ODFL | Wondering If I'll Have to Switch to P&D

[2BucTruck]

Man, I hope I don't have to wind up switching. I'm having a tough time with the night shift for linehaul. Seems like if I deviate whatsoever from my routine sleep schedule then I cannot sleep during the day before my shift.

I've had to call off 3 times in the past 6 months for lack of sleep - like not being able to sleep for 24+ hours before a shift. My linehaul manager has been extremely supportive, but after this 3rd time, I'm wondering if I'll have to have a chat with him.

I prefer to run linehaul, not P&D. I might have to take that pay cut and make the switch. Thing that sucks is that I could possibly get a day wild turn schedule this coming rebid in 5 months, then again, it might take another year or so. There's guys at my terminal that have a shot at a day time linehaul run, even if it's a wild turn, within 1-2 years of their hire date. That's how much our terminal is growing. I"m just not sure if I can hang till my opportunity comes up.

I don't prefer linehaul just for the pay, I also like to pull those doubles, enjoy not making the multiple stops, and like the long distance driving. I think I could get used to P&D, but it wouldn't be my preference. Just wanted to vent a little.

 

[DayliteDean]

Here's a couple of tips for day sleeping
1.Completely darken your room
2.Noise,run a fan,buy a white noise machine Bed,Bath & Beyond sells a couple of very good ones.
3.Consistency try to go to bed about the same time every day
4.Make everyone in your household understand that these are your sleep hours, you're not to be disturbed
5.See your doctor for a sleep aid until you get used to those hours.
I'm sure other ideas will be posted, There's a lot of veteran day sleepers here on Truckingboards.

 

[2BucTruck]

Thanks DayliteDean, I appreciate the tips. I practice all those things, and when I do, I'm successful at sleeping during the day. I never hear my wife or 3 year old, they're really supportive, and my fan helps drown out the noise. I'm just surprised at how easy it is for me to slip out of a sleep routine. Once I'm in it, I'm good. But just a slight deviation, like a nap in the middle of the night on a day off, and it screws me up royally. It takes discipline, that's for sure.

Honestly, the toughest part is not seeing my family on my two days off. It's like I work 7 days a week. I only see them a little in the morning before I go to bed, and a little in the evening before they go to bed. Then I'm up all night by myself on my "days" off. The money is not worth the little time I get to spend with them. At least OTR guys get a chunk of time off a month to spend with their loved ones, even if the majority of the time they're away from home. Makes me wonder who has the better quality of hometime.

 

[Fonzie]

I feel your pain as most of us night time line hauler's do. I can only tell you what I do to get me through this schedule. Try using over the counter sleep aids (melatonin, simply sleep, etc.). I have been using them for years, with my doctor's blessing. This is the most effective way to deal with the weird hours that we deal with, yet still manage and control your sleep so we can spend as much time with our families as possible and still get sleep when you want to. I would hate to see you leave line haul if you are happy with it just over these issues when you can take control of the situation with sleep aids.

 

[bigbird42368]

Do what ever it takes to be safe.

 

[BillyLo]

P&D isn't as bad as your fellow Line guys make it sound. Yeah, you might make a little less but you'll still make much more than most truck drivers at other companies. After the months go by, they'll know what you're good at and you'll be doing the same route every day. It may be multi stops, but you'll see the same people and know how to handle the truck at each customer. If you get along with people easy, you'll do just fine!

One of the best things with city work is that you know you'll be free for your family every Sat/Sun! Extra line runs will always be there though if you need to pad the pocket. That's the way it's been since I've been here for almost 20 years.

 

[2BucTruck]

I had a fantastic conversation with my linehaul manager earlier tonight. He not only preaches safety, he backs it up. He assured me that I am not going to be in trouble for the amount of times I've had to call off because of lack of sleep. He understood.

BillyLo, thanks for the encouragement brother. I enjoyed my P&D time during training, but for me, the ultimate job is a day time linehaul run. I could realistically see a day wild turn within the next year if I stick it out. It's worth the stretch.

 

[Moneyman01]

I hope you guys don't mind if I chime in. I usually don't have a problem with sleeping during the day either. Saturday I usually sleep a couple hrs and go to bed regular at night or I'll stay up till 1 am and get up around 9 or 10. That's when I don't have my son. I have my son every other week and I pick him up Fridays so the Friday I have to get him I get up around 3 and usually only get like 5 hrs of sleep. I get back home put him to bed and go to work. Sometimes I will not sleep at all Saturday but I usually try and get a nap in. And every Sunday to flip my schedule around I stay up all night and go to bed around 7 and get up at 3 or 4. It works for me. My dad thinks I'm weird for doing it but it works for me and not him. He's also a linehaul driver.

I have also thought about going to P&D. But I like linehaul and driving long distances my self. Plus I like the money on line. But it would be nice to have a regular schedule but day time linehaul is my dream gig to even if it's extra board. But at saia we don't have any daytime linehaul at are barn. So that's why I hope to someday get on with OD to work my way up to daytime gig

 

[theman101]

Thanks DayliteDean, I appreciate the tips. I practice all those things, and when I do, I'm successful at sleeping during the day. I never hear my wife or 3 year old, they're really supportive, and my fan helps drown out the noise. I'm just surprised at how easy it is for me to slip out of a sleep routine. Once I'm in it, I'm good. But just a slight deviation, like a nap in the middle of the night on a day off, and it screws me up royally. It takes discipline, that's for sure.

Honestly, the toughest part is not seeing my family on my two days off. It's like I work 7 days a week. I only see them a little in the morning before I go to bed, and a little in the evening before they go to bed. Then I'm up all night by myself on my "days" off. The money is not worth the little time I get to spend with them. At least OTR guys get a chunk of time off a month to spend with their loved ones, even if the majority of the time they're away from home. Makes mee wonder who has the better quality of hometime.

I also work an overnight linehaul schedule .... What I have learned to do as far as my weekend days off is to just night sleep during that time ...

When I get off on Sat morning I just take an extended nap of sorts .... of about 3 hours or so .... then get rest of my sleep Sat night with my family like a normal person .... enjoy my Sunday with my family... sleep again Sunday night ... then on Monday I again take about a three hour nap at about 2-5 or so... then have dinner with my family before I head out later to work .... this seems to work for me....perhaps you should try something like this ...

Hope this helps ...

 

[truckerhog]

Man, I hope I don't have to wind up switching. I'm having a tough time with the night shift for linehaul. Seems like if I deviate whatsoever from my routine sleep schedule then I cannot sleep during the day before my shift.

I've had to call off 3 times in the past 6 months for lack of sleep - like not being able to sleep for 24+ hours before a shift. My linehaul manager has been extremely supportive, but after this 3rd time, I'm wondering if I'll have to have a chat with him.

I prefer to run linehaul, not P&D. I might have to take that pay cut and make the switch. Thing that sucks is that I could possibly get a day wild turn schedule this coming rebid in 5 months, then again, it might take another year or so. There's guys at my terminal that have a shot at a day time linehaul run, even if it's a wild turn, within 1-2 years of their hire date. That's how much our terminal is growing. I"m just not sure if I can hang till my opportunity comes up.

I don't prefer linehaul just for the pay, I also like to pull those doubles, enjoy not making the multiple stops, and like the long distance driving. I think I could get used to P&D, but it wouldn't be my preference. Just wanted to vent a little.

WE ALL HAD TO DO CHANGES IN THE TRUCKING FIELD WE DID NOT LIKE, SLEEP, RUNS, HOURS, CITY, DOCK, MANAGEMENT AND DRIVERS. IF YOU THINK IT'S SO BAD AT OD, YOU SHOULD GO & TRY ONE OF THE OTHER CARRIERS. JUST WAIT, YOUR (TIME) TURN WILL COME UP FOR A BID RUN. I GUESS I'M GETTING OLD, 44 YEARS DO THIS, I JUST GET SICK & TIRE OF DRIVERS BITCHING ALL THE TIME ABOUT THE JOB. IT'S GETS TO BE OLD HAT. OD IS A GOOD PLACE TO WORK & MANAGE A LOT BETTER THAN THE OTHER CARRIERS. I WOULD NOT WORK FOR ANYBODY ELSE. KEEP ON TRUCKING

 

[a9faninnc]

Damn,driver...I dont think he was bitching about OD,in fact,it seemed quite the opposite...

 

[claim jumper]

Seems like he is willing to do what is needed to keep his job. I belive he even complimented his OD supervisor. I missed the part where he was complaining.

Good luck with it wawtrucker.

 

[Aladdin Sane]

I read and re-read the mans post, and I saw nothing indicative of bitching. Seems to me however that ol' truckerhog could use a bit more sleep himself.

 

[Canadian Flyer]

WE ALL HAD TO DO CHANGES IN THE TRUCKING FIELD WE DID NOT LIKE, SLEEP, RUNS, HOURS, CITY, DOCK, MANAGEMENT AND DRIVERS. IF YOU THINK IT'S SO BAD AT OD, YOU SHOULD GO & TRY ONE OF THE OTHER CARRIERS. JUST WAIT, YOUR (TIME) TURN WILL COME UP FOR A BID RUN. I GUESS I'M GETTING OLD, 44 YEARS DO THIS, I JUST GET SICK & TIRE OF DRIVERS BITCHING ALL THE TIME ABOUT THE JOB. IT'S GETS TO BE OLD HAT. OD IS A GOOD PLACE TO WORK & MANAGE A LOT BETTER THAN THE OTHER CARRIERS. I WOULD NOT WORK FOR ANYBODY ELSE. KEEP ON TRUCKING

Any particular reason you felt the need to ream a guy out for asking for some advice? Calm yourself. There's enough ty attitudes on Truckingboards.

Telling someone to man the **** up isn't going to help anyone. The OP sounded to everyone but you like he was reaching out. You wanna see bitching? Go visit the board of another carrier and read some of their threads. OP wasn't complaining about OD, his run or what he's expected to do. All he did was ask for advice.

Next time you ask for anything, you might wanna remember what you did here. Everyone else will.

 

[Canadian Flyer]

Man, I hope I don't have to wind up switching. I'm having a tough time with the night shift for linehaul. Seems like if I deviate whatsoever from my routine sleep schedule then I cannot sleep during the day before my shift.

I've had to call off 3 times in the past 6 months for lack of sleep - like not being able to sleep for 24+ hours before a shift. My linehaul manager has been extremely supportive, but after this 3rd time, I'm wondering if I'll have to have a chat with him.

I prefer to run linehaul, not P&D. I might have to take that pay cut and make the switch. Thing that sucks is that I could possibly get a day wild turn schedule this coming rebid in 5 months, then again, it might take another year or so. There's guys at my terminal that have a shot at a day time linehaul run, even if it's a wild turn, within 1-2 years of their hire date. That's how much our terminal is growing. I"m just not sure if I can hang till my opportunity comes up.

I don't prefer linehaul just for the pay, I also like to pull those doubles, enjoy not making the multiple stops, and like the long distance driving. I think I could get used to P&D, but it wouldn't be my preference. Just wanted to vent a little.

My advice to you would be to try melatonin if you need help sleeping, and keep yourself active to avoid feeling the need for a nap when you should be awake. I've found that going out, even for just a short drive to the store and back, can help me re-energize if I'm starting to fade away on my nights off. Get up, be active. Getting the blood flowing is the surest way to keep yourself awake.

 

[Ump]

WE ALL HAD TO DO CHANGES IN THE TRUCKING FIELD WE DID NOT LIKE, SLEEP, RUNS, HOURS, CITY, DOCK, MANAGEMENT AND DRIVERS. IF YOU THINK IT'S SO BAD AT OD, YOU SHOULD GO & TRY ONE OF THE OTHER CARRIERS. JUST WAIT, YOUR (TIME) TURN WILL COME UP FOR A BID RUN. I GUESS I'M GETTING OLD, 44 YEARS DO THIS, I JUST GET SICK & TIRE OF DRIVERS BITCHING ALL THE TIME ABOUT THE JOB. IT'S GETS TO BE OLD HAT. OD IS A GOOD PLACE TO WORK & MANAGE A LOT BETTER THAN THE OTHER CARRIERS. I WOULD NOT WORK FOR ANYBODY ELSE. KEEP ON TRUCKING

My grandfather used to tell me, "it's better to keep your mouth shut and have people assume you're an idiot, the to open it and remove all doubt!!"

This has got to be the most idiotic rant here. And I argue with BillyLo, so that is saying something.

Put down the beer and read what he said, then maybe try and use your "strap" to help a fellow driver.

 

[2BucTruck]

LOL. I appreciate you guys. Truckerhog, you must've mistaken me for somebody else, I'll be the LAST person you'll ever read that's complained or whined about OD. I had 1/2 dozen LTL companies to chose from, and I chose OD, because I believe OD is the damn finest LTL company to work for. I love my linehaul manager, my dispatchers are fantastic, pretty much every driver I've ran into has been willing to bend over backwards to help another driver. I know how good I have it.

 

[Grumpy O' Man]

My advice to you would be to try melatonin if you need help sleeping, and keep yourself active to avoid feeling the need for a nap when you should be awake. I've found that going out, even for just a short drive to the store and back, can help me re-energize if I'm starting to fade away on my nights off. Get up, be active. Getting the blood flowing is the surest way to keep yourself awake.

Yes,melatonin does work.But,speaking from experience start with the lowest dose&work yourself up.I order'd some but the does was to high.Felt like crap when waking up.You can order it from Puritan's Pride.I get all my vitamin's,etc from them.

 

[truckerhog]

LOL. I appreciate you guys. Truckerhog, you must've mistaken me for somebody else, I'll be the LAST person you'll ever read that's complained or whined about OD. I had 1/2 dozen LTL companies to chose from, and I chose OD, because I believe OD is the damn finest LTL company to work for. I love my linehaul manager, my dispatchers are fantastic, pretty much every driver I've ran into has been willing to bend over backwards to help another driver. I know how good I have it. [/QUOTE]Well I guess I up everybody on your problem, I see you got some help on this. Have a nice day

 

[BillyLo]

My grandfather used to tell me, "it's better to keep your mouth shut and have people assume you're an idiot, the to open it and remove all doubt!!"

This has got to be the most idiotic rant here. And I argue with BillyLo, so that is saying something.

Put down the beer and read what he said, then maybe try and use your "strap" to help a fellow driver.

How is it arguing when I never noticed you? ;);)