Flying J's Expediters showers for vans and sprinters

[Shaun32219]

For now Flying J will be still using their loyalty cards so for us van drivers we still be able to get 15 gallons and get a half credit but in the future they will have a loyalty card. Don't know if they will still do what they do now but with Pilot in control I don't think so. I think if more people contact Pilot they will still have that not only at the J but also at the Pilot. I will hate to have to pay $10 for a shower again.

 

[OntarioVanMan]

For now Flying J will be still using their loyalty cards so for us van drivers we still be able to get 15 gallons and get a half credit but in the future they will have a loyalty card. Don't know if they will still do what they do now but with Pilot in control I don't think so. I think if more people contact Pilot they will still have that not only at the J but also at the Pilot. I will hate to have to pay $10 for a shower again.

Think all us Van drivers should email Pilot regularly for awhile...let them know....lets protect what we have...

 

[Shaun32219]

I agree. I don't like TA system at all. I believe if us van drivers email them before they come up with a combined loyalty card it can be better for us. Gives us more options for showers without paying for them. I don't like the merger but what I read about what they are doing it might not be too bad. One good thing within 60 days their wifi will be combined so less money we have to spend. They say they are going to update the tv lounges with plasmas (believe when I see it). If us van drivers email them we can make it better for us.

 

[Jefferson3000]

I would love to see a thread where we can all report on great "mom and pop" truckstops we find along the way, and what makes them great. Some will allow you to negotiate a shower for a smaller fuel purchase, as needed with vans and sprinters. I stayed at one in Inman, SC. The cash price for the shower was $3. It was cleaner than any TA or Petro shower.

 

[AMonger]

Sometimes, you just gotta shake your head. With the restaurant downgrade and then possible elimination of the expediter shower system ahead, they may just be eliminating any reason to ever patronize them. Can't think of what reason would be left... I guess they still have TV lounges, if that's what you're looking for.

 

[xiggi]

Where do people come up with this stuff? It seems like very couple months someone posts that j showers will go away for vanners. It has proved false up to this point and until it actually happens I will still consider it nothing but a rumor. Personally I do not think the j's program will go away and Have 0 desire to set foot in a pilot shower.

 

[Shaun32219]

Well I was getting the info from the new website for Flying J and Pilot merger. It said for now that they will keep the seperate loyalty so the vans shower will stay. But it said in the future that they will be coming up with a loyalty card for both. Pilot in charge I will hate to see the showers go for us vanners. Wasn't anything I heard from another van or anybody but on the pilotflyingj.com. I think we need to let Pilot know now before they do combined them that us vanners should have some benefits and if we do it now we might be able to be able to use both Flying J and Pilots for showers. I know a lot of people don't like Pilot showers. We need to speak up now.

 

[xiggi]

Well I was getting the info from the new website for Flying J and Pilot merger. It said for now that they will keep the seperate loyalty so the vans shower will stay. But it said in the future that they will be coming up with a loyalty card for both. Pilot in charge I will hate to see the showers go for us vanners. Wasn't anything I heard from another van or anybody but on the pilotflyingj.com. I think we need to let Pilot know now before they do combined them that us vanners should have some benefits and if we do it now we might be able to be able to use both Flying J and Pilots for showers. I know a lot of people don't like Pilot showers. We need to speak up now.

Your looking at the glass half empty, who says combining programs will get rid of showers? They could easily keep the shower programs just like they are even with combined cards. I know it never hurts to be pro-active but I do not see the j's shower program going away in the future. If it does i won't be buying much fuel at truck stops any longer. The way it is cheaper other places you can almost pay for showers.

 

[Shaun32219]

Well you might be right but I am looking at it is Pilot in charge. Pilot hasn't been very expediters friendly. The purpose of this is for us van drivers to email them with our concerns about keeping the showers for vans. Not to debate whether or not they do it on their owns. In this day we have to be proactive and voice our concerns and let them know what we want. Not to expect them to do it on their owns. So I say take 5 minutes and email them with that or anything else you might have with this merger.

 

[Shaun32219]

And I as Ontariovanman said. We need to protect what we have

 

[skyraider]

Omy word gang, we must have men in here that grew up with mommy and never got past the malls. If u ever wore the American Uniform,, u would have found out that a shower is the least of ur complaints,,,,staying alive was something to worry about. U Mommies boys have a nice day,,,give me a break.

 

[Jefferson3000]

Individual owner ops will have some effect. If you can get your carriers to work together to assure these things continue, it will have greater effect, and then it will help all of expediting.

 

[Shaun32219]

I have like this site but make a post about Pilot keeping the system for showers and people need to be insulting and rude. Yes we more problems with this business like rates but that another topic you can start about how to solve that problem. (Let see how many go off topic and be insulting) This post was about taking 5 minutes out of your day and emailing Pilot and telling them to keep the shower system so we can not only use J but also Pilot. This site was suppose to be helpful to us expediters, not insulting which I have seen more of. Which now we have to scroll around looking for the helpful replies. This post was us van drivers to be proactive and and emailing Pilot. Not about a debate about it.

 

[skyraider]

Well amen to that,,,u are correct.

 

[xiggi]

I have like this site but make a post about Pilot keeping the system for showers and people need to be insulting and rude. Yes we more problems with this business like rates but that another topic you can start about how to solve that problem. (Let see how many go off topic and be insulting) This post was about taking 5 minutes out of your day and emailing Pilot and telling them to keep the shower system so we can not only use J but also Pilot. This site was suppose to be helpful to us expediters, not insulting which I have seen more of. Which now we have to scroll around looking for the helpful replies. This post was us van drivers to be proactive and and emailing Pilot. Not about a debate about it.

Actually this is a public forum, like the replies or not you cannot pick and choose or dictate what they may be. You think it is important to write Pilot, I think it makes no difference. Both are valid and personal view points one is not worth any more than the other.

My view is pilot does not offer showers to vanners because they have very limited parking out front and cater to the car crowd as much as tucking, they do not want us using up parking space for extended periods. Flying j has plenty of space that does not fill up and can benefit from us staying there for extended periods. It is like the resturant business when tables are limited they need turnover on tables to turn a good profit they do not want you to sit for hours on end reading a book or something. If they have plenty of tables that do not fill up it is no big deal if you hang ut longer.

 

[Turtle]

Pilot hasn't been friendly to expediters, but then again they aren't all that friendly to truckers in general, either. And there are a lot more general truckers than there are expediters, so an e-mail from a handful of expediters isn't likely to get them to change their business model.

After reading the new Web site for the merger, I see nothing whatsoever that the showers for vanners will go away. All I see is that the two programs will eventually be merged into a single program that will give drivers even more choices than the programs now offer, and since none of those details are spelled out, any speculation about what they may or may not contain is, well, speculation.

But, taking into account that not only are the Flying J's driver lounges not going to be gone, and they are in fact upgrading them with new furniture and new televisions, it would seem that at least a few things about the Flying J's will remain the same or become better, and in the interest of even more speculation, one could apply that to expedite van showers, as well.

The way I see it, if Pilot or the TA or whoever wants to give me a shower for free, great, thanks. I'm not going to criticize them for the manner in which they provide it. If they don't want to give me a free shower, well, it's theirs shower, and I refuse to fall into the Welfare mentality where if they give me enough free showers, then their shower is my shower, gimme my free shower, dаmnit. If they don't want to give me a free shower, well, then they probably don't want my business, and that's fine, too. I'm in a van and I can buy fuel anywhere, including the TA, where they do, in fact, have a shower program for vans.

 

[Shaun32219]

While I understand this is a public forum but the post wasn't about a debate whether or not the showers will stay. It is what you said about being proactive. They have not come up with a combined system yet so now would be the time to voice our wants. I have emailed them and have received a reply saying that us vanners won't be left out. Whether it true or not I don't know. But I wasn't even expected a reply. I am not forcing anybody to email Pilot, was just a suggestion. Xiggi you have made a good point about Pilot not having the parking for us and I agree. Its a good thing they are upgrading some of the tv lounges. But the whole point is this. I wanted Pilot to know that we are customers too who spend a lot of money at their stores and that their should keep the program as they have at the J. If one person voice their concerns they won't listen but if a 100 for example emails them with the same concern they might listen. And yea I know they might keep it but how do we know. If we wait till they come up with the new loyalty program and they don't keep it than there probably nothing we can do. I am all about being proactive and like previous post said we need to protect what we have. I don't know about any one of you guys but I rather have a free shower than a $10 shower any day. Maybe you can afford that but I can think of other stuff I can use the $10 on. Sorry for the rant but this post has not gone the way I wanted it to. I thought it would of got a more positive response like yea we all should take 5 minutes and email Pilot but I guess people are doing pretty well and can afford $10 daily or every other day.

 

[TJ959]

Speaking of deviating from the general thread .... It's a great thing that we can earn free showers with our fuel purchases but what is Pilot or the J getting in return when we camp out in their lot. We use their restrooms and lounge but are we buying stuff from their stor or resturaunt. They are providing these services in the hope that we will, in turn spend our money in their facility. I think we owe them a certain amount of that. Yaa, I know their prices are high and much of the food is crapy and Flying J coffe tastes like paint remover but I make an effort to buy something every day I'm at a truck stop. I'm not saying I buy everything there but I try to buy a little something just to pay back a little. If we don't return a little back for these services no-one has a reason to complain when they drop services.

 

[xiggi]

Shaun do not have expectations when you create posts here. You will almost always have a variety of responses and opinions just like the variety of people who use this site. What you always need to keep in mind is the number of people who post is very small compared to the number of people who read a thread so the exposure your idea gets cannot be judged by the posts alone.

 

[letzrockexpress]

Omy word gang, we must have men in here that grew up with mommy and never got past the malls. If u ever wore the American Uniform,, u would have found out that a shower is the least of ur complaints,,,,staying alive was something to worry about. U Mommies boys have a nice day,,,give me a break.

Well said stinky.....