A Tough Day On The Road

I had a rough day today that is typical for truck owner-operators anywhere. The day started at 0330 hours as I drove to a gas station next to the Florida Turnpike, to fill up for a day of heavy hauling material to two different sites approximately 100 miles away each.

I would drive to one local quarry to pick up 22 tons of Lime Rock and drive it to the first destination 100 miles away, then come back 100 miles to a different quarry and pick up 22 tons of Rock #57 (.57 inch size) and drive that to another location also 100 miles away.

With truck expected to weight 70,000lbs, distance, traffic and road conditions, it was to be a 2.5 hour drive each way. So a long day was expected, even if it was without the usual delays at the quarries with hundreds to trucks going in and out and other unexpected delays.

I got to the first quarry at 0415 and was number 50 in line for the quarry to open at 0530. Soon after setting the parking brake, there were another 50 plus trucks in line behind me. I shut the engine off to conserve fuel and waited in the suffocating heat. It was 80 degrees at 04:30. I paced around the truck, cleaned my mirrors, stared at the full moon while trying to avoid the mosquitoes. I also asked myself why am I here? Aren’t I retired? But my brother needed a temporary driver.

I reflected on how much the Diesel I had bought cost him. It was $5.45 a gallon and it took $360 dollars to fill up tank. I was wondering at how this guys make a living with these fuel prices. I remembered speaking with other drivers on a previous job who were very unhappy with Trump and the cost of fuel. They told me that back in February, they were paying on average, $2.00 less per gallon and when you have to fill a 120 gallon tank that will last you one day, depending on loads, distance, and road conditions, it reduces your earnings exponentially.

Think about it. In my case, when the fuel gauge reads empty, it usually has about 30 gallons left, so to fill it up for a day’s work, you’re buying 90 gallons at an average of $5.45 for 9/10ths of a gallon. That’s almost $500 dollars for 90 gallons! In my case, as I mentioned, it took only $350 to fill up the 120 gallon tank. That cost will be deducted from the day’s earnings.

The quarry opened and I slowly followed the line to the scales. The truck weighed 26,580lbs. Told the scale operator I was on, the company I was hauling for, and truck number, and was cleared to proceed to the Lime Rock location deep within the quarry. The place was a beehive buzzing with  activity. If you know where to go, it’s just of matter of getting in line to load, if not, you got to waste time trying to find the material’s location. I didn’t know.

Loaded and headed back to the scales. The truck weighted 69,990lbs. Mind you, I can’t exceed 70,000lbs, so my compliments to the skill of the loader. Otherwise, I have to get off the scale, drive to a designated spot and dump some of the material. Dirty, time consuming, and dangerous. Then return to scale and reweigh the truck and get my load ticket. They won’t allow you to leave overloaded as per DOT regulations.

I drove off the scale, covered my load, and followed behind a long line of trucks heading for the highway, as the Sun began to rise. Got on the turnpike and was soon rolling at 70mph in the light early morning traffic. It was a pleasant drive until I rolled off my exit with a flat tire. Luckily, there was a staging-parking area that I was able to drive in. I made contact with the owner of the truck, my brother, who dispatched a “Gomero,” a truck tire mobile repair unit.

He showed up about an hour later, due to traffic and distance and proceeded to lift the truck. It took three air jacks to raise the truck high enough to address the flat. He removed the tire from the wheel without having to remove the wheel from the axle and we found out something had penetrated the tire on the side. He said he could patch it so that I could make it to the job site but that a new tire was needed. He couldn’t guarantee it would hold under the weight.

Let me tell you that his job is tough, dirty and extremely dangerous. He proceeded to patch the tire, inflate it and checked for leaks. It held. The man was paid and tipped, and I was soon on my way. When all was said and done, I lost two hours and I was still 22 miles from my destination at Witham Field airport in Stuart. The route had initially been on the Turnpike, then I-75, the Sawgrass Expressways then back on the Turnpike to join I-95. Yes, a lot of switching of roads.

I made it to the destination, waited to be escorted into the airport property and delivered my load. Escorted back out and on my way back to Miami. It took me two hours plus with the morning rush. On the way my brother, who had talked to the Gomero, told me to meet him at at truck tire sales shop near the Turnpike where the quarries are located. A couple of hours later, and $900 dollars poorer, we had a new tire.

My brother told me the second trip was given to another driver as it had a time constraint but that another load was available to another customer. He asked me if I wanted that assignment, and given the circumstances, I said yes. Headed back to the quarry I had already been that morning, and proceeded to pick up 22 tons of 3/4” rock for a job site in Boynton Beach, approximately 75 miles away. I didn’t know where that material was either.

That trip went uneventful but for the rush hour traffic coming back south. However, it gave me time to reflect on the day’s events. My first load paid $20 dollars per ton or $440 dollars. The second load paid $18 dollars per ton or $396 dollars. That much weight over all that driving, drank the $350 dollars of Diesel I had bought that morning.

The Gomero was $125 with tip. The tire with balance and installation, was $900 dollars. The total owner-operator costs for the day to deliver two loads was $1375 dollars. Both jobs earned $836 dollars. My brother lost $539 dollars that day. Instead of making money, he lost money. In the end, I worked 13 hours that day and he made no money. So I told him to not worry about paying me for the day. He  didn’t want to go along but I insisted.

I see trucks on the side of the road all the time with flat tires or other mechanical problems and it makes me wonder, how are they making a living with these fuel prices?