OTR Big Bird

Jul 03, 2013

Brian Sames, an owner-operator from Quakertown, Pa., added pinstripes, fiberglass fenders, lights under the cab and sleeper, and a Texas square bumper to his 2009 Peterbilt 389. He also made the interior a little more like home, adding a refrigerator, microwave and flat-panel TV. It’s equipped with a 550-hp Cummins and an 18-speed transmission. Sames uses it to pull his bin trailer or flatbed.

Mark Gordon

January 5, 2021

Analysts optimistic on trucking after chaotic year

2020’s strong second half and prospects for continued high freight demand bode well into 2022, FTR says. However, several factors will affect the timing and intensity of further recovery.

“Wreck on the Mountain Road” is about the death of a trucker on Bent Mountain, just southwest of Roanoke, Virginia.

Fatal wreck remembered in first recorded trucking song

The trucker cap in teacher Amy Watson’s selfie from the day she was tested for COVID-19 later inspired her choice of “long-haulers” to describe COVID survivors with persistent symptoms. “My school’s mascot is a squirrel,” she said, which she finds appropriate, given that her pre-school students, with their short bursts of activity, are “very squirrel-like.”

Trucking’s bit part in the 'COVID long-haulers’ name

Small-fleet owner Jesse McGinness was going for originality with the look of this 2021 Peterbilt 389, spec'ing the black Alcoa rims from the factory. After his maiden voyage in a Class 8 tractor years ago, in a Peterbilt 379, he fell in love with the classic square-hood series. He plans to modify the stacks, the grille and more to all-black finish -- committing sacrilege, says the operator who took him on that first 379 run. McGinness'll maintain plenty in chrome/stainless accents, not to worry. The flattop with lift-axle is powered by the X15 Cummins at 605 hp, with an 18-speed transmission. 'I wanted this truck to be a truck that I thought was cool,' McGinness said, in addition to doing the tough over-dimensional/heavy hauling he'll require of it.

'WTF' stresses service for long-term success

The glider market grew from a few hundred sales a year in 2010 to upwards of 10,000 as recently as 2017. Gliders sported pre-emissions-regs engines -- no exhaust gas recirculation or selective catalytic reduction components and, thus, no need for DEF. With simpler technology and refurbished engines, the products were much cheaper than new trucks with new engines, making them attractive buys for small-business truckers.

Glider kit market hits fatal nosedive with latest emissions regs

Beware: Human smugglers luring truckers along the border

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The Business Manual for Owner-Operators

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