Okay...Time to name names....

[JewelsnTools]

Okay...it's time to name names...
I'm seriously looking for a new spot. Does anyone know of a mid-sized company that hires 1st year drivers for 2-600 miles per day, in the Midwest?
No bottles (pepsi, coke, etc.), tanks, or reefers, although I don't mind "tailgating" boxed or palleted loads.
Dock to dock would be great, too, but I'm a realist. I'm prepared to move my homestead, also, if necessary.
Oh, and a company that's heard of "restarts"===at least one per month...
Jewels

[JewelsnTools]

Okay, what are you not saying?? Please leave some sort of comment, opinion, etc. Am I not, maybe, looking at things properly? Is there something else that needs considering?
Help? Pretty please? :wink:

[WarHorse]

Lots of folks are still rolling - give them a chance to settle in for the evening and boot up the ol' electronic brain.

Otherwise, just do what so many of us others do - a web search.

[Uturn2001]

Are you looking for OTR, regional or local?

Do you have any experience at all?

[BigWheels]

Care to enlighten us a bit with why you desire a change?

Freight is kind-of-slow all over....

[vavega]

what's wrong with schneider? they have dedicated runs in iowa

[Jimbpard]

Move to Pittsburgh, PA.
NEMF is going to be hiring linehaul drivers in a couple weeks.

[repete]

ahh another bad day/week Jen? I wish there was someway for me to help you out with this. You've been with Crete for almost a year stick it out and then take your vacation and use that time to put in apps for local. Also check about transfering over to the dark side (Schaffer) you already pull reefer so what you got to lose?

[JewelsnTools]

I've got a little over a year's experience, but Man, what a year! Plenty of dock practice (daily), and Wildkat's lessons on dock etiquette! I'd like a 7-10 state dedicated route, so I guess that's regional. I like your posts, UTurn. Thanks for weighing in. A friend and I were talking about the truth in your tag line, the other day...

I'm beginning to think the real problem is that I didn't understand, well enough, that trucking isn't a job, but a lifestyle. I don't do well with a round-the-clock "on call" existence. I need more structure, more normalcy. The change that's needed is to get my body and mind back on some sort of schedule--- I'm scared to stay awake, for fear of being called for a night run; then, when I do get to sleep, I wake up terrified that I've gone to sleep driving!!!
I know freight is slow all over, so I've got that "deer in headlights" thing going on, frozen for fear of jumping out of a proverbial frying pan and, well, you know..

Schneider, and many of the mega-carriers, seem too far gone to actually remember that there's a living, breathing human being behind that wheel. I've read, on here (the place I've gotten most of my really valuable education!), that mid-sized and smaller companies are a little more willing to remember that.

Whoa!! I should have put some sort of qualifier on that statement about my willingness to move my homestead!! :wink:
I LOVE it out here! On certain dark, indigo nights, the stars seem close enough to touch. People wave at you, for no reason, and it tickles me to pieces. You can look out across dark, rich fields, and see lovely patterns and patchworks of tiny, proud seedlings poking through...and there's still a sense of morality, here. So, while I would be willing to move, I'll now qualify that with saying that such a move would only be a state or two! Thanks for the tip, though, because someone reading this might be willing to give up this big, open sky for such a cool job!

'Pete, I PM'd ya!

[Useless]

Okay...it's time to name names...
I'm seriously looking for a new spot.
Does anyone know of a mid-sized company that hires 1st year drivers for 2-600 miles per day, in the Midwest?

No bottles (pepsi, coke, etc.), tanks, or reefers, although I don't mind "tailgating" boxed or palleted loads.
Dock to dock would be great, too, but I'm a realist. I'm prepared to move my homestead, also, if necessary.
Oh, and a company that's heard of "restarts"===at least one per month...
Jewels

TWO to six hundred miles per day, Jewels??

Not sure how you'll make a living driving only two miles per day, but I'll bet that it's good work if you can find it!!

[bigdad7]

how about jelvic

[vavega]

oh that is just so wrong! :P :? do you know they employed over a thousand people? some heard it from customers late last week but no one would confirm it, the drivers found out after they had left the yard monday morning, and then an official notice sent to their house yesterday afternoon.
how would you like to lose your job that way? :shock:

[ibamars]

how about jelvic

Do you mean Jevic!!!!

If so. Dont bother. They went out of business and closed their doors

[JewelsnTools]

I wasn't going to respond to the post on Jevic. I thought it sort of cruel and strange that someone would suggest applying to a closing company.

I'm also not sure whether the above poster was serious in thinking I actually meant 2 miles. If so, no, I meant 200-600.

Thanks, all, for answering, though. Still looking.

[JeffTheTerrible]

If the lifestyle isn't your thing, maybe it's time to search for greener pastures. If you find local work, chances are, it won't be less demanding. While I made it to my own home every night, moving equipment for a construction company proved to be a lot more work than anything I'd done over-the-road.
The only other thing I can really suggest is to be a little more open minded. Don't be so quick to dismiss flatbeds and such until you get the full details. You might find a dedicated run which doesn't require tarping, or may only require for you to throw a single steel tarp, which really shouldn't be so bad.
As for companies, I'll leave that others for suggestion, as I'm really not familiar with many of them. Of course, you'll need to ask questions, and I actually find this forum is a good place to ask. Weird phenomenon I've noticed.. people will be a little more honest about the companies they work for on here, but when you're face to face with a driver of a competing company, they'll fluff it up and make it sound like they're working at the perfect company.
Anyhow, good luck on finding what you're looking for.

[CrazyTulip]

Well, hubby drove for Crete and Shaffer and liked em. Other thing: regarding your schedule: when you need sleep, go to sleep and let dispatch know you will not be available til 'x'-time. You can't run at the exact same hours all the time, but you can bring more structure into it, but you'll have to communicate with dispatch and don't just accept everything they toss at ya. BOL to you.

[JewelsnTools]

I think you're right about widening the scope of my search. I've considered the possibility of re-training for doubles, if necessary. I'm a little old to crawl around on a load, though.
You make a valid point about working more with a local run. I figured there would be a trade off, but I've still got to do it. The lifestyle is wearing all my fur off.
Thanks for weighing in on this...
Jewels

[JeffTheTerrible]

Everything's going to have its ups and downs, but you're well aware of this, I'm sure. I don't know anything about doubles, so again, I'll leave it to someone who does to answer any questions you have on those.
One of the things I like about local work vs. OTR is that I got to know the people I work with much better, and I always knew who was competent and who wasn't as soon as I got to a job site. I'd imagine a lot of the people who do dedicated runs will say the same, since they probably become quite familiar with their customers. But, yeah, the thing to keep somewhat of an open mind about it, and look into everything that's available to you. Some gigs at first glance might appear bad, but you get the details, and find out that it really isn't.. that sort of thing. Diamond in the rough, I suppose you could say.
Anyhow, best of luck to you, and be sure to keep us posted.

[Trucker4Life]

What part of Iowa do you live in? I might have some leads for you if you live in the right area.