Well, I'll tell ya something, Mr. Know-it-all. We're not. I choose to drive local and not to live in an 8 by 10 foot box day in and day out. I choose to alley dock, 90 degree, and blind backs when I have to because that's what the "Wussie" local job that I choose to do calls for.

You can call us mailmen, peddlers, daynappers or anything else but don't ever call me or the men and women I work with "Wussies".

I bump more docks in a week than most big bad otr drivers do in 3 months. And I've guided and even backed in for more otr drives than I can count.

And when my day is done, I go to my house, 5 miles from the yard, eat at my table, watch tv or set at my computer, and then sleep in my bed. And I also have weekends off, every weekend - thank you.

So, bring it on.

Codger

 

Well, I've never called local drivers "Wussies". I don't see them as such. And, I've had a couple of lcoal drivers help me back into a tight blindside. For the most part, I can trust their guidance. And, they have to fight far more of the "in-informed" 4-wheelers than I do. I take my hat off for that. However....

I also see many of the local drivers taking far more chances than the OTR drivers would consider. Not all of them, and I would even hesitate to suggest that half of them do. But, going through Chicago, there have been more than one that appeared to be an accident looking for a place to happen. Even saw one passing on the shoulder, and blow out a couple of trailer tires by rubbing them on the guard rail. With a few of the driving examples I've seen from the locals, I would certainly hesitate to call them professionals. More like 4-wheelers behind the wheel of a big truck. And, they give all the rest of us a bad name in the public view.

 

I know the Hobo alittle bit and his posting style. I dont think he means it like that. Dont take it personal.

I think he may have called me a local bum a time or two. LOL:rofl:

 

Calm down ya ole codger.... before you have a stroke! :lol:

First off, it's WUSSES (no ies ending.) And it actually all goes back to one thread I started (which I rarely do) and I wanted to GET some info on local jobs cuz my OTR company went out of business and I was THINKING of making the change for awhile. So.... just to get the ATTENTION of the locals here to answer my questions, I titled the thread "Local Drivers are Wusses!" :lol2:

It worked. I got some good info to help me decide. After that, it just became a joke between me and "them" (especially Belpre!) Heck.... one time I even inferred to Mackman that driving Dumps wasn't "really" trucking. He laughed!

If you're referring to my sigline.... you'll want to check it again. I don't say anything about LOCALS, I say that trucking, in general, ain't for lilly skinned, germaphobic, pant-pizzing, scaredy cats who need their Mommies to hold their hands through CDL training and beyond!

Now, crawl back in your 1/4 daycab, and get off my dang road! I got places to go and a bouncing bunk to sleep in! :moon::lol2::lol::clap:

 

Interesting, Windwalker..
I can see how you say that some locals may not be "professional". As you know, I am a local yocal. (line-haul) There are times where I might be running errands around town, and I happen to see our delivery drivers. I've seen them drive like idiots. :lol:
I wonder why our safety director told me that our line-haul drivers seem to be the most-experienced, safest drivers. :lol:

Those Brown Clown package car drivers are nuts! Man!

One thing about it, locals get good self-training, from backing in to all the different places they deliver to.

 

IMO professionalism is more about the person and not the job classification. You have good ones and bad ones everywhere. I see local drivers going faster than you may think safe but you have to remember too that they know the road, the ramps, intersections, down to every pothole. I've also seen out of town OTR guys cruise down the right lane for miles in a marked construction zone that says all trucks left lane. They're in their own little world not paying attention to anything. I prefer the road but due to a lack of business I'm doing P&D lately. It's that or take a layoff.issedoff: I'll say this. The last three months of P&D has made me a better driver. Imagine how you feel coming into the big city and trying to find a tough address with little help and no CB. Now do it ten times a day. Then you find the place and your jaw drops when you see the dock. Alot of these small businesses are in very old buildings and progress has grown all around them. They have one dock and you have to back across 4 lanes of traffic to hit it. People don't wait for you. You just have to bull your way in. At one old place a couple blocks from downtown Cleveland is a business on a fairly busy two lane road where the buildings are close to the street. I cant find the dock so I call the place from my truck as I sit in front of the building blocking traffic in my lane. He answers and says OK I'll open the door for you. Then a steel overhead door opens and I have to blind side in the door off a 2 lane street to the dock . It did fit but I would have told you it was not possible. Of course you can tell the guy "I cant get in there" and he'll just say "why not they do it every day for the last hundred years". You have to watch front, back, and sideways constantly. Oh yeah and dont forget up because you may rip down a wire. I've been stopped twice by low bridges. Dont forget about short little poles you can barely see or pedestrians. Like I said the last three months have made me a better driver. Next time you see a tanker in a gas station or a food service guy in a McDonalds think about what he went thru to get that parking spot. My hat goes off to the local peddle guys. It is starting to get easier but I still want to get back to road in the worst way.

 

Well having done both, OTR then Local I must say that they have a different set of skills to do them like a professional. As an OTR driver it involves strange roads and places and knowing how to "live" OTR. As a Local driver it involves more traffic and tight places.and a better handeling of the truck in such. MY hat's off to both that do it in a professional manner.

 

Way to be politically correct! And nice to see you posting again.:bow:

 

x2 :clap::thumbsup: Missed you a lot Ridge Runner!!! Happy as poo that you are back!

 

Thanks!!! But I wasn't being PC. When I first started in the biz. I was OTR and it took a while to get "good" at it. When I went local I was just like a new driver because I was in a different environment. A whole new set of skills was required.


Once again..... you have the pro's and then you have "the rest". :thumbsup: