Nice easy load! Do you have your trailer yet?

We do a lot of grader blades, I use a 35 foot long tarp that weighs maybe 5 lbs. It's just to protect the stickers from flying off. I get paid $75 to tarp. Takes me 10 minutes to tarp and secure.

 

Wilson says they finished building it Friday, Aug-22. Now I'm just waiting for MacKinnon to give me a westbound flatbed load so that I can drop it somewhere in US and then pick up my step and put it on top of the flatbed. Would hate to scratch those brand new shiny 17.5" tires

35 ft long tarp weighing 5 lbs? Did you mean to write 3.5 ft long?

 

MacKinnon is a family-run company. They have about 250 company trucks and 20-30 owner-operator trucks. They've been in business since 1928 ... Nowadays they're letting the "kids" run the business. The planner is probably under 30, of the Mackinnon clan. Lots of energy and enthusiasm. Before he came onboard they only had work for flatbed trailers in the Platform division. Now it's okay to own a step too I know you're supposed to know what the freight pays BEFORE you say 'yes' or 'no' but I'm ready to disregard this minor drawback when I know they have the freight. I think the only way I'm leaving is when I have my own authority. And now - with my own truck and trailer - I'll be just one step away from that.

 

now owning your own step deck is gonna be fine and dandy, but will it effect your loads at all? afterall, you can't just drop it anywhere and get a different trailer... or were you married to a trailer beforehand all the time anyways?

 

Just a suggestion, Mr. Tracer when you get your own trailer.
I take my straps completly off the trailer and roll them up "flat hook out" that way when you throw, you're not throwing the weight of the hook plus the strap. If that makes sense. Plus, if they're rolled tight enough I can get 10, 30 footers in a plastic milk crate.

 

I didn't realize that stuff could walk like that, and it's funny because the other drivers I was watching didn't cross strap either. Like I said I was still pretty green at that time. I had two 4" straps across the rear and it was the bottom hack that walked out. Thanks for the tip with putting the 4" straps over the 2" straps, if I ever haul that stuff again I'll definitely remember that.

If for some reason I forget though, just look the driver trying to shove insulation back on the trailer, and then stop and buy me a coffee.

 

I had one load of this plastic stuff, that goes around windows. It was a real bear, I used something like 24 straps. And it still wasn't legal because it was stacked four high, and I did absolutely no belly strapping. Couldn't be done anyways, all of the freight was different heights.

After a few hours the back started to blow out. I had to cross strap, even though it was going to damage the freight. IMO it's always better to damage the freight then have it all over the highway! Safety department agreed with what I did. Haven't heard if they made a claim. You have to do what you have to do.

 

Yeah, that can be a problem. When we pull their trailers, they change them all the time. With my own step, I will have less flexibility in this regard but I also won't have to fight their 2,000,000 lb tarps since I'm going to use lightweight material on mine.

 

Great tip, thanks! I"m going to buy straps with flat hooks. It's much easier throwing them over tall loads. Keeping them rolled up in a cargo compartment makes sense too: 1) they'll stay clean; 2) less chance of them "walking away"

 

August 24th, 2009
Monday

I delivered that Kentucky load to a place in Milton, ON; 20 mi away from our yard. They were closed Sat and Sun and Dispatch said I'd have to go there Monday myself. Did that and they ask me - do I want to keep working? They explain they have a load for Chicago that will take me towards the Wilson plant in Moberly, MO but that load leaves only on Wednesday. The load offer they sent me is for 285 miles from Brampton, ON to North Jackson, OH (near Youngstown) and it requires tarping. So, I reply "No. I don't want to keep working. If you have anything westbound earlier than Wednesday, I'll take it. If not, I'll leave on Wednesday." And I also send them a "load declined" macro (message). And ... all hell breaks loose I show up at our yard and the load planner is upset because he doesn't want me to sit in the yard "whole week" (monday till wednesday) when they have so much work, and that they're helping me out by giving me a trailer and that if I choose to sit they can't guarantee that Wednesday load for Chicago will be given to me. So, basically, they blackmail/bulldoze me into taking the Ohio run.

I've bobtailed to Brampton, picked up our preloaded trailer with aluminum logs, threw one steel tarp over it, and was on my way to Ohio. I'm told I already have another load coming back to Ontario and then I can take off for Chicago and Wilson plant on Wednesday, Aug-26th.

I checked my old pay slips from the flatbed time last year and a similar run (Brampton, ON to Youngstown, OH) in August 2007 paid $675 to MacKinnon and $472.50 (70%) to the truck. The distance is roughly 320 miles incl. deadhead. Fuel surcharge is extra.

Trailers Canada finally confirmed today my step is ready for pickup in MO. The salesman also said he might have another stepdeck (at Iowa plant) that he might ask me to bring to Canada. If I bring 2 trailers instead of one, they said they'd pay me something on top of the US$1,500 fee promised for one trailer. Since each trailer weighs at least 10,000 lbs, I definitely won't do it for free (distance from the MO plant to Canada is 800 miles and they I'd have to drive over to the Iowa plant).

I also talked to a local tarp shop today about load levellers and they cost around 800 bucks for a pair. Need to call them with my credit card number, so that they can order them. They should be ready to be picked up by the time I bring the step to Canada.