EQNEED - View topic - So many questions about OTR truckers. - U. S. AIRCRAFT CARRIER DEPLOYMENT HISTORY DATA BASE - Forum posting restricted. - Free Message Board Hosting by FreePowerBoards.com

OK so the other day I get a PM from Mr. Smith telling me of his conversations with another member about life on the road and what OTR Drivers go through.

Since this forums inception I've answered many such questions from different members and thought "HEY!
If people are interested enough to ask questions maybe it was time to open a forum where questions and answers could be discussed.

I warn you though this WILL remain civil and regardless of your views on truck drivers and what they do This will NOT become an area for bashing them or them bashing you the stupid F'N 4 wheeler.

Also At present we only have one full time trucker that is registered here [Mr. Smith]
He has been out there a long time and has seen about everything a man [or woman] can see.

Myself I spent almost 7 years out there until my stroke forced me into early retirement back in 2004.

Many veterans go into driving trucks after they leave the service.

I hope these discussions will help draw some of them in and get them active.

As I said in the description of this forum Truckers in a sense "in service" to this country.

Don't believe me?

OK how do you think that all that stuff gets to your local super markets?
It is brought in by truck drivers duh.

From the time the raw materials are made to the final product arrives on the local Wal-Marts shelf it is transported by truck Drivers OTR and Local.

I know they're big often slow and in the way of you getting to Star bucks for your Grande Late enema but before you flip him off as you speed past consider this,

He loaded his load ideally 800 to 1,000 miles away drove all night to make a delivery in your town. [Yes sometimes breaking the law to do it]

He or she is likely lost never being to your town before and is trying to find his delivery point without running into a low under pass or some other major cluster f*@-k that will cause alot of stress and undue aggravation.

The boss is screaming in his ear about why he might be 5 seconds late getting to the customer who is sweating his little heart out wondering if the driver will get there in time for him to make said driver sit in the parking lot for 8 hours + waiting for an open dock door.

But the load has to be there promptly at 0800 hours or there will be Hell to pay.

Then after pulling lets say a 15 hour hop straight through once there the driver is expected to unload his own truck because the customer is too cheap to hire Dock workers Rolling Eyes

All of this is running through that drivers mind and He knows he is getting the short end of the stick but still he loves the job and will take another load just to make sure his kids have the kind of life they deserve.

No, truck drivers are not perfect by any means but the job they do while trying to keep you, them and everyone else on the road safe is a tough one.

If you've ever seen the Movie Smokey and the Bandit,

I can tell you without hesitation get those images out of your head right now.

Maybe a few years ago it might have been more accurate description of truckers brother hood with each other but those days are long gone now.

Now it is an attitude that I'm getting mine piss on you and what you need.
sad really but it is the world we live in.

Truckers used to communicate with each other via the CB radio because that was the only form of technology that allowed them to interact with someone other than the walls of their cabs.

It gets VERY lonely out there and before cell phones came out you talked with your brother of the highway or you talked to yourself.

Those were your options.

Now everybody and their brother has a cell phone stuck in their ear driving down the road.

I've driven hundreds of miles without anyone to converse with.
Cell phones are still pretty much useless in many parts of the country so can't call home.

The new satelight phones will fix that in time as they gain in popularity and availability.

Most of what you will hear on Channel 19 on the CB these days is truckers fighting amongst each other [usually over stupid crap]

So it is just a different beast now.

But if the trucks ever stop you better hold on tight cause it will get very nasty very quickly.

Most super markets only have enough in stock to last about 6 days total.

How long do you think that would last with thousands of people suddenly out of work, food and God forbid money?

I hope this area will get positive feedback but we'll see in time I guess.

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Ahh the good ol'days when A trucker could break down along the highway and before you got your breaks set you would have 12 others stopping to make sure you are okay.
Now you are lucky if one even hollers at you over the CB to check on you and even if you need anything at 65 MPH they're going to be hell and gone before you have a chance to reply.
Yes the Smokey and the Bandit days and Convoy days are very, very few and far in between.
Most of todays truckers are new to the business[Less than a years experieance on the road] and really have no respect for the job they do. There are a few old hands still around but they are retiring or dying off so much that in the next few years it will really turn to crap out on the highways.
Some try to hold on to the "Glory days of the profession but slowly it is slipping away into history.
Gotta run now, I'll do more this weekend as time allows me to.
Right now I gotta get some rest today will be a long day for me.
I'm delivering this load here in Birmingham Alabama and then heading to Atlanta GA for a reload then I will head on in to your place OS.
See you then.
Mr. Smith
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Oh boy Mr. Smith, I really hate to hear that the days of Smokey and the Bandit, and Convoy are over, and courtsey of the truck driver to truck driver is not as it should be. My dad was a truck driver and I remember the stories he would tell us kids about how truckers looked out for each other. They also looked after 4 wheelers in distress, not any more, can't afford to I guess with so many nuts on the road these days.
I remember once when Jimmy was less than 2 years old, we lived in Sanford at the time. I had came to High Point to visit my folks one weekend. On the way back to Sanford, Jimmy asleep in the back seat, it started getting dark, and this drunk started pulling up next to me, waving and motioning me to stop. I would speed up, so would he. He would get in front of me slow down, I would pass he would pass me this went on for about 5 miles on highway 421. I had a CB in the car and up about a mile in front of me were two 18 wheelers. I heard one driver talking to the other about noticing what was going on behind them. He said let's slow down see what is going on. I started to go around the first trucker and he saw that I was a woman and with a CB. He yelled at me and asked if I was in trouble. I said Yes. He told me he was going to slow down just enough for me to get in front of him then he was going to get just close enough that the drunk could not get in not to be afraid he was not going to hit me althoug all I would see is this big truck in my window. The first truck slowed down so that he could not get in,in front of me. They rode with me like that till the troopers arrived and pulled the drunk over. I told them that I had a baby on board and feared for our life. Don't worry ma'am will take care of you. They called for the smokey and told him what was going on, and I and my baby were in their protective custody.
I will never as long as I live forget those two drivers and their kindness to me and Jimmy. One left us in Siler City, the other was going to Fayettville and followed me all the way into Sanford just to keep me company and have someone to talk with.
These boys that are going out for that profession don't know what they are missing if thay are not friendly to other drivers. When you are out there on those roads for so many days at a time you are the only family you have close and they need to stick together. But I also realize that there are some out there that you just do not want to have any thing to do with. I have seen some of those while traveling on the road with my husband who is out there some where in the Midwest now.
Sorry for being so long winded, I just wanted to say I admire the trucker for being gone so long and brings the things we love the most close to us, FOOD, CLOTHES, SHOES, GAS, and the things we love to buy but really DO NOT NEED or JUNK that takes up room. LOL Laughing

THANKS Mr. Smith for putting up with the Bad along with the Good
IMHO these new kids need to listen to the Old timers, they could learn a thing or two.
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