Moving on from the dirty windshield. 4 years down the road. It was a blast. Tons of pics! (Long)

Hi all,

Note: I’ve inserted many pictures in between the paragraphs to make the reading more enjoyable! So keep going till the end!

Hopefully the fine members here will indulge me in sharing this post about my 4 year ( 5 years including school and training) journey as a long haul flatbed truck driver. After a gruelling trip to Corpus Christi TX last January, I’ve decided to move on. The timing was perfect but not without pain.

On January 28th 2022, while sitting at the Flying J in London Ontario after a week and almost 8,000 kms (5000 miles), I was contemplating the final 700 kms (425 miles) that would get me home and the 750,000 kms or so that I travelled across North America over the last years. I was stuck in that “truckers convoy” (Please, no comments on this), I had just celebrated 60 in December, had a sprained back, was feeling shitty (turned out to be COVID) and I was wondering how in the hell did I manage to do this for 4 years? Then the call came. I had interviewed for a position as a driver trainer for a well known waste management corporation. This call was the last of 3 interviews. I had a feeling! I was then offered the position! Oddly, I couldn’t find the expected excitement?!



https://omegaforums.net/threads/hello-return-from-leave-of-absence.67867/#post-851963

The last stretch home was interminable. Once my truck parked, I headed home, stopped at the liquor store and picked up a bottle of champagne. I sneaked it into my refrigerated bag that I used to stowaway my dirty dishes from my trip. It became a ritual that my lovely wife would take care of washing my dishes and taking care of my laundry while I immediately jumped in the shower upon returning form every trip.

https://omegaforums.net/threads/some-moments-of-my-first-trip.68066/
My very good friend and first trainer almost lost his life in this one. He never came back behind the wheel. He’s all good. No serious long lasting injuries.


When I came out of the shower, she was holding the bottle of champagne. “What’s this for?” She asked. That’s when I broke the news, “How about celebrating a new job!”. Those long weeks away from each other were a thing of the past. She cried. I have to say, starting this trucking thing wasn’t a unilateral or easy decision. I had my wife’s full support the whole time.

https://omegaforums.net/threads/finally-back-home.68339/

This particular move into trucking was for me, and by far, the most life changing experience I’ve had. Flat bedding if for sure, a younger person’s job. Very tough and demanding at the points of loading and unloading. Maybe I’m a masochist? Then there’s the driving. I’m blessed with the love of driving long hours. It simply isn’t enough to like driving. You must LOVE driving. All this plus my wife’s unwavering support gott me this far.

My good friend Guillaume. A 30 year veteran truck driver from France. An amazing dude. I love him dearly.

***One of two pictures from my last trip!!


I won’t dwell on all the negatives of this profession. The industry is cut throat. Health and safety? You better make your own policies. Pay? Only if you put in 70 hour weeks. Five to six days a week away from home in my case. The solitude, reckless motorists (and yes, other truckers), storms, horrendous wrecks etc, etc….

The job gave me a new perspective on life that is priceless. The discovery of a world I never saw and more so, a world I would have never seen if I had carried on with a “normal” life. For me, this was the most obvious benefit. I almost felt guilty that I had all this to myself. All I had were the stories and anecdotes to share. I was fortunate that my wife came along for a couple of trips. This made a huge and positive difference.


**This is the second picture from my last trip. Seen too many of these. Very sad.

The “Trucker Convoy”….Please, no comments.


Being on your own with yourself experiencing the ever changing scenery, complimented by the change of seasons. Driving deep into little communities of America, I experienced life in a whole different way, living with the pulse of the people working in huge plants located in places you would least expect. Both my wife and I realized that there were so many things we took for granted. A humbling experience.

I must say, the OF community was a great source of positive energy. I rarely missed a day where I dint read a few posts, posted pictures of my workhorse Seikos “from the office”, shared my earlier experiences. It was so cool to read your comments and words of encouragement.

So on with a new chapter and thanks for taking the time to read this post and enjoy the pictures!

Cheers

Faz


Relaxing after my first trip…a little more than 4 years ago

Myerstown PA with my lovely wife!











Sent from my iPad

Tnx for sharing your story, enjoyed the read and pics.

Good luck with your new job.

Seems like it must have been an incredibly interesting experience and an opportunity to see so many things you never would have seen otherwise. Personally, I always enjoyed reading your threads and especially the photos. But it also sounds incredibly taxing and exhausting, mentally and physically, so I'm happy to hear you've found a position that will give you a bit of a break and keep you closer to home, at least for now. 😀

Well, first, congratulations!
I have to say I will miss your posts from the road. I liked the Where is Faz? game and the photos & stories but sounds like a fantastic change for you and the wife.
Good luck training the next gen!

A very colorful story, and well told. Congrats!

You couldn’t have said it better. My new job coincided with me hitting the proverbial wall. As much as I enjoyed being on the road, those long trips took their toll. I was ready to continue but that would have required pushing the limit to a point that was unsustainable.

The subject matter would be garbage….literally! 😁

Huge congrats to you! You have stories to tell to last a lifetime. Good luck in your next chapter.

So about that trucker convoy…. Only kidding. Cool pics, nice guitars, watches, trucks and scenery what’s not to like. Glad u got over the bug and I wish you success in your new gig. I interact with some truckers on the weekends I got this side job thing sometimes I meet them as trucks are being unloaded and we are waiting. One guy is packing it in this year he has been a trucker since the day he returned home from the Vietnam war.
He went on to tell me his job was to drop bombs on elephant herds around the Ho Chi Minh trail as they were the “work horses” of “Charlie”. We pretty much wiped out the elephant population in Southeast Asia. Sad….poor guy still seemed messed up thinking about it said he loved being on the road alone it brought him peace.
70% of all the goods we buy/use have been moved by truck. You guys are vital. I don’t think I could do it driving is fine meeting the deadlines and being stuck in traffic are just too stressful. When you aren’t moving but the clocks still ticking I don’t like that feeling. I aways let truckers merge in front of me when they are trying to get in the middle lane. I know it’s gonna slow me down but I feel like it’s the least I can to so I flash my lights to let them in I usually get a peace sign or some type of acknowledgment.

👍👍. I got used to get cut off so much I didn’t pay attention but I always blinked my taillights to those motorists that were courteous enough to let me cut in.

They’re good reliable and well appointed. I can’t say much more, freightliners are all I drove!

Hey mate, congrats on a job well done, and on the new job. You are the second watch collector friend of mine that has switched from an office type career to become a trucker, and then switched to something else after a few years.

My other friend (Mark) went into driver training for a while after coming off the road, and the last I heard from him he was driving a city bus, and was enjoying that.

I’ve interacted with enough truck drivers over the years delivering all kinds of machinery to me on various flat beds, and seen enough of the loading and unloading to know it’s a tough as hell job...

The only downside is that you won’t be swinging by anymore on your trips! But you are always welcome.

Cheers, Al

Congrats and welcome home @Faz