Ask a Feeder Driver, Feeder Driver FAQ

[olroadbeech]

Just got into feeder and getting lost finding a hub in a neighboring urban county is not fun. Time will solve this, but talk about apprehension dragging a 53' box behind you.

better than a set of doubles...try backing a set up or having to break up and reset to get out of a dead end or bad spot.

welcome to feeders.

 

[retiredTxfeeder]

My first week by myself, I got some bad directions from dispatch. That's a news flash lol. I pulled a set into a dead end beside one of our buildings. You only do that once. After that, before you commit to a blind turn, you get out and walk it first.

 

[pickup]

Just got into feeder and getting lost finding a hub in a neighboring urban county is not fun. Time will solve this, but talk about apprehension dragging a 53' box behind you.

If your directions are like mine, they only have the name of the hub and the slice number on top.

And the directions are usually something like this: Get off interstate XX at exit 57, at the second traffic light , make a left, go about a mile and a half up the road and make a right on Bumblefuk road , at the next light : make a sharp left onto Quagmire Street (Discount Mattresses will be on your right., Proceed about 1/8 of a mile, UPS will be on your right.

Well, that's just fine and dandy, but what if the sign for Quagmire Street or Bumblefuk road is not visible, missing, or not on the side of the street you were expecting it? Or what if Discount Mattresses closed down a month or two ago and has been replaced with a T Mobile?

So my suggestion is that you google "UPS and the town it is in" on your smartphone before you take off . For example "UPS Worchester, Mass" and a map should pop up with a red spot , indicating UPS customer counter or something like that. And that's usually the location you are going to . Zoom in and see if you spot Bumblefuk road and/or Quagmire Street. You now have a map to go with your directions. You can also see what streets are before Bumblefuk and Quagmire . So that when you are driving the last few miles of your leg and see one of these streets, you know your turn is coming up soon.

I usually write down the names of the three streets that intersect the road I am traveling on before the intersection that I need to turn at. That is , for a run I never did before(they are becoming rarer) , or a run I haven't done in a long time, or for a run that has now a different way of getting there due to a closed bridge or road.

Obviously try to commit the crucial part of the map to memory as you don't want to really be driving and consulting a smartphone at the same time.

You can also show the directions to a fellow driver and ask "hey , are these good directions"? and you might get lucky to be asking a guy who did that run a lot of times.

 

[pickup]

If your directions are like mine, they only have the name of the hub and the slice number on top.

And the directions are usually something like this: Get off interstate XX at exit 57, at the second traffic light , make a left, go about a mile and a half up the road and make a right on Bumblefuk road , at the next light : make a sharp left onto Quagmire Street (Discount Mattresses will be on your right., Proceed about 1/8 of a mile, UPS will be on your right.

Well, that's just fine and dandy, but what if the sign for Quagmire Street or Bumblefuk road is not visible, missing, or not on the side of the street you were expecting it? Or what if Discount Mattresses closed down a month or two ago and has been replaced with a T Mobile?

So my suggestion is that you google "UPS and the town it is in" on your smartphone before you take off . For example "UPS Worchester, Mass" and a map should pop up with a red spot , indicating UPS customer counter or something like that. And that's usually the location you are going to . Zoom in and see if you spot Bumblefuk road and/or Quagmire Street. You now have a map to go with your directions. You can also see what streets are before Bumblefuk and Quagmire . So that when you are driving the last few miles of your leg and see one of these streets, you know your turn is coming up soon.

I usually write down the names of the three streets that intersect the road I am traveling on before the intersection that I need to turn at. That is , for a run I never did before(they are becoming rarer) , or a run I haven't done in a long time, or for a run that has now a different way of getting there due to a closed bridge or road.

Obviously try to commit the crucial part of the map to memory as you don't want to really be driving and consulting a smartphone at the same time.

You can also show the directions to a fellow driver and ask "hey , are these good directions"? and you might get lucky to be asking a guy who did that run a lot of times.

This sort of thing goes under the philosophy of "Win today, fight tomorrow" . I read that in the Art of War and it resonated with me. Put the mental work in before you leave and you are much more confident and more likely to achieve your goal: getting there in one piece without hittin' nuthin'.

 

[olroadbeech]

This sort of thing goes under the philosophy of "Win today, fight tomorrow" . I read that in the Art of War and it resonated with me. Put the mental work in before you leave and you are much more confident and more likely to achieve your goal: getting there in one piece without hittin' nuthin'.

it's funny that you mention "The Art Of War". I read that and used tactics I learned from it against management. Those tactics worked like a charm!!!

 

[East coast navy]

Just got into feeder and getting lost finding a hub in a neighboring urban county is not fun. Time will solve this, but talk about apprehension dragging a 53' box behind you.

It gets easier... Just take it slow and make the dough.

 

[jaker]

Garmin trucker gps is awesome especially when you are going to different places a lot

 

[Covemastah]

If your directions are like mine, they only have the name of the hub and the slice number on top.

And the directions are usually something like this: Get off interstate XX at exit 57, at the second traffic light , make a left, go about a mile and a half up the road and make a right on Bumblefuk road , at the next light : make a sharp left onto Quagmire Street (Discount Mattresses will be on your right., Proceed about 1/8 of a mile, UPS will be on your right.

Well, that's just fine and dandy, but what if the sign for Quagmire Street or Bumblefuk road is not visible, missing, or not on the side of the street you were expecting it? Or what if Discount Mattresses closed down a month or two ago and has been replaced with a T Mobile?

So my suggestion is that you google "UPS and the town it is in" on your smartphone before you take off . For example "UPS Worchester, Mass" and a map should pop up with a red spot , indicating UPS customer counter or something like that. And that's usually the location you are going to . Zoom in and see if you spot Bumblefuk road and/or Quagmire Street. You now have a map to go with your directions. You can also see what streets are before Bumblefuk and Quagmire . So that when you are driving the last few miles of your leg and see one of these streets, you know your turn is coming up soon.

I usually write down the names of the three streets that intersect the road I am traveling on before the intersection that I need to turn at. That is , for a run I never did before(they are becoming rarer) , or a run I haven't done in a long time, or for a run that has now a different way of getting there due to a closed bridge or road.

Obviously try to commit the crucial part of the map to memory as you don't want to really be driving and consulting a smartphone at the same time.

You can also show the directions to a fellow driver and ask "hey , are these good directions"? and you might get lucky to be asking a guy who did that run a lot of times.

Well done !

 

[Rick Ross]

I use Google maps and check new places out. There are a lot of buildings that have an address on a street that doesn't match our entrance.

ATLGA would be one off the top of my head.

 

[silenze]

I use Google maps and check new places out. There are a lot of buildings that have an address on a street that doesn't match our entrance.

ATLGA would be one off the top of my head.

I use satellite view all the time to see where the docks are and what entrance to use.

 

[burrheadd]

Before smartphones we just drove around until we figured it out

Easy money

 

[barnyard]

Back when I was a noob, I got up early on Saturday and ran all the legs of a route on my motorcycle. Stopped for coffee and wrote down the exit name and numbers.

 

[Indecisi0n]

Is it true going feedahs gives you a flat ass? My buddy told me that and from the view in my center is he right. I don't want to lose my bubble butt if I decide to go.

 

[What'dyabringmetoday???]

Is it true going feedahs gives you a flat ass? My buddy told me that and from the view in my center is he right. I don't want to lose my bubble butt if I decide to go.

Biggest concern is if you carry your wallet in your back pocket. It will leave a big dent in your rear on that side.

 

[over9five]

Biggest concern is if you carry your wallet in your back pocket. It will leave a big dent in your rear on that side.

"Is that your wallet in your pocket, or are you happy to see me?"

 

[retiredTxfeeder]

Biggest concern is if you carry your wallet in your back pocket. It will leave a big dent in your rear on that side.

It will also make you walk in circles, pulling to the side your wallet is on.

 

[Indecisi0n]

It will also make you walk in circles, pulling to the side your wallet is on.

We had a feeder driver use this same argument in arbitration for overallow and they agreed with the driver.

 

[olroadbeech]

Back when I was a noob, I got up early on Saturday and ran all the legs of a route on my motorcycle. Stopped for coffee and wrote down the exit name and numbers.

I used to do the same thing the sunday before I did a in town business route. saved a lot of time .

 

[Covemastah]

Getting tired of fighting with the crappy barn doors on the air trailers ,,, they use friend:d up chain and clip to secure the doors , none are the same , then you gottah fool with the cheap doors to close them ,, and watching the whole time not to cut yourself on the older ones which are rotted away !
Yup ,,, let's put the gold in these trailers !!!

 

[jaker]

I used to do the same thing the sunday before I did a in town business route. saved a lot of time .

Well now you can have a different run everyday of the week, so kinda hard to come do it on your day off when you don't even know what you are going to be doing