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I woke up this morning thinking about this thread and the "average miles per shift" indicator that has been proposed. The reason I am so enthusiastic in my critique of this indicator is that I do not want expediter newbies and wannabees getting the idea that pay-per-hour is a meaningful way to...

In that scenario, if I was the one going 500 miles in 10 hours, there is no question; I am the one who made more money for three reasons. (1) You burned more fuel to drive the same amount of miles. Your higher expenses mean I made more money on the run. (2) I don't need to be out of the truck to...

So, a hypothetical expedite team wakes up on Monday morning after laying over at a truck stop over the weekend and they are ready to go to work. They expect load offers to come in today because that is the normal flow for them. Sure enough, a load offer comes in. Being smart business people...

With the information you provide, and with the benefit of hindsight, your question can be answered along the lines you laid out. But as expediters, how realistic is that scenario really? Diane and I have been in the business over ten years and have never once had our choice of three loads at...

You are not alone. The decline of the middle class is one of the themes or our life in America.

I stated an observation but did not express surprise. It does not surprise me a bit that huge companies seek to maximize their profits. That has been the case for more than 33 years.

You are right. It is tricky. In addition to the miles per oil change, you must also factor in the increased cost of the oil and filters. Also add in the environmental fees that are tacked on to oil changes in some states. And if your present truck has four oil filters but your previous ones had...

In this CNN article, Arnold Schwarzenegger talks about using unfamiliar gyms on the road to work out. He's not in a truck like we are but his tips apply to expediters too. Excerpt: "Someone on Reddit asked what it was like for me to train in hotel gyms or other unfamiliar gyms on the road,"...

News broke this week about research that shows an additional benefit to sleep. It seems that when you sleep, harmful toxins that build up in your brain during your waking hours are flushed out. Full story here. We all know that we are better at math and computer games and driving when we are...

Yes, of course. But how often are you allowed to walk unsupervised into Home Depot or up to the Snap-On Tools truck with the family credit card? ;)

It is often said in the Open Forums that operating expenses are going up while freight rates are going down. It is not hard to convince people that expenses are going up. Price increases in trucks, parts, shop labor, health insurance, tires, clothing, tools, and other such things are commonly...

Just for fun, I calculated our "average miles per shift" (term from original post) for our most recent five days in the truck. Since Diane and I alternate shifts, it is the same thing to calculate average miles per team member, is it not? That's what is shown below. Note that in this truck...

We don't take loads outside our capabilities, but we'll take any load that pays well enough and can be completed in whatever log book hours we have available (team hours combined). I still don't understand how "average miles per team member" is a meaningful number. Can you explain more about...

We'd handle such a run as any other. Because I can sleep easier in the early evening than Diane can, we always change shifts around 4:00 p.m. If the pick up is at 3:00 p.m., I'll load and drive until 4:00. If it is at 7:00 a.m., I do the same thing. Diane will then drive from 4:00 p.m. to 2:00...

Why would a husband want to know that?

We run paper logs too and are fully aware of how many miles each team member drives each day because we must calculate and write it in each day's box. I just don't understand why that number (average miles per team member) would be significant. Why would you pay attention to it?

Re: Per Diem Tax Deductions & Taxes............................................. .... The thing is, you don't get to be in business and ignore tax law at the same time, and you are now finding this out the hard way. The fact that you did not know this or that and cannot afford this or that is...

Can you say more about this? When Diane and I got finger printed for our HAZMAT CDL endorsement, we went to a location in the state we happened to be in at the time. Has this changed? Is it now necessary to return to your home state to get finger printed? We're good for now but our home state is...

Sounds nice.

Diane and I have never tracked our average miles per driving shift. The loads vary so much from load to load that average miles per shift is not a meaningful number. That team you talked to, did they happen to say why they knew the number and what they did with the info?