Michele - My trucking life

by Michele
(Virden MB Canada)

Hi

I am a lady trucker from Canada. I started this profession back in 1990 with my common law partner. My partner already had 20 years under his belt so I enjoyed learning from an experience driver.

Primarily flatbed work we drove team in all provinces and most states hauling heavy machinery, farm implements, steel and even sod from Canada to Nogelaz Az!

I did most of the night driving while my partner negotiated most of the city driving. I did this for 5 years up until my son was born. The relationship with my partner dissolved soon after and my career in trucking came to a stop.

I pursued other interests for 15 years then after I lost my job in government I looked once again to trucking. I was pretty rusty and I didn't have my partner, plus I didn't want to do OTR trucking, so I tried out a few local outfits hauling groceries, rail containers and even some winter road work hauling fuel.

Yes I had a few mishaps. I dropped a trailer loaded with groceries on its pin at 3 o'clock in the morning at minus 40 degrees Celsius. My new boss wasn't too impressed.

I then tried hauling on the winter roads in Manitoba. Loved it! But as it turned out I was traveling too fast and I ended up jack knifed on a slippery curve. My boss wasn't too impressed either haha.

I then learned that I could make pretty decent money hauling in the oilfield industry. This is what I am doing now. I drive a 2007 KW hauling produced water and crude off of oil wells. Its local work (tho I had to move to the oil patch) and not terribly difficult work physically.

So now at 50 I can say I have had plenty of experience doing a wide range of trucking jobs.

Being a woman trucker does have its challenges and yes when a woman driver has a mishap there are always men who look at the gender issue.

All I can tell any woman who wishes to pursue a career as a professional driver is to accept that shit happens....to everyone....and to only look at mistakes as learning experiences.