Who do we call?

[terryandrene]

I agree with the Colonel on this one. I also believe that, over time, we are each equally the screwee and screwer. It just so happens that when we get the sweet end of the stick, we have no idea if another driver was negatively affected. We smile at our good fortune and head for the pickup.

 

[Tennesseahawk]

Then there are times you're just chewing the fat with a driver who's behind you on the board, and he gets beeped for a load. While I agree it probably happens on the other end, with you getting the load, it still doesn't make it right. And I would rather know for future reference. There may be no getting even, but it'll definitely make you consider a move if it happens enough. And maybe the peace of mind will ultimately be worth it. Then again... if you dwell on past loves cheating on you, you may think any company you go to could be doing the same.

-Vampire Super Slooth Trucker!!!

 

[davekc]

This whole problem can be solved by calling my personal mentoring services.:7










Davekc
owner
22 years
PantherII
EO moderator

 

[cheri1122]

That's 1 800 CALL DAVE, right?

 

[TeamCaffee]

Thanks for the great info I now have that number on Speed Dial. Dave will solve all problems.

 

[davekc]

I am at your personal service. 1-800-call-dave? I like that!
I may have to add that to my signature






Davekc
owner
22 years
PantherII
EO moderator

 

[lanier1]

As the true grunt of the FedEx CC world, a solo D unit, let me run this by you. In my humble opinion no solo load should be offered to a team when solos are available. Nothing is more frustrating than to see a team with more dwell take a solo load out of the same express I'm in and then have a team load come up that they DH a team in from a couple hundred miles away to do. Of course then no more solo loads come up that day... So it happens to all of us. No reason to dwell on it and drive yourself crazy. It is what it is.

 

[mcbride]

In my humble opinion no solo load should be offered to a team when solos are available. Nothing is more frustrating than to see a team with more dwell take a solo load out of the same express I'm in and then have a team load come up that they DH a team in from a couple
hundred miles away to do.
=========================================

I agree with you. Do you think the reverse should apply? IE. A team load should not be broken up for two solo trucks?

-mcbride-
--What goes around comes around--

 

[FAMOUS AMOS]

hey Woman!!

Sounds like thay just as fair as Panther was ....huh? :9

 

[mcbride]

>hey Woman!!
>
>Sounds like thay just as fair as Panther was ....huh? :9


No way even remotely comparable in my opinion FedEx is 100x's better...so, now you know just how I felt about Panther.

That is ALL I am going to say on that subject. Are you trying to be a trouble maker lady? x( x(

-mcbride-
--what goes around, comes around--

 

[greg334]

After reading all of this and misunderstanding the orignal question, I have to say that I understand the frustrations that McBride has had with this mess and I would be complaining a lot to the people in the management.

The issues of having solo runs offered to teams and vice versa is also as frustrating as I have experienced. I think if there are no options, yes offer the team a solo run but only if there is no other options – it is about customer service not who gets the run.

But with all that cr*p said, I gave up trying to position myself for loads a long time ago because I wanted to stop worrying so much about IF this and IF that and start enjoying my down time. This does not mean I will sit for 100 hours in a place like the Kansas in a corn field or southern Florida, I move to somewhere I know I will get an offer. If I sit in Atlanta or Chicago and sit, I know that others are sitting too and it does not bother me.

Oh yea, I also agree with McBride, FedEx - 100% better - but thats me.

 

[FAMOUS AMOS]

MOI??? Trouble maker??? NO WAY!!! We no longer with them anymore!!! Been gone lil over a month now! :9 My head don't hurt near as bad as it used to...lmao

 

[lanier1]

I guarantee you no team load is ever offered to a solo to be split and transferred unless there is no other option. They will DH a team as far as possible to avoid splitting a run. I completely understand that too. The service offered to customers is non stop door to door. If it has to be split up and transferred the customer has to be notified and approve it. It will take longer to get it there as a rule and the risk of damage to the freight is double the normal exposure. Thats why I think it is only right to offer solo loads to solos when they are available. At the same time I also realize when it is really busy they will bypass a team for a solo run saving them for a team load. Thats only when its really busy and then who cares, we are all moving. Its when its slow that it really hurts and you have time to think about and analyze it all. Like Greg said, I have tried to put myself in the best position I can where I am and then forget about it. I have driven myself crazy trying to figure it out and the fact is there are so many variables you can't figure all the angles. Best to go with what little you know and your gut and let the runs fall where they may. ATeam is right about tracking runs and using the info to your advantage. I have done that since starting and it helps but it changes so much in some areas its hard to predict. I think good areas for WG are much easier to predict. I know one WG team I talk to most every day and they always have a good idea where they have to go and how long they need to wait. Am I jealous? You dang right. I wish I got the runs and offers they get. WG team with a reefer is the way to go if you know someone you can live in a shoebox with. Unfortunately I don't and I like my solo life pretty good.

 

[mcbride]

Lanier-

I wonder just how many loads are available over 550 miles compared to those 550 or lower?

I know as a D unit team we would love to have all our runs over 550 miles! Ideally they would all be over 1000 miles! That is the reason we are out here as a team living in our shoe box. We don't want the 550 mile or less runs! Solo or team we all need to pay our bills. Now we have learned even though we are a team..."beggers can't be choosers" and we may have to take the shorter solo runs or get no runs at all.

One would think however, the DVA...a system of such renowned complexity... a system that can compile such variables: where you are located, whether you are a team or solo truck, the weight, dimensions, refrigerated, heated, hazardous materials, nuclear, A&E, urgency of pickup and/or delivery, special handling, lift gate, air ride, driver load/unload, inside pickup/delivery, ramp or dock availability, low clearances and/or limited maneuverability at customer locations within nanoseconds would be able to ascertain what truck meets the above cited criteria and has the most dwell time. Then the DVA spits out...here you go...this is the truck the load is dispatched to.

I think the DVA does do this, as it is a compputer and incapable of making the “wrong†decision. It is programmed to do whatever humans have told it to do. However, what is done with this data after it is compiled? It is dispersed by humans. Now we have to factor in human influence, decisions, and errors…


-mcbride-
--What goes around comes around--

 

[x06col]

Yes, but, like any computing machine, when you put garbage in, you get garbage out. Even with one of renowned complexity. There in lies the problem with puter watchers and phone answerers as dispatchers. There has to be some background and socialization in your chosen endeavor to be good at it I feel. And still, one gets some surprises once in a while.

BTW, i'd sure not tell anyone I guarentee anything in this business, that I could'nt control.

 

[ATeam]

>I agree with the Colonel on this one. I also believe that,
>over time, we are each equally the screwee and screwer. It
>just so happens that when we get the sweet end of the stick,
>we have no idea if another driver was negatively affected.
>We smile at our good fortune and head for the pickup.

What Terry said. We know for a fact that we have at times been "passed over" for loads that we were sitting right next to and could have reasonably expected to get them ourselves. The system cuts both ways. You just figure it out as best you can and make the best chioces you know how to make.

Of course there is always the Landstar system where drivers complain that many agents own their own trucks and give them the sweet loads first. Or the Panther system, about which we have heard much here in the Open Forum.

Dispatching expedited freight is not an exact science, no matter how scientific people try to make the system be. Behind it all is meeting customer needs. If a dispatcher needs a specialized truck to cover a particular kind of load, he or she is likely to do what it takes to move a truck to the load, not so drivers will be treated unfairly, but so the customer's needs will be met.

Diane's and my advantage, if we have one, is we figured out that fundamental fact before we got into the business and long before we invested in a truck of our own. As drivers of fleet owner trucks and now as owner-operators, we chose fully-equipped trucks (reefer, liftgate, freight handling equipment, etc.) over general freight trucks.

There is nothing magic about that or out of reach to anyone. Fully equipped trucks running for carriers that have the freight to keep them busy is an option available to any newbie with a clean record and good customer service and work ethics. Fleet owners are out there that will put you into this equipment with virtually no cash outlay of your own.

 

[davekc]

There is nothing magic about that or out of reach to anyone. Fully equipped trucks running for carriers that have the freight to keep them busy is an option available to any newbie with a clean record and good customer service and work ethics. Fleet owners are out there that will put you into this equipment with virtually no cash outlay of your own.
=====================================================
You are looking at a very narrow view of the industry. Even with Fedex, the majority can't get into WG. So no, it isn't available to most. That would include a large percentage of people already there.
Just having a reefer and a liftgate doesn't insure anything, except maybe what other qualified WG drivers don't want or the luck of no others being available. Hardly a reason I would make that huge investment. You have to be in WG for that to work.
I am sure there are many that can make money with your described options, but it is no way the only option.
Quite a few other companies have frieght and it doesn't require reefers etc. If one is looking at return on their truck investment and their time, there are a whole lot of other more profitable options.















Davekc
owner
22 years
PantherII
EO moderator

 

[jackdixon_2000]

As far as White Glove. Dave, why do you think the majority of Fed ex drivers could not get into White Glove? All that is required is 6 months with surface and a good work record, on time, acceptance rate, no accident or freight claims. The one big roadblock for many top Custom Critical drivers to keep them out though, is their pets.
As A-team suggested. For newbies, find a White Glove fleet owner and try it for a year with no risk of you're own investment. Or if someone in surface wants to go White Glove and don't want to risk a "huge" investment look for a used White Glove truck.

I personally didn't want to go White Glove due to the extra effort involved on occasion and was willing to sacrifice income for the more simple dock to dock type loads with surface. But I did buy a 99 T-300 in 2004 with reefer and lift gate to open the door for the occasional white glove loads of which I did 45 of 210 my first fiscal year. Also, lookin to work more on the west coast,lift gate and reefer are very beneficial. Especially for a frequent account out of Reno which I did frequently. Then last year my co driver passed away and also the Reno account went to dual driver protection so the White Glove loads for me dropped off significantly (I only get called for White Glove when no other white glove trucks are available) So I deceided to go ahead and join White Glove which I did last month. Anyway, I am driving a White Glove truck that I purchased 2 1/2 years ago for $41,000. Is that a huge investment? It all depends on what yer goals, needs and desires are.

Dang, now after typing all this I just realized what the thread is and am way off topic, oh well I ain't the first

 

[davekc]

I don't know for sure since I am not there, but they need to get that word out as we heard a much different version last week at MATTS from several different teams. Some indicated they have been waiting years.








Davekc
owner
22 years
PantherII
EO moderator

 

[jaminjim]

Why would Fed Ex want to limit the amount of qualified white glove trucks? That would be as goofy as limiting teams. Not saying that they don't limit them, just wondering why they would.