"Respected, and treated like Human Beings" that part is definitely gone. The only time anyone treats me like a human being now, is when I go to a Love's truck stop lol.

I started driving in 84 and hung up my keys in 15. I totally agree with everything you said. The biggest change I saw was the brotherhood that doesn't exist anymore. I remember when I was learning one of the first things I was told was to carry a toolbox because even if you didn't need it for yourself you would need it to help somebody else. Like you said unfortunately those days are long gone.

I hate it when they try to make drivers hurry, its like freight is more important than people.

I started driving in '94 and feel lucky to have gotten in on the tail end of when it was still a fun and rewarding job, just me, the truck and a big Rand-McNally road atlas! Now it's e-logs, satellites and cameras staring at me. And a general public who has no respect for us anymore.

Even us older cats can forget what it was like before air ride seats. I got put into a "old but usable" truck one day, because mine was in the shop. Forgot all about that old spring seat. Going down open road was no big deal. Got into a subdivision to make my delivery, and hit a speed bump. Bounced me off the top of that cab, all I could see was STARS, and lots of em. Little things that you automatically remember that you forgot.

Man, did this video bring back memories. I've been out of trucking since 2006 when my decision not to run over a drunk ahead of me that had just impacted a refer took me to what I thought was a ditch but was instead was a 30' plus embankment that ended up with the king pin shearing off, the loaded lowbed coming through the back of my then brand new (3 weeks) tractor and pinning me under the steering wheel. Today I still walk with a cane, still paying hospital Bill's and lost everything because I don't have enough insurance. The guy driving drunk, not a scratch and driving with no insurance. All he lost was his '92 Ford Explorer. But I still miss it. Because of the kinship. If you broke down on the side of the road, before you could get you flares out, there were ten rigs behind you wanting to help. Between all of them there usually could be found the parts and expertise to get you back on the road, or at least to the repair shop.

I started with C&H Transportation out of Dallas in 1972. I worked as 2nd driver for a lease operator on a Ford 9000 cabover running a Cummins 335 hp through a 13 speed Road Ranger. I was 21 and so very green that it's a wonder I made it through the training program. The tractor was in poor repair. Nothing worked on the thing, not even the heater. If we ever cut the engine we had crawl into the engine compartment and jump the solenoid with a screw driver to engage the starter. Our owner was so cheap that he wouldn't even buy a CB so we relied on hand signals and light flashing to communicate with other drivers on the run. I had an old battery powered AM radio so I could listen to WBAP and the Bill Mack Open Road Show most everywhere we ran. That little radio made the whole thing tolerable. No cell phones then, no GPS, not even credit cards or ATMs. You were on you own out there and I remember being scared all the time. And very lonely. The money was good for the times. About $600 a month and I saved nearly everything I earned. I left the industry after about 2 years to get married, go to college and make a career in architecture. It's been a good life but every once in a while, I think "what if" and remember that diesel fuel smells like freedom. Cheers!

You're right Dave, I remember the old center point steering with double and triple stick transmission. The old fans mounted on the dash for your windshield. Thanks for the walk down memory lane Dave!

I can remember as a kid, listening to the truckers on an old walky talky, if one of them broke down, you would hear 3 or 4 other drivers telling him they would be stopping to help him out. You don't see that anymore, today you're on your own if you break down, no one is pulling over to help.

I started driving in the mid-nineties, and I caught the tailend of the good ole days. A lot of the down fall of trucking is from the driving schools. The schools give whoever shows up a license and teaches them a lot of bad habits like riding the left lane at all times no matter how slow your truck goes. I remember when most drivers didn't have a cell phone, people helped each other out, and you could carry on conversations for hours on the CB. I miss those days so much that it isn't funny. It use to be a lot of fun out here.

I'm not a truck driver, but I enjoy your channel. Listening to your stories took me back to my boyhood. I used to travel over the road with dad. I tell you what, as a boy, it was exciting! I loved them trucks. Still do. About those cabs being cold... I can attest, I froze my little 4 year old butt off in em. Especially that time we got stranded on the highway in North Dakota during a blizzard. Funny how some things stick in your mind.

Yes I remember Armstrong steering & 2/ 50 AC (2 Windows down , 50 miles an hour) cruise control was a stick holding the gas pedal down!

Very well stated! 318 Detroit's, changing tires along the road, rears, transmissions, engines, all being worked on in parking lots, or elsewhere! If it broke, you fixed it, whether it was -20°, or 90° plus. Personally, 35° and pouring rain was my favorite! Speaking of pouring rain, the fond memories of air wipers! The first time we heard of cruise control, there we were like a bunch of idiots, looking in both doors, at the driver raising and lowering the RPM's on a B Model Cat, with a switch on the dash! Shook our heads in amazement!

Still driving after 55years, and younger drivers think I’m full of BS when I tell them the trucks I started in didn’t have heaters or defrosters, they were gas rigs with none syncro transmissions . If you had a sleeper it was called a coffin and it was in the nose of the trailer. Of course air conditioning wasn’t around either. I can remember some of our drivers getting blisters on their feet after pulling a long grade. I hate all the rules,Regs,and fees we have to put up with today, but I sure like the comfort, power, and ride I get in my Pete now. The best thing about about “ The Good Old Days” they make you appreciate the equipment we have nowadays.

I don’t miss those old days at all. I bought my 1st truck in 82. It was a 67 Freightliner with a 238 jimmy. Personally I make more $$ now than I did back then. But I must say life was a party in the early 80s.

Deregulation killed the trucking industry. Mega carrier stepped in and you have what you have today. I I wouldn't recommend anyone buying their own truck and trailer. Unless they have found a special niche.

6-8 hour delays on a 200 dollar load is why said I'll never do freight again

52 years out here and still at it. My first truck was a 1965 Emeryville with a 220 cummins and a R 96 cable operated 10 speed trans.

A lot of older commercial pilots say similar things about the Aviation industry. Many of them liked it better back then when things were simpler and the pay was better.

You captured life back then very well. I’m not a newbie but I’ve been around long enough to miss the professionalism that is so lacking these days. I always had a great deal of pride in my equipment and my personal appearance and how I conducted myself out there. When I drove over the road my motto was “dress sharp act sharp.” it is embarrassing for me now to even tell people I am a truck driver it is really gotten to be the bottom of the barrel out here. “Wildflower”

I am a retired truck driver an I have a great respect for the older generation of truck drivers that were way ahead of my time many many Thanks to the ones that have gone ahead of me 👍

Yeah also back then drivers actually had to know how to read a map. I also remember having to stand on line in certain tuck stops in order to use the public phone. Wipers were air driven and very annoying. Air conditioners would typically break so you needed Fan's, etc. Just a few of the things I remember from my childhood days driving up and down I -95 with the old man

No Log books?!? Wow, I’d run 1,000 miles a day. That must of been great.

Dave I'm what you'd call "new", only been at this for 6 years but I still find it hard to let go of my passion and naive boyhood dreams of running like you guys did. I really have a hard time letting go and acknowledging that it's just not worth it anymore. I'm really going to miss trucking...

I loved the 80s pay sucked no jake brake. I can remember going north of Milwaukee in my cab over never been so cold. I think it was warmer outside than inside the truck

In this video you addressed all the reasons why you don't have more skilled drivers on the road today. Back then you had to really love the job, and have skills. Yes I remember those days well.

This guy really know what he's talking about!! Well said my brother!!

Thank you. When I worked for Pepsi I did line hauling with a old split hood Peterbilt with no power steering. And the 70's COE trucks would just wear you out after 6 hours.

I started driving full time in 1976, a very green inexperienced 23 year old kid. Training was minimal. I was very fortunate in never having an accident or serious incident. I hauled bulk commodities, deck loads, reefers, fuel, everything but livestock. I eventually began driving highway coaches and when my kids were little I took a job driving a bus for the City of Edmonton thinking I would stay until they were just a little bigger. 29 years later I am still there, a grandpa and almost ready to take my wife and dog and turn into a Big Fat Snowbird. Really enjoy your channel and I appreciate your attitude towards trucking. Watching brings back a lot of memories. Oh, I found some episodes of Cannonball on KZfaq. Filmed in TO I believe. Check it out sometime. Thanks again, Jim!

The lower wage part seems to be a wider symptom of wage stagnation. Everybody is struggling, one of my friends got an economics degree and a bank wanted to srart him out $10-$13 an hour. Makes me pretty glad to have dropped out and gotten into trucking even these days haha.

I just wish we had the same freedom still. Now with Elogs.. It is possible.. I don't mind being accountable of how I drive.. Just let me drive and do it as I see fit. I'll stop when I'm tired and I'll drive when I'm not.. I drive tired all the time now because if you don't it'll mess up your whole week.. Or what about waking up at Midnight to start driving because that's when you get your hours back? You just work more like a machine and not a human.. Nothing SAFELY about that.. I've done many runs were I was LEGAL but very UNSAFE.. Waking up in the middle of the night to start driving.. When I could've made it SAFELY but ILLEGAL the night before.. Makes no sense to me..

I am not old enough to have seen those days but as a teenager used to go with my uncle who was an owner driver in Iran. Trust me, I prefer changing two flat tyres a day on the side of the road over all the rules and regulations, cameras, traffic and lack of respect towards drivers we experience today

The independence & freedom we enjoyed back then was what drew me in. But it had it's downside; like the cold & windy winter night around 11:00PM when my turbo blew out and stranded me on top of a hill on a lonely and desolate stretch of highway (state route 17) in upstate NY. Luckily around midnight a State Trooper happened by and stopped to see if I needed help. Via his radio he contacted the Sargent at the barracks who called my brother (a truck mechanic) told him what I needed. BIll relayed to me through them that he'd pick up a new turbo and see me around 4:00AM. By the time he got there I was half froze to death, even after spending all that time back in the sleeper covered up with every blanket and item of clothing I had with me. But you know what, I'd do it all again if it meant regaining the freedom & independence we had back then.

I love the fact that this guy is retired and still cares so much about truckers rights and the state of trucking today. I think he's a cool guy.

im only 28 and have been trucking for a little bit but when i was growing up on the road with my dad in the early 90s, i always remembered everyone talking on the CB like mad crazy. id talk to people my dad talked to. it was awesome. i quickly quit truck driving because it just doesnt pay enough and a mega carrier isnt fun at all.

The points you made basically go for every industry. The 'inovation' that has gone on in business has basically been creating more and more ways to get more work for less money, less benefits and less security for the people at the bottom, while moving more money and security to the people at the top. The outlook for young people is relentlessly bleak in every area until things change.

Tire fires, jack-knifing, brake failure due to overheating . . . there are a great many things about trucking now that are cruel for the drivers, but it wasn't all sunshine in the old days.

Hello, retired in 2016 after 38 years ( Minnesota Based )and everything you talked about is 100 percent true👍 I enjoy your channel.

Thanks very much for the overall update, and for being objective.I'm 57, never been a trucker, and am starting CDL class at a community college soon, which I'm looking forward to.You're right, trucking economic issues are on par to world economic issues. No matter what profession. As well as people lending a hand, when needed.i appreciate all that you do.

I remember leaving NC heading out west,jumping on I40 and hooking up with some other chicken trucks and had a blast all the way to CA. Last time I ran out west, no one talked on cb,people drove with a chip on their shoulders and there was no fun times. Drivers for the most part, thanks to companies DOT shippers and receivers are zombies today.

Buddy it shocks me how many truck drivers I've met that don't know squat about mechanics or even how to use a multi-meter, I'm not playing. I do roadside mechanic work and I take calls from roadside protect who takes calls for volvo and isuzu truck ( well that's mostly what I get they do a few other small fleets too) but it's really shocking how many can't do even the most simple of things like adding fluids I've seen. Most my truck calls are tire changes, locked up brakes, and jump starts. But I'd change a transmission on the road side if they would pay me well enough LOL.Oh and worse people with RVs, even and those people probably are even more ignorant it baffles me how they even can manage to plug their rigs into the power in a park much less anything else.. But I learned early in life to not have something like that that I can't service and fix, it's always came in handy. Take care hero.

wow, brought back old memories from when i started driving in back '78. another part to add was the fact you rarely had any parking issues back then. i retired from driving in '08. 30 yrs was enough. do i miss it 10 yrs later? not much.

Boy would I love to be trucking back in the day the way it use to be comparing the way it is now

My Frist truck was a Bull nose Mac 5x4 fuel was 19 to25 cents a gallon we had to be part mechanic no air conditioning no power steering .But I Love it

I grew up as a kid in the 70s and trucking was a culture which Hollywood glorified with movies like Convoy and Smokie and the Bandit. And let's not forget the classic Dennis Wever in the Duel. Trucking was in the family so I got to see first hand how trucking really was. You bring back exactly how it was. What is missing now is the money and brotherhood. The 2 way radio chatter with all the Handles was always a joy for me. That is what I wanted to do as a kid. However I made some bad choices as a youth and ended up doing time. After many years of grinding through jobs I finally got my CDL. However nowadays it is very difficult to become a independent driver and competing with these giant firms who have thousands of trucks and hire anyone who can barely pass the exams. Many of them can barely speak English and have no clue how trucking used to be. These trucks now are so designed for driver comfort they basically are just steered. I drive a 87 Mack roll off with a twin screw. No air, heat sucks and no radio. No air ride either. It's hard work, but I think the truck reminds me what the older truck were like. I really enjoy your videos. Keep on Trucking ✌

Wow someone that actually remembers these children driving today just dont know, i used to run a 78 pete cabover talk about cold you leave LaCross Wisc. and when you got to SoiuxFalls many a time you just could not walk it would literly beat you down, had a milk crate for a seat and air conditioning was crank the window down, yes we made good money more than today but it took more brains back then and braun.

I hate trucking these days but back in the old days it was so cool

you sure brought back memories of good times in trucking. I started with frozen food express in 1957 and drove with them till 59. our trailers then were 35,and then when we got the 40 ft we were in cotton.we would do a west coast turn-around and do our logs when we got back to our yard.

I like listening to your facts and stories, you really make good points. I think you would make a great teacher for new drivers.

I could listen to this guy talk for hours.

Thanks for the video! I've been driving 23 years now; mostly mail. I've had for the last two years, a mail relay that's only 275 miles round trip, drop and hook, with 6 1/2 hours driving, fueling, and relay time to get it done. Anything above that 6 1/2 hours is just extra time; all paid by the hour. I'm scared to go anywhere else! LOL If this route ends, I'm done with trucking. I paid my dues; 2 1/2 years over-the-road with hellish companies back in the nineties; delivering new trucks, containers, you name it, I've done it. Always go back to mail though. Oh yeah, stay the hell away from charter buses; that crap is even worse than a sorry trucking company. I've done that too. You have all the things you don't like about modern trucking, plus you have 'talking freight!'

I just discovered your channel, you speak the truth and bring back so many memories. Good memories though, I raised my family which afforded us a good living . Armstrong steering in a W900 A cab, spicer 5x4, 11.24.5 rubber 336 rearends, coffin sleeper that was used as a tool box. My bed was both sticks shoved forward and a piece of 3/4 in plywood laid across the seats and a sleeping bag. In the summer I had a hammock I hung between the rear of the cab and the front of the trailer. Ended up in Bakersfield CA in the middle of the summer and is was so freaking hot I could not not sleep and there was a Motel next to the truck stop and I snuck into the kiddy pool and slept the whole night , I will never forget that summer. Keep bringing back the great memories of an occupation that has long since left us, sad really that we are regulated to the point that I retired but still miss the ol days. Oh by the way my last truck I bought was a Frieghtliner COE, with a 435 hp 8v92 Silver series, 13 speed double over with 390’s for rearends . Loved the sound of that Detroit, nothing sweeter. Carryon ol trucker email me let’s talk.

I guess if a person wants to drive a truck and still enjoy it nowdays the best bet is to buy or restore an antique truck and cruise with it periodically. no electronics,no schedule and dot wont look at you as much if it is antique licensed.It wouldnt be a job but it would be fun.

Thank You ! Pop was an O/O for 40+ years . I grew up with the smell of diesel ,"Real Mans Cologne" ! I am male 62 years young and I used to drive OTR for my dad . I helped with all manner of tasks , Moving freight in small boxes from front to back or back to front to " scale out " in low weight states , four axel rig , reefer trailer , yes , ice bunker and beloved " putt putt " motor , but, not with small boxes of freight ! I was seven or eight years old . To line up spoke wheels , scotch axels ,build up air, remember the little metal flag that would fall on low air, turn the wheels by hand , and with a qt. oil can, where it touches tighten with four way and cheater pipe ! I could do this when I was in Grade school ! I have dozens of memories and stories of " Real Trucking " ! Again Many Thanks !

I remember no a/c and no saat air or shock ride in the 72 international loadstar I drove back in the day. I also remember guys able to retire at 55 with a teamster pension.

Back then drivers were proud to be a driver

Thanks again for the video makes me understand completely what today's driver's deal with not just me

Amen! '77GMC Astro,146" wheelbase,46k Reyco spring susension,Air "power steering" was like the rudder on a boat. When you made a reference to air ride you were talkin about the time you spent in the air between the seat and the ceiling. LOL!

Yes sir I remember those days very well, don't know if I could handle trucking now days with all the regulations and such, but you hit the nail on the head. Thanks for the video ! Well done !!

No automatic slack adjusters- you had to manually adjust brakes all the time in all types of weather. No insulation-I drove an old cab over that had no engine insulation on the inside of the engine compartment and no insulation or padding on the dog house. Bare metal-In the summertime pulling a grade you could literally fry an egg on the dog house! Split rims,inter tubes, tube liners and your right-Pathetic tires.

L. O. L. I remember those days. I am/was a 3rd generation O/O. I sold my last truck back in 2012 and I am thankful for experience, and the time I spent with my dad. We had a lot of adventures. I took my kids when they were young and I am so glad for the memories and thankful they all went to Collage and got their education and there is not a snowflake in the bunch. An Accountant, A teacher and the out Law works for the County"s Prosecutors Office. No truckers. They broke the mold. Not that trucking ain't in their blood, I do get a picture text every once in a while of a beautiful long nose Pete. Thank you for all your info, you are teaching the next generation right. Keep it up. you all need to listen to this man! God bless.

My first long-haul rig was a 65 KW with a Detroit 318 and 4X4 transmissions. Pulling a 40 foot propane powered reefer. Hey, it was top of line equipment for hauling produce in those days. Turned L.A. Southern CA and AZ to Vancouver BC once a week. Occasionally further north. Old hwy 97 and the Fraser River canyon aka "Hellsgate." The most "interesting" road? The haul road from Fairbanks AK to Deadhorse/Prudhoe Bay. The Rollercoaster, Mackey, the Beaverslide, the Shelf, Atigun and a good many others were all guaranteed to get your attention. Take my word for it, there's no such thing as too much horsepower.

Thanks for sharing Dave!! It’s an honor to hear you share the story of how it was back in the day!! With the video and comments read I am reconsidering just staying company driver but only with hourly pay or chase a career with potential thanks and god bless!!

I still change my own tires and I'm only 30 lol, do 98%of my own repairs and drive a 1997 semi.....

I grew up a generation too late unfortunately

I remember in the 80s even plenty of heat in the summer and ac in the winter

I wish trucking worked the way it did back then, but that we still have the technology we do today.

Waiting on my 1984 359 Pete 3406B to get done I been driving since 2005 but wish I could of drove experienced the 80s and 90s but I wasn’t born until 1982.

Great video bringing back the old memories I started in 1984 remember the old trucks with the old Dayton style wheels before they change them to Budd Wheels trying to get them balanced on the side of the road I remember them days LOL

I was a mechanic and driver back in the mid 90s we still ran equipment from the 60s. I miss being treated as a valuable part of a company. Police left you alone, for the most part. It was not that regulated , take a break when you got tired breaking up your sleeper as long as it equaled 8 hrs. No log book 50.00 fine and down 8 hours. But the police were so much more fun to play with.

I could listen to this guy talk about anything

Couldnt agree more, its not the same and it will never be the same again , but I still enjoy the lifestyle. Stay safe

Love all your stories about back in the day. Wish I was born about 50 years ago

The best thing about trucking back in the day was a sense of accomplishment. We moved freight. We could drive a truck that a lot of people would have trouble with. We had skills. Drivers liked other drivers. The truckstops were better, even though most weren't open 24hrs. The money was way better. The best thing about trucking now days is I'm not doing it. New trucks are overpriced junk.

I have to give you a 100% right on!

50 hours was allowed from Alabama to LosAngeles......late 1980's

I grew up not to far from a local highway in town, back when our saw mills were open, I'd fall asleep at night listening to the log trucks roll by, oh how I miss the sound of those trucks rolling by during the night. I have a few family members who have or are driving truck in one form or another, some long haul, some just local, and a couple who drive the wreckers that recover all the tractor/trailer's. I have a lot of respect for truck drivers and always let them have all the room they need to maneuver, whether it be at a simple stop light or stop sign by staying back away from the intersection so they have plenty of room to easily make their turn, to helping them pass on the highway/freeway by flashing my lights to let them know they've got by me safely and can move back over if they want. Driving truck takes a lot of practice, a lot of knowledge, and lots of paying attention. Heck I think part of the driver's training for people getting their regular driver's license it should be required that they ride shotgun in a semi-truck for a month and see all the close calls and stupid 4 wheeler drivers out there that just cause all sorts of problems for truck drivers. Truckers have a lot to do, they have a very large truck/trailer with a lot of weight to keep under control, and don't have time to deal with stupid passenger car drivers. If it weren't for truckers/trucks all the shelves at every store across the country would be empty, and businesses wouldn't exist. Truckers drive this country and without them the country would quickly come to a screeching halt. Thank you to all of you truck drivers out there, without you the rest of us wouldn't have a job either. Take care and stay safe out there.

Power steering I couldn't imagine driving without that LOL 🤣🤣

I am 72 years old and I agree with you completely!!!

It's sad, but it seems the whole world is crumbling into something worse these days

My dad drove from 68 to 2000. He said that he enjoyed driving back in the day. He said that he wouldn't be able to do it now a days because of all the new steering wheel holders not knowing anything and all the new regulations.

I started in April 77 with North American Van lines New Products Division. I bought Ford cabover single axle truck. with lease purchase. Truck had air conditioning , no Jake brake , no power steering. 290 Commins engine. 10 speed road ranger trans. And I LOVED THAT JOB. Wish I was brought back to those times. Loging was all paper and lenient dot rules. I would always plan my driving from truck stop to truck stop and there always was sufficient parking. I drove all 48 states and ALL trailer loads with ONE delivery no multiple drops. I enjoyed it to the hilt. No one bugged me on cell phones , no stupid electronic logging and computers and restricted time window. And as owner operator lot of times I picked where to go. I loved my long haul trucking. As the song goes -- " If I could bring back time"

Well Dave I finally did it, sold the truck and went to work locally hauling salt water in the oilfields. home every night, have to drag a hose and hook up is a heck of alot easier on my old bones than dragging tarps and at the end of the day making better money. Now, as to the old trucks and (air ride) We had air ride before the trucks did, UNFORTUNATELY KT WAS THE AIR GAP BETWEEN OUR ARSES AND THE DANG SEAT!! POWER STEERING? HOW STRONG ARE YA? Could go on an on. That little tumble I had back in June when I broke that railroad bar an broke some things kinda got me thinking about calling it, not getting younger an after 45yrs out here it's time to slow down some. Good luck driver's stay safe out there.

Simply to much government everybody wants a dime.

I was a kid in the 80s rolling with my dad every summer and during school any short trip I could get. Now out here as an adult. I think some things were better then and some things are better now. I guess it's all perspective. The big difference I think though and this is just my opinion is there was alot more manners on the road bye truck drivers some of which is still there but there's alot more idiot drivers or un educated drivers. But I still love being out here I still have fun. I still run a cb and meet lots of interesting folks on the radio. I try to set a good example and just hope new guys pick up on things

My Grandpa Ken King Cole at one time was the oldest trucker in Canada. He worked for Hutton Transport which is just outside of St.Marys,Ontario, they haul for St.Marys Cement & other companies as well. My Grandpa use to haul for Labatts beer co. as well.

So cool to hear your insight. I could tell the younger guys about the pre elog days, but not about the days of pre power steering and pre air conditioning.

I used to go with my dad on runs in the winter, id have a blanket with me to stay warm,the heater was terrible in that old international. Loved it though, now 35 years later still going.

Been there done that, got the T shirt. Great vid brought back a lot of memories, thanks

The only thing I don't miss was those damn twin sticks. And I thought I was livin' large when I got a Cummins big cam 400. Pulled like a champ.

Made me think of that old 59 B Model Mack I used to drive. I remember the old man telling me that it had to be shifted in and exact H pattern. It only took one or maybe two mistakes before the new guys figured it out. Laying out with a small sledge trying to tap that ball on the end of that stick. And your day/week was SHOT if you got pissed and broke the damn ball off of the end of it while trying to dislodge the bottom of the stick..... The good old days.... Another great video.

The Golden Years and I miss it...

Better living: trucking in the US was regulated(i.e. all rates were fixed and no one was allowed to compete on price). The end of regulation was the end of good wages for truckers. I think that deregulation was a huge mistake, but no one cares about my opinion.

Wish I could’ve been there, cool video!

I remember those days 220 Cummins and a 5X4 5 million miles later 500 PACCAR with a 13 sp auto like you Dave enjoying retirement. I really thought I'd miss driving, nope not at all.

Not to mention the lower horse power, narrow single lane highways, low underpasses mostly railroad. The interstate wasn't finished through any of the mountain passes and didn't have good snow removal not signs mandating a road was no longer passable. I recall being stuck in the fortunatly on the shoulder for three days and night till they could clear the snow enough to go down the otherside. Always had a few cans of spam, saltines, and peanut butter, for those occasion in my sidebox. In my corn binder, the winter's were the worse, no heat, I wore two sets of coveralls, one my regualar size and one two sizes bigger. The summer's weren't too bad, using duck tape and a dryier vent tubing, I tape one end to the refer access port in the front and sick the other in my bunk vent. Regualationg the cold took some doing but once done, worked great.

in my opinion the biggest problem in trucking today, is the amount of brokerage you have to pay on the load of freight you are hauling...too many middle men...everyone wants to take a piece of the pie and the guy who actually does the work gets screwed..i miss it. i trucked for 40 years, owned my own and drove for others too...but with the way things are now, i see no way for an independant to make the kind of living that we used to... my hat's off to all you guys who are trying to do it ... good luck brothers...

I have not been at as long as you have. I started in 91 and I loved trucking back then. Now it is very stressful with the time management issues. I do like the modern trucks and not freezing in the winter trying to sleep. Also I used to carry a spare and knew how to change it. Even in the 90s converting to 2017 money I am making less money now.. I only plan to do this a few more years than I am done.

I recall a truck stop in the U.S. that had movies playing this would be around 1985-86 era.

The main thing that went down hill was the respect but, I now see a lot of drivers on the road that don't deserve it. Used to be we gave respect and got it back in return.