I got my plan!!!

[oragonads]

Well, I've passed truck driving school, got my cdl and am waiting for approval for my hazmat endorsement. Next week I have an interview with Schneider National Inc and will hopefully get hired on. Since I want to drive all 48 states and will be on the road months at a time I figured I will never be able to go prospecting again. Bummer right...

That's what I thought until I put my plan together. For every week I'm out I get 1 day off. So if I'm out for a month I get 4 days off, 3 months would be 12 days off. Plus 1 week of paid vacation after my 1st year, and it goes up from there. I will be living in my truck so I won't have rent to pay so I can save up and buy a new dredge (won't have time to build one, and I learned from my last project that its worth paying the extra money for a pre-built one by the guys who know what there doing).

I also want to buy a couple acres of land up here near sandy or, have power installed, a well drilled and a septic installed. That way I can buy a travel trailer and live in it, and tow it down to my claim during dredging season. Cheaper then buying a house, and would be affordable.

I could drive 3 or 4 straight months and build up 12-16 days off, plus 1 week of paid vacation so I can find some of that yellow stuff.


It would be a lot easier to give it all up but, that seems to be harder the trying to quit smoking.

 

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[Klondikeike]

Great JOB... getting your CDL.. the HAZMAT is easy.. I've had mine for 20 + years... used it to move my equipment around.. and in between mining activities drove professionally across all 48.... I know every crack and bump on I-70, 80..84..86 and 90....

As a company driver.. you'll do well...around $2.500 to $3,000 a month ( not as a team driver...but as a solo driver).........

But if you can get into the oil boom going on here in Texas... it's estimated this boom will last about 20 years.. maybe more.... you'll do $5k to $6K a month... I routinely was bringing home $1,800 a week.. before my H attack... There is such a shortage of drivers here.. there is much more work than drivers...usually good new or newer equipment....and the weather is generally good ..ALL YEAR LONG.... I got really tired of plowing snow with my bumper driving up north...and as a newbie.. that's where you'll be driving.. the vets get the better routes...

The company I was working at and the manager and I a good friends.. I could get you in... and he is the very, very ,very best manager I have ever had.. one great, fair guy...

Work hard for 2 or 3 years...save your money ...then you can afford to go mining full time if yo wish to do so...

Anyway.. great job.. the CDL.. if you use it right will open many doors for you... The above is just a suggestion to you... I wish you well...


Klondike...

 

[Klondikeike]

Oragonads

Unless you have something in writing.. do not believe what you hear from anyone, until it is presented in writing.... and believe me.. as a new driver, you'll be told a lot of wishful thinking stuff... That $150,000 rig you're driving needs to be kept moving for the company to make money...and it doesn't make money just siting around....while you're at home .... after a couple years or so.. the company will be willing to offer you vacation time... maybe a week..

I don't mean to burst your bubble... but unless things have changed.. you will be forced to take time off... and believe me you'll need it.. driving a truck is much different than driving a car.... much more responsibilities...and if you are properly driving, you'll be alert.. constantly scanning with our eyes and never really relaxed... cars cutting you off.. sliding in and closing your stopping distance and so on...just doing stupid things...

I used to drive 600 to 900 miles a day... depending on how well I kept my logs.... and after 2 or 3 weeks, you'll be ready to take some time off....It's doubtful you'd make a few months without a few days off.. but who knows you just might be able to do it...To day with GPS and other tracking devices.. you may not get a way with the thing I used to be able to do driving OTR...

Most companies will not allow you to accumulate days off.. you might get 3 weeks to 4 weeks out and 3 to 4 days off and back out for 3 or 4 weeks... which is a normal solo company driver schedule....it cost money for that truck and trailer to sit idle...

But the again, it has been a while since I drove OTR.. so maybe things have changed... You plan sounds good.. I hope it works for you... and think about Texas... there is sooooo much legal money to be made here in this oil boom...

Good luck...


Klondike..

 

[oragonads]

Thanks for your input klondike. I definitely know not to believe what I'm told until I see it in writing. I just got pre-hired on with Schneider National Inc. I have orientation on the 21st down in Fontana CA and then I'm driving with a trainer for a week or two. I'll only be driving the 11 western states to get some experience and then after I can do all 48 if I want to.

I decided that when I save enough money I'm gonna buy a piece of land down in southern Oregon (grants pass, merlin, galice area). That way if I'm out for a month I can come home for 4 days and be only a 30 minute to an hour drive from the claim. Where I live now I'm about 7-8 hour drive from my claim. I also like south western Oregon better then northwest Oregon because it doesn't rain as much, longer warmer summers, and property is much cheaper.


My dream area to live is Sandpoint Idaho, right next to lake pend oriel. Does any one know if northern Idaho has any gold?

 

[Klondikeike]

Congrats on your pre-hire... That's great...

But if you ever want to make some real serious money as a company driver, let me know... You'll make about 3 times what you'll make at Schneider....You'll get paid by the hour + overtime and some jobs 20% of the invoice..and no logs required for DOT.... unlike the straight per mile you'll make there at Schneider and tied to the log book...

Good Luck to you...


Klondike..

 

[oragonads]

Congrats on your pre-hire... That's great...

But if you ever want to make some real serious money as a company driver, let me know... You'll make about 3 times what you'll make at Schneider....You'll get paid by the hour + overtime and some jobs 20% of the invoice..and no logs required for DOT.... unlike the straight per mile you'll make there at Schneider and tied to the log book...

Good Luck to you...


Klondike..

Thanks for the offer klondike. Although the offer is tempting I really don't want to relocate to Texas. I grew up in the desert in Arizona and don't really want to go back. I would like to visit Arizona again (I lived next to the saguaro national monument) bit I don't think I would like living in that part of Texas too much. I like green trees and lots of wildlife lol

 

[russau]

my son who is a layed off carpenter for 3 years almost took to this truck driveing school and the loan for the schools class. ive been hearing alot of stories about this setup and how it all works and it wasnt for the good. most of these needy people needing jobs jump on this chance to earn money driving only to get screwed and fed a line of lies and eventually quit driving.plus i heard the J.Hoffa Jr. and the tempsters screwed many drivers and O.T. and their actuall miles they drove. some got sold out 9got $5.00 on the contract and only received .50 cents)and are really pzzed about it! so the guys that are driveing for sometime should know this and know how to step around in the crap to keep from getting burnt! buyer beware and get it in writting FIRST!

 

[Rebel73153]

Re: Oragonads

Looks like you and i grew up in the same area and then moved here to Oregon? I was born and raised in Tucson, and now live here in Roseburg. Good luck with the truck driving.

 

[Klondikeike]

You're right russau...

I drove OTR.. worked by butt off and took home pennies.....there always seemed a fee for this and that and my take home seemed to get smaller and smaller.....and I've never had a ticket or a preventable accident in all my years of driving..... it wasn't until I got into the largest oil boom in South Texas history...around the Corpus Christi area... very Mediterranean weather... good roads and lots of work.. I work the same hours as OTR and take home 3 times as much...Back in the day you could make really good money doing OTR... But not now..... even your scale visits and fuel stops are sent up on the satellite..so when you do get a level one inspection from an officer, they can match up your logs to the satellite info.. no more "stretching" your logs... and a lot of companies are going to electronic logs, where the on board computer records your every move in the form of a log... and out here there are very few chicken coops... I haven't been through an open scale house for a couple of years... or so.. and I don't keep logs for travel info.. I get paid from my trip manifest from job order to job order..I have full benefits and great hourly pay... I make more every week than most O/O team drivers make...it's a great opportunity for anyone who is in or wants to get into truck driving... these come along not in everyone's life time.. it's all about oil... there are about 800 oil rigs drilling.. just here in south Texas alone...and each rig needs support by trucking companies from day to years afterwards...


Klondike...

 

[oragonads]

I just did a quick search for oil driving jobs and it turns out that Schneider National also does oil hauling and has a bunch of openings in Texas and New Mexico. I've done a lot of research on schneider and talked to some of there drivers and havnt really heard any negatives. The only bad responses I've found are from before schneider restructured there company in like 1997-2000 I think. Since they've restructured I've heard nothing but good reviews and they are a driver oriented company and take care of there drivers.

 

[Klondikeike]

Hey oragonads ...

The company I work for specializes in completion fluids.... Oil based muds, water based muds, flow back water... and fracking Gels..)one of the very few companies who is licensed to haul Frack Gels)...They have been around for 28 years and going strong... survived 3 recessions, and 3 times of total oil drilling shutdowns and have never asked their employees to take a pay drop....they have 14 yards throughout TX...and have the most unique pay structure I've ever seen... hourly .. overtime and 20% of invoice...... no other company I know of has this type of pay plan and they pay weekly... with direct deposit, and full benefits...and they run dedicated trucks.. no slip seating from truck to truck...You're assigned a tuck and that is your truck...

In all my time here in Texas.. I've seem maybe 40 Schneider trucks hauling oil based products...They may have a presence here, but it isn't a large one...

Most companies involved in the oil boom here will not allow you to accumulate overtime... they pay by log books and keep you limited to federal Law and driving limits... there is one company who wants me to come to work for them.. and are willing to pay me $20 an hour with a guaranteed 80 plus hours a week... but those are few ... and I am so very happy with the company and the manager is the best...If I didn't have other personal mining opportunities before I would not leave them...


Klondike...

 

[russau]

im really glad your doing ok and are happy with the situation!! as far as my son goes, i didnt see it as a good situation for him tobe in at the time! you gotta do what you gotta do to keep your family feed! but if all else fails,id say go for it. the $$$$ gotta keep coming in or the wolves will be at your door!

 

[Klondikeike]

Good Luck to you...

I hope it all works out well for you...

Klondike....

 

[oragonads]

Thanks for the kind words.

Russau, your darn right. Something is better then nothing. I was laid off about 3 months before I started truck driving school. I applied to probably 30-40 jobs and didn't hear back from any of them. The way the economy is and all the unemployed people, its hard to find a job being young and not having much work experience. Too much competition.

I will start out making about twice the amount of money per week then I did at my previous job depending on how hard I run (which is a big difference considering I used to work 10-14 hours a day 5-6 days a week). Since I'm starting out driving young, I've got plenty of time to figure out exactly what I want to do and where I want to go.

I want to drive all 48 states for a couple years to see the country, and then move on to drive however I decide to.

 

[russau]

well if your ever truckin down Hiway 270 through N.St.Louis County, Missouri and have a spare min. call or drop on in for a cold one or just to say hi!

 

[TheHarleyMan2]

Here is my experience. I held a CDL since I was 17 years old. Back in those days you didn't need to be 18 or 21 to drive over state lines like it is today. I have over 30 years experience driving tractor trailers. Back in 1999 my wife at the time and I looked at me buying a semi, driving over the road so we could get our house paid off in 15 years instead of 30. I bought a rig and drove over the road as an owner operator for 4 years straight. Shortly after buying the semi my wife filed for divorce. I basically LIVED in my semi for 4 years with no place to go. It isn't fun and it is costly, either way!

I drove solo, I drove anywhere from 5,200 to 5,600 miles every week, (a lot of miles for 1 person), from Monday morning to Saturday evening. Yes, I ran illegal because I was going through a divorce and I could not sleep, also I was smoking up to 5 packs of cigs a day! Luckily I never got caught on my log book and I always ran 1 book. I would figure out how many miles would be on average at 65 miles an hour and figure the distance and I would write down what town that would be in and just drive to my destination.

I made some darn good money when I was driving average about $9,000-$11,000 a month, but there was a month here and there that I didn't have any loads and forced to leave and lease on with another company, sometimes it would be 2 months with out any money or a company to lease onto between getting screwed over by these companies!

I will tell you on the Owner Operator side of the fence before I get to company drivers. ALL companies REQUIRE ALL owner operators to pay about $2,500.00 for escrow. Generally taking out so much per pay period until the $2,500 is paid. They run your butt off until they get that last $2,500 from you. Under the contract you sign with them if you stay for a year you get your escrow back plus interest. Sounds good right? But if you leave or get your lease canceled before the year end of the contract you FORFIET the escrow. Bad deal right? It gets even better!! Just wait read more!!!

Well ALL these companies lease owner operators and you figure they lease on about 100 O/O's. Generally for them to get the escrow money from you out of each pay period is about 2-3 months.

Well after they get your last nickle for the escrow, they quit giving you loads. It starts out you are running dedicated, you are driving cross country, you are not turning down loads, then once they have your money they end up giving you 3 loads for the week with 2-3 days stuck at where ever location you dropped your last load off.

Then the next week they end up giving you MAYBE 2 loads and you are again stuck at the last location you unloaded. Now being an O/O, if your truck ain't moving or hauling freight it ISN'T getting paid for and you are NOT making any money!!!

Then after the 3rd week they have no loads for you at all. Now your bills are piling up, your payment is due, your truck needs service and maybe some repairs and you are broke.

You ARE FORCED to leave the company after the 4th week of "NO LOADS" and find another company to lease on with, so these companies FORCE you to leave. Now remember the escrow? $2,500.00? Well put that into a figure of 100 O/O's and if a company FORCES the O/O to leave within a 1/4, (every 2-3 months), and they hire on another 100 O/O in that same quarter and repeat the process with the escrow, these trucking companies are MAKING a MILLION DOLLARS A YEAR just in escrow out of the O/O's by FORCING the O/O to leave the company!!!

Also MOST if NOT ALL O/O's pay for loading and unloading of freight in the companies trailers they are pulling. More added expense out of the O/O. These companies get PAID by the shipper to load or unload, but the companies also make the O/O to fork out the money to unload the consignees freight. The whole thing is a scam. Rarely and I DO MEAN RARELY do O/O's don't have to pay to get the trailer loaded or unloaded. Lumpers are the biggest thieves just like most companies in the trucking business.

Also, if the company trailer you are pulling has bad tires and you report it to them and they won't replace it you can GUARRANTY, they will ignore you, but if you have a blow out on one of their trailers, you can bet they are going to MAKE you pay for it and they will take it out of your last loads they owe you for before you see any of that money!

I will tell you this much and you better BELIEVE it!!! I have given so many company drivers rides that I can't even count because the company they worked for fired them, let them go and every case was the company driver went to deliver a load and once the truck got there to it's destination, (they will ALWAYS have you deliver to a place with a security guard at the destination), they fire or let you go and you are forced to leave the property and the truck by order of the security guard or he will call the police to have you removed with ALL your belongings and you hardly have any money for a bus ticket home!!! I have had my truck filled with ALL their personal luggage, radios, tools, everything they brought on the road with them! I have even given company drivers wife and man teams rides because they were let go fired or whatever!

COMPANY DRIVERS:

Truck driving schools are a joke and a scam, but without any experience just about all big companies will not hire you unless you go to some sort of school. They charge way too much to learn anything. If you want the experience without the schooling there are plenty of O/O's who will let you team up with with them or some construction companies that will also help train you.

It can be a good thing, DON'T expect to be on the road for months at a time. You will drive maybe 2 weeks and have 2-3 days off. They will give you loads several states away from your home so they can make sure you are close to home when you are given time off. You will be driving in a region.

Living in a tractor trailer is hard, it is hard on the body as well. You will pay the same living expense for meals as the O/O. Your meals will average about $12-$14 per meal bet on it. If you eat 1 -2 meals a day that is about at least $35 out of your pocket each day. Oh, you want to buy sodas, maybe some chips to snack on while on the road. I will tell you this, truck stops are big business and they mark things up more than what many convenient stores charge. Because they KNOW truck drivers have to have it or do with out it. You will buy extra snacks on the road, drinks, chips, candy, etc!

Laundry will cost you about $10-$15 per 2 loads of clothes, each week, plus detergent, etc. Now lets get into the reality of it. Now company trucks DO NOT have tv's or movie screens, or internet for your personal computer. Now whether O/O or company driver, if you need internet and are NOT set up for wireless internet connection and many truck stops have them BTW, you will pay out the butt for the service.

Just about every truck stop has a lounge with TV, you can watch movies, news, weather, whatever. But if there is something on that you do not want to watch, you will roam around the truck stop store trying to be UNBORED, you will go back to your truck and one can only read so much of books, again you will be bored, especially if you have nothing to watch, do whatever. You WILL GET BORED and can't just pick up and drive anywhere, because you just can't unhook the trailer and just drive off the to mall or movies. Many cases though there are places close by but it may be a little walk or a cab drive to get there.

I play guitar so I always brought my acoustic guitar and entertained myself! 8-10 hours is a long time to sit at a truck stop if you are not sleeping with nothing to do!

Not only by DOT regulations, but also company policy that HAS to have their drivers MEET DOT regulations, you will be required to be at a rest period out of the drivers seat.

Here are the regulations:

Hours of service of drivers

§ 395.3 Maximum driving time for property-carrying vehicles.

Subject to the exceptions and exemptions in §395.1:
(a) No motor carrier shall permit or require any driver used by it to drive a property-carrying commercial motor vehicle, nor shall any such driver drive a property-carrying commercial motor vehicle:
(1) More than 11 cumulative hours following 10 consecutive hours off-duty;
(2) For any period after the end of the 14th hour after coming on duty following 10 consecutive hours off duty, except when a property-carrying driver complies with the provisions of §395.1(o) or §395.1(e)(2).
(b) No motor carrier shall permit or require a driver of a property-carrying commercial motor vehicle to drive, nor shall any driver drive a property-carrying commercial motor vehicle, regardless of the number of motor carriers using the driver's services, for any period after—
(1) Having been on duty 60 hours in any period of 7 consecutive days if the employing motor carrier does not operate commercial motor vehicles every day of the week; or
(2) Having been on duty 70 hours in any period of 8 consecutive days if the employing motor carrier operates commercial motor vehicles every day of the week.
(c)(1) Any period of 7 consecutive days may end with the beginning of any off-duty period of 34 or more consecutive hours; or
(2) Any period of 8 consecutive days may end with the beginning of any off-duty period of 34 or more consecutive hours.

What that also means is lets say you are on the road and your have driven 8 days. You will be stuck some where away from home, it could be a good place it could be a place with nothing around for your 1 day off before you can go back and start driving again.

It was kind of good traveling because I could take time off in any state and maybe site see a bit. But, the cost of food, laundry, the normal expenses as you would have at home are now rising because you have to BUY your meals! I am not trying to discourage you, I am just giving you facts. It isn't a bed of roses out on the road and you won't make the money as most of these trucking companies tell you. Ask some of the company drivers you meet and ask them how long they been with the company and how long they were at other companies before, you will be surprised most of them were not at companies longer than 3-6 months max. Once you get on the road and get experience you will see the whole truth come out.

You will be better off driving for a local company and being home every night, because whether you are on the road or driving locally, the pay ends up being just about the same, except a local driver is home in his bed every night with about the same amount of pay or even more, than what one would make over the road!!

Either way, good luck, but don't go into it thinking they are all that and what they promise you because the minute you believe that, the minute you end up getting screwed. I seen it happen many times over!

Like Klondike said about what he made. If you figure you are driving local job, dump truck, tanker truck, etc and making $12-$15 an hour add that up to 40 hours a week with lets say 20 hours overtime at time and a half. That is $830 at low end, $1,050 at high end each week. Depending on the company and what work is going on, in the oil field you will work 12 hours days and sometimes plus that, most of the time 7 days a week. So yes you can make over $1,200-$1,400 a week, (I can tell you that you WON'T see that as an over the road company driver), in the oil field and you won't be states away from home and your personal vehicle will be right there at the yard for you to hop in it at any given time you want to or need to leave!

Again good luck!

 

[russau]

thanks for the first hand info! im glad my son didnt go through with the truck driving school! he only lost his $250. deposit, and hes home every night with his wife and children. he dont make that much money or even close to that but hes keeping the wolves at bay!

 

[oragonads]

Lots of great info in this thread. I've been driving solo now for just over a month. I went 3 weeks out, 3 days home, and will be doing 4 weeks out with 4 weeks home this time. The past few days I've been running loads up and down I-5 in California from the L.A. area to the Sacramento area. I'm averaging 2500-3000 miles per week.

I'm loving it. Being OTR driver isn't all what its cracked up to be though. DOT regulations are ridiculous. I was only able to work 5.5 hours today because that's all I had left on my 70 hours in 8 days regulation. I do love driving though. Havnt had a single incident. Always early to my appointments. I keep an ice chest full of sandwhich material and milk for cereal. I eat out maybe once a week when I'm tired of sandwhiches and cereal .
I've been thinking hard on it and doing a bit of research and the oil fields sound like a great oppertunity. Being down here in california, I'm amazed that its November and i can wear a t-shirt without freezing my but off and getting completely soaked. Texas sounds great. I've had no problems working with schneider and its been great so far, but at 26 cents per mile and the dot regulations its hard to make a decent living.

Klondikeike, I am sending you a pm about the oil field job