Panthers 1st outs stink

miguy1957 · Jun 4, 2008

I got home last friday and have been 1st on the board since, Except for the 1st outs that keep comming in on top of me, There have been 9 come in in front of me since Friday. So what do you do?? I checked the boards within 300 mi and the all have about 2 days worth of trucks on them. Is freight really that slow that all Panther has is shorty runs??? Or is it just Mid Michigan?? I guess Ill just have to wait it out I need to be home by Friday for High School Graduation any way. Just needed to vent a Little.....................
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RufousSexyGrl

Vinnie T · Jun 4, 2008

So 9 trucks have gotten loads before you? How many have your turned down..something is not right, are we hearing the whole story?

Yes Michigan sucks..take a shorty to IN, OH of you have to to get out of mid Michigan

dhalltoyo · Jun 4, 2008

Seems a little slower this week.

Yep. Two days worth of trucks sitting in the direction I need to go also.

Most boards with 2 or trucks on them.

No reason, just business.

davekc · Jun 4, 2008

I agree. The middle of MI is not exactly the hot bed for cargo van freight.
Most of the boards in MI with high load counts are over by GR or Detroit.

miguy1957 · Jun 4, 2008

Vinnie T said:
So 9 trucks have gotten loads before you? How many have your turned down..something is not right, are we hearing the whole story?

Yes Michigan sucks..take a shorty to IN, OH of you have to to get out of mid Michigan

No 9 trucks havent got out yet, there is presently 3 1st outs in front of me. I have turned down 1 load Picking up aprox 25 mi out going a whopping 55 mi and del at 1900 and I would have been about 75- 80 mi from home for $50 naw Ill just wait at home. Thats what I was hopeing for is a load to OH or IN so i could be back home by Fri. If it dont happen I guess Ill have to try something else next week..........
________
Buy bubblers

Tennesseahawk · Jun 4, 2008

Personally, I wouldn't take that run either for $50; but I'm not on that system. If I were, I would've had to decide what was more important... sucking it up and being in line on the first out board, or venting on here as others continually move past you with their "cut in line ticket".

My God! Am I taking over for the Col? He's only been gone a couple hours and I sound like a cryptic curmudgeon!

hondaking38 · Jun 5, 2008

yepp mid mi boards are horrible,last 6 loads were michigan to michigan, live in the gr board..however i did have 2 load offers out of michigan but they both became dry runs..had to go non canadian again, because 90% of offers were from detroit to windsor..once i drooped off in detroit, as soon as you pod out poof ya had a mini to canada.. a viscous cycle...

sdelliott31 · Jun 6, 2008

Panther boards will say 24 average out of Detroit a day, out to Windsor maybe. We tell our drivers to drop and move to Grand Rapids or Fort Wayne. But people get caught sometimes thinking that 24 loads and they are 17 that they for sure will get out if they take a little time. I believe you can ask for a rolling first out and go in service from a new area.

OntarioVanMan · Jun 6, 2008

*LOL* I guess Express One has a lock on mid Michigan and up. Ind.?! Ive done 6 trips in 5 days...another van that loaded with me did 3 in a day....

Turtle · Jun 6, 2008

sdelliott31 said:
I believe you can ask for a rolling first out and go in service from a new area.

It's those rolling first outs and other "negotiated" first outs that are getting out of control.

I recently pulled onto a 3-a-day board at 6th out, ext morning I was up to #2 on the board. I sat there and watched 4 vans with "negotiated" first outs roll in ahead of me, pushing me down to #5. Couple or three loads go out and I move up, only to see 2 more "first outs" roll in and I drop right back down. I'm seeing people POD out in the morning and get loaded back out that afternoon, all the while I've been sitting there for four days.

Even here now in Laredo, some yahoo didn't want to come and sit in Laredo, so he rolls in with a negotiated first out, and I get pushed down another notch.

This is the kind of crap that cause good drivers to switch carriers.

sdelliott31 · Jun 6, 2008

Couldn't agree more with you turtle. As an owner I tell guys to take the rolling first outs if they can get them, but it does hurt the people especially in outlying areas (like Laredo) who sit a couple days for a load. Maybe Panther needs to focus more on bonuses (which they don't want to do anymore) to get people to do the crap work. I was looking earlier today at Detroit and there are 4 first outs going on. That cracks me up. Hang in there

jwc · Jun 6, 2008

we were in laredo earler this week del last sat but we got a first out after a refer load cancled but watched 5 trucks disaper behind us
did they get loads?
did they move out?
did they go out of service ?
yhink it will be a nother 6 mo befor i accept a load back there

Tennesseahawk · Jun 6, 2008

sdelliott31 said:
Couldn't agree more with you turtle. As an owner I tell guys to take the rolling first outs if they can get them, but it does hurt the people especially in outlying areas (like Laredo) who sit a couple days for a load. Maybe Panther needs to focus more on bonuses (which they don't want to do anymore) to get people to do the crap work. I was looking earlier today at Detroit and there are 4 first outs going on. That cracks me up. Hang in there

Bonuses cost more to the company than first outs. They figure money that goes towards bonuses should go to the stockholders. Imagine that... companies actually get more frugal when they have stockholders to answer to. To me, stockholders are almost as bad as unions when it comes to a company's policy.

jaminjim · Jun 6, 2008

T-hawk Said:To me, stockholders are almost as bad as unions when it comes to a company's policy.

without shareholders there would be far fewer companies.

Tennesseahawk · Jun 6, 2008

I'm not talking about stockholders in general. Yes, they're a great thing. But in a company that has stockholders and contractors, it's almost always the contractors who take the back seat. The company has to keep stockholders happy before us.

OntarioVanMan · Jun 6, 2008

1 st outs were fine when Panther was small but now they should be abolished in favour of a minimum charge....and let everyone go around in proper order.....1st outs only mess up the system...It would ease up on dispatch as well...

sdelliott31 · Jun 7, 2008

I agree with you OVM. Like I said earlier, looking in Michigan there were 4 or 5 on first outs. That just doesn't make sense. Let alone the outlying areas where you have to sit for a couple days to get loaded and then someone roll in with a first out. Thats got to be tough on the other drivers. However like the pot calling the kettle black, I try to tell our drivers to get the first out even before the bonus, so that we can try to keep moving. I still think sometimes drivers get skipped around though. IMHO.

OntarioVanMan · Jun 7, 2008

In some areas the 1st outs would be completely unmanageable...you have a constant turnover of trucks in and out, by the time a dispatcher is giving one out 2 more come in....they can't help but get passed over....not always a dispatchers fault...it's the system...
our vans get flat $75.00 plus FSC on the real mile....NO 1st out
Sprinters get $100.00 plus FSC on miles. NO 1st out.
And ya know Michigan is so busy by the time you run the trip and get back and settled down your almost 1st again. makes it null and void at times.

jwc · Jun 7, 2008

YEA BUT PANTHER GOT THEM THER NOSE PICKERS and unless you babysit them give them a first out and bonus you can't get them to pick up a load that i .5 miles away that is going less than 500 miles they call it bad bus I usta do van loads because it was a good custimer and they would say nobody is around to do the job till i did one and low and behold six vans were at the truk stopped in for fuel and talked with the drivers and heard his way of doing bus since that day i say my contracted rate is _____ and you want to to do it pay my rate NOT saying all van drivers at panther are that way but there sure are a lot of them

OntarioVanMan · Jun 7, 2008

jwc said:
YEA BUT PANTHER GOT THEM THER NOSE PICKERS and unless you babysit them give them a first out and bonus you can't get them to pick up a load that i .5 miles away that is going less than 500 miles they call it bad bus I usta do van loads because it was a good custimer and they would say nobody is around to do the job till i did one and low and behold six vans were at the truk stopped in for fuel and talked with the drivers and heard his way of doing bus since that day i say my contracted rate is _____ and you want to to do it pay my rate NOT saying all van drivers at panther are that way but there sure are a lot of them

We have our share of nose pickers....Sprinters that won't move for less then Sprinter rate! BUT the carrier will pay Sprinter minimum on a cargo van load.