panther!!

dalejr2988 · Dec 25, 2010

I am thinking of going back into driving.. I have an opportunity to get into a c/v.. How is it driving for panther now? be honest or as honest as u can be

Turtle · Dec 26, 2010

Same as it's always been: Better if you own your own van than if you drive for someone else; if you hang out where other Panther vans are you won't get nearly as many loads as you will if you are where everybody else ain't.

dalejr2988 · Dec 26, 2010

U need a CDL class C license for panther for a cargo van right? and its just a class C so all I would need to do is go and take a written test right

Turtle · Dec 26, 2010

Well, no. You need a CLD to drive at Panther, be it a Class A, B or C. Most van drivers get a Class C, but if you have a B or an A that will work, too.

For any driver's license they'll make you take a road test for that class of license. So for Class C, you'll take the road test in a Class C vehicle, in this case a cargo van.

chefdennis · Dec 26, 2010

Retrictions on hours you can drive and miles you can drive in any one day....

blizzard2014 · Dec 26, 2010

Turtle said:
Well, no. You need a CLD to drive at Panther, be it a Class A, B or C. Most van drivers get a Class C, but if you have a B or an A that will work, too.

For any driver's license they'll make you take a road test for that class of license. So for Class C, you'll take the road test in a Class C vehicle, in this case a cargo van.

Why would you want to work for a company where you have to stay in the fringes to get away from all of their other trucks. When I was working for Bolt Express I rarely ever had to reposition when I was in the midwest; and they would always come through with a decent load for me. I am back to watching the load boards again and there is plenty of work out there in the midwest. Now what price you can get it for is still any mans guess, but there is no reason to drive into fringe aeras of you work for a company that does not over-hire cargo vans!

I'm not taking a personal shot at you, Turtle. You know the Panther system and will reposition yourself accordingly. But for someone who is just starting out, Panther could be a very hard learning curve. I would recommend a company like Bolt Express or some smaller company that can keep your wheels turning fairly consistently. But if you choose to go with Panther, send me a PM and I will help you to more better understand their system. I've lived it and I know what it is all about!

blizzard2014 · Dec 26, 2010

chefdennis said:
Retrictions on hours you can drive and miles you can drive in any one day....

Panther does have restrictions on the hours you can drive. They have gone to the extreme in the name of safety; but there are other companies who take driving unsafe to the extreme. I did a lot of 24 hour advuntures last year and it is not always safe and glamourous. I'm starting to rethink those tight delivery times!

shaw8999 · Jan 1, 2011

We have been driving for panther as a team which is better than solo. When u get out west be prepared to be sitting for a while. Loads are few and scarce for a van driver unless u get lucky. We had been out west sittin for 4 to 5 days then end up dead heading out. We didnt get a load till we hit Illionis. We did a alot of deadheading just to get a different board sometimes it paid off sometimes it didnt. Just have to take those chances.
We are getting tired of sitting for days and not gettin anything especially in the western states.
We up grading to a straight truck with a great fleet owner more loads more miles. Hopefully no more deadheading many miles for a better slot. I think theres to many vans out there and not enough loads to keep them busy. If you do I would have a team driver for more miles and your chances are better getting out are much better.
Good Luck

Turtle · Jan 1, 2011

blizzard said:
Panther does have restrictions on the hours you can drive. They have gone to the extreme in the name of safety;

Safety's got nothing to do with it. Some, even those in Safety, will insult your intelligence and say it is, but it's not. And if you push them a little they'll admit it. It's all about limiting Panther's liability in case of an accident. If they can show they did not force or coerce you into driving beyond a certain limit (miles or time), and they can show a structured program (similar to the HoS) for the purposes of safety, then their liability is reduced. The 900 mile/16 hour rule was implemented as a direct result of civil (money) litigation.

Why would you want to work for a company where you have to stay in the fringes to get away from all of their other trucks.

Uhm, I'm gonna go with, to stay away from all of their other trucks.

Panther is big, so they've got a lot of trucks and vans. The bigger a carrier is, the more lazy people they will have, and Panther has a lot of lazy people who like to stay close to home, which means the Midwest. They have a lot of people who will deadhead home from several hundred miles away on a Friday just to be home for the weekend. The other day I delivered in Detroit and found myself sitting at #27 on the Rolumus board. It wasn't because all those people recently delivered there and were waiting to get loaded, it's because they all deadheaded home and remained in service.

The main reason I like to stay in the fringes, or simply put - where everyone else ain't, is because while the loads aren't as plentiful, they tend to be longer and better paying loads. In the end, I wind up with as many or miles miles as most, and a better rate per mile.

Someone mentioned out west. Going out west can be a crapshoot, and if you lack patience it's a destination I do not recommend at all. I was out there from the end-ish of February, through March and into April. There were times I sat for 4 or 5 days, then I'd get two or three 700-900 mile loads back to back, and then sit another 3, 4 or 5 days, then lather rinse repeat. When all was done, I did very well out there for the roughly 8 weeks I was there.

I have also delivered to a 2-a-day Las Vegas board and then sat there for 12 days watching Air Force "Top Gun" training maneuvers above while the load board below fell to 0-a-day.

People say Panther has too many vans, and if you look at the van and load counts on the Midwest board, you can easily come to that conclusion. But there are lots of places (yes, on the fringes) where Panther has half as many vans available, if that many, as loads to be covered. Panther doesn't have too many vans, they just have too many van drivers who will sit in the wrong areas and complain that Panther has too many vans.

One downside to Panther is its size. Many smaller carriers feel it directly and immediately if one or more of their trucks are sitting idle, so they may actively seek out loads for a sitting van. Panther, by and large, doesn't do that. You can be sitting somewhere and for the most part, you are off their radar unless and until a load comes up that is near to you and they need to you cover it (but, of course, that's what emergency freight is essentially all about). You can sit for a week or three and it won't hurt their bottom line like it would with a smaller carrier that needs as many trucks as possible to be rolling as often as possible. If you're with Panther, you have to use that knowlege to your advantage.

Then again, I consistently get just as many or sometimes even more miles as the most of the drivers from smaller carriers get.

Whatever tricks and tips you use, no matter what carrier you are with, when all is said and done, it all boils down to being in the right place at the right time. You have to work within that concept, and work that concept within the scope of your carrier.