Tag: Roadside Attractions: Page 6

Channel 19

Photo: Face of a longtime driver damaged by sunlight

A stunning photo from the New England Journal of Medicine shows the damaging effects of ultraviolet sunlight on the left side of a 69-year-old longtime truck driver’s face.

June 5, 2012

Channel 19

Move some tarps, get some tarps

If the Tarps Plus company has its way, you may well in future take a load of its tarps and get paid in, well, tarps. Check out this story on the San Francisco Chronicle’s website, which quotes Tarps Plus president Michael Stein on the “no-brainer” that is a new program looking to barter company tarps […]

June 4, 2012

Channel 19

What does your fuel surcharge look like?

A poll that asks for owner-operators’ thoughts on the use of fuel surcharges as a cushioning agent against spikes in fuel prices sparked some discussion on Facebook last week. Owner-operators Linda Caffee, Jeff Clark and others were involved, Clark taking the point of view that fuel surcharges were merely a utility for negotiating long-term rates in contracts […]

June 3, 2012

Channel 19

Channel 19’s Friday trucking news quiz

A brief quiz on the week’s news — play yourself! Post answers in the comments here then go back through the past week’s blog entries to check your results. Get all five without cheating? You might be my best reader. 4: A Channel 19 regular, no doubt. 3: Thanks for reading! 2: Where have you […]

June 1, 2012

Channel 19

From the shop to the road: One operator’s 359

This 1986 Peterbilt 359 is the result of a three-year project conducted from 2007-10 by owners Wayne and Kelly Ziegenfuss, today leased to Bennett Motor Express and hauling mining equipment to Arizona, coming back with copper, on a step deck from a Hendersonville, N.C., home base. I met the pair at the Southeastern Regional Truck […]

May 31, 2012

Channel 19

Bogan case: More reasons to choose a carrier carefully

The Bogan case may be best viewed in the context of tried-and-true advice: be smart and choosy about who you run for. You never know when you may need the boss to go to bat for you rather than hanging you out to dry by being forced out of business.

May 30, 2012

Overdrive Extra

Truckers’ attorney Paul Taylor, FMCSA rep at social media meeting

The folks with the Truck Driver Social Media Convention are gearing up for their second annual meeting — and have been sharing highlights of the two-day program in process for Oct. 27-28 in Kansas City via the AsktheTrucker.com blog. Among the presenters this year will be Elaine Papp, Division Chief of the FMCSA’s  Office of […]

May 29, 2012

Channel 19

Memorial Day fun with Heister’s hot rod — and a new truck

Yesterday, owner-operator Dan Heister invited myself and the family out to his new place in Tennessee Ridge, Tenn., near his former home in Erin, for a cookout with various other friends and family. Something of an early Memorial Day celebration, as Heister was setting out today with a northeast-bound load of rock in his new […]

May 28, 2012

Channel 19

Amid big fleet investments, operators stare down high truck prices

Something is going right for the Jacobson Companies 3PL — Mack Trucks announced yesterday that they took delivery of an order of 259 built-in-the-U.S. Mack Pinnacles, 139 daycabs and 120 sleeper trucks, and they’re hiring dedicated company drivers for runs based out of their Des Moines, Iowa, headquarters. Any owner-operators out their run freight for […]

May 27, 2012

Channel 19

Imagine running for the same fleet for 50 years…

Can you? We’ve heard no shortage of stories of independents who’ve stayed active that long leased to different carriers or on their own, but never with the same company. (If you have, I’m all ears!) I can’t think of a company driver who’s done it, either (though Wisconsin-based Butch Mueller is getting pretty close), and […]

May 25, 2012

Overdrive Extra

Xantrex: 3 inverter installation tips

1. Installation best at the factory or authorized dealer aftermarket: If you’re considering an aftermarket inverter installation to an older truck or mulling options on a new vehicle, take it under advisement that leading inverter manufacturer Xantrex Technology reps have formally recommended inverter installation by a truck OEM or an authorized dealer. According to Xantrex, […]

May 25, 2012

Channel 19

One child’s dream come true, in a truck

If you’ve never participated in one of the Make-a-Wish convoys — which pair children with trucks to make dreams come true and support the work of various Make-a Wish Foundation chapters around the nation — take a look at the smile on the face of Nicholas Cropper here, pictured in the passenger seat of owner-operator […]

May 24, 2012