Voices

One owner-op's long road to steady dry-bulk freight, for the whole family

In this Overdrive Radio edition out on a dry-bulk haul with Kentucky-based John McCormick, the owner-operator lays out his own and his father's different histories in trucking. Their stories converged in recent years on this regular run.

February 3, 2023

Is ATA starting to understand small trucking businesses?

In the first meeting of the new Congress' House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, ATA President and CEO Chris Spear spoke to the reps about issues trucking faces. Interestingly, perhaps oddly, he sounded at least at times like an owner-op.

February 2, 2023

ATA President and CEO Chris Spear

‘Common sense, you’ve got it for a reason’ -- Use your CB already, owner-ops say

And if you don’t run with a CB, get one. Too many seem to think that the CB is little more than a “movie prop from a silly movie from the 1970s,” as Kenneth Williams put it, echoing the sentiment of a bevy of truckers after a deadly highway pileup.

January 24, 2017

More freight fraud inbound? Pessimistic rates outlook sets the stage

The double brokers and ID thieves are most definitely back from the holiday vacation. Meanwhile, latest Bloomberg | Truckstop.com survey shows owners' increasingly pessimistic outlook for freight rates' immediate future, though some optimism remains.

February 1, 2023

Trucks Exiting Scale

I-80 in Wyoming closes again and again after fatal pile-up

I-80 in Wyoming keeps shutting down as intense weather causes crash after crash. The episode serves as a reminder to us all: Just because the highway is open doesn't mean it's safe.

January 30, 2023

wide view of I-80 44-car pileup

The most under-appreciated insurance coverage in all of trucking

After the death of an owner's spouse and passenger, it's clear that if you don’t have this coverage, or if you choose to purchase only the minimum, you could be making one of your worst business and insurance coverage decisions.

January 30, 2023

Trucking like a locomotive in restored 1960s Kenworths

In this Overdrive Radio edition, log hauler, writer, podcaster Gord Magill drew out more of Edison Motors cofounder Chace Barber’s story about his unique approach to electric-drive trucks, with some surprising benefits and potential applications.

January 27, 2023

Owner-op finds Chicago container hauling, long-term, more lucrative than OTR

Marine vet and owner-operator Carlos Alizondo hauled in military support-operations in Iraq, but also has war stories about container hauling in his hometown of Chicago. "These guys don't know how good they have it today," he said of current conditions.

January 23, 2023

Carlos Alizondo's 1998 Peterbilt 379 daycab

Keep Trucking with small fleet owner Mike Nelms, integrating biz education into operations

In today's Overdrive Radio podcast, the story of how Nelms built a 22-truck fleet by including distinctly educational efforts into ops. Also hear how 30-year-old Caroline Correa clears $9K-$11K a month as a small fleet investor leased with Nelms.

January 20, 2023

overdrive radio youtube thumbnail with mike nelms and keep trucking transportation

Why a college administrator quit her job and took up trucking

Tiffany Wallin fell for an owner-operator and the trucking lifestyle all at once, overcoming a personal tragedy to do so. For her husband, having a woman deal with shippers has been an eye-opener.

January 19, 2023

Tiffany Wallin sits behind the wheel of 2017 Freightliner Coronado glider.

POLL: What's your credit score?

Owner-operators, have you been keeping track of your credit score? When it comes time to borrow, of course, it's a significant piece of information any lender looks at to determine loan terms, and whether it can lend to you. Weigh in via this poll...

January 17, 2023

Owner Operator Credit Score Distribution January 2020

New year, new you

Have you given up on your New Year's Resolutions yet? If so, you're not alone. Clifford Petersen here offers strategies toward more effective goal-setting and achievement. "The reward is a new you, at a new level, in this new year."

January 16, 2023

Flatbed On Highway California Pacheco Pass

Battery-electric's trucking reality -- parking shortage will 'look a whole lot worse'

If the entirety of the U.S. vehicle fleet, including owner-operators' trucks, suddenly transitioned to battery-electric, what level of electric power generation would it take? What kind of materials demands? Furthermore, how much worse would parking get?

January 13, 2023

Overdrive Radio 1 13 23 Youtube

Driver arrested after crash derails train in Tennessee

Police announced felony charges and blasted out the mugshot of a driver involved in a scary collision with a train, but some commenters are crying foul. The operator's day in court is set for April.

January 12, 2023

Screenshot 2023 01 12 At 1 28 54 Pm

Wide loads to a narrow niche: Houseboat hauler and expert diesel mechanic Greg Parks

The story of how a personal need in 2010 brought the longtime diesel shop owner to the ultra-specialized business of houseboat hauling, which is a significant though still part-time portion of his week-in, week-out work out of Camden, Arkansas.

January 10, 2023

Greg Parks' Western Star pulling a houseboat

A purposeful life beyond the truck: Owner-operators Jay and Katt Hosty

The long-term return on a person’s honest investment in volunteering far outweighs what may appear at first a week of lost income opportunity. Meet an example of purpose beyond the truck in owner-operator Jay Hosty and his wife, Katt.

January 9, 2023

Jay Hosty and his 2005 Western Star

Owner-operators' 2023 income expectations trend sharply negative

Asked in the final month of 2022 to assess prospects for business income in 2023, 6 in 10 owners saw either a downtick coming or more of the same as the challenging year of 2022. This episode of Overdrive Radio in part offers strategies for dealing.

January 6, 2023

California Weigh Station

Faces of the Road: Longtime Wreaths Across America transportation director Don Queeney

Don Queeney "exudes mission," according to Long Haul Paul in this profile about his long tenure directing transportation annually for Wreaths Across America. The Hampton Roads Moving and Storage cofounder reflects on that mission here.

January 3, 2023

Then there was this photo in late 2005 that basically broke the Internet.

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Youtube

One owner-op's long road to steady dry-bulk freight, for the whole family

In this Overdrive Radio edition out on a dry-bulk haul with Kentucky-based John McCormick, the owner-operator lays out his own and his father's different histories in trucking. Their stories converged in recent years on this regular run.

John Highley's 2018 Kenworth W900L

John Highley’s custom specialized-freight-hauling 2018 W900L

Trucks Exiting Scale

More freight fraud inbound? Pessimistic rates outlook sets the stage

Kelvin Schmidt's 2018 Volvo, parked at home

Always headed home: Owner-op pulls in profit with a single goal in mind

Howes Diesel Defender

Howes Diesel Defender

One owner-op's long road to steady dry-bulk freight, for the whole family

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