'Cause We Put Trucks In Tight Places

I’m a picture guy. As of this writing, I have 19,203 pictures on my laptop. It may be time to sort through them, get rid of the bad ones (there are many), and organize a little. I don’t think it means I have a problem. I do believe having that many pictures means that I really enjoy looking at stuff. I’ve said it before that I must have been blind in another life. I’m thankful for the gift of sight, and my Nikon does a great job of helping me to record the good things I see.

  

A few weeks ago, I showed up at work on a rainy afternoon. As I drove my car to my waiting truck, I noticed how cool the line of trucks looked in the reflections of some puddles that had formed thanks to the rain. I took a picture of it (it couldn’t be helped), and sent it to my friends at Volvo Trucks United States. A few days later, they shared it on their Facebook page, and the response was very good. Lots of people seemed to like it. Volvo trucks went so far as to use that picture in a sponsored ad on Facebook. Since my picture was used in an advertisement without my permission, I had no choice but to contact my lawyer. We will be filing a million-dollar lawsuit against Volvo soon.  I kid of course. I’m glad to do my part to help promote the Volvo brand because I quite enjoy driving a Volvo truck. (But couldn’t they at least send me a hat for my troubles? Okay, I’d settle for a key chain.) An interesting side-note: My first car was a 1970 Volvo 144 sedan that my parents bought brand new. It was handed down to me in 1988, and in 2013, I find myself behind the wheel of a 2010 Volvo that was handed to me brand new. That’s a full-circle wheels thing right there.

But not everyone likes Volvo trucks. There was some evidence of that in the comments on my picture that was posted. My guess is that some folks saw the sponsored ad, and felt compelled to comment in a negative way. It seems like a silly thing to me.  How do people have the time, or feel the need to blast a product in a public forum? Does it make them feel better? Do they think they are going to bankrupt the company and put them out of business? I really have to stop reading comments on news stories, corporate posts, that kind of thing. It makes me lose confidence in humanity. I just don’t understand. Surely, you must have heard the phrase, “Kids say the darndest things.” I think there are plenty of adults who say some fairly crazy stuff too.

Case in point: A severely misinformed man with the name Robert wrote a comment on my picture that Volvo posted. Here, read it for yourself:

At least Robert didn’t bash Volvo trucks. What he did  was take a shot at our company, and our drivers in particular. My goodness, we drive slow trucks that we use to clog the roads and all we do is hold steering wheels. Oh Robert, where do I begin?

First of all, it is true that our trucks are governed at 65mph. This is done for a number of reasons not limited to things such as safety, fuel economy and insurance requirements. We are not the only trucking company to do this. Many more fleets that go faster now will be slowing down sooner or later. (By later, I mean when the government makes it a requirement.) And what did he mean by his “Clogging the roads” crack? I listened to traffic reports on the radio before.  I have heard it reported that there is a slow down due to “A disabled tractor-Trailer.” Never have I tuned in and heard, “Find an alternate route folks, there are slow trucks clogging all portions of every interstate in [insert state name.]”  

I think Robert’s biggest misconception is the speed thing: The drivers at my company do their best work when we are going slow, as in very s-l-o-w. Robert might not be alone in his assumption that we simply drive dock-to-dock. There aren’t loading docks at the majority of the businesses we deliver to. In fact, a truck has no business being in a good deal of the places we go. We put our trucks in places that would make most people sweat. I had two Police Officers in Hartford sweating this week. They were on foot monitoring a construction zone when I came rumbling up in downtown. I threw my four-way flashers on, waited for traffic to clear, and then I went for it. “Going for it” involved blocking the road for a minute as I slowly (I know you hate that word Robert, sorry) backed blindly into a small parking lot alongside a building I needed to deliver to. There were cars parked at either side of the entrance, and the men in blue came waltzing over, trying to see what I was up to. They (as well as the waiting motorists) seemed surprised that I pulled off what I set out to do without making it expensive, in a short amount of time I might add.  I wasn’t surprised at all. I do that kind of stuff every day, Monday through Friday. 

I had another stop in Hartford yesterday that made me think of Robert. It’s such a dandy that it even made me groan when I first noticed it on the day’s itinerary. The delivery is accomplished by coming down a narrow side street alongside the store. The truck needs to be backed off the street through a very small opening in a chain-link fence, and into a driveway with cars all over the place. Just for fun, there are usually cars parked in the street too, making things even tighter. I showed up, and very slowly (Sorry again Robert) did my thing and managed to get my truck in the driveway. I set the brakes and was climbing out of the truck when two store employees walked up to me. “Is this okay?” I asked. “You’re my hero,” said one gentleman who extended his hand to mine. He told me that he had never seen a driver put his truck in there, most won’t even try. I knew that wasn’t true. I wanted to ask him where he was the last time I was there, or when any of our other drivers were there. I know several who do the same thing. However, It always makes me feel good when people compliment my driving skills.  I wondered if Robert could have put his truck in there.

I saw a little movie in my head: I parked my truck in that lot, made my delivery, and as I was pulling away, Robert showed up. I parked my truck a block over, and came back to watch. He had a hell of a time trying. Traffic was backed-up  something fierce. After a good twenty minutes, the poor guy was sweating like all holy heck, and I just stood there yelling, “Come on Robert, who is the steering wheel holder now?” I shouldn’t tease Robert like that. After all, I have no idea how well his skills are at putting a truck onto a postage stamp. I only know that he likes to go fast, presumably while holding a steering wheel.

I guess I do not understand the whole need for speed thing as it applies to trucking. Sure there are times when speed is fun, or even necessary, like in race cars or jet transportation. I’m cool with 65mph. Life goes fast enough, and I worry that too many people rush through it and will find themselves on their deathbed wondering where it all went. I try to stay out of the way best I can, and sometimes I even abandon my job mid-trip and walk around taking pictures. By the way, in the time it took me write this, my picture count went up to 19,210. I must go now. I have to get rid of the bad ones and organize a bit. Don’t worry, I will take my time. 

Ashley Distribution is now hiring in the areas below. We are among the highest paid in the industry and drive top-notch late model Volvos that are very nicely equipped. If you have a clean driving record, are not afraid of going slow and interested in moving your career forward, you are encouraged to apply. LTL drivers deliver multi-stop loads (what I do) and PTP drivers deliver point-to-point no touch loads. Feel free to contact me if you have questions or would like more information.