Late4dinner:
Well, first, as others have stated, many of my posts are loaded with sarcasm (mostly humorous), and this one is no exception. FYI, I have hauled many placarded loads with my previous carrier (Cheri was with them, too), and fully understand what can and cannot go on a van. Since this thread is about Panther (hence the title of the thread - requirements to join up with Panther, duh), and not about your carrier or the carrier that I was with prior to Panther, I saw no need in going into the kind of detail that would be meaningless to other Panther cargo van drivers within the scope of this thread, i.e., the requirements to join up with Panther.
Table 1 materials are placarded in any amount, and with very few exceptions cannot go onto a cargo van. Table 2 materials are not placardable in amounts of 1000 pounds or less, but are placardable in amounts of 1001 or more, and these, with few exceptions, can be put on a cargo van.
It is these Table 2 materials that Panther will not put on a cargo van if the amount requires placarding, which is what I find ironic since Panther requires a CDL, and you don't need a CDL to haul non-placardable HAZMAT, but they want a CDL, anyway. I have actually had Team Leaders and Supervisors at Panther tell me that if the HAZMAT requires placarding (like, 1500 pounds of paint), then it cannot legally be put on a van. So it's not just the van drivers at Panther who are dumb as a brick.
Second, since you drive for Landstar, by definition you are not a dumb as a brick van driver, however if you wish to view yourself as such, that's up to you. But at Panther, with the van driver turnover rate being at such as obscene level due to them bringing on people who are so stupid that bricks laugh at them because they are so stoopid, there is little point in trying to teach bazillions of dumb as a brick van drivers how to log and scale and properly secure HAZMAT freight when they're likely to be gone within a month or two.
There are, like, 50 van drivers per week at Panther orientation, and it's very likely that 48 with not be with Panther 6 months later.
Fr8 Shaker got it right about the requirements for Panther, except that you don't even have to own the van, all you have to do is be a warm body for a fleet owner and you're good to go. IQ above 50 optional.
If you don't think that, by and large, most Panther van drivers are dumb as a brick, let me give you an illustration. We've all (well, many of us) had mechanical failures while loaded that result in either having to cross dock it, get towed to the consignee, or be late, or all three. I just had one this week where I picked up a load in Nebraska going to Georgia, 1215 miles, and a few miles from the shipper I lost all acceleration power. I thought it was a cracked turbo resonator, but it turned out to be the intercooler hose leading to the resonator. Same result, either way, low boost pressure in the turbocharger. Going uphill I might as well have taken my foot off the accelerator, but downhill or on flat road I could maintain 60-65 without too much problem.
It wasn't too bad in Nebraska, but the hills around St Joseph and Kansas City were not fun at all, so I knew I'd never make it over Monteagle Mountain. I called dispatch when I was just north of KC to let them know the load would have to swap, told them that if they had anyone in KC that would be fine, even though I'd be giving up a ton of miles. I felt getting the load swapped in a planned fashion was better than the van finally quitting on me and then having to swap it out in an emergency situation, possibly having the freight be delivered late. No one in KC, told them that was OK, I could make it to St Louis, or wherever they had another van available. We swapped it out in St Louis after about 680 miles. That's a snotload of miles to drive with no turbocharger, lemme tell ya.
But, we got the load swapped and it was delivered on time. I got the van repaired and I'm good to go.
I tell you that to put into perspective that we at Panther have van drivers who have to swap loads because they
ran out of gas.
See? Dumb as a brick.
Now, to the fun stuff...
"...and I would like to point out to you that you don't know as much as you think you do."
Yeah, I know. I'm a dumb as a brick van driver, remember?
"I just got hot because turtle called the entire cargo van fleet a bunch of dumb as a brick van drivers."
You got hot because of what some moron on an online Web forum said? Really? The Internet ain't real. It's the Funny Papers. Never let it get to you.
"I hope I don't have to end up buying too much coffee, or eating too much crow."
Naaa.
We're all here to have fun, learn a little, and spout off a lot.
