00:06 Be polite, be respectful. Everybody has to respect everybody, you know. It’ll make the job a lot easier for yourself. It’ll make the job a lot easier for the dispatcher because you’re on the phone with them, but they’re dealing with hundreds of calls, you know. So, respect. Welcome to Six-Figure Trucker, the podcast where we share advice on how to be successful in trucking and have fun while doing so. We’ll share stories, news, and advice on how to earn six figures in trucking. And we’ll speak to guys and gals that are already doing so. Let’s get to the show.

00:45 Hello everyone and welcome to the Six-Figure Trucker brought to you by Norton Transport. This is a format, a venue if you will, where we elevate and celebrate the drivers for Norton Transport. You know, it’s not always a glorious job. Sometimes it’s a demanding job, deadlines to meet, some tough, lanes to run, but our drivers always come through for us, and we appreciate that. And that’s a time for us to pay tribute for them each and every Thursday when the Six-Figure Trucker airs. Now, joining us today is a gentleman who is on the road as we speak. He is making a run. Many of these guys run over the weekends to gain the advantage of timely loads picking up and delivering. And Mr. Jimmy Tucker joins us now. Jimmy, how are you?

01:30 I’m blessed. How about yourself?

01:32 Same. Can’t complain. It’s a good day. It’s a nice Sunday as we’re recording this session. And tell us where you are now, Jimmy.

01:39 I am in Memphis, Tennessee.

01:42 Okay. Heading west.

01:44 I am heading to Fresno, California.

01:46 Okay. When did you pick up?

01:47 Let me let’s see, man. I picked up yesterday, actually.

01:53 Okay. You’ve been down in Alabama.

01:55 Yes. For pain.

01:56 I got you. Gotcha. Now, you were just telling me before we got on the air here that it’s been a bumpy ride. What are you in? And tell us about that bumpy—

02:05 Oh, man. Coming across that bridge felt like I was on a roller coaster.

02:10 And now you’re in a garbage truck right now. A big one.

02:13 Yes, sir. Front loader. Oh, you got a ride with the forks down.

02:17 I got you. Now, what kind of is it a Peterbilt Mack Autocar? Which kind you got?

02:23 I’m in a Pete.

02:24 In a Pete.

02:25 Pete 520.

02:26 520. Okay. Those are big. Talking to past drivers here, a lot of drivers hold the Peterbilt in high regard as one of the more comfortable trucks out there. Now, I guess that may be true in a tractor, but not necessarily in a garbage truck. What’s your take on riding in a Peterbilt versus other trucks? Peterbilt saw the Cadillac of trucks.

02:47 You’re not the first to have said that. What makes it so special?

02:50 Oh man, just let me see. Not only the reputation, but we’re looking at the product, the way that it’s built, the style, the comfort, the comfortability, you know what I mean? You any truck that you get into, no matter how small, how big, you want comfort. That’s the same as your SUVs versus your regular cars—

03:15 You know, same thing.

03:17 Especially when you’re going on these 2500 mile runs, you do want some comfort. And I’ve seen some bills of sale—

03:23 And the movement of Peterbilts from dealerships out to the public. And they come with a price tag, comparatively speaking to say a Freightliner or some of the other models out there. Peterbilts you get what you pay for, I guess. Is that as a professional driver, would you say that’s an accurate statement?

03:42 That’s true.

03:43 Now, you’re headed out to Fresno. You’re in Memphis now. You picked up yesterday. About when do you anticipate arriving at your delivery location?

03:52 I was supposed to be there on the third, but the way that I drive, I’ve learned how to just sit down. I don’t play at truck stops. I don’t play at restaurants or try to go shopping or window browsing. I get the job done. And that’s my belief.

04:08 That’s an awesome way to look at it. Awesome way to look at it. And that certainly makes Norton Transport very happy. And even more importantly, it makes the customers happy to get their prized possession cuz these are expensive units that you’re driving right now. They’re worth a lot of money and they’re in demand.

04:26 Yes, sir. Yes, sir.

04:28 How do you treat that such unit? I mean, I’m sure you treat all of them the same, but particularly when you got a unit that’s, you know, deep six figures, what how do you treat those?

04:38 I’m a little different because I believe— Okay, let’s look at it this way. My father taught me a long time ago, if you borrow something from someone, you return it better in better shape than what it was given to you. So, I keep that same frame of mind no matter if I’m a if I’m in a used truck or if I’m in a new truck, I treat them all the same and treat it like it’s my own.

05:06 Got you. Keep that cab clean when you deliver it and because you know there’s a long, you know, you could pick up some items, food or whatnot, drinks and whatnot, but you make sure it’s clean when you deliver it.

05:19 Yes, sir. Now, you’re driving a garbage truck, but you’ve you’re basically I was looking at your qualifications. You’re set up where you can drive anything. Is there anything that you can’t drive?

05:31 Not necessarily. If I got wheels, I’m on it.

05:35 Now, I see that you have your TWIC card. How often does that come into play? Do you make your way out to ports very often?

05:41 Well, in my free time, I do.

05:43 Okay. What do you mean by in your free time you make it out to ports? Well, because I know some people down there. My pop my f— Well, I was going to say pops, but my father, he used to be a superintendent on the ports.

05:57 Okay.

05:59 I’ve I frequent myself down there. I’ve had my TWIC card for now, I believe almost 30 years.

06:08 Oh, wow. I would think that makes operations a lot smoother to have that TWIC card in hand. It’s beneficial. Put it that way.

06:17 I got you. Instead of having to pay an escort fee each and every time you go to a port.

06:22 No, there’s no fee.

06:24 Not with a TWIC card. The TWIC card, if I understand it correctly, that kind of overrides that?

06:29 Yes.

06:29 Okay. Now, talking about some of the of your other qualifications, your CNG approved. Is the truck you’re in now, is it CNG?

06:37 Yes.

06:38 What how do you handle the CNG? Sometimes there’s a, you know, it takes a little bit more management and planning obviously on the CNG. Kind of give us a lay of the land on how you do a CNG run.

06:49 Okay. You have to what I’ve learned by pushing these to the max. You can drive on a full tank of gas 4 and a half five and a half hours.

07:01 Okay.

07:02 Five and a half. You’re really pushing it. It happened to me last night. But you can easily get four hours out of these trucks.

07:12 Okay?

07:12 You have to map. You got to map yourself from fuel station to fuel station. You cannot just get in here like a regular truck and say, “Hey, you know what? I’m going from Fort Pay, Alabama. I’m going to New York City and I’m going just drive there and just pass a fueling station.” Well, there’s hit and misses on the CNG fueling stations. Some work, some don’t—

07:34 Right? But you have to know what you’re doing. You really have to be careful. And please don’t run out of fuel.

07:40 And we advise drivers on these CNG runs to stop at every location, even if you’re not empty, just to top it off just in case some of the things you just laid out might come into play. So, is that something you do? Top off at every station?

07:55 No. Again, I’m a little different. You’re talking to a whole different bra of driver. What I would tell somebody getting into this situation, look at your CNG map and go maybe two or three CNG stations down the line.

08:19 Okay.

08:19 If you get to a half a tank, look for your station. Make sure you’re in a vicinity to go ahead then top off.

08:26 I got you.

08:27 You know you got to watch your prices. Some prices such as California, which I’ve I was there about four days ago, I paid $6.50.

08:41 Ridiculous. So, in other cases, when you’re down south, not to cut you off or anything, when you’re down south or in between, when you go to the waste management plants, you’re a dollar.

08:54 Yeah. It I guess it kind of balances out.

08:57 Exactly. You just got to make sure.

09:00 I’m assuming. Did you fill up in Athens, Alabama on your way out yesterday?

09:04 No, I went to Matter of fact, let me take a look for you. They started me off with 3,000 PSI.

09:12 Okay. So, you had a decent amount.

09:13 I was in really good shape starting off, but then I where’s my map at? I went somewhere by Memphis Jonesboro and I’m parked as we’re doing this.

09:29 Okay, do not worry.

09:30 That thought was in my mind first. Safety first.

09:32 I love it. Our safety director Renee would love to hear that. Our safety director, I’m sure she does.

09:39 No. Say, man, safety first. I believe that with all my heart was somewhere by Decar.

09:46 Okay. Okay. I got—

09:47 A it’s right after Coleman. Okay, I guess—

09:50 Coleman is your Coleman. Coleman is your go-to spot when you come up out of—

09:56 Out of Alabama.

09:57 Alabama, Coleman, you definitely want to go to Coleman because you can slant at an angle and go over to Memphis.

10:06 I gotta— So, if you’re heading west, Coleman’s the way to go.

10:09 Yes, Coleman is definitely it’s your best friend.

10:13 Gotcha. You’re listening to Jimmy Tucker here on the Six-Figure Trucker brought to you by Norton Transport. Jimmy is dropping some knowledge on us about CNG. Now, it’s not just CNG and his toy card that Jimmy holds. Obviously is CNG approved, but also right-hand drive. Is the one you’re in now, is it a right-hand drive one or is it a left-hand drive?

10:33 It’s a left-hander. But I am privy to the right-handers. Right-handers are fun. The only thing about those, hey, for anybody, you got to hug your, you’re in a are in a right hand drive, you have to hug that right hand lane. And even though it looks like you’re going across that lane, you’re about a foot from it.

10:58 So, hug the white line.

11:00 You got to hug that white line to the right. You definitely do because if not, your mind is set to be on the left side and you will veer over into the next lane and you would just block two lanes. I’ve—

11:15 Done it.

11:16 And you got to remember you got to take into account those mirrors, too, because they’re out there.

11:23 Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Well, I’m glad to hear that you’re parked here while we’re having this conversation here on the Six-Figure Trucker brought to you by Norton Transport. And we’ve laid out you got your card, CNG approved, right-hand drive, obviously specialty approved to drive vehicles such as garbage trucks, and you also drive manual, which we see sometimes not some of the younger drivers are not manual certified. How long have you been driving total since you came to us about a year ago? Oh Lord Jesus. I got my CDL’s in 2000.

11:58 And tell us—

11:58 And I’ve learned how to drive on a manual.

12:01 Is it that big of a difference? I mean, as far as physical exertion or that kind of thing as far as driving a manual versus an automatic.

12:08 It is. It is. Automatic. You just sit there and you got to keep yourself focused. A manual, you’re actually doing something and you’re keeping yourself busy at all times.

12:18 Mhm.

12:18 Ready because you’re shifting gears. Now, what would your advice be to those who are not manually certified? Is it worth getting the certification because of the fact that a lot of newer truck production, not necessarily come in the manual feature, most of them they’re automatic. Would you advise getting that manual certification to other drivers?

12:40 Yes, sir. Because you don’t hinder yourself.

12:42 I’ve always taught myself to not to cut you off again, but let me elaborate a little bit. If a person is just driving automatics and that’s all they can do, they’re restricted.

12:56 Yeah. You’re limiting yourself.

12:57 Unrestricted.

12:58 Yeah.

12:59 Right.

12:59 I hear you.

13:00 So, I opted to get different clearances. I opted to get my TWIC card. I opted to get, you know, this, that, and the third. All my endorsements to make sure that I was an asset to a company, not only to myself. You know what I mean? So Norton, every now and again they’ll have me go get a manual. Well, not a problem.

13:24 You’re ready to go.

13:25 Let’s go.

13:26 You’re listening to Jimmy Tucker. Jimmy Tucker here, the very personable Jimmy Tucker and he’s got a lot of knowledge with 25 years on the road and he’s here with us joining us on the Six-Figure Trucker brought to you by Norton Transport. Jimmy wanted to ask you just a couple of questions about advice. You’ve given us some great advice. Now, if there’s someone out there who’s on the fence about getting into driveaway, with your 25 years of experience, what type of other trucks have you driven? And in what scenarios were those in? I mean, was it owner operator? Did you long haul? I mean, how what kind in those 24 years before you got to us? What give us a summary of that experience?

14:09 Let’s see. I’ve done decking, undecking, specialty. Everything has been longhaul except for when I was doing powder train for a concrete company. Going into the what do you call these places? The cement plants.

14:26 Oh yeah.

14:27 And taking them to you know taking them to the silos. So I’ve done just about everything except gasoline.

14:36 Okay.

14:37 When it comes to trucking. I got you.

14:39 Owner OP and everything else.

14:41 Now, you were an owner op.

14:43 Yes.

14:43 What was that like? I’ve heard that’s a tough gig from other drivers. They say that’s a tough gig.

14:48 Well, it’s I’m going back to it. I’ve been I’ve I have my own company. Norton pays my company which pays me.

14:56 Okay.

14:56 You know, I do every I run everything in my company.

15:00 Sure.

15:00 But this is this particular position that I’m in because I pay for everything. It keeps me focused, keeps me sharp, it keeps me looking at the laws and studying. It keeps me on my agame so that I can bring Norton an agame.

15:20 We love hearing that. We love hearing that. And, that kind of leads me to my next question. And as an independent contractor, as you said, us paying you as a business, your business, do you manage pretty tightly, strictly, or I guess with a cautious eye receipts and such on your expenses on the road?

15:39 Yes, sir. Yes, sir. You got to keep all your receipts. You got to keep all your records in order because if you don’t, the IRS will bite you.

15:46 Yeah. Tax time comes for all.

15:49 Yes, sir. Now, sort of leading wrapping up here on the with all of your experience, your knowledge I was going to ask this question for someone who’s on the fence, maybe thinking about jumping into driveaway what would you say are the pros and cons or what do you need to know to be successful, such as yourself, in driveaway?

16:10 Be safe. Listen a lot of drivers are Mr. And Mrs. Know-it-alls.

16:17 Mhm. They got everything figured out. If you bring an understanding to the table, if you bring your wisdom, but the willingness to learn somebody else’s wisdom, that makes you smart. Be polite, be respectful. You know, our dispatchers, our managers, you know, the owner even every, you know, if you look at the pyramid and the pecking order, everybody has a job and everybody’s job is difficult from the low man that’s sweeping the floor to the man that’s making decisions, having business meetings, and making powerful moves. Everybody has to respect everybody. You know, it’ll make the job a lot easier for yourself. It’ll make the job a lot easier for the dispatcher because you’re on the phone with them, but they’re dealing with hundreds of calls.

17:11 Mhm.

17:12 You know, so respect.

17:14 Those are some great words of advice for anybody who may be considering and is listening to this podcast and maybe wanting to jump into the driveaway game. You’ve heard it from a very very sage veteran there, Jimmy Tucker, about what it would take, what you need to consider, and what you need to bring to the table. Jimmy, thank you so much for joining us. And I want to say there’s a lot of things that we have not talked about yet, but we want to talk about next week with Jimmy about what motivates him, how he’s able to keep and approach this profession with so much positivity. And Jimmy, can you join us next week for that?

17:52 Yes, sir. All right, Jimmy, thank you so much and be safe out there.

17:55 Hey, thank you as well. It’s an honor.

18:00 Six-Figure Trucker is brought to you by Norton Transport. Norton Transport is a driveaway trucking company that customers can rely on. It offers excellent independent contract driving opportunities to professional, courteous, and qualified drivers that can provide the kind of service we deliver. If you’re interested in learning more about Norton or just want to subscribe to the show, check out Six-FigureTrucker.com. That’s Six-FigureTrucker.com.