They are at it again. Pay the government $135.00 and you can enter the seaports to pick up your loads and feel safe. You only have until January 2009 to obtain this top notch government security card if you want access to the US seaports.

For those of you needing the registration information go to    https://twicprogram.tsa.dhs.gov/

MY OPINION:  Since this card is your own, not the companies, I would suggest getting it if you travel the east or west coast. As the economy is getting tougher this will give you an edge for employment if trucking companies have to start looking at import/export freight becuase domestic freaight slows down.                                                                                                                                                                                 

Tags: TWIC Home Security

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I was on a trip the other day to Philly. I arrived an hour after my appointment and was put into a dock. When I was empty I noticed a truck from the same supplier just pulling into the dock. Ironiccally he was there before I was. He showed up at the back-haul an hour after me and was loaded 4 hours before me. The next day I showed up three hours behind him and was empty an hour after him.  I stopped an hour for dinner and my six hours sleep.

I don't know how many times i've experienced this. As I always say" Hurry-up and wait."

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Eat Healthy, Sleep Well, Drive Hard

It is well known that the trucking industry is not the healthiest of careers. How many people do you know who's life or career has been cut short due to poor health created by their trucking career?


To be successful in the trucking industry you must become assertive with your scheduling of sleep, diet and time management. The industry is not going set guidelines for you to eat, sleep and drive.


A study about trucker health prepared for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration revealed that:




A 1993 study of 2,945 truck drivers attending a trade show noted that 73 percent of all
respondents to a survey were either overweight or obese. Of these drivers, 33 percent
were classified as obese (i.e., Body Mass Index Greater than 30) and 40 percent were
classified as overweight (i.e., Body Mass Index between 25 and 30).


A 1993 study of 2,945 truck drivers attending a trade show revealed over 80 percent
of these drivers ate only one or two meals per day and 36 percent had three or more
snacks per day.


The typical snacks of the drivers in the above 1996 study were: Chips, Fruit, Candy, Donuts, Cookies. Only 15 percent of these drivers ate five or more servings of fruits and vegetables per
day.



If you don't want to be part of these statitics you must take control of your habits, lifestyle and enviroment.
Set up your truck to accomadate healthy snacks and meals.

Set up a nutritional supplement program to compliment your healthy meals.

Set up a sleep schedule that allows you 6-8 hours sleep.

Make a plan to walk (if allowed) while waiting at a customer. Bounce a tennis ball of the side of your trailer. Play frisbee with a fellow trucker.



By taking control of your health in this industry you will feel healthier, less tired and enjoy driving more.



One driver has the right idea!

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqFZ6DRBji0)

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It is just my opinion

This hours of service is really getting on my nerves. The government is wasting good money on useless research. The black and white truth is that we need no less than 6 and no more than 8 hours of sleep for better health. Too much as well as too little has adverse health affects.

Providing I get two to three nutritious meals a day and at least six hours of good healthy sleep, I can run the whole day thru with no fatigue.

So as far as I am concerned MR. Politician, quit wasting our tax dollars and set a realistic H.O.S. like 8 hours sleeper birth or 10 hours off per day. Allow a 2 hour off for meals with out affecting a 14 hour on duty. That allows us a 14 hour on duty + 2 hours off duty(meals) and 8 hour birth= 24 hours.

Now on the driver side of things. My experience has shown me that with a real time 6 hours sleep, getting screwed at the customer and actually stopping for a quick lunch(1/2 hr) and relaxing for a nutritious dinner(1 hr), you can mathematically maximize your mileage and comply with H.O.S.

Technically our average trip speed is 50-55 mph. With an 11 hr driving window that is 550-610 miles per day. The only time I can acceed that in a 24 hour period is if I start fresh and only drive highway all day. Then I can drive up to 850 miles and still get my meals and sleep.

Take into account your waiting time,and traffic conjestion, you can maximize your milage and stay compliant whille taking a real time 6 hr healthy sleep.

I think their money would be better spent training dispatchers, safety compliance officers and mechanics to improve their skills to work in the real world of trucking.

It's only my opinion.

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It is just my opinion

Is it just me or does trailer maintenance suck. I can't count the number of times I have gone to slide my tandems and either the mechanism is seized, rusted or broke. Many shippers request the tandems be slid to the rear before you back up to the dock. I have solved the problem by dropping the air out of the trailer and tractor bags so the trailer won't bounce as they load me.

I can't wait until I am refused loading because I can't slide my axles. I don't know if I could tell dispatch because I'd be laughing too hard.

I went to one company that would not give me my invoices until I scaled legal. It took me 1/2 hour and a can of lube spray to slide the axles but I did it.

It makes me laugh that I'm in an industry that expects efficiency but refuses to practice it.

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It is just my opinion

Delivery times

When are the people in the sales, shipping and receiving departments going to get their act together. Not that it affects the way I drive, but the constant complaining of receivers because my load is late is really starting to irratate me.

I recently ran a load where I arrived for my pick-up on a Wednesday ( I was dispatched Tuesday at 4 p.m. to P/U 800 miles away). The shipper said the load should have been picked up Tuesday. I just smiled and said "COOL". They said I should be loaded quick, I said "Works for me".

Eleven hours later I had my load at 2:30 a.m. Thursday morning. The invoice read "Deliver Friday at 5 a.m. So down the road I go for a 1300 mile hike to the customer. But not before I get my 6 hours sleep.

Now I get to the customer at 2:30 p.m. Friday and park right behind the driver who left the pickup 2 hours before me, and arrived 4 hours ahead of me at the customer. Five hours later we were unloaded.

After many calls from the load brokering carrier's dispatcher tracking my progress, he thanked me for getting the load there.

This is only a job and no load is more important than my health. So to better improve the industry I beleive these load dispatchers and shipping clerks should be trained to calculate trip times to better serve their customers and the transport companies. Their shipping departments should be better trained to organize their shipping practices to quickly load the driver and get him down the road. These companies have to realize that customer service starts with them, and has a domino affect right to the customer. Unfortunately nothing will be done until it affects their pocket books.
Until then, I will do my best right after I get a good nights sleep and two nutritious meals a day.




But That's just my opinion!

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Beneath your feet lies one of the best ways to get some exercise: The pavement.

Tags: Trucker Health

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I found a very interesting and may be helpful article for drivers with diabetes. Our poor diets are contributing to a rise in cases of this nutritional deficient desease.

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1078599942/bclid979509473/bctid1119240850

Tags: Trucker Health

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I found this article that hit the nail on the head about the health risks of trucking and how why we have to be more pro-active to our trucking lifestyle.

Chronically unhealthy truck drivers urged to get fit

Updated Mon. Jul. 16 2007 9:12 AM ET

Canadian Press

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Truck drivers - the people who deliver our food, cars and clothing - have one of the most dangerous jobs in America - accounting for nearly 15 per cent of U.S. work-related deaths. And that's only counting the accidents.

They are also more at risk than average workers for a number of health problems. Obesity is rampant. Many don't bother to wear seatbelts because their stomachs get in the way. About one in four have sleep apnea. Half of them smoke.

The latest research in an upcoming report drives home those points and may help influence U.S. government regulations for truck drivers' health, which are under review. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is considering tightening its rules for conditions including diabetes and high blood pressure. And many companies are stepping up their own efforts at improving health.

"It takes a while to undo years and years and years of unhealthy behaviour," said Christie Cullinan of the American Trucking Associations, which represents about 2,000 companies and suppliers. "But I think companies are having to look at this because of the skyrocketing health care costs and related workers compensation costs."

Drivers are tested every two years to maintain their licences, which are issued by states. Waivers can be granted, but generally commercial drivers can't be licensed if they have severe high blood pressure or severe heart conditions. Other aspects of drivers' health, like weight and smoking, aren't regulated.

"They can't say, 'You can't be obese' and they can't force you to stop smoking,"' said Gerald P. Krueger, a psychologist who compiled the latest research by the Transportation Research Board. "The government shouldn't regulate that. But we've been trying to educate people to the linkage between being a healthy person and a safe driver."

Krueger said trucking companies need to do more to foster better health among their employees, whether it's to reduce health care costs or hang onto employees in an industry where turnover is high and shortages growing.

It's not clear how many companies are making efforts. The trucking associations group says it is planning a survey. The group estimates there are 1.3 million long-haul drivers nationwide.

An Associated Press spot check of companies revealed these initiatives:

-Celadon Group Inc. has stationed nurses at its main facility in Indianapolis and encourages its 3,200 drivers in the U.S. and Canada to get blood pressure and cholesterol checks. Doctors are on call if needed, and Celadon pays all expenses. The company says it's helped trim its US$10 million annual health care bill.

-Melton Truck Lines Inc. replaced sodas in the Tulsa, Okla., headquarters vending machines with green tea, water and diet drinks. The company also offered a 12-week weight-loss series.

-Con-way Freight of Ann Arbor, Mich., saw annual workers compensation claims plunge 80 per cent and lost work days drop 75 per cent in Los Angeles after its trial of a wellness program two years ago. Now leaders of such programs are being hired at other hub offices.

-Schneider National Inc. of Green Bay, Wis., screened 10,000 of its 15,000 drivers for apnea, a disorder that interferes with breathing during sleep and can leave the sufferer groggy and exhausted. The company provided the 10 per cent who had the disorder with special air masks to help them sleep.

Some drivers are responding to all the health campaigns, working out at loading stations, cooking for themselves and even walking laps around their rigs.

Sammy Belvin, a driver for Oklahoma-based Melton Truck Lines, has been getting advice from a wellness co-ordinator with the company. He carries weights in his truck, and for meals, he eats cereal and cooks chicken breasts on an electric grill in his cab.

A driver for 23 years, Belvin says these days he's not the only one jogging around in the mornings before he drives off for the day.

Lisa Miles, an independent driver based in Fort Wayne, Ind., lifts weights in the cabin of her semi, too, while her partner driver takes the wheel. She gave up smoking three years ago and now is trying to lose 30 pounds.

"It's real easy to let your personal health be the last of your priorities," she said.

As many as half of drivers are regular smokers, compared to about one-fifth of all Americans. Many truckers are obese, and only about one in 10 get regular aerobic exercise. More details will be available in a soon-to-be-published study for the Transportation Research Board, an arm of the National Academy of Sciences. All those bad habits can fuel high blood pressure and chronic conditions like heart disease and diabetes.

Sleep apnea, which is linked to obesity, is rampant too. An industry study a few years ago found 28 per cent of drivers had it; that compares with about four per cent in the general population who have the disorder.

Government numbers say the trucking industry has the most fatalities of all occupations. The Bureau of Labor Statistics says truck drivers account for nearly 15 per cent of all worker deaths in the most recent data available, from 2005. (The death rate per 100,000 is higher for other occupations.) Of those trucker deaths, 80 per cent involved traffic accidents, the bureau said.

Truck drivers also report more injuries, such as sprains, than workers in any other category, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Many of them unload the goods they carry, risking back injuries.

The medical review board of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will discuss updating medical guidelines at a meeting this month, but any changes are at least a year away, officials said.

Meanwhile, the Teamsters union wants to ensure that truckers don't lose their jobs if health rules are tightened, said Lamont Byrd, director of safety and health for the union.

"We see some real changes coming down the pipe that suggests the bar may be raised," he said.

Truckers pose unique challenges when it comes to improving health, said Ilene Masser, director of such a program for faculty and staff at New York University Medical Center. They sit for long periods, are out on their own, eat a lot of fast food and most of them are men, who often need more prodding than women to make changes, she said.

Changes are worth it. About three-quarters of employers with at least 1,000 workers have a wellness program, she said. And for every dollar invested, they get about $3.14 back, including savings on health care costs and added productivity.

William Rundle is one of the drivers for Schneider National who benefited from his company's aggressive effort to treat sleep apnea.

"It's wonderful to be able to function during the day now," he said, adding that he has more energy and makes his deliveries on time. He said his company has also persuaded him to quit smoking and eat better.

In the past year he's trimmed 15 pounds from his formerly 300-pound, five-foot-seven frame. It's difficult, he said. He wants to eat salads but they often come with hard-to-resist cheese and bacon. He wants to exercise but counts few safe places to walk close to the highway.

"You don't see very many truck drivers that look like they're in good shape. We're just like anybody else," said Rundle, 43, who lives in Woodbourne, N.Y.

For at least seven years, Schneider has worked to improve drivers' health. Twice a year, the company takes a "discomfort" survey on driving ergonomics and aches and pains. Physical therapists follow up with drivers to address problems before they become severe.

Krueger, the Transportation Research Board psychologist, said younger drivers know more about healthy behaviours because they've heard it in school. But the problem lies in convincing the drivers already on the road that they need to exercise, see a doctor regularly and eat better. He has spent decades researching occupational medicine and he's heard all sorts of excuses, especially from drivers.

"My favourite line is, 'Dr. Krueger, I get off work at 3 in the morning. You want me to go to Gold's Gym and do what?"'

Tags: Trucker Health

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