I decided I had better leave southern Ontario last Friday night in order to cope with all the weekend warriors heading up into cottage country. Problem was my load was not ready until it was too late to leave so I ended up joining the fray on highway 400 anyway come Saturday morning. That resulted in lost time that added up to me running five minutes over my drive time getting in to Winnipeg on Sunday night. Kiss that months safety bonus goodbye.
So I've only got five drops but one has been decked and the receiver has no loading dock so I'll have to go somewhere and undeck it before making delivery. Another one requires a delivery appointment that wasn't arranged. They also only receive until noon. (Yes, that's right, NOON! !) I'm also supposed to switch wagons with a driver that has Brandon, Winkler, and Winnipeg deliveries to do first leaving me with Duluth and Green Bay to do tomorrow. Umm, yea, sure.
So after making my calls early this morning to deal with all that I did what any normal person would do. Strapped on my running shoes, filled my water bottles and went out for a run for a couple of hours.
Like a slow running stream drivers have to flow around obstacles not try and climb over them. We wear them down over time. Bwahahaha.
Until all the players in this industry learn to work together recruiting professional drivers will continue to be a hot issue. We're growing weary of the nonsense.
Monday 23 July 2012
Happy Monday
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The upside? I was one of the northbound fray on Saturday morning; when we left Toronto my passenger knew nothing about big trucks; traffic was so slow we parked beside one for a few miles and I schooled her on air bags, fifth wheels, air lines, aerodynamics, conspicuity and tie-downs. Being stuck in traffic can be very educational. Have a good week!
ReplyDeleteAl,
ReplyDeletethanks for the good blog post. I like your analogy of water flowing around objects in the stream. Drivers are constantly presented with obstacles in trying to get the job done within their schedule. The driver's ability to react, adapt and overcome is the mark of a professional driver. The mark of a professional dispatcher (and the trucking company) is to support the driver properly as they respond/react - without penalizing them or forcing them to conform to an inflexible process that doesn't reflect the reality of what happens on the road! I truly believe that trucking companies need to empower professional drivers to make decisions that make sense - and this requires trust and respect. Ultimately these trucking companies will succeed and prosper, while others that are less flexible will wither, especially in today's environment of increased regulations, less driving hours, and less flexibility to manage one's day effectively.
Thanks for the idea of going for a run!! I usually have the problem where my legs just get so restless for sitting for such a long time. I've tried going for walks and taking bathroom breaks but it doesn't always help. Especially when I'm in for long haul trucking.
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