Imagine all the people

The journey for truckers through 2009 was a bumpy one to say the least. Just as the year wound down and Arrow Transportation slammed its doors shut and stranded 1,400 some odd drivers around the country – it felt like we were careening down the mountain.That was until a small effort started on Facebook to coordinate offers for help with the Arrow drivers needing the help. Sure, we launched it

You can’t make this stuff up

What started out Tuesday as a script-ready sequel to “The Nightmare Before Christmas” was quickly rewritten to something closer to “Miracle on Interstate 40.”Arrow Trucking left its drivers in a lurch all around the country when it ceased operations early Tuesday – with no warning.Loyal drivers were left holding the bag. Some had fueled, but the company’s card wouldn’t pay the bill – leaving the

The Christmas Letter

Christmas 2009Dear All:Well, there’s no use not coming right out and saying it: This was one lean year. I guess that if this trucking thing was easy, anyone could do it. We had to run as hard as we could and watch every penny like a cat eyes a mouse just to stay even. We were lucky that the price of diesel didn’t do a rerun of last year, but still shake our head at the idea that $2.50 seems like

More cracked Christmas carols

I recently encountered a toll road – first time in a long while. It being Christmas and all, I immediately grabbed my guitar, set the cruise control, got my knees under the wheel, and started composing another one of my Cracked Christmas Carols (More of them are in the current issue of Land Line, and on the Web here.)This one’s to the tune of “Sleigh Ride,” and is dedicated to all those states

Coming up 17s

If you hadn’t heard, Jasmine Jordan, the now 17-year-old daughter of OOIDA Members Lee and Paulette Jordan, is back on track.Jasmine, who also goes by Jazzy, is running coast to coast in order to bring awareness to the lack of affordable medical coverage for truck drivers.For her 17th birthday, which happens to be today, Dec. 17, Jasmine is asking supporters to donate $17 to the St. Christopher

Letter from a Marine

In the spirit of our Truckers for Troops campaign, I can’t resist again sharing this much-circulated letter from a soldier to the folks home on the farm. A trucker e-mailed it to me and had no idea of the origin. I googled around for a source, and I see that it’s been posted on a number of sites. Although the name and military branch seems to change, the letter is basically the same. Suffice to

What’s $6-$10 billion among friends?

For the last week, the California Air Resources Board has taken several very public shots, some by its own board members.It seems CARB’s researcher for its Truck and Bus Regulation, aka the retrofit rule, faked having a doctorate and lied to his own employers while trying to cover up his lack of a Ph.D. The Truck and Bus Rule will begin to be officially enforced in 2012, though most

Trucker Buddy

Land Line gets visits from several truckers and OOIDA members each week.This week, we were pleased to meet James Malone, an OOIDA Member and longtime trucker from Killeen, TX (pictured above with OOIDA's Nikki Johnson). James stopped by OOIDA headquarters on Monday on his way west on I-70 to Denver.James toured the building, met Land Line staffers and sat down for an interview with Land Line Now’