Driving Downhill, in the Snow, with an Empty Trailer...for Newbies.

Driving Downhill, in the Snow, with an Empty Trailer...for Newbies.

Winter, 2012. 1:35PM. Sunny.

If I remember correctly it was early December. I'm new to trucking and traveling with my trainer in a 2011 Kenworth, model T-...errr, T something or other...let's call it a T-SixMillion, or some such nonsense. The company we work for pulls a lot of wallboard out of Gypsum, CO. We are flatbed monkeys on a mission. My trainer is the best the company has and, for that, I am grateful.

I'm behind the wheel heading west through Eisenhower tunnel. Trainer Man occupies the passenger seat and spews relevant advice in his mellow Mississippi accent. He knows what's ahead. I'm clueless—I may have even drooled at one point.

Exiting Eisenhower, he instructs me to slow to a speed below the posted limit. Following a brief internal deliberation, I do as he suggests because I-70, on the west side of Eisenhower, is snow-packed and slick. We move to the right lane, apply the 4-way flashers, and begin our slow descent down the 75% grade. Oops, typo. It's a 7% grade. He then gives me the best piece of advice concerning traveling downhill on snow with an empty trailer, which is: WATCH YOUR TRAILER. An empty trailer, he explains, is more likely to slip and move laterally into another lane of traffic, especially when applying the brakes. If this happens, he recommends placing panic at the bottom of the list of things to do. The fix is simple. Just back out of it (code for easing off the gas) and wait for the trailer to move back behind the truck. As I'm listening to him, my speed slowly increases, and my eyes begin to cross. Sure enough, I tap the brakes and my trailer moves 2 feet to the left. I immediately ease off the gas and my trailer corrects itself in no time flat. Lesson embedded.

Gravity Notes: On snow, an empty trailer is more hazardous than a loaded trailer because there is no weight on the trailer tires to assist with traction. This does not translate to ignoring a loaded trailer. Pay attention to your vehicle as much as possible while maintaining best safety practices. Makes it easier to avoid the pterodactyls that swoop down out of nowhere, grab your trailer, and carry it off to their mountain lairs, impressing the shit out of their girlfriends.

Stay safe.

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Safety as a Service is Proud to Announce a New Course-Professional Driver Attirubutes

The Attributes of a Professional course looks at what makes a professional driver with some facts and statistics about the profession. From there we delve into what makes an expert OTR driver. Our presentation will finish up with some rules of the road and a code of ethics for all professional OTR drivers. This one course of many in our library at http://safetyasaservice.com

How Steve Uses Cloud Recruiting with Safety as a Service

Steve explains how he uses Safety as a Service and Gary's Job Board to hire and manage his drivers.





Imagine being able to carefully screen and select your team of drivers without spending a dime on advertising,

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ATTENTION: To All CDL Drivers - Sign Up Today For Instant Jobs

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http://safetyasaservice.com/recruiting

Hi there, I'm Gary!

If you've landed on this page, then you're probably a driver looking to

land a new job. Well, www.SafetyAsAService.com is perfect, as it offers

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Making a reasonable suspicion determination

Making a reasonable suspicion determination is never fun.  Make sure to document the date and time as well as the observed behavior or cause for the reasonable suspicion test.  Using a standardized form can ensure that all the correct steps are followed.  Approaching an employee who may be under the influence needs to be done in a way that shows concern for the employee. 

                 First and foremost do not show anger, and do not accuse the employee.  A positive drug or alcohol test can be a career ending event for a driver, and if you show anger towards the employee it could escalate the situation.  Let the employee know what you have observed (slurred speech, odor, motor skill problems) and ask if there could be another explanation for what you observed.  Tell the employee that they are going to be sent for a drug and/or alcohol test just to rule substances out as a possible cause. 

                Never have the employee drive themselves to the testing location, because if they cause an accident on the way the company could be liable for damages.  If you made the reasonable suspicion determination try to have someone else drive them to the testing site.  The employee will be less likely to get violent if they are not alone with the person who is having them sent for the test.  Remember that this you only have a suspicion that the employee is under the influence. 

                Sometimes suspicions can be wrong, so it is important that you are polite and respectful towards employees who are sent for reasonable suspicions. Being kind and professional saves face and avoids an awkward work relationship if the employee does not test positive.  Finally make sure that only supervisors that have taken a supervisor training course are making reasonable suspicion determinations.  Safety as aService offers an online training course for supervisors. 

Gary's Job Board-Sample

This is a sample of the email that we send to drivers on our list.  The links below do not go anywhere.  Call Eric Haney at CDL College, 303-367-1030, if you are a driver or a carrier that would like to participate in the program. Keystone Ski Resort is in need of several CDL Drivers Experience of a Lifetime. More than just our mission, these words describe our unique and iconic resorts and the people who share a desire to achieve and experience excellence.  One of our core values is providing an exceptional experience to our guests and to our employees.  Must have a current CDL Class B (or A) with P2 Endorsement and airbrakes- required. More........  10 CDL Class A Drivers; local, OverTime! Hurry!!!!!!  Dear Gary, I am looking to locate about 10 drivers for full time positions out of Fort Lupton, Colorado. This is a huge opportunity to make overtime, and to have a local position that allows individuals to be home every night. All resumes must be received within the next 24 hours and individuals need to be able to interview on Friday Feb 7th. Additionally, all candidates must be able to pass a drug test and background check. Thank you so much for your help! We need to bypass Rob and Gary on this one. Go directly to the source. Please send them tonewtons@enscicon.com Regional/Multi-State OTR Drivers Needed  Hi Gary, Thank you for all of your help with getting our OTR driver position posted with your school. I have attached the flier that I have created for the position. Please let me know if you need anything further. Thank you, Katie  Click Here for more information Local Class A Job. Hi Gary, Ahern Rentals is looking for a Class A CDL driver to unload, load and transport general rental and high reach equipment from work sites and other branch locations. Thanks, Mark Click Here for more information Local Class A Job. Dear Gary, Looking to hire a Class A CDL driver to drive tractor trailer on 2 local routes to pick up heavy freight. Must have CDL! Must be able to lift at least 50lbs on a consistant basis. Must be at least 25. Competetive wages paid by the hour bi weekly. Shift is approximately 2-8pm Monday -Friday Must be reliable! More Information is Here

North Dakota Oil Field Truck Drivers

This is a great piece from the New York Times chronicling the life of a female truck driver in the oil fields of North Dakota. What a hard life for her? The things we do to make it in America today.

Thank god for the trucking and oil industries. They are replacing the manufacturing economy that we used to know. The difficulty of the work is comparable. At least we still have the opportunity to hustle and break our backs for a decent living.

http://nyti.ms/1aiYpeL

Extreme Trucking - The New "Hours of Service" Rule

Extreme Trucking - The New "Hours of Service" Rule
The new "Hours of Service" rules went into effect on July 1, 2013. Why? It is an attempt by the FMCSA to make the roads safer by regulating a driver's time off.

Drivers can no longer work 82 hours per week. Is that such a bad thing? What other industry asks a worker to put in 82 hours? Or even 70 hours, our new limit. We can debate the issue at a later date.
Let's simplify the rule. What exactly do they mean by:

" A driver may not take an off-duty period allowed by paragraph (c) of this section to restart the calculation of 60 hours in 7 consecutive days, or 70 hours in 8 consecutive days, until 168 or more consecutive hours have passed since the beginning of the last such off-duty period. When a driver takes more than one off-duty period of 34 or more consecutive hours within a period of 168 consecutive hours, he or she must indicate in the Remarks section of the record of duty status which such off-duty period is being used to restart the calculation of 60 hours in 7 consecutive days or 70 hours in 8 consecutive days."

Do you remember the last rule change? The most difficult thing to understand was the limit of 14 hours in a day. That meant working 14 consecutive hours. If we started work at 7 a.m. we were not allowed to work past 9 p.m. Once we started our day, we could no longer make changes to our log book that would allow us to work later than 9 p.m. That was a big change. Previous to the change, we had plenty of ways to adjust the book. The "14 hour limit" put a stop to that.

The new 34 hour restart is similar. One week is 168 hours. This Monday to next Monday equals exactly 168 hours. You are not allowed to work more than 70 hours during that time, and you cannot work again until you have taken 34 hours off.

You may take two-34 hour breaks per week, but if you do it will not help you to exceed 70 hours for that week.

There is no more fiddling with the log book and giving yourself as many restarts as you wish. Get used to it. Drivers need to start thinking of their work like everyone else does. Work 5, or even 6 days per week, but take some time for yourself at the end of it. Recharge before you start again, everybody else does.

Trucking companies are worried that the FMCSA will upset their routines, but I have a sneaking feeling that the new rules will lead to better driver retention. We can address that at another time.