Yup, I agree with your figures and the scenario you put together. In fact, I agree 100% totally except for the $40 less in food when I'm home. I tend to eat Delmonico steaks for $20 a piece non stop.

What it comes down to for me is I really enjoy being on the road for 4 to 5 weeks at a time. I enjoy just driving for days and days without unloading and loading.

I guess I could do pretty much the same thing as you in a way from Mass to Chicago and back again for close to the same as your figures. I wouldn't like it.

I will keep fixing my truck and trailer and keep what I have. You can never go wrong with repairing what you have as opposed to buying new. I've seen this first hand over and over again in many companies who I've had close personal experience with right down to my last multi million dollar company who opted to replace the engine on the lawn mower instead of buying a new one.

My costs to run the truck are $1.01 per mile so $.84 cents per mile is not a bad thing. You can divide that $.84 into driver pay/profit any way you like.

I don't think I'm that far off from others. I probably gross more then most doing it this way. You could bring up the maintenance thing but I'm guessing that's a wash also given the environment of big city stop and go every day as opposed to non stop easy driving.

My engine stays at 1450 for days at a time in 10th gear. Need I say more about wear and tear from that point of view? Your shocks go up and down 20 times a second. I crap my pants because I've just been floating down the road for 6 hours and just went over a crack in the road on I80.

Your in a groove Rank and I see a groove for me also if I want it but I don't.

Maybe this is something most have never gone into detail before. I think it comes down to home time which I do not miss. You have a wife and family and I do not. I think everyone knows how much I love being out West and in the middle of nowhere. Blizzards, snow and wind, I freaking love it.

There are plenty of people on the road with multi million mile trucks and over 20 years old. I think mine will do fine for the next 10 years.

Steve, I gotta hand it to you, for putting your experience here, in an open forum. And, persisting with it, to boot.

You handle the punches pretty well, I think. The truth hurts, but not so much as lies and deception.

Kudos to GMAN, Rev, BigD, Mike, and all the others that chime in, with their thoughts. Most of what I've seen is pretty good stuff, not counting the silly comments, from time to time.

You are living proof that trucking can be a slow death. It takes a lot to get into trucking, whether you are a company driver or O/O, or your own authority.

Once you embark on the endeavor, you are committed for quite a while. There is no easy way out, once you get in.

I was talking with a broker/agent the other day, about rates, market conditions, the economy, ect.
During the conversation, she just sorta tossed out that $3.50 was regular flatbed rate.

The money is being paid.
But, it doesn't all make it to the truck.
That is a shame, because the truck has to eat, before you do.

I've developed quite an attitude of my own:
Call if you need me.
Otherwise, we ain't friends, and I don't want to waste time talking to you, unless it will be profitable.

I'll be a little more specific, here, than what I usually say. Just so that you know.

A month ago, I was offered a load from Baltimore to Las Vegas - $3.49.

This fool wakes me up, to offer me that????
He managed to bring me to my feet, and I pick a number, then applied 150% to his miles, and told him $19,000. He said "19,000". I said NineTeen Thoouusand Doolllars. He didn't call me back.

Spring of '07 - I watched a long list of military equipment going from Portland, OR to San Francisco - paying $2.50 a mile. When the list was exhausted - after 2 weeks, I went empty, to St. Louis. It still took a couple of weeks, to find something motivating...

Summer '07 - I took a load to Long Beach, CA - for that guy that offer me $3.49 to vegas. I was promised again, good re-load freight. I gave it 4 days, then hauled air to Jackson, MS. I sat there for 49 days. Then, I quit, and went to another company. That lasted about 4 months. I tried to be a team player, and took one too many, for the team....

As it is, I've become hard wired. More than once, I've gotten churlish with someone, before even knowing who I'm talking to. I was very afraid that such an attitude would have severe repercussions. It seems to have become a habit. What has happened is that I don't get calls unless they need me.

My reputation is growing. I just got a call from somebody that I didn't know about. He seems to know what is what. He offered to offer my truck for 7, on 45,000#, from NC to NH - about 700 miles... It may have been a brokered load, but I'm not sure. He couldn't tell me that they accepted the rate, so we assume the answer is no.

I just spent 3 weeks sitting in Minneapolis, before taking a load out of Chicago. I turned down quite a number of loads, during that time. Some of those loads, I gave them the number I would consider motivating. Some of them, I just said No.

It ain't easy, if you are willing to fight.
You get bloody.
It is easy, if you take what you are given.
It is a slow death.

Right now, I'm doing most of my work with about 3 to 5 offices.

The biggest blunder I've made so far, is getting into my own truck.
The next biggest, was in turning down a really good load. That office won't even talk to me, now.
Live and learn.

I don't like no body, and I also don't like to get so prolific with the words.
My apologies.

Gman, I did get advise from you and others and you know I listened but did it my own way instead. You and others told me how to get my authority and I went the one stop shopping method instead. In the end, I listened but did it my way. I was told to drive for another company for 2 years. I didn't. I was told I would kill someone, I didn't. I was told I needed to learn how to secure a load. I learned that from books and common sense.

My problem is that lots of you just sit back and lead everyone to believe something that is not. My guess is that most are afraid to realize that someone comes in and right off the bat is 2 steps behind, not a mile.

It didn't take me long to come up to speed and actually make a living at this. Can I make more? Yes. Do I want to? No. I think everyone has a comfort level and right now, I'm there.

Geez #2, not sure what your post was really about or your just venting? It almost sounds like you sat for 50 weeks out of the year and ran a couple loads?

Are you driving for someone else or are you on your own?

I don't do a lot a miles.
I refuse to subsidize some other business.
It seems I'm hard wired that way.

I'm leased on, with attitude.
Nobody tells me to do anything.

That post was just sharing my own experience.
More and more are doing the same thing, out of necessity.

There is a difference between a hobby trucker such as yourself, and someone that is in this business, to make a living.

You do have a competitive advantage, but you are also being taken for a ride.

I am in the business of making a living and doing it so your wrong. That was just a stab at me. And I thought maybe you were different.

There is nothing wrong with doing things your own way. You certainly picked one of the most challenging segments of trucking to get your start. There are a lot of people injured or killed with improperly secured loads. You are correct in that securement is mostly common sense. The problem is that there are too many who don't seem to have common sense. I can't speak for others, but any concerns that I had with you going this way was for public safety, as well as your own protection. I have seen people killed out here because of improperly secured loads. It had nothing to do with you getting into this business without any training. I got started myself without any formal training. We didn't have driving schools when I first entered the business. Most of us did have common sense, so we managed to figure things out for ourselves. I was basically given the truck keys and told to go deliver a load. Frankly, I think the way I started is still the best way to go. You would have saved yourself some grief had you worked for a carrier for a year or two, but chose to go it alone. That was your choice. Most people find it difficult to get insurance, especially at a good rate, without having at least 2 years experience. When I or others offer advice, it is the one asking who has to make the choice as to what they should do with the advice. They either take it or ignore it. Not everyone can come into this business without experience and make it work. From your postings you stated that you had a lot of money to start. Most are not in that position. In fact, most want to get started with no money, poor credit and little experience. You had enough money to over come your mistakes. We all make mistakes and wrong decisions. Unless you have the financial resources you will not be able to make it in this business. That is the main problem that I have with your postings. You make it appear that anyone can come into this business and breeze their way to success. It takes hard work and perseverance. If you are just getting started with no experience, you need a lot of money or half a dozen angels sitting on your shoulders to see you through.

I have always posted the truth on this forum, including the brief reference to rates. I didn't need to post those rates, but I wanted people to understand that they were being paid. I have minimum rates for which I will haul to certain areas. Unless I get them I won't go to those areas. There are people who will haul to these bad freight areas for less than I will. You took exception to the rates I posted because you were not getting them. You make a false assumption that just because you are not getting those rates that no one else gets them. I don't know what you are getting other than what you post. I would say the rates you note are about average for where you are running. I am not running the west coast due to the rates. When I had my truck running up and down I-5 we were not getting the rates we could have gotten running in the east. That is why I won't have another truck running out there. Rates have always been better on the east coast. I don't expect that to change.

You are making a go of your business. Good for you. I have no problem with you making a living in this business. Getting your authority, truck and trailer is the easy part. Making it work is the challenge. Each load is a negotiation. Those who have good negotiating skills will ALWAYS get the better rates. Right now, rates are down across the board. The country is close to being in a depression. Trucking companies are going out of business in record numbers. Hundreds of thousands of owner operators are losing or in the process of losing their trucks. The industry has always had a fairly high attrition rate. The one problem I have with the operational numbers you post is that they are lower than most will incur. You don't have equipment payments where most do. The way you show the numbers you are misleading people as to actual operating costs. The last numbers you posted had your operating costs at $0.84/mile and $1.01/mile. Those figures are not accurate for most people. I think that if you are going to publish your operating costs they should be accurate. Otherwise you are misleading those who don't know any better.

I, on the other hand have always gotten my satisfaction out of rooting for the underdog... :wink:

I've told people a hundred times in here I don't have any bills, no truck payment, no trailer payment, paid cash, had cash and nobody to support. I have not mislead anyone. I've stated that over and over again.

You also misread my operational costs which I posted in detail along with others. It's $1.01 and with an overall average of $1.85 for all miles that leaves $.84 cents for salary/profit which I do not make a distinction.

I will take your word on the operational costs, since I don't want to take the time to check it. I think it is important for people to understand that when you post your personal operational expenses that it doesn't include equipment payments or replacement costs. Unfortunately, some people only see what they want when they look at these figures. :?