Long-haul trucker thinks job’s the best there is

Money | Nagging | Older | Pissed | Wiser

What does villager Bret McBain think about driving a Wal-Mart / Sam’s Club semi-truck ?

"It just doesn’t get any better than this," he said. He was talking both about his choice of career and the company he works for.

McBain, 38, ought to know — he’s been driving big trucks for 24 years. When he was 14 years old, he started hauling wheat in Cooley, Wash. At 18, he got his commercial driver’s license.

His truck-driving schedule is seven days on and seven days off. After driving for Wal-Mart for three years, McBain is still considered to be a part-time driver. The turnover at Wal-Mart is so low that the only way to move up is to take the place of people who retire, he said.

Must be a horrible place to work.

While some marriages might find this schedule difficult, he and his wife think it adds excitement to their 16-year marriage.

MrsOldGuy used to tell people that if I was home for 48 hours, she would call my dispatcher and try to get me sent somewhere. Anywhere.

According to federal rules, each driver can work 14-hour days, but the driver can only drive 11 of those hours. That means, said McBain, his day may start at 8 a. m. and end at 10 p. m.

Slacker.

A semi-truck driver should be patient, attentive and considerate, but, McBain said, "The most important thing is safety. Nothing is more important."

Yup.

Oh, and I took this picture last night at the Wal-Mart in Marshall, Texas. Lessee... one, two, three, four, five, six trucks in the shot, plus me, plus two more on each side of me that you can't see. That's eleven total. And they never threw any of us out all night long. Horrible company to do business with, lemme tell ya. (oh shit!) "Hi Clipper! How ya been?"

WTF

I never seen no dang trucks parked at Wally World here and why is that Wally World closed? Isn't it open 24 hours?

Quit sniffing diesel fuel, it messes with your ability to think right!

Gotta drive past the place

You gotta drive past the place to see if anybody's parked there. Ain't no freight up in yer neck of the woods anyway. Ya can't export tourism and scenery. It's open, that picture was taken about 3 in the morning. And I can't quit sniffing diesel, it's addicting.

No lie

I know, I tried switching to gasoline but I woke up in a different state. And that's before I had a driver's license.