owner operator broker loads and has own authority

[blake1984]

i have returned this time i would like to be my own boss. USA trucking: i drove for them for a whole year my schooling is paid in full accident free. i quit driving for them because the dispatcher i had could not maintain his word and keep me moving.

3 companies will hire me
crete will hire me. crete is willing to pay 39cpm
and 2 underground comanies as well they dont use qual's thats a major plus for me. one is paying 34cpm the other 39cpm

I WANT TO BE ELITE, I WANT TO BE O/O, I WANT TO HAVE MY OWN AUTHORITY, AND I WANT TO BROKER MY OWN LOADS. I AM AIMING TO BE A TRUE I.N.D.E.P.E.N.D.E.N.T DRIVER.

so lets say i want to haul flatbeds is it possible for me to make 2.50cpm dealing with flat? could i own a brand new tanker and make more that way?

[xcarsalesman]

Man, where have you been.... LOL I love reading your posts..

[GMAN]

i have returned this time i would like to be my own boss. USA trucking: i drove for them for a whole year my schooling is paid in full accident free. i quit driving for them because the dispatcher i had could not maintain his word and keep me moving.

3 companies will hire me
crete will hire me. crete is willing to pay 39cpm
and 2 underground companies as well they don't use qual's thats a major plus for me. one is paying 34cpm the other 39cpm

I WANT TO BE ELITE, I WANT TO BE O/O, I WANT TO HAVE MY OWN AUTHORITY, AND I WANT TO BROKER MY OWN LOADS. I AM AIMING TO BE A TRUE I.N.D.E.P.E.N.D.E.N.T DRIVER.

so lets say i want to haul flatbeds is it possible for me to make 2.50cpm dealing with flat? could i own a brand new tanker and make more that way?

This time of year is probably not the best time to go out on your own, but it will take a few weeks to apply and get your authority back, if that is what you want to do. Freight is likely to be down until about the end of February or the middle of March.

Rates and freight are down this time of year. There are rates which are $2.50+/mile. But, you are not likely to average $2.50/mile. I have gotten some loads that paid me over $3/mile, but it usually involves a long deadhead to get out of the bad area, which lowers the over all rate. I receive offers for loads every day. Most regular flatbed rates are somewhere between $1.60-2.20/mile. If they are going to a bad area rates will go over $2/mile. I have been offered rates at just over $1/mile. It is difficult to believe that anyone would even bother with that low of a rate. I would be embarrassed to offer something that cheap.

Rates will vary according to where you run, what you haul and your negotiating skills. Hopefully, rates will come up after the first of the year. Spring usually brings better rates and more freight availability.

[blake1984]

thanks gman i have also notice in alabama they have alot of flatbed load. ill be the first to say i don't want to do flats but i chase the money and if that is what i need to do to get 2 to 3 dollars a mile then i will do it no matter what. bad cities im use to them im from south florida miami, fort lauderday, and hollywood.

[blake1984]

thanks gman i have also notice in alabama they have alot of flatbed load. ill be the first to say i don't want to do flats but i chase the money and if that is what i need to do to get 2 to 3 dollars a mile then i will do it no matter what. bad cities im use to them im from south florida miami, fort lauderday, and hollywood.

what are some of the tools you use to help better your company?
meaning brokers and load boards i was thinking of using internettruckstop loads board and maybe ch robinson

[GMAN]

There is usually something coming out of Alabama for flats. As you are apparently aware, there isn't much coming out of south Florida unless you want to haul mulch for about $0.90/mile out of north central Florida.

Some of the larger brokers have their own loadboard. OOIDA has one you can subscribe to that is part of the DAT loadboards. Members receive a discount on the monthly service. There are other loadboards that you can subscribe. Most have the same loads, but some have their own. I rarely post my truck on a loadboard because I usually rely more on personal contacts that I have accumulated over the years. About the only time I use a loadboard is when I know that I am going to a dead area or when things get really slow. I will usually just deadhead out of bad areas rather than waste my time waiting for a cheap load.

It takes time to buiild contacts. I don't haul for just anyone who happens to have a load. I also make a point of checking credit on a regular basis, no matter how large the shipper or broker. A company could be good today and have problems a few weeks from now. I have known people who will take a load from anyone without even checking them out. They usually don't last long in this business.

[Steel Horse Cowboy]

could i own a brand new tanker and make more that way?

Sure, just fork over the $65,000 for the tank and then another $25k for a haz-mat rider that most insurance companies require LOL........ If you want to run tanker then i would suggest leasing with a company like Quality Carriers, Superior Carriers, or maybe even A&R. I run for QC and avg $3.25 a mile but I am on a dedicated gig. My cousin just came over here last month and he avg $2.55 for all miles and thats pulling THEIR trailer. We are out of the Chicago area tho and freight is always here and pays well, I hear down south and in Cali tanker work pays like crap????

[blake1984]

@steel horse cowboy

Superior Carriers has a terminal like 30mins from my house on highway U.S 43 its a few miles from our new steel mill

so u are saying buy my rig and get my own authority and i can pull for Superior Carriers for more money right because i dont want a company to pay for nothing on my rig ill just pull their tanks thats all and if i could ill buy and pull my own tank under my own authority

[rank]

....is it possible for me to make 2.50cpm dealing with flat?

No. Not consistently and not in VA, MD, PA, WV, RI, CT, NY, MA, VT, NH, QC or ON. It's hard enough to get $2/loaded mile.

[blake1984]

east coast man i tell u that is usa trucking main trucking area but i might back out of the flat deal because of the weather i cant do the tarpping in the snow but i will haul bulk and i am willing to hual 1.60 or better but my questions are answered i would love to own my own company one day and i do plan on having both flats and bulk i dont plan on making payments when i get out there i will have all of my equiptment paid in full

[GMAN]

If you pull flats then you will tarp in all types of weather. We tarp in snow, rain, high winds or any other type of weather mother nature wants to throw at us. Last year I had to tarp a load in 16 F temps and about 3 feet of snow and more while I tarped. In fact, my tarps were white before I finished. If you only want to haul loads that don't need to be tarped then you will do a lot of sitting. If you don't want to tarp in winter then you may want to look at another type of freight.

[Steel Horse Cowboy]

@steel horse cowboy

Superior Carriers has a terminal like 30mins from my house on highway U.S 43 its a few miles from our new steel mill

so u are saying buy my rig and get my own authority and i can pull for Superior Carriers for more money right because i dont want a company to pay for nothing on my rig ill just pull their tanks thats all and if i could ill buy and pull my own tank under my own authority

No, not at all. You would run under their authority. If you get your own authority and buy your own tank then I don't see you making it. The big companies have this market taken care of andmost won't ship with an independant due to the nature of the biz and the hazmat materials.

Not too sure why you want your own authority when you can be a lease operator and make the same money with LESS investment???

You will still pay your own insurance, plates, fuel ect ect....... I'm just saying, the tank biz pays very well, but as an independant I don't see you making it. i know Dow Chemical for example has strict contracts with QC and Enterprise Oil. Also, don't forget that when running a tanker, you have big brothers eye on you the whole time (US Govt)

Now as for running a flat, you can deff do what you say you would like to with your own authority, just remember that there are about 20,000 other guys doing the same thing and you will be fighting for the same loads, and not to mention in competition with TMC, Maverick, Hunt ect ect..... seems like the only guys making money are the SPECIALTY guys, such as Heavy haul, wind-farm stuff and the hazmat transports.


You say you live in Alabama??? Have you thought about buying a used rig and trailer for hauling logs???? I know they seem to do well and with a $25k investment you could make out in a year or two and buy a brand new truck with cash then do OTR if you wanted to.

[rank]

I spent an hour preparing a post with all my 2010 stats but the website times out and I lost it all. I ain't doing it again so here it is from memory. All loads picked up in VA, MD, PA, NY or FL and del to ON, QC, NB, NS or PEI

85 step deck/double drop loads
average rate per loaded mile: $5
average rate for all miles: $2.50
Loaded miles: 34,000
All miles:~68,000

7 flat bed loads
average rate per loaded mile: $2.47
average rate for all miles: $1.87
All miles:~9950

[tracer]

Next time you write a long post, I"d suggest you write it in a Notepad file on the computer. Then you log on to the website, do "COPY and PASTE" and all content is transferred to ClassAdrivers - without loss.

[Roadhog]

I spent an hour preparing a post with all my 2010 stats but the website times out and I lost it all.

That's happened to me before as well.
Just hit the "back" button, and you pull the page back up with your post. Copy what you have, and log back in.

[BLTruckn]

I was curious if any of you know how brokers go about deciding what they are going to pay for a load to be moved and what portion they are going to keep for themselves? I know that it depends on where you are going and what you're hauling but there must be somewhat of a standard right????? I mean I'm hearing anywhere between 20 and 40 %????

[Mystikal]

My wife used to work under a produce broker for a few months before we came back out to the road and they charged 8% flat... but that was AFTER they managed to get a load from another broker that supposedly was taking much more. I don't understand how that company did it and remained profitable but they did. I guess they averaged paying about 2/mile tho. If you ask me its a little unethical that an armchair bandit would make more than the guy doing the actual work..

[BLTruckn]

Oh I know. My husband has driven for 22 years. We've heard of some that actually double broker like that. It's so sad an I see a lot of guys who are not making it any longer and are planning on shutting down. There is no sense in driving if you're only paying for fuel. We all know that there are many more expences involved.

[rank]

I was curious if any of you know how brokers go about deciding what they are going to pay for a load to be moved and what portion they are going to keep for themselves? I know that it depends on where you are going and what you're hauling but there must be somewhat of a standard right????? I mean I'm hearing anywhere between 20 and 40 %????

Experience gives them a pretty good idea of what it will take to broker the load, then they will add their profit. Hopefully (for the broker) that amount is low enough to get the shipper to give them the freight.

[tracer]

I was curious if any of you know how brokers go about deciding what they are going to pay for a load to be moved and what portion they are going to keep for themselves? I know that it depends on where you are going and what you're hauling but there must be somewhat of a standard right????? I mean I'm hearing anywhere between 20 and 40 %????

They are guessing! One agent i did a load for emailed me today asking if I could tell them what a good rate would be for this particular load. It was for a VAN trailer from Montana into SK, Canada... I'm pulling a step, so I told them, "I"m not an expert on van loads, but I'd suggeest - around $2/mi." They thanked me and said it'd be their starting point for negotiations with drivers