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The Mid-America Trucking Show (MATS) will be held this week on March 22-24, 2007 and the event's organizers are predicting that this 36th edition of the show will be the largest Mid-America ever, even larger than the record-breaking show in 2006. Last year's event featured over 1,000 exhibitors with an attendance of over 75,000 visitors, so look for a great Mid-America for this year.
In expedited trucking, the cargo van has some definite advantages attached to it. It's (relatively) economical, in most cases there are no logs to keep, you can park about anywhere, and so the list goes.
There are some disadvantages though, and those shortcomings usually appear on some of the coldest and hottest nights of the year: Lack of climate control, or (since we're now in the winter season) more specifically, the lack of heat. Since the first driver climbed into a cargo van and made that first delivery, the question has been how to keep warm on those winter days and nights.
If you're like many drivers, you fill those long rides at night with thinking. Oh, you might be listening to XM or Sirius or talking to your co-driver or whatever, but it's a pretty good bet you're thinking about other things even while you're occupied with those distractions.
It's also a good bet that among those thoughts, truck drivers might be thinking about...trucks! Specifically, what their next truck would be like and what they would have on that ride. We pulled out the Rolodex and talked to some friends of ours to see just what they want on their next truck.
We've all seen cases like this on the television news:
- Salt Lake City, Utah - 75-year-old J. C. King became irritated with 41-year-old Larry Remm Jr. for honking at him for blocking traffic. King followed Remm when the younger man pulled off the road at which point King hurled his prescription bottle at Remm. King completed the attack by smashing Remm's knees with his (King's) '92 Mercury.
- Potomac, Maryland - Attorney and ex-state legislator Robin Ficker knocked the glasses off a pregnant woman after she had the temerity to ask him why he bumped her Jeep with his.
- Virginia - A dispute over a lane change on Virginia's George Washington Parkway was settled with a high-speed duel that ended when both drivers lost control and crossed the center line, killing two innocent motorists.
The workshops are designed to give an overview of the business and to answer the many questions prospective expediters have about getting started. The events cover everything from what constitutes expedited trucking to truck financing. The workshops are very helpful in determining if expedited trucking is the right career for an owner-operator.
When you're sitting by the side of the road many miles from home with a truck that won't go, your first reaction is probably to unleash a torrent of obscenities or perhaps just let out a scream of frustration.
That's the first reaction, but here's what you should do following that:
Call a breakdown service.
You can find them in directories or online. Sources include the truck manufacturers, engine makers, independent breakdown services and others.
After a successful three year run, the Award Winning 960 Express Cruiser Expediting Truck has received its first major makeover. Last August the people voted, and the "Cruiser" was awarded "Best of Show" at the Expedite Expo Trade Show in Wilmington, OH.
It was hard to imagine how this vehicle could be improved.
However, while you were telling us what you liked about the truck, you were also telling us what could be improved. As a result of your input, the latest version of America's favorite expediting truck includes over 30 significant design improvements!
What makes the 960 Express Cruiser so popular! Freightliner of Knoxville has always been an innovator and industry leader in the design and production of expediting trucks. In 1991, we were the first dealer to install a sleeper on the brand new FL70. About two years later, we installed the first APU's on expediter trucks.
In previous cab gadget-related articles, we've looked at cab entertainment, routing/mapping software and laptop technology. This time around, we check out actual cab tools - devices that help the driver perform his job more effectively and safely (and, in the case of the Pett product listed below, more comfortably.)
Dave Corfman of Florida maintains a fleet of 3 expedited straight trucks and is a familiar name to Expediters Online forum members.
"I find applicants by using word of mouth, the Expediters Online Free Classifieds, Panther Expedite Services (my carrier) and other sources.
With my teams, at least one of the drivers has to have professional experience whether it be expedite or OTR."
Corfman says that he will perform the pre-screening duties when the applicant makes the initial contact call. He tells us that's when the driver has an opportunity to make that all-important first impression. Sometimes, it's not the impression the applicant means to present
Since its founding in 1983,Churney's Truck Center of Cleveland, Ohio has been a full-service dealership offering Class 8 On-Highway truck sales along with a body shop for collision repair, front end alignment and full air conditioning/refrigeration service.
The dealership has earned a stellar reputation and a loyal customer base among truck buyers in Northern Ohio during the last two decades, but what is not as widely known is the company's commitment to serving the expedited truck market.
President Mike Churney and brother Dan Churney, Vice President, started in the family business at the ripe age of 13 years old by sweeping floors in a friend's body shop and learning the business, pardon the pun, from the ground up.
The brothers began building expedited trucks in 1998 - their first build, a UD Nissan cabover. Since that time, Churney's has grown into a major player in this niche, in both sales and service.
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