Professional over the road CDL truck drivers are a unique breed of men and women. Strong, determined and masters of stamina, they keep the life blood of our country moving. Truck driving isn’t for everyone . . . in fact, few can actually handle the daily stress and long, endless hours of being out on the road. Long haul trucking is a rough life.

Along with this lifestyle come dangers. Driving through unfamiliar territory late at night looking for your loading or unloading destination . . . totally exhausted trying to find a place to park and you finally settle on the one spot you can find: along the side of an exit off ramp . . . or broken down out in the middle of nowhere . . . in this crazy world we all live in, danger can be just around the next bend.

I remember one night when I pulled into a truck stop in Jessup, Maryland and literally fell right into bed. What seemed like a few minutes later, I heard someone shouting, then some more yelling, and then . . . gun shots! The shots rang out about three trucks down from where I was parked. Seconds later, I was crawling into the driver’s seat, pulling back out onto I-95! To this day I don’t know what occurred, and at the time I didn’t want to know.

At present, there is no Federal Law that states that it is illegal for CDL truck drivers to carry guns in the truck with them. I’m the first to say that there have been several times when I would have felt much better had I had a handgun in my possession. But the question remains . . . should professional CDL truck drivers running over the road be allowed to carry hand guns with them? I find myself evaluating the pros and cons. The large majority of these men and women are good, honest and hard-working adults. The main priority is providing a living for themselves and their families. Should they have to face potential threats in crime infested areas without a means of protection, due to a few “bad apples” in the bunch?

Any professional trucker will tell you that when you are taking a high value shipment into an area of Detroit, Chicago, LA or New York City, etc., at 2:30 A.M., the potential of an attack is always probable. I recall several years ago when drivers were getting killed and their loads stolen while running across I-10 in South Texas along the Mexican border, where you can drive a hundred miles and only see a few cars.

On the other hand, trucking is a hard, stressful vocation. Tempers can flair at the drop of a hat. All one has to do is listen to the CB radio and you will hear constant fighting and berating by many drivers. One fight, one temper, and if one driver has a gun and other does not . . . ? For all the good, law-abiding drivers out there I wish they could be allowed to carry protection. But looking at the insane world we live in now, could it actually bring about more problems?  On the other hand … it is our Constitutional Right!

What do you think?

About the Author:

Aubrey Allen Smith is the author of the Truth About Trucking. An expert in transportation, and former police officer and a deputy sheriff, he has helped many new drivers discover the scams within the trucking industry.

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© 2007 – 2009, AskTheTrucker. All rights reserved.

: aubrey allen smith, cdl, gun laws, trucking

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Lets just pretend for a moment, the trucking industry is perfect, all companies treat their employees wonderfully, all truck driving schools are reasonably priced and give top notch education, and everyone gets sick time and Holiday pay.(You will really have to use your imagination, but just do it).

The thought of being free on the open road, not having a boss on your back, seeing new places all the time. AHHH, what a life.

Now Time For a Little Reality

You wanted the Truth, Right?

Now, you’re out on the road, you’re driving to meet an appointment. You’ve had to really rush to meet your dead line, but YOU MADE IT. You’re all ready to get going again and get some more “real good” miles for the week. But wait, the next load doesn’t deliver for 2 days and the destination is only 350 miles away. That’s only 175 miles/day…..or about $75.00/day. So you wait and hope your next load is a better one.

It is, but the problem is you have to go 600 miles and deliver the next morning. Guess who’s not sleeping tonight? Oh, and remember you were suppose to be home this weekend? Well, you’re not. The load that was suppose to deliver on Saturday AM, won’t be able to accept until Monday early. You’re now out all weekend sitting, alone, and not being paid. ( Remember, you get paid by the mile).

You end up with 2000 miles for the week and gross about $800.00. (That’s $0.40/mile) Take out taxes, insurance, cash advance for OTR living expenses, etc..and you end up with about $500.00. You’re still out there away from home and you now have to do it all over again.

Okay, remember how you were pretending that the trucking industry was wonderful? Well, add to the above the fact that you owe $5000.00 for cdl school training, (which comes out of that check). And how about the fact that you rushed and drove so hard to make that appointment? Did you notice that you went over on your logs? Yup, that’s a fine from DOT if they catch you! That comes out of the check too. By the way, if you say anything about it to the company you work for, you’ll hear something like, “if you knew you were going to go over, you shouldn’t have accepted the load”. The company now issues you a safety warning also. Remember, it is always the driver’s fault!

This is just the tip of the iceberg. This is reality. Let’s sum it all up: You’ve spent thousands on your CDL. You’ve tried to be a good employee and get to your apointments on time. You’ve gone over on your logs, got a fine from DOT, a company safety warning, and did not go home for the weekend. Still sound good?

Decision Time Everybody

Here is the truth. Some people love trucking. They’ve gone to the best schools without spending thousands, they work for a good company that really cares (in my book I give my opinion on the best OTR company out there). Some don’t care that they’re out for weeks at a time, away from family and friends. For these people, trucking is Heaven. They love it, and even though they could be making more money at a 9-5 job, they wouldn’t give it up for anything.

However, if you are planning on “a life”, a structured home on most weekends, exact salary every week to plan on bills, and being with your friends and loved ones, then trucking could be hell for you. It’s just not happening in OTR life. There are other options in trucking though that do pay very well. You can learn about these options in the e-book, The Truth About Trucking.

So there you have it . . . Trucking . . . Heaven or Hell? Want more details? You need to read the Truth About Trucking.

© 2007 – 2008, AskTheTrucker. All rights reserved.

: cdl, long haul trucking, newbie cdl drivers, otr trucking, trucking, trucking life

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