A day in the life of a hobby trucker
 

I've been getting lots of emails from people asking how I'm doing so I thought I would post it here.

Actually I'm doing better than ever. I'm not sure if it's because so many truckers are going of of business but I've been in many bad area's that have paid well. I was in Montana the other week and the number of loads available was 250 and the number of trucks within a 100 mile radius was 20.

I think you've heard me talk about a woman broker that I dealt with a lot in the past. Well, she has agreed to find me loads for a 5% fee so she's been doing all my paperwork and I pretty much do nothing but drive. She's been in the business for over 25 years so she knows where to send me and where not too unless the customer pays more for dead heading out. She sure keeps me hoping. She works from home so she has the time to devote to doing this instead of part time when she has the chance.

She's a free lance broker for a few brokerage houses so this works out well for her since she gets new contacts from shippers every time I get a load. My loads have nothing to do with her company by the way. They are all in my name only.

She's looking to taking on 2 more people and possibly make it a full time job since just doing me as turned out to be so lucrative.

I've been doing a lot of long runs at least 2,200 miles. I've also tried to pick a load that's under 30,000 and doesn't take up my whole deck and picking up LTL loads along the way. Most weeks I've been grossing $8,000 to $8,500 on around 2500 miles.

Starting out on a long run with a decent rate starts to add up when you pick up LTL's along the route for $1.00 per mile.

I've been heading up to Canada a lot and getting paid full rate to dead head sometimes over 1,000 miles back into the U.S. to a better paying area. I tell the brokers this and they just about drop dead. I say fine and that I'm not interested. Most of the time they call back. They can't find anyone that doesn't have a criminal record and the proper Canadian paperwork and insurance.

I'll tell you one thing. All the horror stories I heard about heading into Canada is all a bunch of crap. They are not a bunch of Nazi's and it's very relaxed. You show up, walk over to the broker, get your paperwork and your gone. I was led to believe in the past that it was like one mistake and they ripped your truck apart. NOT TRUE. It's easy.

I'm in Cortez Utah at the moment with some very high priced custom machinery headed to the Mexican border. I will be off loaded and another carrier will take it across the border to deliver. The stuff is in excess of $400,000 but they didn't ask me to increase my insurance. It took them 3 extra hours to load me and I was given $300 more for detention. The plant manager came out and made them take parts off and crate them up. He was afraid my tarp would bend the parts.

"...and possibly make it a full time job since just doing me has turned out to be so lucrative"

So...what exactly are you saying here Steve? :lol: :lol: :lol:

:shock: :shock: :shock: :shock:

Kinky.

Ya know, you perverts. I was thinking after I typed that but then I thought, naw, they won't go down that route. WRONG

Re: Where's Waldo
 

Just because it hasn't happened to you does not mean that it is crap.

I have crossed the border hundreds of times,and for the most part I have not had too many bad experiences,but I have sat in line waiting to get across the border for 4-5 hours,and after getting my paperwork from the broker,I have stood in the f'ing line to get cleared for 3hrs.

You wanna talk about being pissed off,try standing in a stupid line for that long only because Customs agents get abused at home by their wives and you are the only one they can control.

I have seen the agents going over a truck with a fine tooth comb,but I do think that it is a little over blown when guys talk about the horror stories of crossing.

You wouldn't have to stand in line at all if you did the paperwork up front and have all the necessary requirements.

I have PAPS and PARS stickers, SCAC code, FR Canadian insurance filing and Canadian Carrier code. I also file for an oversized wheelbase permit for $30 bucks. My truck is 265".

When I show up to pick up a load my PARS sticker is attached to the BOL. That is faxed to the broker and I don't even get out of my truck when I get to the border. They scan my PARS sticker and I'm on my way.

Re: Where's Waldo
 

That's between $3.20-$3.40 a mile! Wow! 8)

Not bad for a hobby trucker!

From dek to own authority part 5
 

lol.....Not me though, it's the woman I have finding and negotiating the loads for me. I was doing maybe $2.20 to $2.80 on my own with adding LTL's but she's a lot better then me. I end up saying "YOU SUCK" and hangup whereas she tends to be a little better than myself.

Those last 2 runs were pretty good with lots of LTL right along the way picking up and dropping off.

I have about 28,000 on right now and 15' of deck left but couldn't fill it up due to the weekend so this run I'll end up with $4,900 for 2100 miles.

My radiator is leaking again and so I'm going to have it replaced. I'll bet if I knew who to see in Laredo Texas I could get it done a lot cheaper.

I have a leaking oil pan also and need the gasket replaced.

Both leaks are not bad but they bug the crap out of me. The radiator just plain doesn't look good anymore also and could probably be fixed without taking it out but I'm going to go with a new one and larger if possible. I've never had a problem with over heating but I'll always opt for the biggest I can get.

I demand a thread title change.

Here's one .....

" From desk to authority pt. 5 "

Just an idea....

How about (from his last post);

:shock:

From dek to own authority part 5
 

For some reason it won't let me change the title or I don't remember how?

It looks like someone figured out how to change it.

I don't like this title. I demand another title change.


EDIT:
A day in the life of a hobby trucker works.
Thank you, management.

You thought THAT with THIS group?!?

Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha!!! :wink:

Seriously, good to hear things are working out for you, Steve.

Now, can you please post a running commentary on what happens when you have a week off? Big Diesel tried that, but we all caught on that he was full of crap and called him on it. We need to see a thread on a true Hobby Time-Offer.

;)

With exact numbers too please. No rounding off.

Well, I'm sitting here in Eagle Pass Texas about 120 miles away from unloading in the morning. I already have a load lined up about 10 miles from where I drop off going to within 98 miles of my home. It's paying $5,100 on 2097 miles.

Once I'm loaded up I'll make arrangements to have my local shop order a new radiator so it's ready when I get home.

The wind was killer coming across Texas today. At one point I was going down hill with a top speed of 60mph and my foot to the floor. The wind passing by even with the windows rolled up was deafening.

I look Rt 90 most of the way instead of the main roads. I think I left at least 25 dead rabbits along the way. They would wait until I was just passing then they would make a mad dash for my rear trailer tandems.

I've also discovered a new thing to do with the deer. They stand right on the edge of the road and they don't move like I don't see them, right. As soon as I'm within 5 feet of them I lay on the air horn. They jump straight up in the air at least 5 feet!!!!

It's 99 degrees outside right now. I don't know how people without the ability to idle can survive. It must be over 150 inside their trucks!!! It's 73 inside mine at the moment with the Rigmaster running. I discovered that I had to buy the privacy curtains to close off the front of the cab. That cuts down the area to cool by almost half.

I repeat: no rounding off. Thx, mgmt.

They were clearly suicidal. You are the Jack Kevorkian of truck drivers.

That's funny until one of them runs straight for your truck, like the damn deer did when I laid on my jake.

Well, I'm sitting here in Eagle Pass Texas 116 miles away from unloading in the morning. I already have a load lined up 8.1 miles from where I drop off going to within 98.7 miles of my home. It's paying $5,100 on 2097 miles.

How about starting a union? The UHTU......United Hobby Truckers Union. :P

That would be so cool. We could have like a club house and all wear the same jackets and stuff.

I am game, where do we send our dues. :D
When and where is the first meeting. Oh, and I need a sticker for my truck, and a hat. :rock:

Can we wear those big hats with bullhorns on them like Fred Flintstone had?? :Dhttp://i181.photobucket.com/albums/x...man82/fred.jpg
It even comes in Gman's color.

Much better, thank you.

Yes but only the grand puba can wear the horns up, everyone else will have them down.

We need a secret handshake also.

Too bad you already ordered the radiator.

I'm in Laredo now and this guy named Viktor says if you go up the street behind the Pilot and knock on the taco vendor's door (after lunchtime, of course) and tell him you're there for a radiator...he'll call him and he'll be in the parking lot behind the taco stand with a radiator AND install it.

$200.

Oh, and Vict..ooppss....Fred (for security puposes) says bring heavy duty gloves 'cause you have to help hold it in place and it MAY be kinda hot..

Hey, the color works for me. And it would be easy to spot other union members by the hat. :P

YES!

A cool blue hat and a secret handshake...

http://blogs.trb.com/sports/football..._handshake.jpg

Well, I think we found the secret handshake!!!! I like it!

I figure we can have daycare also and GMAN can be in charge. The kids will be so freaked out by his mask they will just hide in a corner for the duration of out meetings.

I'm still in Laredo and the load is no more. After signing the rate agreement and showing up at the customer to load I was faxed the directions. How convenient there was a little note that the load had to be delivered in 3 days because the customer was shutting down for a week. There was no way I could drive that distance and make it in time going up the coast. I'll be lucky to average 500 to 550 per day.

They had another load of the same cargo going up to Maine that was 300 miles more but wanted to offer the same money as the other load. They didn't want to make good on the first load so it looks like I'll be filing a bad report on them to the ITS.

The radiator cost me $1,395 and the labor is $400 to put it in. It's coming from Canada so I'm hoping it arrives in time for when I get home. I kind of thought the labor sounded cheap since I'm assuming it takes all day to put that in or so I thought. This will be through the dealer up in Vermont. I gave up going through my local dealer. They are on the verge of going out of business.

When I delivered my load yesterday I noticed that the other truck had already delivered. I also noticed the machinery was outside on the ground. This is a very expensive load and the paperwork said it had to be weather protected at all times. I called up the factory and spoke to the plant manager. This place went through great pains to prepare this load and protect many parts and it was just thrown on the ground. I took pictures of all the equipment laying on the ground and was asked to email them to him.

I'm hoping to get out of Laredo today as the temp has been over 100 every day. That Rigmaster really works well now that I close off the front of the cab. It was just too much for the unit to cool the whole inside.

That must be some radiator, Steve. There is a company in Chicago that will sell you a new radiator for about half that amount. I put a radiator in my International last year and I believe that it took me about 3 or 4 hours to take it out and put it back in.

I already looked for radiators and mine has a big ass one already that came with my model of truck. My Western Star is the EX model with more options and the big radiator is one of them. I check around and nobody stocks it and the ones I did find were $1,200 and up. I did find cheaper ones but they were rebuilt and I want a new one.

It just looks hard to put one in but they are saying 4 hours. It would take me a freaking week.

Well, I'm off to Canada again. With the dead head it's 2940 miles and paying $7,800. It's about 28,000 pounds or less so my rear tandems will have no more than 20,000 total on them which is the law up there.

After that I'm heading home I hope. I've noticed that I'm carrying a lot more money on the roads these days for fuel. I'm spending about $900 every 2 days on fuel so it adds up pretty quick.

Heading into down town Houston to the port to pick up this stuff so that should be a real trip. I'm assuming they have their own exit and everything though so it should be easy.

You've been in my area and didn't let me know?!?

What's the matter, afraid of a slight delay at the border?

Be safe.

I've got a new radiator coming this weekend also. A nice all aluminum unit, its supposed to have twice the cooling capacity of a copper/brass unit.
Steve,..are you having the charge air cooler checked and or replaced?

You suck Max, I'm still not talking to you!!! This time I'm going through Coutts so you can't find me!

Yea Dog, they are replacing that charge card thinger dinger. He said I didn't have a choice. Well, actually I did but he said it's the right thing to do.

I picked up my load at the Port of Houston yesterday. What a trip!! The whole place shuts down over night and is open from like 8 to 3:30 and that's it. I thought places like that were open all night but I'm guessing since it's pretty much in down town Houston they don't want the heavy traffic and noise all the time.

You have to go from one office to another before you finally get to load up. It's wasn't that bad but took 4 hours from start to finish and I was loaded up before anyone else for some reason. The guy that loaed me was one of the biggest black guys I've ever met. Really nice person and telling me about when he lived in Chicago and was part of a gang. Show me a few bullet wounds that he could. He had more. He finally got out and made a new life for himself. The bastard is 46 and looks 25.

It was pretty cool being right next to all the cargo ships and watching the action. Made me want to hop back on the cruise ship until I thought about putting up with all those old ladies again.

The heat and humidity was sooooo bad that after I was loaded I had to pull over and change clothes. I thought I was going to have to rip some of the clothes off me because they were so wet and stuck like glue to me. I had the engine A/C running and the Rigmaster. I got the inside down to 66 before I cooled off.

I'm still in Texas and it's 11pm and pretty cool out but I still have to run the A/C because of the humidity. There's a lake outside my truck from all the water being taken out of the air.

I found out why so many trucks have water all over their windows in the morning. It's because the older trucks do not have an effective dehumidifier on the trucks A/C. That must suck big time. The only thing I can think of is that they are cool but still soaked.

This is one time I wish I could download the route I want to take up to Canada. The GPS is picking a way that's 200 miles longer then I need to go so I'm having to set waypoints along the way to make sure it goes the way I want it to.

Well, this sure is a sign of the times. I have $32,400 in outstanding invoices and will top over $40,000 before I get home. I'm guessing more than $10,000 of that is due to the increase in fuel prices and having to charge more to haul a load. I tend to fill up every other day at a cost of about $900 so it adds up pretty quick.

$900 every 2 days? I know OTR guys spending $1000/day. But they are hard runners. I won't mention any names on whom they may be :wink:

Speaking of cruises, you should attend the annual trucker cruise I used to partake in. Since you don't have belly boxes and 19.5's on your trailer, we'll make an exception just for you :lol:

You can't be serious? :shock: Are you? :roll:

I've been thinking about taking a cruise but I'll probably pay for it and go as a passenger this time. I'm going to have to pretend I'm on the road or I'll piss off a few of my female friends.

I can't imagine $1,000 per day in fuel. I have all this money but it's like it's already spent on my next trip out!!!

I should get good fuel mileage on this trip. I'm loaded like a van with all square crates so that should cut down a lot on wind resistance.

Have any of the borkers burned you yet or very slow in paying ??

I'm doing roughly $1500 in petrol a week.......