We Found Our Home In The Trucking Industry
by
Phil Madsen
(Written March 25, 2003. Edited March 12, 2007 for publication on SuccessfulExpediters.com.)
Note to Readers: The information about expediting in this piece is information as Diane and I understood it in March, 2003, still early in our career-change research. Some of it is wrong or incomplete. It is published here not to describe expediting but to illustrate the mindset and quality of information we had as we made our career-change decision. Reading today the ideas we had about expediting before we jumped in, feels the same as looking at my high school yearbook photo. I am glad I learned more than I knew then. For a better description of the life and work, see: Introduction to Expediting.
As part of our ongoing research of a career change into team truck driving, my wife and I took some vacation time and attended the Mid America Trucking Show in Louisville, Kentucky, March 21-22, 2003. What a show it was!
This mostly-indoor show featured over 1,000 exhibitors representing every aspect of the industry and thousands of truckers milling around. We quickly learned that the best way to start conversations with truckers was to sit in the back of the sleepers of the new trucks that were on display. As people streamed through the cab, we struck up conversations.
For example, we learned from a Canadian fleet owner that his Kenworth trucks with 500,000 miles on them still ride quiet and do not rattle. That's a nice insight to have ... and we did not have to drive 500,000 miles ourselves to get it.
We had a ball looking, chatting, and learning. We spent half a day Friday, and all day Saturday at the show, and still did not see everything there was to see. Next year's show is already on our schedule.
We went to the show to learn more about what is in store for us as newbie, company-driver team in a company-provided 18-wheeler. We left the show with a whole new approach to the industry and knowing our future in clear detail. We are no longer asking, "What if?" We are asking, "When?"
We now know that we are going to be owner/operators, driving a Class 7 straight truck, hauling expedited freight. The 18-wheeler idea quickly floated out of our minds when we discovered expedited freight.
Our early research paid off. Using this newsgroup and other online resources, we have probed the industry and learned its aspects at introductory level. That enabled us to visit the truck show without being overwhelmed.
We had not taken a serious look at expedited freight driving before the show. In fact, we did not even know expediting existed. At the truck show, we met expediting drivers, learned of their companies and saw the trucks they drive. Like magic, everything fell into place for us.
Some of the questions we have been asking were replaced with decisions made. For example, we questioned whether it would be better to take company CDL training or technical school CDL training. Now that we have settled on expedited freight, we know we will get our CDLs through a technical school. Why? Because expedited freight companies do not offer CDL training.
We questioned whether or not we should be owner/operators or company drivers. Now settled on expedited freight, we know we will be owner/operators. Why? Because virtually all high-income expedited freight drivers are owner/operators. We will drive for a fleet owner for a few months to start, to be sure we like expediting. After completing that trial, we will know it is safe to buy a truck, sell the house and take up life on the road.
We questioned whether it is better to buy a new or used truck. Now settled on expedited freight, we know we will buy new. Why? Because most expedited freight companies require trucks to be no more than five or six years old. We also want to be able to spec out the truck and sleeper we will be living in. Buying new gives us control of the design process.
Do we go for cost savings or quality of life on the road? That is easy. We will go for quality of life. We will be selling the house to live on the road, trading a one-acre yard and lots of in-house living space for life in a truck. We have no intention of giving up the creature comforts a house provides, especially now that we know we will not have to. Expediting trucks known as D trucks have great sleepers.
The quality of life decision is supported by expediters we talked to and read about. None say their next sleeper would be smaller or cheaper than the one they have now. Many said they would go for larger sleepers the next time they buy a truck.
The general research and hypothetical stage is behind us. We are now researching real-world items like, What date does school start? What GVW do we want to specify for our truck? What brand of generator is best to buy?
Each driver has his or her own reasons for doing what one does. Here is why expediting makes sense to us (not in order of priority):
1. The comforts of home are not left behind.
The D-class truck we would buy will have a 22' box and a 96" sleeper; big enough to meet company specs, and to also have a shower, toilet, table, stove, small sink, table, counter top, sofa that converts to a bed, and more. D truck sleepers feature many more creature comforts and far more living space than you will find in a standard tractor.
That comfort is not all for fun. Under load, expedited teams don't stop. The toilet, shower, bed, and kitchen enables two people to keep the truck moving until the expedited load is delivered. Tractors also have sleepers and teams keep them moving. For us, the D truck has greater appeal. It has running water. There is more room and more features.
We were told by several expedited drivers that there is a lot of waiting for freight in expediting. You may sit for a day or two after a delivery before the next call comes in. Or the next call may come minutes after the just-completed delivery. Either way, the large sleeper with a shower and toilet makes life far more pleasant than a tractor sleeper would.
We can tolerate life in a tractor. We can enjoy life in a D truck with a 96" sleeper. Putting the same sleeper on a tractor is far more expensive. Given the experience recommended for tractor driving before becoming owner/operators a 96" tractor sleeper would years away. With a D truck, it is months away.
2. Lifestyle
I have talked in this newsgroup before about turning your waiting time into mini-vacation time, in or out of the truck. With a 96" sleeper, there is plenty of room for us to get comfortable with our books, computers, and even exercise equipment (small weights, Sharper Image mini-stairmaster).
With a tractor, if you want to go to a tourist attraction while waiting for a load, you must either bobtail or secure the rig and rent a car. With a D truck, you can go anywhere an RV can go. If you happen to be waiting for your next load in say the Chicago area, you can deadhead to the Museum of Science and Industry or the Art Institute, or Michigan Avenue, and park where the RVs park
If you are walking along Lake Michigan or looking at the painting Nighthawks in the Art Institute, and a call comes in, you simply cut your visit short and go on your run. You can finish your visit the next time you are in Chicago.
We would fill our tanks at the end of each run, do our pre-trip inspection in the museum's RV parking lot and then start our visit. If we get called, off we go. If not, we enjoy the visit and gain points with the company by running up our availability hours.
3. Dispatch Rules are Better
There is no forced dispatch in expedited driving. The only requirement is that you accept 60% or more of the loads offered. You never have to drive in NYC if you don't want to. You never have to work when you want time off. You decide whether you are "on the board" or not. You decide to take the load or not; after the call comes in not before, and after you learn how much the run will pay.
Even better, every driver we talked to could tell us where he was in the dispatch order. There is an objective point system that determines which drivers get which loads. Expedited drivers in a given area can look at "the board" and see who's ahead of them in line, who's behind, and the type of freight they can haul.
Given all the dispatch complaints I've read in this newsgroup, I asked around. Not a single expedited driver had a complaint about their dispatch system. They voiced frustrations with having to deadhead to a more active area for their next load, but no one complained about being treated unfairly by the dispatchers. They all knew the rules and where they were in the order.
4. Rates Are Higher
Expedited freight is urgent freight. Shippers pay a high premium to have the freight picked up quickly and run straight through to its destination. The shipper's emergency is often the expediter's opportunity.
Every expedited driver we talked to had his or her favorite story to tell....the shipper that paid $1,000 to deliver a shoe box across town. The $1,800 "run" where the driver moved freight from one side of the terminal to another. The Christmas Day delivery of an expensive easy chair to a private home for a ton of dough.
That is the fun stuff, and perhaps even fantasy stories. The reality is expedited D truck owner/operators average $1.00 to $1.20 a mile to run freight. Another way of looking at it is they get paid about 60% of the gross.
5. Expenses are Lower
A brand-new D truck, fully outfitted with sleeper, will cost $75,000-$100,000. New E trucks with basic sleepers begin at $100,000. Fuel economy is better with a D truck. D trucks have 6 wheels, not 18. Tolls are cheaper. Smaller engines mean less oil per oil change. Fewer gears mean lower costs if you blow out a transmission.
6. Net Income Is Better
With expenses lower than 18-wheelers, freight revenues higher, and enough miles available to make a high income year, the expedited owner/operator idea is very attractive. The net income is higher I believe. And even if it is not, the lifestyle options are so much better.
Expediting makes more sense for us. Of course that means that if you want to make good money, you have to live on the road, which we're prepared to do.
We talked to several drivers at the show; that's drivers, not recruiters. To further test what we heard, we also approached and chatted with an expediter we saw at a truck stop on the way home. It all matched.
So, from three sources, we believe we have a good idea of the income people really earn doing this. It's higher than we could hope to make in our first year as an 18-wheeler team. And higher, we believe, than it would be in all other years as well.
7. Driving is Easier
A straight truck is just that, a straight truck. There is no fifth wheel to worry about or worries about the condition of trailers you will haul. Straight trucks weigh less. They are easier to stop. They have fewer tires to check. They are easier to maneuver in tight places. Also, backing up a straight truck is not the challenge it is with a semi. We understood semi backing to be an issue to address and a skill to gain. That's less of an issue for us now that we plan to drive a straight truck.
8. Seeing The Country:
In a D truck, the driving is still OTR. We will still see the country. Our ability to take mini-vacations is enhanced. All major tourist attractions have RV accommodations, which D trucks can use. If we are not under load and are near a place we are interested in, we'll just take ourselves "off the board" and have our fun.
9. Driving Legal
Legal driving and safety are vital to us. With no forced dispatch, the ability of the two of us to keep the truck rolling, and the ability for us to spec out the truck to easily handle the weight of most expedited freight loads, we'll be able to stay legal and safe.
We asked companies about running legal. They want it too. The expedited market cannot afford to have their trucks delayed by being put out of service. They cannot afford to have a bad reputation. A failed or late delivery is a major failure indeed. Driving legal helps keep that from happening.
10. 99% No-touch Freight
Of the expedited drivers we talked to, we could only find one who touches freight. Most told us the companies say "99% no touch" because of the one exception that may come along.
One guy worked for FedEx Custom Critical White Glove Services.® He has a lift gate on his truck to accommodate runs that don't have loading docks. That will naturally lead to touching the freight. But he also said he gets paid very well to touch it. White Glove moves museum art, important documents and all sorts of other special stuff. There, the shipper is paying for a very careful and competent driver, and paying well.
This guy was a former 18-wheel driver. He got into expedited when someone he knew asked him to do a couple runs. When he saw the money that could be made he got into expediting.
He said that in White Glove you are sometimes expected to wear business casual clothes and to always be well groomed. They not only treat freight with white gloves, they treat the shippers that way too.
I don't remember who, but someone in this news group has made fun of us for being yuppies and wearing loafers. The joke is on him. We've found a niche in trucking where that mode of dress is expected and before long, we will be making more money with our CDLs than him. That is us, the newbies with no experience and no industry knowledge, and him, the "real" driver who knows it all.
It's not all sweetness and light in the expedited freight market. There is the waiting. There is the deadhead issue. There is the complaint that there are more drivers in it than there is freight. But guess what? Big-rig drivers have the same complaints.
To us, D truck driving expedited freight is a lot sweeter than driving the big rigs. The money is better. The work is cleaner. The tourism opportunities are better. The sleeper is more spacious and better equipped. Truck stop bathrooms and showers are an option, not a necessity.
All in all, it seems easier and more profitable to us than any other trucking industry sector. As long as we're willing to live on the road, which we are, we think we will do fine in this niche.
It's amazing how eager we now are to get into trucking. Before the Mid-America Trucking Show, we were researching a possible career change with a critical eye. Once we discovered expedited freight, we were hooked. While many of the challenges of trucking remain, expedited freight removed several negative issues and made the career change decision easier to make.
The Mid America Trucking Show and the people we met there enhanced our decision making process and changed our lives. Yesterday at work, for the first time, I was preoccupied with the thought, "I'd rather be driving." Last night after work, Diane and I talked. This time the conversation was about getting out of the house and onto the road as fast as we reasonably can.
It is not research any more. It is real.
Thank you to all in this newsgroup, even the negative jerks. The information and criticism you provided in the last few months helped make the truck show a huge success for us.