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Diamler Trucks North America recently announced that it is raising new truck prices $9,000 to account for the increased costs of manufacturing engines that comply with 2010 emissions requirements. Volvo engines are rising about $10,000 for the same reason. That is a lot of new money to put in a...

We have been in and out of many FedEx terminals in the course of our work. While some managers may allow a FedEx Custom Critical truck to park there if asked, others will not. Going in on a load is one thing. Asking to park our truck there for personal reasons is beyond our comfort zone. These...

As many times as Diane and I have delivered freight in and out of the Chicago area, we have never gone downtown for tourist fun. We usually get dispatched out of here so quickly that tourism has not been an option. We know about the trains into downtown. If we decided to take a break of the...

When we spent a small fortune on our truck, we did not focus on what the truck costs. We focused on what it pays. The truck has financially paid for itself, thereby justifying its cost. The creature comforts pay for themselves, not in additional revenue but in the quality of life we enjoy on the...

I talked with a FedEx Custom Critical official at the Expo about the new BR units that are being brought onto the fleet. I shared with him, and he confirmed, that there are two ways of looking at this, with just one of them being correct. The first way is that the BR TVAL units will canibalize...

Given the lucrative experience we have had driving reefer-equiped trucks for six years (with a couple dry box trucks also in that time), we would not hesitate to purchase a reefer-equipped truck again, even in these recessionary times. Our reefer has made us eligible for loads that enabled us to...

It is highly unlikely that vendors would stay to exhibit on Sunday. First, the crowds would be less, making it not worth their time to be there. Second, they are anxious to get back to work on Monday and will need Sunday for travel. The Expo is tiny compared to the Louisville truck show. Even...

If you plan it right, you can have a bell, whistle, table, and even a toilet!

Diane and I were drivers for three years, in that we drove trucks owned by other people. We have also been owners for three years, owning and operating our own truck. We now drive a truck that no fleet owner would ever buy but that we as owners did. We gave free reign to our driver side while...

If a workshop covers information that can be commonly found in trucking magazines and web sites, it should not be offered. Workshop time should be given to topics that are as close to real-life expediting as possible and given by presenters who are as close to real-world expediting as they can...

Free truck parking, free admission, free shuttle rides to the park's attractions, 30 miles of walking trails, bike rentals and five miles of bike trails, a museum, a historically-significant site -- all can be found at the Valley Forge National Historical Park. The park is just 50 miles from...

Actually not. By building technology into cell phones and mobile devices, enforcement would be easy. Many phones and PDAs now have the ability to "know" if they are in drive mode. They know this by the rate at which the phone moves from one cell phone tower or GPS location to another. It would...

All true, making it also true that the only to protect your own best interests is to protect your own best interests. When deadhead miles are inlcuded in a load offer, disregard the distinction and understand that miles are miles. Whether they are called deadhead miles or loaded miles, it costs...

We use the term in different ways in different contexts. 1. When "deadhead" is refered to in a load offer, we ignore it and add those miles in with all others to determine the run's true pay. 2. When driving someplace empty -- like to the Expedite Expo or home -- we call it deadheading...

I seldom post in the Soapbox but this is a special case. File it under items that make you wonder what the world is coming to. Diane and I visited the Valley Forge National Historic Park today, the place where George Washington's Continental Army wintered in 1777-78, and from which they went...

To answer the question that started this thread, Diane and I have done nothing essentially different during the recession than we did in the good times. Our business plan has not changed. Our goals have not changed. What has changed is the pace at which we move forward and our willingness to...