A bad streak

A new day is dawning - and we’re still sitting in Fort Morgan.

We arrived at about noon yesterday after dropping a trailer full of canned Arizona tea in Longmont, CO and spending the night at a local truck stop. We had spent most of the day at Prime's yard in Denver since we couldn't drop the tea until midnight. I practiced backing up the trailer for about two hours, developing a blister on the right palm from spinning the steering wheel back and forth. I only "spilled orange blood" (ran over an orange practice cone) once.

The instructions for this current load said get the trailer to Cargill Meat in Fort Morgan ASAP, so we did. And then the waiting began. Lori tells me there usually isn’t this much waiting around so I must be having beginner’s luck (all bad!) this week when it comes to getting in and out of shippers and receivers.

Once this load is ready (which they tell us will be 4:00 p.m. today), we’ll have 3 to 4 days of driving as we’re heading to Assonet, MA and Norwich, CT by Tuesday morning. We’re planning a stop at the world’s biggest truck stop, Iowa 80 in Walcott, IA, since it’s along the way. Our route also includes a trip over the George Washington Bridge into New York City and the Bronx. Lori says I get to be a “tourist” since this will be my first trip through “the City.” After that, no more excuses; I’ll have to drive.

Despite having to wait, this is actually a pretty good load since it will be next to impossible to get a new load over this weekend because of the Labor Day holiday. By the time we’re ready to get another assignment it’ll be Tuesday afternoon and everyone will be back to work.

I’m going to take a look at the Internet and see what there is to do here in Fort Morgan, CO. We really don’t want to hang out at Wal-Mart like we did yesterday. There’s a tour of the meat packing plant here at 10 this morning but I think we’re going to pass. It’s depressing enough seeing all the trailers full of steers going in one end of the plant and then coming out empty at the other. But hey, if you want steaks…

Time Out

Lori and Tamara are having to spend the day in Fairburn, GA after making the second of three drops in this current load. That's because stop #3 in Valdosta doesn't accept deliveries after 10 a.m., so it's hurry up and wait until tomorrow morning. Which actually is okay since they have both run out of hours they are legally allowed to drive this week. Twenty-four hours off will allow them to "reset" their hours.

Tamara, however, is trying to convince their fleet manager (FM) to have some other truck come get this trailer so Lori and Tamara can be put onto another load.

Lori and I talked about that approach and agreed we probably wouldn't do it that way. First, when you accept a load, the standup thing to do is finish it out if at all possible. Secondly, why make life difficult for your FM by asking him to find somebody else to finish your load? And if you think the load is so bad, why try to "dump" it on some other driver?

In this system, the quality of loads you are assigned is largely determined by your FM. And that means it pays to have a good relationship with your manager. You need to trust that he's assigning you the best load he can, based on the current circumstances as well as other loads that are coming available in the next few days. The FMs base their decisions on all sorts of information the drivers don't have, information the drivers really don't need to be worried about. Yet, some drivers try to second-guess their FM, assuming the FM is giving better loads to someone else. Yes, cynicism and the "entitlement" mentally exists in trucking, too.

FMs also need to trust that drivers will deliver the load on time and in good condition. Since FMs' pay is determined by how well their drivers do and your pay is determined by how many good paying loads you're assigned, it just makes sense to work together with your FM.

Really? Why!? - Part II

At this point, Mike isn’t a truck driver. He’s still working for a city in Southern California in a middle-management position that deals closely with the public and the media. His salary is above average, the medical benefits are better than most jobs, the retirement plan is generous, and he likes and respects his co-workers. So why is he considering becoming a truck driver?

The better question is why is Mike ready to leave local government. From a practical standpoint, the political climate in the city he works for is unstable. It’s likely that this November’s City Council election will result in a council majority that wants to fire the current City Manager - which often brings with it a shakeup in the entire management staff. Mike’s been through that situation enough times in his 26-year career to know it’s not something he wants to go through again.

And he’s not terribly anxious to go to work for another city (and he'll become eligible for retirement benefits on his 50th birthday this August). It's not the work that he objects to but rather the public's changing attitude about it. More and more people have developed an entitlement view of government. They believe government - at all levels - has an obligation to give them exactly what they want; not because it's right or just or fair but simply because they're "entitled" to it. (This same attitude is becoming more frequent in many areas but that's a topic for another post!) And if they don't get it it's because the elected officials and/or city staff are corrupt, inept, lazy or all three. Same thing if government does something they disagree with.

It's especially frustrating at the local level because it's so easy for folks to walk right into City Hall or a council meeting and tell you how bad you are. And they do. State and federal officials are immune to attacks at such a personal level because people just don't have that kind of access to the state capital, Congress, or the White House.

Mike believes in the First Amendment and the public's right to address their government as much as the next guy. And of course there have always been people more than willing to exercise those rights. But nowadays there's more of them, their attacks have become more frequent, vicious, and personal, and they've developed political clout. The candidates they put on the ballot and the ballot issues they support are winning more frequently. Not only has that created a discouraging work environment for local government employees, in Mike's opinion it has resulted in bad public policy decisions that will negatively affect the quality of life in many communities. It's a frustrating situation that he'd rather not be a part of any longer - at least not as an employee.

So why trucking instead of some other profession? Well, there's a lot about it that's attractive to both Mike and Lori. Taking long driving trips has always been something they like to do, even before they met. Few other jobs let you experience first hand the vast and varied beauty of this country. They also like the independence that comes with being the "captain of their own ship" out on the road. That's even more true as a lease operator with Prime since they'll be able to control when they run, where they run, and how much money they can make.

We think this gives you a good idea of why we've decided to go down this road. We hope you decide to be a part of our journey by visiting the blog often and sharing any comments you might have.

No Respect

We'd be the first to admit that our opinion of truckers - when we actually bothered to think about them - was indifferent at best. About the only time we gave them a second thought was when we were cursing them for either driving too slowly or too fast and recklessly. Like most people, we thought they were more of a nuisance than anything else, so we didn't give them or the work they do the respect they deserve.

That all changed, though. For Lori, it was when she started driving a truck. Nothing changes your perspective like walking - or, in this case, driving - a mile in someone else's shoes. Taking control of 80,000 pounds of machine and cargo gave her a whole new appreciation of why truckers drive the way they do and the "real" work that it is.

Lori's also had the opportunity to spend time with truckers, newcomers as well as some real veterans, as has Mike when he went to spend Christmas with Lori at Prime's headquarters in Springfield, Missouri. While truckers can be a bit more independently minded than other folks, they're just people like everyone else. They've got families, bills to pay, opinions about religion and politics, and the same sort of hopes and worries as the rest of us.

But they also have a passion for trucking. You can hear it in their voices when they swap stories. And do they ever like to swap stories! It seems everybody's got one or two (or more) that they're just waiting to tell to whomever will listen. We hope to share some of the best ones right here (both our own and other's) in the future.

You also come to realize they must have a passion for what they do because they keep doing it, in spite of the many challenges that go along with this profession. Even with all the positive things there are about being a truck driver, you've got to respect someone who makes the sacrifices they do so we can have easy access to the "stuff" we take for granted every day.

Without trucks, America stops

Here's a poem written by Dan Baker, a nationally-known speaker, teacher, and consultant to the trucking industry (visit his website from our Favorite Links section). He has also written a number of songs and poems, including the one below about the value of truckers in our everyday lives. It's a down-home, heartwarming story that captures the essence of our new understanding about trucking.

Daddy Was a Trucker
by Dan Baker

It was his turn next in Sunday School class,
To tell 'em what his daddy did.
The lesson that day was on the way,
That daddies loved their kids.

One kid's daddy was a doctor.
Another's was a CPA
The teacher said their daily bread,
Was bought with their daddy's pay.

The teacher looked at the little boy.
He could tell he was about to cry.
He figured something must be wrong,
So he quietly asked him why.

The little guy with tear-filled eyes,
Said, "Ya'll have all the luck,
Your dads are rich, they drive big cars,
And mine just drives a truck."

The teacher spun his wheelchair around;
He grimly faced the class.
"I've taught you well, but I'll burn in hell,
'fore I let that statement pass.

"You kids see me as a Sunday School teacher,
Just a cripple with a lesson plan.
But down inside these twisted legs,
Are the bones of a truckin' man.

"I was a high-rollin', hammer-stompin', pill-poppin' dude,
'Til the ice on Interstate 10,
Sent the finest ol' rig that a bank ever bought,
To the bottom of the Rio Grande.

"Not much to tell about what came next,
'Cept this ol' wheelchair I ride,
And now and then, I teach your class,
So the Lord will know I tried.

"And I've tried, young fellas; I've tried real hard,
Just to pay for all I've done.
But I'm gonna close the Good Book now,
And talk to the truckerman's son.

"He's a truckerman, son, do you hear me?
Don't give me that hang-dog look.
You're the son of a gear-jammin' king of the slab,
Who's a winner in any man's book.

"Who feeds you, boy? Does the grocery store?
Does the fast-food joint down the street?
Or some eighteen wheeler, runnin' all night long,
Bringin' home every bite you eat?

"There's not a thing you'll use today,
That some ol' trucker didn't bring.
Somebody's daddy rolled all night long,
So you could do your thing.

"Your thing, my thing, this country's thing,
The whole thing rolls on wheels.
We're kept alive by the men that drive.
These men God made out of steel.

Really? Why!? – Part I

That’s the response we typically get whenever we tell someone we want to be truck drivers. It’s an understandable reaction. After all, Mike has worked in local government for nearly 26 years while Lori has spent the past several years as a successful real estate agent. Not the kind of work experience you would expect to see on the job application for an 18-wheel truck driver.

While there have been a few interesting twists and turns along the way, our lifestyle has been that of a typical Southern California suburban family. We had every reason to believe our lives would continue along that same path as we advanced into middle age and our children became college students and graduates, husbands and wives, and parents of their own kids.

But as He so often does, God changed the circumstances of our lives. Instead of worrying about it (which we did for a little while), we decided to trust Him and pursue whatever opportunities He might put in our path, not try to knock down any doors He closed along the way, and adjust our attitudes accordingly.

The one thing about being a real estate agent is that, if no one is buying houses, you’re not making any money. The mortgage industry meltdown and resulting downturn in the real estate market meant Lori went from being one of the top producers in her office to having no sales in over three months. Knowing we needed two incomes to meet our financial obligations, Lori started looking for another job but nothing presented itself - despite Lori’s best efforts.

That’s when her brother, who’s been a truck driver for over 10 years, suggested Lori think about learning to drive a truck. He invited Lori to ride with him and his wife for a few weeks to see if she liked it. If she did, his company – Prime, Inc. – had a driver training program where Lori could get paid while she trained. We figured why not; she could manage the handful of real estate listings she still had from the road using her cell phone while Mike would provide whatever in-person support service was needed back home.

Lori loved being on the truck so she started the training program, got her commercial driver’s license, and is currently putting in her required 70,000 miles as a “B seat” driver with her trainer, another middle-aged, Christian grandma who lives in the same area as us. The two of them get along great; it’s too perfect of a match to not be a “God thing.”

Once Lori completes her B seat requirements (probably in late April or early May), she’ll be eligible to operate her own truck for the company, either as a direct employee or an independent operator driving a leased truck.

As for real estate, Lori has transferred her listings to another agent in her office and periodically gets phone calls from potential clients, which she refers to an agent friend of hers. Should any of the listings sell or the referrals result in a buy or sell, Lori would get a referral fee. But given the current condition of the market, that’s not likely to happen any time soon. For all practical purposes, Lori has made the transition from real estate agent to long haul trucker.

So where does Mike fit into all this? Well, that’s the subject of another post!