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

 

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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

 

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. :lol:

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 :lol:

 

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

 

kongratulathuns i new yew culd do et

 

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.

 

Extremely......illogical

 

What Wot?

Lol, I've been waiting to say that.