Detoit, MI Bennie Joe Woods

by Bennie Joe Wood
(Detroit, MI, US)

Had my first D O T recordable accident and 2 tickets within a month. I loved my Company I drove for cause they were driver friendly company. I have over 8yrs driving experience behind me since getting out of trucking school in 2003. A rotten month of driving but no excuses I should have taken a break from it. but our company was short on driver's as the industry seems no matter where you go. my MVR looks bad but most the damage was done in December. the worst being a recordable accident. as I said my first in almost 10 years driving. well over a million driving. I just want a job doing the only skill I have this late in the game. Truth is I was over working myself at my company and took a load out east I should have never taken. I was just flat tired, but had committed to taking the load. There were no other driver's who could step in and take it off me at the time, which I believe contributed to me having run off the road on a slick newly pavement of black top asphalt. I can't take it back, but whish I had not at all. my 70hour clock was low anyway. But I felt a sense of duty since I confirmed the dispatch. Now I can't get a job pushing a wagon. Just feel black balled from making a living at age 52, not much else I can do. This redemption or reestablishing yourself as a driver with mom and pop companies isn't easy. there not that many that can help you legally. Most their equipment isn't road ready and they cut corners putting the driver in more troublesome position than he can afford already. I just wrote this story hoping someone who has a few good running trucks would give a veteran driver a break and let me work again. The moral of my story isn't a strange one. its becoming common place as driver shortage and fatigue set in on company drivers trying to make that last run sent to them while really they should simply do what I didn't. Just say no. Don't attempt to take one for the team like I did. They may not want to loose you as driver, but what can they do? insurance companies hire driver's not companies. and the shortage of drivers is only getting bigger with experience driver's like myself continue to be expected to never have anything go wrong with deadlines to meet and pick up and deliver goods all across the map. one bad series of tickets a accident cause me to be unemployable. Just want to work again.