm laughing a little now. These were not Swift trailers, these were good ole Buster Brown UPS trailers. Hopefully you feel a little better now. Good luck in your career.

[Syncrosonix]

early on with swift, i've tried helping other swift drivers. they would take one look at me and then give me this, "NO, I'LL GIT IT ON MA' OWN! DON'T NEED YOUR HELP!" since i've dealt with that several times, i won't help unless somebody comes up to me and asks for it.

at first sight, people often mistake me for being 14-16 years old. i'm 25. maybe i need to stop shaving every two or three days.

6 more months and i will have been here for 2 years. been asked numerous times already about becoming a mentor. i decline each time. i don't feel comfortable teaching people this early on. i also like having the truck all to myself and being responsible for my own safety as well as others out there, and not having to deal with the possibility of somebody snoring while i'm trying to sleep. just like dogs barking, snoring aggravates me. besides the snoring issue, i've already mentioned my age and how young i look. imagine some thick-headed dipstick i'm trying to teach, and ignoring everything i'm saying simply because he or she is older than i. the list goes on because of my age and how young i look.

i've also tried explaining to some moron about legal weight and the kingpin law in california. 6 hours later i saw him in the inspection lane of the cajon pass scale of southbound i-15. he was getting himself a ticket for being overlength and possibly an overweight ticket for being at 36,520lbs on the drives, and 35,000lbs on the tandems. i saw his cat scale ticket for when he weighed out at the t/a in las vegas. all he gave me was this, "I *HEARD* YOU CAN GO UP TO 37,000lbs ON THE DRIVES AND TANDEMS! YOU IS STILL YOUNG. YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT!" i hope he enjoyed the reality of his ****uation. the fact is, i'm still here at swift, and since then, i haven't seen him or the other jackass i was trying to help into his spot.

if i did become one, i know one thing is certain. i'd make it mandatory for the student to take a shower each time we're at a truck stop for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. i don't want stink in my ride. another thing a couple of other things i won't have my truck are conversations about religion and politics. bringing both those things up often stirs up bad voodoo. it makes for a very uncomfortable work environment. if the student is religious and wants to attend the trucker chapel, fine, but don't give me any junk about not wanting to attend.

at any rate, i can go on, and on, and on, and on. i'll stop before i get carried away.

[Roadhog]

Hey BJS...
Boston eh? ...I didn't like Boston until I got to know the place.
Everybody there is flippin' everybody off. Then I realized that is how they say "hello" in Boston.

It is one of the friendliest cities on the East Coast.
Everytime I go there now...I'm flippin' off everyone I see,...and yellin' out the window..."how you doin'...no disrespect."

[Syncrosonix]

hi roadhog!

[Phantom433a]

If you don't like us ripping on Swift you could go to work at Werner. We NEVER say anything bad about them.

oh you are SO right Jumbo.....never a bad thing about Werner.