DH and the Tractor Fleet

Scuba · May 3, 2008

How much are you dead heading now a days it seams most of my loads are 100+ miles up to 300 miles before i get loaded this is getting out of hand.I don't see this load planing working out very well a buddy of mine dead headed over 700 miles last week alone. This is nuts unless you get over $1.00 a mile to dh that far you are losing all of the profit from the load. And i see the load offers going to places that we all know that Panther doesn't have any loads coming back out. How do they expect us to pull a load to just give up our profit when we dh back out?

pelicn · May 3, 2008

I would figure the amount you need to make the run, and if it doesn't pay that much decline the load.

Scuba · May 5, 2008

pelicn said:
I would figure the amount you need to make the run, and if it doesn't pay that much decline the load.

That is what i am doing watching my numbers go into the tank. I have sat almost every weekend for as long as i can remember. Or get a load of 200 miles for a weekend. I am nuts about my #'s and i have the lowest acc rate in my history with Panther. I love what i do i just don't know how much longer i can keep doing this. This weekend all load offers with miles are to the east coast where we all know means no loads back out so you do ok going in but lose it all coming back out. Most of the dh for those loads was over 200 miles and the best offer i got was a buck a mile.that pays the fuel but nothing for me and my time is worth something to me.

pelicn · May 5, 2008

We brought a good paying load into ND last Thurs. We were offered another load on Sat. night, P/U in Winnipeg, deliver in Beach, ND, the load paid ok, but dispatch declined the bonus that we asked for.
Did we second guess ourselves after declining the load? Heck yes! But the load would have taken us even farther into no man's land, and without the bonus, the load didn't pay what we needed to get back to a decent area. So we sat until this morning when we were offered another good paying load.
Something that we have to fight to keep from doing is jumping on a load immediately (especially after sitting so long). We are happy with our acceptance, but taking that extra few minutes to crunch the numbers has saved us from the unprofitable loads.

Scuba · May 5, 2008

I have a database i use to let me know right away if there is a profit in it or not. But the load offers to the east coast are losing loads period i cant remember the last load i pulled out of the east coast. i do better on loads to salt lake than loads to nj

Dreammaker · May 6, 2008

I haven't noticed a big change in deadhead miles. I have a reefer and am accustomed to some serious deadhead for elite services loads. What I have noticed is a change in length of loaded miles. Seems as if the boys and girls in dispatch are finding a lot of 250 -350 mile loads. I tell them I need to make a certain amount on each load to make my business profitable. I point out that I don't mind doing short loads but I do mind going out of business. 9 times out of 10 they will find a way to increase the pay on the load to meet my minimum requirement. My first quarter was the best I have ever had with Panther. April and May are slowing down a bit.

Turtle · May 6, 2008

I dunno, I've never had trouble getting loaded off the east coast. No one wants to go there because they think they can't get loaded, as a result, when I'm there, I get loaded quickly, and when warranted, with bonuses.

Uhm, never mind. Strike that. You can't get loaded out of the east coast. Don't go there. Don't go there. Just say no.

When you suddenly see a bunch of relatively short loads, especially if they have low FSC, it's the carrier trying to stack up a bunch of NLMI loads in an effort to quickly boost their NLM ratings.

pelicn · May 7, 2008

Uhm, never mind. Strike that. You can't get loaded out of the east coast. Don't go there. Don't go there. Just say no.

Psst....Turtle? Didn't work, we don't mind the east coast...we just don't like the roads

We've also had no trouble getting loads from the east coast. It's ND that we've had trouble with lately

Scuba · May 8, 2008

As of bed time last night 7 tractors are sitting in nj since monday that doesn't sound to good for me.

davekc · May 8, 2008

Not sure on this week, but I have to think their is a limitation somewhere?
Case in point: Last week we had one truck turn down 2 shorties and then got hit to pick up at the Marriot Convention Center for a nice paying load to New Orleans. That followed with a load from N.O. to MN.
One day later we had another truck unload out on LI. DH 40 miles into NJ for a load to WI.
What I find is many refuse to even go into these areas.
We don't. We aren't starving.
Keep in mind I am running straights. But....I see pages of freight for tractors. Maybe you need to locate some freight on your own?

Scuba · May 12, 2008

Dave,
Thats sounds good for straight trucks but as for Tractors its not the same. And as far as finding your own backhaul try calling on some of them you are lucky to get $0.80 per mile after tolls it doesn't even pay for fuel. I am not starving by a long shot I just refuse to haul for fuel if i can't make a profit doing it im not going to do it. And a good load going turns to crap on the way back out when and if you can get one out. Most times if i go that way all i get is offers that keep me in that area and then the tolls eat me alive so i just dont go to the east coast.