Anybody drive semi's here?

Hi all,

Anybody drive a rig here?

guess this is a kinda crappy introduction post, eh?

No, been think'en about thoe. By the way a bad introduction post would be Miata, P71's E30 suck. So no not to bad of an into post.

Welcome to the board! (I wish I drove a semi - one of those top 10 things I want to do before I die things I think).

actually, I was on before the last board redoing, Black Stig let me know I had to redo my account.

it's a good job when freight's going. I'm just getting back to full duty (got off of WC on the 17th, shattered my elbow, ouch) truck's in the shop at the moment, first it wouldnt shut off, now it missing badly, last I saw it they had the turbo piping off of it. Guess I'll be here awhile.

Actually, I like most low budget stuff, Corollas, Miatas, E30's and such. My personal Fav's are 4-door v8 cars. Especially '80's Mopar ex-cop cars.

I was thinking about driving a semi the other day. I was thinking it was one of the few on road vehicles that actually takes some real skill to drive. All those gears and vehicle dynamics would seem to mean you have stay pretty on top of it. It got to be some fun running a loaded rig up a curvy mountain road in weather!

heh, oh it's fun...makes you understand weight transfer on a LARGE scale

I prefer driving in the rain actually to be honest.

a few months ago I started to heel-toe downshift the thing too. Worked well with my big feet.

I drive them part time for the Army, but they are auto for the most part.

Are you an O/O or a company guy?

I market them to past Customers....I used to work for one of the big rental/leasing companies.

me? company, still in my first year.

Just how well can those things stop? I always see them and think (like most people, probably) that they stop like freight trains (not well). But they could probably come from 60 to a stop at a reasonable rate, right?

Lightning wrote: me? company, still in my first year.

Just out of curiosity. Things are tough out there for guys driving for themselves right now.

ConfuZion3, they stop pretty well for something that weighs 80000 lbs.

stumpmj wrote:

Lightning wrote: me? company, still in my first year.

Just out of curiosity. Things are tough out there for guys driving for themselves right now. ConfuZion3, they stop pretty well for something that weighs 80000 lbs.

Things were a bit worse during the $4-$5 a gallon for diesel times, now it's just a lack of freight.

on the brakes, they dont stop as quick as I'd like though.

I keep worrying from time to time about getting hit by a truck driving my Yaris around.

check avatar..

I work for company that makes trucks go..

Lightning wrote:

stumpmj wrote:

Lightning wrote: me? company, still in my first year.

Just out of curiosity. Things are tough out there for guys driving for themselves right now. ConfuZion3, they stop pretty well for something that weighs 80000 lbs.

Things were a bit worse during the $4-$5 a gallon for diesel times, now it's just a lack of freight. on the brakes, they dont stop as quick as I'd like though. I keep worrying from time to time about getting hit by a truck driving my Yaris around.

I just checked your profile, US XPress and Covenant are based in Chattanooga....maybe they can help, or sign you on?

BTW, I used to live in Ringgold, and my parents moved up 127 to Crossville.Every now and then I'll go down Lookout Mountain and look at the spaceship house.

good eye! I've been employed by Covenant since I started drivin in April. I'm originally from New Smyrna Beach, FL (15 miles south of Daytona)

and all the roads near Lookout Mountain are NICE...even though they've got a bit of traffic.

Lightning wrote: Things were a bit worse during the $4-$5 a gallon for diesel times, now it's just a lack of freight. on the brakes, they dont stop as quick as I'd like though. I keep worrying from time to time about getting hit by a truck driving my Yaris around.

Guy drives a Yaris when he's not in his rig. Nice, I think you'll fit right in on this board.

I don't drive a truck, but I do start off every trip towing the racecar with "Eastbound" by Jerry Reed. Never mind the fact that since I'm in Atlanta most of my trips start out westbound.

You know what has kinda freaked me out lately is the use of more and more medium duty and Class 8 rigs for toter homes and race haulers.. Heck you don't even need a cdl to drive a massive 11 or 15 liter powered RV..

Not so much training.. not so much cdl...

what do the drivers on here think?

DILYSI Dave wrote: I don't drive a truck, but I do start off every trip towing the racecar with "Eastbound" be Jerry Reed. Never mind the fact that since I'm in Atlanta most of my trips start out westbound.

You're doing it backwards. Try Texas bound and Flying when you leave, and Eastbound and down for the ride home.

ignorant said: You know what has kinda freaked me out lately is the use of more and more medium duty and Class 8 rigs for toter homes and race haulers.. Heck you don't even need a cdl to drive a massive 11 or 15 liter powered RV.. Not so much training.. not so much cdl... what do the drivers on here think?

They don't bother me too much given that they are such a small percentage of the vehicle population and the people drivng them seem to be a bit more careful since it is outside of what they are used to. A little fear seems to keep people pretty well in check. What scares me more are the medium duty box trucks getting more power and auto trannies. While the slushbox is a legsaver in city traffic and I couldn't imagine driving a bus with a manual, they have allowed people to drive like they are in their car. Here it's not uncommon to see them flying through illegal turns with a phone in one hand coffee in the other trying to beat a car into lane. At least when you had to change gears you had to somewhat pay attention and yo weren't going to out drag anyone.

yeah, those rental box trucks freak me out sometimes over how.....how should I put it.....little they know about the physics of their vehicle (yeah! that's it).

on the Yaris bit, the only thing that I DON'T like about it is that it's FWD, if it was RWD I'd be happy as a clam. Once it's paid down to what it's worth, it's gettin sold. I need another Mopar.

I listen to several trucker podcasts, its enough for me to get my fill of the lifestyle and enough for me to know its not as fun as it sounds.

Hey lightning I am in chattanooga too not a trucker though. One of my buddies is the coke delivery guy though...When I was a kid I named my basset hound fred before I saw smokey and the bandit so I guess I have trucker blood.

Of the nine years I worked there, I spent about two years driving one of these. I even jacknived one 2 days after Christmas in rush hour traffic and snow. Shortly after that I was promoted to management.

I drove a tractor trailer over the road (OTR) for about 6 years. I got sick of it pretty quick. Not a bad job for the right person, but with OTR, there is no life but the truck. I was home 4 days a month at the most. Money was decent until I started to do the math and figured out I only made about 8 to 11 dollars per hour. When they want to pay me overtime or change the pay rates, maybe I'd reconsider going back to driving. With the DOT log books, they are limiting you to how much you can possibly make. Owner operators have more options. I consider myself fortunate to have driven flatbeds, dry vans, tankers, and reefers. Each job has it's perks, but overall tankers were the best for me.