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Yes, laptop navigation programs can provide verbal directions.

Truck selection may vary from state to state. That was one of the toughest parts of the course for us, driving an unfamiliar truck on an unfamiliar course. Had we been able to drive our own truck, we would have done better. But that is not the way it works in Minnesota. No one gets to drive...

And that, dear readers, is one of the benefits of events like these. It helps keep you sharp. People talk about the value of experience. But if you allow yourself to fall into a slovenly rut, the value exists more in one's mind than out on the road. That is not to say you must enter a...

Very cool! I see your state organization provides sample written test questions online. These are the same samples we received in Minnesota. The questions are similar to those we saw on the actual test but they were not the same. Thorough book study was still necessary to do well on the test...

The answers to most of your questions are on the ATA web site (links already provided). I do not know what the entry fee may be in your state. Our carrier paid ours. Some drivers in our Minnesota competition told me their carriers provided bonuses for winning. Beyond that, I know nothing about...

I do not know if Panther is an ATA member or not. Drivers/contractors with any carrier, including own-authority owner-operators, that may wish to enter the ATA National Truck Driving Championships, can get info at National Truck Driving Championships. This is the same link provided in the...

Greg, people know how to read. The link about the Truck Driving Championships was provided in the first post. Can't you just leave it at that?

You are wrong. The eligibility requirements are posted on the ATA web site. The link is in my post above.

This June 6-9, Diane and I responded to the FedEx Chairman's Challenge and competed in the Minnesota State Truck Driving Championship, which is part of the American Trucking Associations National Truck Driving Championships. In this three-day event, neither of us placed high enough to advance...

Are you maybe talking about a Freightliner backpack closet? Or was it a different kind of truck? Also, was what you saw on a factory sleeper or custom sleeper?

The New York Times article that prompted discussion in trucking circles was Soaring Fuel Prices Take a Withering Toll on Truckers. The part that jumped out for me was, "...carriers with at least five trucks are also going out of business at an accelerating pace. In the first quarter, 935 of...

While there was no good reason for not doing it sooner, I finally got around to ordering Airtabs for our truck. I am always skeptical of fuel economy claims made about any aftermarket device. While a given driver may indeed see a fuel economy improvement, I wonder how much of it has to do...

Back to the original post, another item that comes to mind is fleet owners that pay for fuel. I would think they are feeling pressure like never before. On one hand, the driver has no financial incentive to minimize incidental deadhead trips. Driving say fifty miles to a truck stop to get a...

We average 9-10 mpg depending on speed, wind and terrain. The truck weighs 34,000 lbs. empty. We are not disappointed in the mpg numbers as we had no predefined expectations when we built the truck, though 7 mpg would have been a disappointment. In calculating its fuel surcharge, FedEx Custom...

As if $4.00/gallon for diesel fuel was not bad enough, $5.00/gallon is now being charged in some areas. Fuel surcharges trend upward as a result, but not on the personal deadhead miles expediters do. At the moment, we are 900 miles from home. At 9 mpg for a straight truck, that is 100...

Every carrier has its top producers, long-term contractors and happy people. So too with flashes in the pan, long-term complainers that don't do well but don't leave either, and wash outs. At least important as the question, "How contractor-friendly is the carrier?" is the question, "How...

We have delivered to a movie production facility in New York City and a large movie studio in Los Angeles. The New York delivery was frozen pizza dough to be used in making a TV ad for a major food company. The other was a nearly-finished movie that had post-production work done on it in New...

Two bars and a pizza joint sounds like reason enough for me. :p

Good words. Keep us posted.