Overdrive Radio

Custom champs: A run in the 'Bandit' '21 W900L

It’s not just the classic black-and-gold throwback paint scheme from Smokey & the Bandit that's behind the name of this owner's rig. The Pride & Polish-winning W900L is now rolling memorial to John McCormick's "Bandit" Yorkie's memory.

December 2, 2022

ELD mandate and rising crash rates -- cause or just correlation?

The question of cause and effect around the ELD mandate is certainly a conversation starter for owner-operators. Attendant to Matt Cole’s recent ELDs/safety reporting, these multiple voices offering perspective where the rubber meets the road.

November 25, 2022

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Back in the saddle, on a mission -- Toby Bogard's journey home to the road

Bogard’s return to the road with Heartland Express follows a million-plus-mile career prior, and he's newly engaged in efforts to improve the public image of truck operators after personal tragedies took him away.

November 18, 2022

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Car-haul fleet's back-office backbone got his start behind the wheel

Slava Sobetki first came to the U.S. in 2006. That experience led to a determination to stay, to officially join what he calls "the best country in the world." In the next years, he got his CDL, bought a truck and now manages about 100 trucks.

November 11, 2022

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Fight double-brokering fraud: Prevention, ways to elevate enforcement

Drop into a long talk about somewhat simple steps carriers, brokers and shippers working together can take to stop double-broker schemes in their tracks, likewise elevate the issue for first-time meaningful enforcement at FMCSA, DOT.

November 4, 2022

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Roundtable: Small Fleet Champs on biggest difficulties overcome

Small Fleet Champ finalists answered this question: What's been your biggest business challenge of the past year or two, and what have you done to combat it/mitigate effects? Sit in on the wide-ranging discussion in this Overdrive Radio podcast.

October 28, 2022

Faces of the Road: Betting on the 'highest common denominator' with Road Dog's Jimmy Mac

Long Haul Paul Marhoefer guest-hosts, in part, this edition of Overdrive Radio, featuring one among his Faces of the Road oral histories with none other than Dave Nemo Weekends host Jimmy Mac about his elevation of trucking talk radio.

October 21, 2022

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Trucking in a recession? Owner-operators sound off, messages mixed depending on niche

Drop back two weeks in time in today's edition of the Overdrive Radio podcast to the site of the Mayberry Truck Show in NC, where six owners and operators answered the question in the title. Times are tough, many acknowledged, but optimism showed through.

October 14, 2022

Connecting the dots: FMCSA's electronic-ID questions, Level 8 wireless inspections, autonomous trucks

FMCSA's recent request for comment on the notion of a required electronic-ID in trucks sets the stage for public discussion around increasingly automated inspections of traditionally manned and future automated trucks.

October 7, 2022

The spot-market slide, and an owner-op return to leasing refuge

As rates on the spot markets for freight have fallen, ATBS is starting to see a shift for many owners who went out and got authority during the last couple of spot market boom years, a move back to leasing. Dig into revenue, cost, income performance here.

September 30, 2022

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Serious as a heart attack: Small fleet owner's brush with death a cautionary tale

Suprise Trucking owners Bryon and Holly Stoll are in the process of regrouping after Bryon's heart attack and subsequent surgery a few weeks back. Bryon here shares his story in hopes to spur better awareness of signs, symptoms, to save a life.

September 23, 2022

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Used-truck warranty evolution, coverage improvements, and what to consider when evaluating

In the edition of Overdrive Radio, hear a bevy of owner-ops' and others' tips on just what to consider when evaluating a warranty. The good news is protection options have clearly improved in recent history.

September 16, 2022

A stolen truck, a freight scam and a big re-evaluation on the road to small fleet success

Hear CAP Trucking's success story, hauling from a home base in Florida, in this edition of Overdrive Radio -- in owner Chris Porricelli's own words. His is the voice of a man in clear control of his business after overcoming dramatic setbacks.

September 9, 2022

Get ready for the downturn -- it's right around the corner

In Part 2 of this podcast featuring Owner-Operator of the Year Glen Horack, the Missouri-based hauler elaborates on themes of preparation by building the emergency nest egg. A big downturn is inevitable just about every 10 years, he said. Get ready.

September 2, 2022

'Knock on wood,' Owner-Op of the Year Glen Horack's money-making ways set to grow

Listen in on lessons learned by decades-long owner Horack, who started team driving with his wife, Karla, after 2008, the one year -- "knock on wood," Horack said -- his one-truck business truly struggled in the depths of the Great Recession.

August 26, 2022

The 20% rule: How brake-adjustment violations alone can put you out of service

In this podcast, a former inspector and compliance consultant details just how the out-of-service criteria around brakes adjustment work. A lot depends on knowing your chamber type and stroke length to effectively test your brakes to avoid violations.

August 19, 2022

Trucker-songwriter Coby Langham delivers musical catharsis

For this Overdrive Radio special edition, Long Haul Paul takes the mic for a sitdown with the songwriter and Downey & Sons driver whose gorgeously crafted songs range from "gear-jamming toe-tappers to ballads bursting with Southern Gothic poetry."

August 12, 2022

Overdrive Radio Colby Langham

Remembering owner-ops Mark Mills, Jeff Seales on tough week for show hauler Clark Transfer

It’s been a sad week for everyone at Clark Transfer following the deaths of 30-year leased owner-op Jeff Seales and Mark Mills, leased there since 2018. In today's Overdrive Radio podcast, Clark's Charlie Deull remembers the two, and more.

August 5, 2022

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Calling the best of the best among owner-operators

Overdrive relaunches its Trucker of the Year competition catching back up with the last winner, Dan Heister, who remains at the top of his business' game while building a fleet of vintage Fords and a trucking legacy at his new home.

In Australia, road hazards from wild animals are common -- you’ll notice guards on the fronts of most trucks. Plentiful numbers of kangaroos, wild pigs and wombats can be an ever-present problem in Australia.

Road trains, kangaroos, wombats, oh my: Trucking down-under

Custom champs: A run in the 'Bandit' '21 W900L

Troy Massey's 2014 Peterbilt 389

Troy Massey's 'Lot Rot' Peterbilt 389

OpenComm Bone Conduction Stereo Bluetooth® Headset

OpenComm Bone Conduction Stereo Bluetooth® Headset

Custom champs: A run in the 'Bandit' '21 W900L

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The Business Manual for Owner-Operators

Overdrive editors and ATBS present the industry’s best manual for prospective and committed owner-operators. You’ll find exceptional depth on many issues in the 2022 edition of Partners in Business.

Partners in Business Issue Cover