Miles Behind The Wheel

[jonp]

This year I passed 2,000,000 miles of safe driving. How many of you keep track of your miles through the different companies that you have worked for and how many have you driven?

[Jackrabbit379]

That sounds like a pretty good accomplishment. Congrats.
Shoot, I don't have a clue. I never really kept count over the years. What about farm work, hauling stuff? Does that count?
I didn't put on a lot of miles in grain trucks, but lots of long hours.

[golfhobo]

Do I get to count the miles the TRUCK traveled while I was sleeping? If so.... I'm somewhere around a million in 4 years.

If not.... well..... just somewhere near half a million in 4 years.

How long you been driving there, Jonp?

Congrats on the 2 mill!! AND the safe part.

I can't say I've never had a ticket. But, I ain't HIT nothing yet!

[golfhobo]

That sounds like a pretty good accomplishment. Congrats.
Shoot, I don't have a clue. I never really kept count over the years. What about farm work, hauling stuff? Does that count?
I didn't put on a lot of miles in grain trucks, but lots of long hours.

No, Wabbit!! You KNOW that HOURS of hard work don't count! Only MILES! Heck.... You ain't even been out of TEXAS yet, have you?

When you gonna get out of 'training' and strike out on your own with a Swift truck or something?

[Snowman7]

This year I passed 2,000,000 miles of safe driving. How many of you keep track of your miles through the different companies that you have worked for and how many have you driven?

Even if you had an accident I guess you could say you have 2,000,000 miles of "safe" driving and a half mile of "suspect" driving!

Congrats!

At my age I'm not sure I'll reach 2,000,000 but it'll be close. I guess I'm around 400,000 in 5 years.

[Scoe]

Congrats!! I'm closing in on you, I figure I'm at about 1.75 million and at my current pace of about 70k per year, I'll hit the 2 million mark in about 3.5 years.

[Orangetxguy]

Congrats!! I'm closing in on you, I figure I'm at about 1.75 million and at my current pace of about 70k per year, I'll hit the 2 million mark in about 3.5 years.

Scoe-meister! Nice to see you!!


You gotta get out of the city limits more often to get that Odometer rolling over though!!


Even with 16 years of "local" driving, I am rolling up on 4 million...year after next I figure. I had lot's of 400+ and 500+ mile nights hauling gas.


Have never hit anything...but have been intentionally hit, Once!!



If Hobo counts "Sleeper" miles.....can we count commuter miles?? Those would push me up over 4.25 million.

[Snowman7]

Even with 16 years of "local" driving, I am rolling up on 4 million...year after next I figure. I had lot's of 400+ and 500+ mile nights hauling gas.

4,000,000 ! Do you know how friggin old a guy would have to be to get 4,000,000 miles! Hahaha! Holy crap!

[geeshock]

congratz, I'm still green behind the ears, I've never kept track of miles but I'm probably close to 300k safe

[Orangetxguy]

4,000,000 ! Do you know how friggin old a guy would have to be to get 4,000,000 miles! Hahaha! Holy crap!

Hey! I didn't think to count the miles I drove working on the ranch! Only counted those since I left the ranch! All those trips fom Dillon Montana to Harlowton Montana and back could add up !!


I was shocked to see that I have averaged 122,000 a year! Damn computer and journal! My lowest year hauling gas was my first year! 73,685 miles, staying in Western WA and NW Oregon!! My longest "day" of hauling gas was delivering a load to Port Angeles, then getting back to the terminal and delivering a load to Yakima. That is a full day. 4 loads from Seattle to Olympia was a full day! And not at all uncommon because nightshift was always hammered by dispatch.

I have my 2 million safe driving award, from Arco, stuffed in a box somewhere. It is a Sterling Silver and Gold trimmed belt buckle, with a hand tooled belt, that has a Gold tank-truck on the buckle and 2 Stainless Steel Arco units on the belt. 2,000,000 miles is on the buckle and on the belt. I chucked the uniform shirts that had it embroidered on them 4 or 5 years ago. Their 3,000,000 mile award was a solid gold buckle.

This year...My miles are up....but my revenue is way down.


I was at Miller's Memphis terminal last weekend, looking at the photo's on the wall, of the 3,000,000 mile safe drivers. I wondered if I look as hagard and tired as those guys!!!


31 1/2 years of truck drivin an countin! God willing my back won't fail, my health will stay good...and the economy will improve.


Rollin rollin rollin....Keep them Doggies rollin! RAWHIDE!!!

Roiling, rolling, rolling
Though the streams are swollen
Keep them doggies rolling

RAWHIDE!!

Rain and wind and weather
Hell bent for leather
Wishing my gal was by my side

All the things I'm missin'
Good vittels, lovin', kissin'
Are waiting at the end of my ride

Move 'em on, head' em up
Head 'em up, move' em on
Move 'em on, head' em up

RAWHIDE!!

Keep moving, moving, moving
Though they're disapproving
Keep them doggies moving


RAWHIDE!!

Don't try to understand 'em
Just rope, throw and brand 'em
Soon we'll be living high and wide

My heart calculatin'
My true love will be waitin'
Be waiting at the end of my ride
Move 'em on, head' em up
Head 'em up, move' em on
Move 'em on, head' em up

RAWHIDE!!

Thanks JonP for making me sit, think and add! Now I am tired.



Now.......... Imagine what the "Holy Rollers" used to rack up! And those guy's did it in trucks with smaller engines, on narrower roads, with worse working conditions! I remember as a "kid", listening to the old guys talking about turning a "Dillon to Lethbridge, to Nogales and back to Dillon" in 5 days! Black Beauties, Bennies, Pink "somethings".......all the pills that kept them going!
My brother Will drove for a guy named Max Fairchild. Will was on Monida Pass, sleeping over the wheel, when his [and my] old English teacher from high school, woke him up. He couldn't remember driving through Salt Lake City!! He had left Nogales at 3 am the day before!! That was in 1972. Mrs. Dale told me (and the entire class) about waking him up, and his confusion, during english class the next day!

I remember Cattle Haulers that would leave the ranch's feedlot on Sunday afternoon, taking a load of 2 year olds to Omaha....and would be back on Wednesday morning for their second load! Some of those guys are still around, and still have trucks out there haulin Beef!

I remember sitting in a cafe on East Marginal Way in Seattle, back in the mid 80's, just north of the CF terminal, and listening to the oldtime Consolidated Freight drivers' talking about driving solo from Seattle to Fargo and back in 4 days! They all talked about 15 minutes of sleep over the wheel, then 500 more miles! Granted. Montana did not enforce the 55 back then, and as long as you drove safe, you could go as fast as you wanted. But damn! CF had junk trucks!!

They talked about leaving the California runs to the "newbies" because they didn't want to be slowed down by the "PC 55 BS" back then!

They called me a "kid" and I was 30!



Wait................. I call 30 year olds "Kids" now!!!

[golfhobo]

OTG said:

If Hobo counts "Sleeper" miles.....can we count commuter miles?? Those would push me up over 4.25 million.

Sorry, Stan.... FMCSR's don't let you count commuter miles unless you are under dispatch. As for my "sleeper miles," well..... since SOME here don't believe you are actually OFF DUTY while in the sleeper.... I say I can count them!

It is a Sterling Silver and Gold trimmed belt buckle, with a hand tooled belt, that has a Gold tank-truck on the buckle and 2 Stainless Steel Arco units on the belt. 2,000,000 miles is on the buckle and on the belt.

Sounds like one of them wrasslin' belts! If I can go a couple million miles with you.... do "I" win the belt?

Thanks for the memories with the Rawhide theme song. I loved that show. But this one line stood out to me now that I'm in the Trucking biz:

Don't try to understand 'em
Just rope, throw and brand 'em
Soon we'll be living high and wide

Sounds like them lyin' recruiters have been around for longer than TRUCKS have!

[LightsChromeHorsepower]

Great post OTG! It brings back memories.

Do you remember a little truckers newsletter from the 70's called Mothertrucker News? Guys would Western Union in when they left somewhere and again when they arrived at their destination and the paper would publish the times & locations. There were guys doing coast to coast in about 48 hours, as I recall.

My favorite was Edmonton to Palmdale in about 36-38 hours. I had it down to a routine. I would stop in Milk River, Alberta to shower & hide my "stash" before I went through customs, then try to make it to Monida without stopping. If it was the right season and I was on schedule I would hit the Virgin River Gorge around sunset & the colors would be incredible. Then it was the lights of Las Vegas over the horizon as the stars came out.

Now I can't make it home from LA without 4 pee stops and a nap.

[Orangetxguy]

OTG said:



Sorry, Stan.... FMCSR's don't let you count commuter miles unless you are under dispatch. As for my "sleeper miles," well..... since SOME here don't believe you are actually OFF DUTY while in the sleeper.... I say I can count them!



Sounds like one of them wrasslin' belts! If I can go a couple million miles with you.... do "I" win the belt?

Thanks for the memories with the Rawhide theme song. I loved that show. But this one line stood out to me now that I'm in the Trucking biz:



Sounds like them lyin' recruiters have been around for longer than TRUCKS have!

The buckle was actually based on the "rodeo champions" buckle....only smaller. It will not even cover all of your palm.

[Jackrabbit379]

No, Wabbit!! You KNOW that HOURS of hard work don't count! Only MILES! Heck.... You ain't even been out of TEXAS yet, have you?

Very funny. Just kidding.
My mother is originally from Fort Smith (Ar). That's where her family lives. So yes, I been out of Texas.
Actually, I drove for SMX (flatbed) for a while, right before I came to Sysco.

When you gonna get out of 'training' and strike out on your own with a Swift truck or something?

Thanks but no thanks. I'll stick to my 'training'. Whether that's hauling wheat, or doing farm work, or pulling wiggle wagons for Mr. Sysco.

[bentstrider]

One day in the not-too-distant future, I want to start working on attaining the 1,000,000 mile marker.

[jonp]

Do I get to count the miles the TRUCK traveled while I was sleeping? If so.... I'm somewhere around a million in 4 years.

If not.... well..... just somewhere near half a million in 4 years.

How long you been driving there, Jonp?

Congrats on the 2 mill!! AND the safe part.

I can't say I've never had a ticket. But, I ain't HIT nothing yet!

Started in 1992 right about this time of year. That is what got me to thinking about it. I also read a story about a Yellow guy in Memphis I think that just hit 6,000,000. OUCH!!!

Yes, they are all safe miles. I have not had a ticket or an accident. Been pretty lucky a couple of times but so far so good.

Great stories OTG. Got any more?