Newbies+wanabe's...don't say, you weren't warned.
 

I know, I know.............it will be different with you........"you'll be the exception to the rule."

Disclaimer: I am NOT trying to persuade or dissuade anyone from getting into trucking.....I personally LOVE driving a truck....but, I am extremely fortunate,....because I retired from another profession at a fairly young age and am financially sound....... I drive a truck because I want to......NOT, because I have to.........there is a huge difference.

.....This in my opinion is one of the best post I have ever seen on any trucking board........I pulled it from another board (which shall remain nameless) and in my humble opinion it hits home, is hard-hitting, to the point and not full of the cushy, cushy make-you-feel good political correctness crap. .........Read it, take from it what you want and leave the rest.......in my opinion, an excellent post, not based on hearsay, but his and others personal experience and opinion........It might NOT be what you want to hear, but, it IS the truth........written by a person who has seen more white lines and miles (well over 1,500,000), than most of us will ever see, via his many, many years of professional truck driving....................Josh


================================================== =======================

Newbies: You see me write a lot about the importance of craftsmanship and responsible profession behavior, and the going-rate wages and benefits for new drivers. Here's another side of the story:


OTR takes you away from your family and home for weeks at a time, and when you subtract even minimal expenses living on the road, there's precious little left for the wife, kids and home expenses.

You can make more net money for your family, work fewer hours, and at least sleep in your own bed every night with TWO full-time fast food jobs. The novelty of being a trucker and living on the road will wear-off pretty fast, and what's left is a disgraceful wage for the responsibility and risk, and in most cases, a family and home left abandoned and broke.

If you've got a wife and kids that need you and your support, DO NOT get into OTR trucking with Werner or anyone else. The number of tragedies -- guys who end up in divorce and living hand-to-mouth on the road while most of their paycheck goes to child support -- is staggering. They thought they could be a dad and husband with only a few days home a month and could eat baloney sandwiches most of the time and send most of their money home....WRONG! It rarely turns out this way.

No matter how much your and your family is dedicated to making this plan work, the fact is it will turn your relationships and finances upside-down. Few can make the stress and pitiful financial work -- and even if you do, you're missing the baby's first steps and the little league games and everything else you supposedly got married for. If you got married and started a family, stay home and be a husband and father.

OTR trucking isn't a "mission" to protect the public or your country like being a soldier or cop or firefighter. We're not heroes -- that's just what the industry tells us to take their crappy jobs. We just move paper towels or produce or little boats from one location to another -- just a low-wage worker doing relatively dull, mind-numbing work. Your body will get soft, your mind will suffer from the irregular sleep/work cycles, and your life will fly by with nothing much to show for the sacrifice. There's no retirement, no sick leave, no significant recognition for your efforts, and the trucking labor pool is increasingly dipping into the "working poor" class. This is no longer the middle-class job it once was,and the moment you make a poor decision behind the wheel that gets you in trouble, you're out on your azz facing possible criminal charges and civil action. The company will cut you loose and let you hang.

I could go on and on and on..... But the point is: This is a terrible career choice for a married guy with a family and home life.

You effectively disqualified yourself for living on the road in a truck when you started a family. If you're going to go on the road for weeks in a truck, you might as well just sit down with your wife and tell her you've changed your mind and are leaving for good. Hire a lawyer and get it over with before dragging her and your kids into this charade.

For a single guy...? That's another story. You can give-up your permanent residence, live out of a post office box and put away some money for a few years while living relatively comfortably on the road with all the cool gear. But there's no point in having a "real" home if you're never home to enjoy it. Your car will sit 26 days a month for all the payments and insurance, etc. And you'll effectively lose most of your friendships as you disappear from their lives.
But hell -- if you're single, want to destroy your health and set your course on slow suicide, who cares. At least you're not dragging anybody else down with you. And if friendships don't come easily anyway and you don't care much about a "normal" life -- OTR is actually a pretty good way to escape that reality. That's MY reality - to be perfectly honest - and I love this life. I'm a social misfit and a perfect match for this nonsense. But I wouldn't even consider it if I had the slightest responsibility beside my own admittedly self-destructive selfishness.

Got it? This job SUKS unless you're a little crazy and have nothing to lose. It's an irresponsible career choice if others depend on you, or you want anything like the "normal life" so many truckers come to miss after the novelty wears off.

40k may sound like pretty good money, but it's crap for the quantity of work, the responsibility and risk, the toll on your mind and body....and most of all, the family who'll see precious little of it from the dad who abandoned them to go live on the road.

Stay at home where you belong. Pretend you're an illegal immigrant and get into construction...ANYTHING but abandoning your family trying to be some hot-shot young buck again. Open your eyes and see the reality. The turnover is way over 100% a year -- even higher among newbies -- because most first-year drivers realize they've made a mistake and leave the industry, a little embarrassed and a lot poorer having been fleeced by a truck school and everyone else along the way.....

"...fair and balanced - you decide."

Read "Chopperbob's" post
_________________

This post seems familiar. I thought I read this a couple of months ago on here. Weird. Yea it's a good insight though. hey Josh, what company do you drive for, or are you an O/O?

Damn, I almost shed a few tears. Definitly hits home.
I agree thats the best post i have ever read.

Yeah,there aint no lie about that. That is the truth. Truck driving is one of the highest most dangerous professions(cant remember the rank),and it is also ranked very high on divorce cases. That is something that is needed to be thought about. Thanks Ardmore. That is a true statement that was posted.

I'm not saying I'm the exception to the rule or anything, but I disagree with the post...

I'm driving because it's something I've always wanted to do..... I'm a family man (wife, kids, dog, 2 cats).... I know in my first year or two the money won't be great.... I know I won't be home all the time.... I know this will put a strain on my home life at first until I get some experience under my belt and can go to another company that is more family friendly and pays a decent wage....

But it is a decision that my wife and I made together.... I let her know all of this before hand.... We discussed this in depth.... We talked to many other families with OTR husbands..... We've read many boo-hoo posts here and elsewhere....

We knew exactly what we were getting into when I took this job and the hardships we would face.... Thanks to this forum, my wife and I knew what we were getting into....

By the sounds of it, that poster didn't fully look into the profession he/she got into...

For those new drivers reading this or those thinking about getting into driving, everything that poster said is true... But, if your not prepared for what you are about to do, you will lose your family and friends...

How did I prepare for this life changing job that I personally believe will help save my family life as much as possible?

1 - I researched not only the good points, but the bad and used all these points to make my decision.

2 - I waited. I didn't just jump into a truck... I prepared by making sure my family was as ready as possible (but you can never be ready enough).

3 - I purchased a laptop and webcam. I also subscribed to a wireless account with AT&T which has more hotspots than those that tailor to truck stops. This way I can talk to my family every night and with the webcams, I can see my family and they can see me as we talk.

4- Don't let pushy dispatchers screw you out of home time. Make sure you put in for your next day home as soon as you go back on the road so that you can make sure you get home when your supposed to.... This gives the dispatcher more time to plan your route to help get you home. Most companies will also let you switch to a different dispatcher if you don't get along with your current one...

5 - Research all the companies you can... Don't research by talking to recruiters... Talk to DRIVERS.... Get the truth about these companies...

No, your life will not be all peaches and creme on the road like the recruiters want you to believe... But only you can make it the best it can be.... And with today's technologies of wireless internet, cellphones, laptops, and webcams, it's easier than ever.... You DON'T have to end up like this poster did....

This is just my opinion.... I"m not a recruiter.... I am a driver like most others here....

Chip

You know, or you think, you know? That might make all the difference! :wink:

ChipW,
I gotta ask. Did you read the post ALL the way through? The dude loves his job, he is looking at it from the outside looking in, a "normal"persons point of view with a lot of personal experience thrown in. To be quite frank with you, you won't know for sure how the road will affect you and yours until you have been out there a few months.

Then you are saying you are the exception.

And this more family friendly company exists WHERE????? Good luck finding it. If there were one out there, then everyone would drive for them.

Somehow, I think you don't.

And if you are prepared, you probably still will lose contact with most of them anyway.

Research and a buck will buy you a cup of coffee. It's what you do with the research that matters. And the truth of the matter is - this is not a business well suited to someone with a family.

When your kids turn 18 - that's when you will be ready.

"Mommy, I want Daddy to watch me play in the big baseball game."

"Well, dear, let me turn the monitor on."

The fact of the matter is, it is their truck, and they will send you where they want to.

Out 2 weeks, home 2 days - that is the norm. Kind of sounds like a divorced father's visitation rights.......

And make sure that you help them get their recruiting bonus when you sign on. :lol:

Technology doesn't take the place of actually BEING THERE. Trust me. I speak from experience.

good post aff,now that we all have identified the problem how do we fix it :?: whats the soulition :?: . the problem as i see it is we need CARRER TRUCK DRIVERS . how many 18 year olds are dieing for our county but can not get a cdl to drive interstate.at 18 years old you can train to become a capenter,iron worker,BUT NOT A INTERSTATE TRUCK DRIVER :!: with the proper training program im sure we can have some very good CARRER TRUCK DRIVERS :!:

Rev.Vassago, I wasn't trying to glorify being a truck driver with a family.... But no matter what anyone says, and I'm proof, men and women with families are going to get into a truck and drive as a career.... Just as apparently you have and I have.... All I was doing was trying to do was show new drivers what I did to prepare my family and myself for a job that will be hard on our family life....

I'm sorry life on the road screwed up your family life and I'm not saying it won't happen to me.... But it is the life both you and I chose to live and I'm doing what I can to make it easier on my family.... Your right, technology won't replace being there... But it does help to ease the pain of not being there... My kids can see me when they talk to me every day... They can show me the cool things they make at school and they can see my reactions and smiles on my face when I tell them how great it is and how proud I am of them...


Chip

I personally think that OTR trucking is the most irresponsible profession a father with kids under 16 at home can get into.

Id take a job fliping burgers, rather than see my kids 4 days a month.

I respect what has been said by the orignal posters, but its my opinion that there is positve and negative aspects to every career. I have been behind a desk for 15 years and at home. I can tell you that the stress level and daily dread of having your a@@ chewed by a "hitler" in dress pants is not an ideal situation either. I have also determined that you can be at home and not be at home if you know what I mean. You can be so filled with dread about having to go into the office the next day that you don't want to see or talk to anyone. even your family. So, I like others face this new career with some trepidation, but also with alot of exicitement. Further more, divorce is not exclusive to drivers. I know serveral desk jockies that have had several wives and or girlfriends and all have suffered thru their indiscretions. To make a long story short (too late) life is just that, life. Do the best you can, provide for your family the best you can and dont expect more out of it than it can deliver.

Just my thoughts.

There are a lot of jobs that take you away from home if you want to move up the ladder.

Hotels, new reporters, military, photographers, athletes, celebrities.

For example: Imagine how long a CNN reporter would last turning down assignments or a ESPN camera man refusing to go to the Olympics because it's not in his home town.

I guess seeing dad is better than starving?

burger flipper 6-6.50$/HR 40 hours a week (ya good luck most only hire part time) 260 a week

second job 6.50/25hr
162 a week

total 422 before taxes a week without benifits and such ... oh you'll be home everynight but you can hang up going to ball games etc. with two jobs.

just being home everyday does not make you a good father! being gone a lot does not automaticaly make you a bad father!

AFF, and y'all.....while there is a "grain of truth" in the post....and that "grain of truth" or two, or even three....may apply to some people....but as all else is wont to be...the world is not a "one size fits all world".

I've been out here since 94', have well over 1,000,000 miles, and have not suffered the problems outlined in that post. Granted, I don't have children at home....anymore, but if one was to place all that much "emphasis" on being home then 40% of the jobs in this country would "suck" by that standard.

I guess everyone who was a:

Soldier,
Sailor,
Airman,
Marine,
Coast Guard,
Border Patrol,
Salesman,
Traveling Technician,
Business Executive,
Accounts Manager,
Traveling Nurses,
and hundreds of other jobs,

Would be "fools", broke, bankrupt, divorced, and all the rest.

Sorry....one mans sob-story or set of problems is not mine or anyone elses. My marriage has survived quite successfully for over 25 years, thank you, and even before I got into this I was traveling all of North America by air, and gone for as much as 28 days at a shot. I made good money....lived good, and still do. And my wife and I are just as close as we ever were.

Lets face it. This is not the easiest job in the world. Its not the classiest.
Its not the prettiest. Its not the highest paying. Nor is it the best job in the world. It will more than likely not be any of those. But then again, I can say the same things in many ways about the "high paying job I had flying around on jets all the time".... All it boils down to is: The game stays pretty much the same...all that changes is the names.

But no matter how you paint it.....it does in fact pay a damn sight better than a crappy "burger flipping job" at "Mickey D's or the BK Lounge". And anyone who thinks thats a better job situation....well, lets just say...a tad more than "intellectually challenged". Unless of course you are the "Franchise Owner"....

The truth and reality is that way too many people try to post this abject sob story crap....and try to force others into that mold. Face it....no matter how hard you try...you cannot put a square peg into a round hole and make it fit well. So what one person finds in life to be a sour lemon, may be someone else's happiness.

Seems to me that the "biggest perpetuators" of this drivel routine is the "Three Stooges" on that other site....one of them a "retired teamster" who cashes his $3500+ a month pension check, and then verbally dumps on the industry that put him in that position. The other stooge, well, is just a stooge...so's the other one. And you having been on that site now "precisely what I think and feel about hypocrites, naysayers, and hatemongers". They have about as much "social value and merit" as a pile of "dog feces".

AFF, generally....generally speaking....most of what you post here to start a thread has value, or is thought provoking, or entertaining. This one "sucked" and has all the merit of a "blivit".

Before anyone goes off on a rant....think about this: If this job "sucked so bad"....why are so many people doing it? Why are so many so successful, and why would so many find the post a "laugh"? And why are so many wanting to get into it???

Here's a secret in life: Many industries don't have the same turnover, but its not because so many get in and fail....its because so many can't even qualify for the job they want...so they never even get a chance to succeed, much less fail. This is one of the few industries where one can get a chance..... Then its up to them.

I have seen this post pop up more than once and as a new driver trying to make my way into this profession I can already tell you that it is spot on correct.

That said would somebody please tell me where is this glorious job out there that will allow me to make something close to a wage, allow me all this off time to see my kid's ballgames, scout meetings, dance recitals, and also get me home at night? Oh yeah, along with little to no travel?

This poster says pretend you are an illegal immigrant and get into construction.....anything except trucking? Well that's a suggestion but let me ask you if you get to take the time off to hit most (not all but most) of your kid's activities? I just don't think in construction you can tell the foreman at 3 that the boy has a game at 3:30 and hit the clock. And what about the fact that construction in many areas of the country has continued to be as a depressed industry as steel & cars in the '70's or textiles in the '80's and '90's. My dad was in construction spent months away in places like Wichita Falls Tx, Omaha NB, and Willmington NC working till he was sent home or till he could set up a home for us to move out and stay with him.

And I myself as a former burger flipper/manager can tell you if you think fast food is the holy grail then you are out of your friggin mind! If you are a cook or cashier you will work for minimum wage or darn near it unless you happen to live in an area that mandates a higher minimum wage than the Feds do. So you then say "ok well I will just work alot of overtime and make up for it." WRONG! If the owner/manager of a fast food restaurant expects to stay in business for any amount of time he will not pay ANY overtime. In fact you will be lucky to get 30-35 hours a week for fear you might accidentally hit overtime. And just in case you think becoming a manager of "Bobby's Burger Spot" is the answer let me enlighten you. If you think you give free time in trucking working for free then you ain't seen nothin till you get a managers job working on a straight salary. As a manager of a fast food restaurant I worked more hours in a day at a restaurant then I have driven. The only difference is that you might get to go home after pulling your 14-18 hour day! Yes, you heard me right. I have had instances where I had to pull a 24 hour shift in a fast food restaurant and not go home. So does flipping burgers sound like the answer to trucking?

Truth is that now a days most jobs suck! Sound like a pessimist? Well tough. Every job that I have worked since I was 15 has required me to "ask not what my job can do for me, but what can I do for my job." My last job was in an office behind a desk. For 6 years I busted my butt to perform above and beyond the call of duty. Special projects, I was there. Inclement weather, I was there. I missed many a ball game, class play, and school event due to my job requiring my time. AND THAT IS A JOB THAT GOT ME HOME EVERY DAY! I did not have the option to tell my boss, "hey I want to see my boy's school play today." If it needed to be done then I was expected to get it done. When my boss wanted me at a business conference in Montreal less than 30 days after 9/11 guess where I was at. You got it, on a plane to Canada!

So now before some of you claim I am sticking up for trucking let me stop you. I am not. Like I said earlier the op was spot on correct. But what I am asking is where is this job that gets me to the kid's activities, home every night, no travel and the ability to make a living?

It is my opinion that there is no job that will do this to any extent in today's work force short of winning the Powerball. Nowdays the American worker is expected to produce more with less. Work more for less pay and benefits. Give up family and future for the sake of the company. And for what? Used to be you at least looked forward to a gold watch and retirement. Now you are most likely given a meager severance package (if any) when your job is downsized or shipped off overseas while the corporate big wigs set themselves up with golden parachutte packages worth millions so they can live the high life.

Don't believe me....look it up yourself. A recent story in my paper said it all with the headline...."Workers give up more vacation days than ever!" The average American worker does not even get to use up his vacation time. And we are not talking about European workers who get 4+weeks a year with jobs so protected it takes a presidential order to get fired. We are talking about Americans who on average have 2-3 weeks of vacation time a year. In my last employer it was well known and rampant that you ate your lunch while working many times. You also put in a heck of a lot more than 8 hour days and 40 hour weeks. And before some of you step up and say, "well why didn't you tell your boss no" let me ask you, do you tell your dispatcher what loads and where you will go? Unless you are an owner/operator probably not. In the little bit of time I have been in trucking I already know that you won't tell your dipacther "no" too many times before you find yourself sitting for days at a time at the TA waiting and begging for a load.

So to all you experienced folks out there who want to know why so many of us newbies come into trucking? IT'S BECAUSE MOST OF THE WORKING WORLD OUTSIDE OF TRUCKING SUCKS TOO!!!!!

Ok, my rant is over, stepping off the soap box and walking away.

WOW!!!! EEEE ZOWEEEEE!!!!!
That post was originally sent to my wife and I about 9 months ago...good content, it doesn't apply to us but it is the real poop...a couple of our friends we met in school experienced the very thing and they did make the move to go home to the family...and yes they still owe big bucks to the school and company for the school loan...
This did not come close to applying to my wife and I at the time it was sent or anytime for that matter....we have been full time road Gypsy's spending 250+ days on the road since the age of 18, we would not have it any other way....Though I do support these facts, this is good common sense true wisdom and solid advice to most young drivers making this career change with a wife and young children...facts are friendly so believe this drivers from the heart information...good job!

I'll make the same reply I made when this EXACT SAME POST came up the last time. Its so shot full of holes (especially the part about the two fast food jobs) it isn't even worth reading.

Here's more 'research' on the problems todays otr drivers face :sad:





http://www.todaystrucking.com/news.cfm?intDocID=16423

I totally agree with that!
The law that requires driver to be at least 21 to drive intersate is stupid!
Now convincing all these damn insurance companys to let carriers hire 18 year old drivers would be another problem.

I think that their are alot of young 18 year old's that would make a safer driver than some of these immature 30 year old drivers out there.


Here in canada, we can drive trucks anywhere in canada once we turn 18. but most long haul companies truck into the usa, so they won't take anyone under 21, and alot of companies won't even take anyone under 25 because of the insurance companies.

So legally anyone can truck OTR in canada, once their 18, but in reality you have to be 25 or at least 21 if you are lucky to get a OTR job anywhere. Since there are almost ZERO canadian long haul companies that run ONLY in canada.

How stupid is that?? the law allows anyone to drive once they are 18, but it's almost imposible to get hired anywhere until you are 25! Doesn't that sound like age dicrimination?????

It is just plain silliness to lump everyone with a family into a category.

1. Most people have families (Wife and/or kids) or if they are young and single they will in the future.
2. Without any knowledge of what those families have been through in the past the writer assumes that they cannot do this.

This writer has made the assumption that if these truckers were somehow employed elsewhere that family life would be wonderful. By the divorce factors in America in general I would have to say this assumption is false.

This writer must have no conception of what it took to build this country or what happened when this country was at war. In this day and age families have it so much easier because of the communication technology that is available.

This writer has not acknowledged that the traditional American family is almost extinct in America. I am certain that each and everyone of us knows many people who are not in the trucking industry that are divorced with children. We also see a couple of generations of children that are thrown into day-care some right after being born and are raised by other people. Then as they become older they become latchkey kids and basically are raised by a television or the neighborhood punks. Sometimes it is just because people want more and other times it has become a necessity for both parents to work just to make ends meet.

While this writer mentioned everything bad he failed to mention any of the benefits or the fact that after a year many people do transfer to companies were they do see their family much more. I know one personally who has far more home time from a local regional trucking company. And there is a person on the board who is also local.

This writer does not understand much of the real world outside of the trucking industry. My son was in soccer for four years. My husband in four years may have only gone to four or five of those games. It would be interesting to see this writer take up some of his own suggestions and see what life is like from that point of view.

And yes the children and I have been separated from my husband for periods of time before. We will deal with it and make the best of the time we do share together. Hopefully we will have more money to enjoy our times together.

I wonder whom this writer feels the trucking industry is fit for. Only those who are already divorced? Or those who are imported up from other countries because Americans cannot handle the job?

Maybe in the big picture the real problem is that families do not value each other and treat each other right. Maybe they do not stick though things because divorce is so easy and things are always greener on the other side (or so they think).

Goin Fer It?s Wife

I post this same post every few months...........because of the new people who come into CAD..............I drive for a wholesale Nursery here in North Florida..............as far as O/O................No...........................I sold a sports business in late 2002 and I enjoy taking off from work and going to our other home in the mountains WAY to much to be an O/O.......thought about it, but after reality hit............I .never seriously had the desire, plus the fact, my wife would KILL me. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Chip, thank you...........the entire reason for this post is simple..............too many "Newbies" and "Wanabe's" get into OTR trucking for all the wrong reasons.........they seriously DO NOT realize the tremendous change in their life they are about to see and sometimes when reality hits home, it's to late..............that may be one reason the turnover rate in OTR trucking is so high.............

This post is just ONE MANS opinion.............NO WHERE did I say anyone had to agree or disagree............just take what you want and leave the rest..........................nothing more, nothing less..............

Sometimes it is. But I wonder why those are the only two choices you offer.

Okay, let's look at how much the average person makes driving truck.

Gone 14 days at a time, home 2 days: 147 hours per week
Average 2600 miles per week @ $0.32 per mile: $832 per week before taxes
AVERAGE PAY PER HOUR: $5.65 PER HOUR for all hours spent away from your family

And I am eagerly awaiting the responses of how you can't count in the time that you are sleeping in a truck, or are off duty in your truck. Sure you can't. :roll:

And I personally find it insulting that you are comparing a SKILLED profession such as truck driving to flipping burgers. Try comparing it to another SKILLED profession, such as construction. If I weren't driving a truck, I certainly wouldn't be flipping burgers. But that doesn't help your analogy. :roll:

True, but being home gives you a better chance at being a good father, just as being home less gives you a harder chance at being a good father.

The only job I really ever wanted was to become a professional helicopter pilot. But schooling is way too expensive; and I didn't have rich parents to hand me everything. I also wasn't the smartest person in school, so I couldn't get a nice scholarship. Therefore the only way I could accomplish my life-long career would be to go in extreme debt. That's just not worth it to me. So there are not many other choices as far as my career goes. Manufacturing jobs pay decent, but they are so unstable. So, other than becoming a factory worker, the next best thing is a truck driver. It's a stable career and has room for advancement (OTR to Local). And forget working two full-time fast food jobs. Where will that get me later in life? I agree with Redeemed, "IT'S BECAUSE MOST OF THE WORKING WORLD OUTSIDE OF TRUCKING SUCKS TOO!!!!!"

I'm sure truck drivers deserve a lot more than what they get. I may be wrong, as I'm not a truck driver yet, but I don't think they have it too bad. I'm sick of seeing all of the negative posts about being a truck driver.

You just have to suck it up for 1-3 years and do your best. Then you should be able to find a nice local job, if you want to do the daddy daycare thing and be at home every night.

i not even going to jump in this one, i jumped in the last one.

it wasnt pretty :) :) :)

Skywalker.............:lol: :lol: down boy, down boy :lol: :lol: don't get mad at me, I'm just the messenger. :D

you read my disclaimer......I just post em, I don't write em. :D

I post this about every 3-4 months..........and boy the responses are quite diversified............oh yea, the "T-man 20-whatever", he should be around soon to give some of his C&Ping and putting down this administration.. :lol: :lol:

BYW................I bet if we were to take a survey, maybe 95% of the people on this board would have NO idea what a "Blivit" is.............I laughed my butt off when I saw that.........that was my dad's favorite expression when he was alive.

5lbs. in a 2 lb. bag. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Skywalker.......just to add, this was posted by "Shuffler" on the other site.............a man who I personally have a lot of respect and admiration for...........he's there to give his experience, strength and hope to the new drivers and some not so new.........he earned my respect, it wasn't given freely.

That doesn't mean I have to agree with everything he post though..........

I was going to reply again, but I've voiced my opinion on this subject on my blog listed below...

Chip

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: What up Rokk?............great response.


Adam............I believe the person who wrote the original post was more than likely addressing it towards "Over-the-Road", and not "Local"...............where one is out days and weeks at a time.

Thanks Ardmore,

I figured i would just stay in my safety net :twisted:

And most local or dedicated want otr experience. Since most people have families or will sooner or later does this person think that we should import drivers? And if so why does he think that they can do the job better than Americans?

Goin Fer It's Wife

i want to comment so bad .... but i cant... it wouldnt be pretty :? :lol: :lol:

Oh the horror, the pain, quick, someone duct tape me to my chair and tie me up. :twisted:

p.s.
nothing about what your saying GFIW

I would like to hear your thoughts! But I will trust you on this! PM me if you can't state your thoughts on the board :)

Goin Fer It's Wife

GFIW,

i bet you could probably find the older thread in archives about this. has all my arguments in it. :)

Ardmore would probably take out a contract on me if i started in again :) :) :)

You kind of going off the deep end there aren't you?

How in the Hell do I know what he thinks..............it ain't like we are pen-pals or go on picnics together.............if you want me to, I'll make a special trip from here in Florida, out to Washington State and/or out West,..... I'll stop every Werner truck I see, then ask if it's him, .......I'll be sure to ask him and report back to you. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Sorry, I couldn't resist........, don't take it personal, you just walked right into that one. :D :D :D

My only point was being a driver doesnt mean you are a bad father and anyone who thinks they can support a faimily on a burger flipper income is nuts.

as far comparing construction personaly I dont want a job that last 6-8 months a year and may or may not be there in 2 years.

as for taking insult to the burger flipper analogy sorry but I didnt bring it up someone else did

I find it insulting when people that are not parents try to tell someone what being a good father is all about

.....This in my opinion is one of the best post I have ever seen on any trucking board........I pulled it from another board (which shall remain nameless) and in my humble opinion it hits home, is hard-hitting, to the point and not full of the cushy, cushy make-you-feel good political correctness crap. .........Read it, take from it what you want and leave the rest.......in my opinion, an excellent post, not based on hearsay, but his and others personal experience and opinion........It might NOT be what you want to hear, but, it IS the truth........written by a person who has seen more white lines and miles (well over 1,500,000), than most of us will ever see, via his many, many years of professional truck driving....................Josh

You did not pull him over on the road and get this from him. Since you took this writing off another board it does not seem so difficult to converse.

My opinion this guy sounds like a whiner. My impression is that no matter what job he had he would always look at the bad. As I stated earlier I would love to see this guy follow his own advice and take two burger flipping jobs. Then you would really hear whining. There is good and bad in all jobs and sometimes life isn't always a bowl of cherries. Most of it is what you make of it.

Goin Fer It's Wife

I will check into it later. Time to go water the garden! :)

Goin Fer It's Wife

I know they are talking about OTR. But if it's so bad, then they should switch to a local position. That's what I like about the trucking industry. Get some experience, put up with crap, pay your dues, etc. and then you can move into a nice local position. There's no way I'd do OTR long-term, especially if I had a young family. I'm sure OTR is rough, but you gotta do what you gotta do. Theres not much else to pick from, unless of course you want to flip burgers. :shock:

Rev.Vassago; Father to two wonderful children.

Rev I stand corrected! :oops: With that in mind I shall heed your advice as I pursue my career in trucking.