Commentary

Who I Am

I'm a long-haul truck driver, moving around the 48-states. My wife and I live in Boise. Mostly I live in my truck, a 1997 Volvo sleeper cab. Usually I stay out for 6 weeks on the road, and am home for one week. My company allows one day off for every six on the road. Some trucking companies allow one day off for seven days on the road.

I live in the truck. Most meals and showers are taken at truck stops, although I have a small office refrigerator and microwave oven stacked in front of the bunk, between the seats. I sleep in the truck every night.
Long-haul truck drivers have no "8-hour day," no overtime, no weekend off, no holidays. We are "exempt" from the protections normal workers enjoy, because we fall under the byzantine work rules covering commercial motor vehicle operators--rules that have... It is a life style most people cannot imagine. It's living like a gypsy refugee. Most long-haul drivers work 7 days a week, 12 to 14 hours a day on average--including 10 or more hours a day driving. 
My "typical" workday begins about 6 a.m. I'll grab a quick cup of coffee from the truckstop, make a quick walk-around inspection of my truck (a "pretrip" required by law), and then I'll hit the road for as much as 10 hours of driving, or about 600 miles. I like to shut down before dark, and get into a truckstop parking space before they fill up. A "typical" delivery appointment will be from 6 to 8 a.m., and will take one or two hours. With luck, I'll have a dispatch for new freight to pickup by midday, and the cycle repeats itself. It is not "typical" for things to go this smoothly. 




20-Dec-02 <©> Graybyrd