Driver Lifestyles
David and Patty Jo's new ride
There's a variety of reasons why the people of the trucking world attend the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville every spring. For the truck driver, it's a chance to check out new products and equipment, to check out what the other trucking carriers have to offer and to renew old friendships formed on the road.
And, if the driver has his family in tow, it's an opportunity for the trucker's kids to grab all of the free candy and goodies they can lay their hands on at the exhibitors' booths.
For some folks, MATS is also the time to pick up their new truck!
That's just what David and Patty Jo Jaynes did this past Saturday afternoon. It was time for them to take delivery of their brand new Freightliner of Knoxville's "960 Express Cruiser".
Based on the Sterling Acterra platform, the "960" made its world debut a little less than 2 years ago at the Expedite Expo in Woodhaven, MI. The model has developed into the flagship line of new expediting trucks for Freightliner of Knoxville.
The Jaynes' new ride features a Mercedes-Benz MBE906 engine that produces 300HP and is hooked to a 5-speed Allison automatic transmission.
Their living space is contained within a 96" Bentz sleeper with full-size lower bunk, refrigerator, microwave, TV/DVD with satellite, sink, Fantastic climate control fan and auxiliary power is supplied by a Proheat generator.
The logistics equipment includes a 22-foot Hercules cargo box and Leyman LAH 3300, all-aluminum liftgate.
The Jaynes
David and Patty Jo are 4-year veterans of the expediting business, leased exclusively to FedEx Custom Critical for that time. Their background is typical of many in the emergency freight industry - they came from non-trucking careers.
"I spent 30 years with Philip Morris and Patty Jo is a retired Registered Nurse," says David.
Patty Jo picks up their story: "We were too young to just sit around and we wanted to do more, so when we retired, we started looking around and discovered FedEx Custom Critical."
The couple purchased a new Freightliner FL70 upon their entry into expediting and they say that their old truck still has plenty of life left in it. They've sold that truck to a gentleman who intends to keep it on the expediting highway.
So, what attracted them to the 960 Express Cruiser?
Patty Jo says, "We had heard from other FedEx drivers that if we were looking for a new truck, we should go ahead and get our quotes from different truck dealers, but before we were done, go see Jon Mosier."
"Well, we visited several truck dealerships, then we went to Freightliner of Knoxville and that was it," says David. "We both liked the truck. We were used to a 6-speed straight shift, but we wanted an automatic and this has the Allison automatic."
Patty Jo adds, "I was leery about the Allison at first. I thought that I still wanted to stay with a manual transmission because of fuel economy, but once we drove it, there was just no comparison."
"And, it's such comfortable ride compared to the old truck - it's a dream. It's easy to handle and I love it!"
David adds, "We can't wait to get up around Detroit and see how it handles those bumpy roads up there!"
Jon Mosier, Expediting Truck Sales Representative for Freightliner of Knoxville, says, "The Jaynes were an absolute joy to work with when putting their truck together and they were some of our best salespeople at the truck show! They were very excited to get a new truck after driving an FL70 for all those years and to finally stretch out in that big, new sleeper."
During the sleeper's design and construction stages, the couple went to the Ft. Wayne-based Bentz Transport Products factory and met with company founder Richard Bentz and son, Keith Bentz, current company president.
Patty Jo: "They took us on a tour of the factory, showed us how their sleepers were built and they were wonderful! We basically worked with Keith Bentz who handled everything for us. When we saw what they had done with the sleeper, we were really pleased. They did a beautiful job!"
At the conclusion of the trucking show on Saturday evening, the Jaynes' pulled the truck out of Freightliner of Knoxville's booth in the West Wing and headed up to FedEx Custom Critical's headquarters in Green, OH. That's where the truck was to be decaled and the Qualcomm satellite equipment installed.
As David concludes, "We should be ready to go by the end of this coming week. So, we'll just figure it's a week's vacation."