Worst Loads

[Mr. Down]

I am curious as to what your worst loads have been and the stories behind them? What made them a bad load, I'm not talking about the pay, but maybe a personal experience. I am definately not trying to offend anybody or talk smack about any companies. But who knows, maybe if they read it they will help us out as drivers.

My ultimate worst load was at grocery distribution wharehouse near Tampa Bay Florida, when I picked it up it was a total money run. Potato Chips out of Colorado Springs CO to Tampa Bay FL. The scheduled delivery time was wednesday at 7 am. I picked it up on Monday. I hauled *** out there and when I was in route on tuesday I recieved a qualquam that said the delivery appointment had been changed to Friday at 7 am. Well this was totally unacceptable to me and if they would have told me that on Monday when I picked up the load I would have not taken it. So here I was, 1200 miles later when I received this information. I also had a detention time clause on the load for 50 dollars an hour after two hours of my appointment. So I decided that this load will be delivered on time on Wednesday. I showed up on Wednesday morning at 7 am and they told me they don't have any room for the potato chips and I would have to come back on Friday. I told them that was BS, I had a delivery time of 7 am on Wednesday when I picked up the load. This is a 48 hour setback, and I will have to charge you detention time for the 48 hours. They almost laughed and said whatever, and to make a long story short I delivered on Friday at 7am, and never got paid any detention time. I had a helluva time getting a load out and my original money run turned into a total waste of my time.

Turned out to be one of my worst weeks ever in trucking, the other bad weeks I had were weather related and I guess I can't blame mother nature for closing interstates.

[Gonfercoffee]

multi stops to the same chain stores
no street numbers
parking lot full of anti truck curbs
go in alleyway and you are facing the dock
18 yr old assistant managers
no signs ,no doors have handles
most likely door is the one with black shoe marks on it from being kicked
then they ask you why you don't have a pallet jack

[Guardrail]

I've had several...

KC to Dallas.

I hauled a set of pups where the lead weighed about 25000 lbs. I had to hit my brakes hard in Dallas rush hour and felt a thump. I thought it was slop in the pintle hook plunger. When I unhooked from the lead trailer at the dock door, it spit me out and nosed over into my tractor. The front of the trailer had impaled itself on my truck's frame rail. After further inspection, the idiot that loaded the trailer had stacked 5 rolls of coiled wire, each weighing 5000 lbs., in the center of the trailer. There had been about 8 foot of space between the front of the trailer and the first coil. The only thing holding it in place was a 4X4 toe nailed into the floor. No dunnage, straps or bars to keep it from sliding.

I argued with the company for months about who was at fault. They wanted me and my insurance company to foot the repair and damage claim. I maintained that the load was improperly secured and I had no way of knowing this since it was a sealed trailer. I eventually won.

Second bad load...

CA to NY

I had a hot load of produce (aren't they all?) that just had to be there by such and such a time... bla... bla... bla...

I got my first ticket staring at the welcome to Nevada sign. A California polar bear snuck up behind me and pulled me over. He asked me how fast I was going and I told him 55. He stated that I was going faster than that and wrote me for 65. I was actually going about 75, but he didn't have enough time to pace me before I left CA.

I got my second ticket in Iowa for 74 in a 65. There were all kinds of car flying around me but the trooper wanted to visit with me.

I got my 3rd & 4th ticket (I know, I don't learn very fast. How bright were you when you were 23 years old?) in the fine state of Ohio. A she bear popped me on Schneider highway 6 for 65 in a 55 and a log violation.

Lets just say I didn't make much money on that trip. I've since gotten a little smarter. You can make better time if you slow down and keep the left door shut.

That is just a couple of the bad one I remember off the top of my head. I'm sure I can come up with a few more I've had in the last 15 years.

[bigk300]

Worst load was a load I picked up in S.E. Kansas delivered to Dalton Ga . It was a flat bed load of pre-welded aluminum door frames and different structural metal type stuff very oddly stacked on the trailer. I started to throw my chains and the shipper argued that the chains would damage the frames so reluctantly obliged and threw straps instead. I didn't have enough strap protectors and planed to stop at the nearest truck stop and buy more. I didn't make it that far I got almost to Joplin MO and the last 3 straps cut into when the load shifted a little . I had to re-stack that load by hand and buy more straps to boot .

The 2nd worse load was a load I picked up somewhere outside of Savannah Ga. I had no directions only an address and no phone no. delivered in Knoxville,TN well i called dispatch and they spit out "map quest directions" They directions told me to make a left instead of a right and I ended up in a residential area and I darn near flipped the truck trying to make an impossible left hand turn. My driver side tandems dropped off into a deep ditch and my ICC bumper caught the trailer on the edge of the road and kept it from turning over.

But all was not lost I learned three valuable lessons .
1) I am in charge of safe securement of my load and if the shipper has a problem with it they can unload it right there!
2) Never ever trust Mapquest!
3) Angels do exist!!!

[Skidmark]

Originally Posted by Mr. Down

I am curious as to what your worst loads have been and the stories behind them? What made them a bad load, I'm not talking about the pay, but maybe a personal experience. I am definately not trying to offend anybody or talk smack about any companies. But who knows, maybe if they read it they will help us out as drivers.

My ultimate worst load was at grocery distribution wharehouse near Tampa Bay Florida, when I picked it up it was a total money run. Potato Chips out of Colorado Springs CO to Tampa Bay FL. The scheduled delivery time was wednesday at 7 am. I picked it up on Monday. I hauled *** out there and when I was in route on tuesday I recieved a qualquam that said the delivery appointment had been changed to Friday at 7 am. Well this was totally unacceptable to me and if they would have told me that on Monday when I picked up the load I would have not taken it. So here I was, 1200 miles later when I received this information. I also had a detention time clause on the load for 50 dollars an hour after two hours of my appointment. So I decided that this load will be delivered on time on Wednesday. I showed up on Wednesday morning at 7 am and they told me they don't have any room for the potato chips and I would have to come back on Friday. I told them that was BS, I had a delivery time of 7 am on Wednesday when I picked up the load. This is a 48 hour setback, and I will have to charge you detention time for the 48 hours. They almost laughed and said whatever, and to make a long story short I delivered on Friday at 7am, and never got paid any detention time. I had a helluva time getting a load out and my original money run turned into a total waste of my time.

Turned out to be one of my worst weeks ever in trucking, the other bad weeks I had were weather related and I guess I can't blame mother nature for closing interstates.

This story make my blood pressure rise and it didn't even happen to me ! Grocery warehouses are the worst,no one knows anything ,and the ones who do, don't care! C&S wholesale is the absolute worst it's only a matter of which ones suck the most, personally I think Windsor Locks ,CT and Newburgh,NY are on the top of my list!

[Gonfercoffee]

The absolute best C/S is Harrisburgh lightning fast

I'll go with C/S Woodbridge as the worst

C/S Newburhg has a bunch od "lumper" doors
and a handful of do it yourselfer doors an giant pallet jacks with dead batteries
a real winner is "General trading" Carlstadt NJ....you have to take the plastic wrapping and cardboard back with you
C/S will also pull this crap..."sorry it does not come here it goes to Brattleboro"