I recently met Brad Weilert, a livestock hauler with a 4-decker from Garden City, KS. He told me what it takes to unload goats in Manhattan to a shed smaller than the fuel pumps we were standing at. You can only do it at night because the New York cops don’t like you blocking the street. So, you leave for your next stop, put the clothes on, fight with the animals, and then leave again, because nobody likes you sleeping at the chute. It’s not out of the norm to drive 500 miles from your first to last delivery, after you already drove 1,700 miles straight, just to get to the first drop. And just when I thought this could not be real, he dropped his buddy’s name, Reid, who used to do this deal in an old A-model KW. These cats are young, but they really admire those old bull haulers, who had to be much tougher. Those guys ran shorter trucks, with no front air-ride, and half the horsepower. One time, Reid was forced to change out some bad fuel lines right at the fuel island. That’s pretty old school! The money doing this is not as good as reefer, but he has been doing it every week for the last five years and all the people he delivers to and from are just great – they even feed him home-cooked meals. It might not sound like much to some, but to others, it’s the American dream.
