Crete
 

I know there is info through doing a search and I've read alot of it.

I have even talked to a few Crete drivers this week while I was out.

If there are any current Crete drivers here that would share their thoughts on your company it would be greatly appreciated.

Where do you live in Wisconsin?

I live about 25 miles northwest of Madison.

Just south of the Dells about the same.

Are you saying the Petro in Portage?

Nope, I'm southwest of the Petro down highway 78

I drive for Crete and am very happy, been here a little over 2 years and plan on many more

So there is no truth to the rumour that Lincoln is putting Slow Moving Vehicle Ahead signs on the back of your trailers???? ;)

I tried asking this driver, but he didnt really say much
http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/b...540/ATT1-1.jpg

You know how those O/Ops are. They never tell the truth about how much they are making anyway....

Are you trying to say that SOME of the trucks have been turned down?

When I worked there they set them all down to 62mph and limited the rpms in some gears.

Not all of them, some have slipped thur the net

:thumbsup: :rofl:
He would probably tell ya that it's pretty ruff. :p

Did you have any specific questions?
I started back in April and we are pretty busy. A lot of the guys at terminals were saying that they weren't getting any miles when I started, but things must have picked up right as I started, because I get 2500-2800 miles most weeks and got over 3,000 several times. They aren't perfect, but I would recommend them if you are looking for a large otr carrier.

Thanks married to to the road......my questions are;

Do solo's from the midwest get out to the west coast? If you do run out west in the winter do they want you to chain up and keep running or do they let you decide?

Does Crete pay for lumpers ?

Is Crete pretty good to get you home when you are ready to go home? I'm only wanting to stay out about 18 days before I go home.

Do they have the ez pass, prepass? Do they reimburse you for the Ohio Turnpike?

Not sure of any other questions.....I don't like NYC, but the drivers I have talked to said they have never had to go, although it is always possible they said.

Anyways, thanks for your time

1. Crete has freight every where. I'm sure they could get you plenty of west coast if that's what you want, but if you are on the national board you will probably see some east coast too. May want to ask about regional to the recruiter. They do supply chains to each truck for you to use if necessary. I have not worked through a winter yet with them, but from what my fl said, they won't force you to chain up.

2. Crete does pay for lumpers. They will give you a comcheck (you don't have to pay out of pocket unless you want to and wait to get reimbursed) to pay lumper and you just have to turn in the reciept.

3.They try to get you home when you ask. Sometimes it may be a day or two late or even a day early. They won't have a problem with you staying out 18 days and would give you 3 days off I think.

4.They supply ez pass. They do not supply pre pass. They reimurse you for OH or any turnpike, AS LONG AS it is on the route they send you. (they reimbuse you for CAT scales too)

5.They don't have much freight going to NYC. They pay an extra $100 to go out there. I have had one load to Long Island, NY so far. Only run i've had to New England is one run to CT. A lot of mid west and south east for me, which is what I wanted. I started the end of April, and in my first 4 months, including the days I've had off, I've ran about 40,000 miles in a '06 Century class FL.

Hope this helps!

Most Crete drivers that I have talked to lately have been getting like 2000 miles a week

Crete tells you what route to take, where to get fuel, and how much fuel to get.

Most drivers rarely go west, unless they live out west. They don't pressure you to chain up. I chain up, because I won't make any money if I park it.

Most drivers rarely get through home, unless they have a home time request in the system. The dispatchers have a well earned reputation of ignoring your home time request as long as you let them.

Lumpers are never a problem..just fill out Crete's paperwork properly to get reimbursed.

Are there still drivers only getting 2000 miles a week? Heard several say that when I was hired, but I have been doing better than that and just figured that freight had picked up.
They havn't complained yet about me taking a diffrent route or getting fuel where I want, but I don't do it often and I call them first.
Don't do much west coast myself, figured might have to do with where I live.

I haven't filled out the app yet, but I was curious where I'd go to for orientation. I live in Wisconsin.

At the main office in Lincoln Nebraska would be my guess. That is where I did mine and I lived in California at the time.

The recruiter offered me midwest regional.....if I ever get to filling out the app.

Just not sure how following their route all the time would be and getting fuel here and there is.

I know when I drove for Schneider if I would have followed some of their route suggestions would have been a nightmare.

Still considering them, just trying to figure it out......who knows, maybe they won't even like me and all my pondering was for nothing.

I don't know how regional boards operate...I'm on the national board.

We can take a different route than the 'suggested route' if we want to. I'm sure I'd hear about it if I took a longer route all the time, however. If I can find a shorter route, I still get paid the miles listed in the load assignment.

I can call my home terminal and get a different fuel solution, but only once per load unless I have a really good reason.

The national board operates with area dispatchers- we don't have assigned dispatchers. You deliver a load in a different area and then you have a different dispatcher for the next load.

The problem with area dispatchers is this: you are not assigned to the dispatcher, so the dispatcher has no loyalty to you. Their only concern is getting their loads covered. You might want to get home; they want to get their loads delivered on time. Your terminal manager and their surrogates are supposed to get you home, but they have no power to get this done. They can't have you drop a load at the terminal; they can't dispatch you. They can request a dispatcher to do this, maybe the dispatcher will agree. My home terminal has hundreds of drivers, and one person to coordinate home time requests. He is understandably quite overwhelmed. So it is difficult to get home on time. I usually get home several days (or more) early or late.

My current company uses area dispatch. And it's like you say, no loyalty or real effort to get you home or miles, just cover their loads.

Guess I will have to find out more how the regional operates.

I was delayed in Findlay, OH for a day this weekend and there were 4 Crete trucks in there as long or longer than I was.

Thanks for the info.