One time while waiting for my bus, I watched some poor soul for about half an hour trying to back his rig into a loading dock downtown. He had blocked 4 lanes of traffic for long stretches of that time, and just seemed to make things worse with every attempt.
He somehow managed to manoeuvre himself into such an angle that he could not go ahead or astern without rubbing the walls hard. I finally got on my bus ... some say that trucker is there still.
As a veteran commercial trucker myself this guy is really good at his job!
I suspect by the truck he’s driving that his job is a shunter…so the line haul/highway truckers drop the trailers at a yard somewhere close by and then when the product is needed this guy, with a smaller cab over type truck, rips them down and back them into the dock.
The smaller short wheel base shunt trucks have way more manoeuvrability and can swing those trailers around a lot easier.
I once spent a lunch hour watching the shortest cabover with the shortest trailer stuck on a one way street trying to do a 3 point turn, with a spotter. All he had to do was back into a parking lot and turn. The street was dead. He was just going back and forth without accomplishing anything but burning diesel.
Sometimes the brain just shuts off and you're stuck repeating the same scenario over and over again. I've pulled off pure miracles from gawd himself in heavy traffic with a 53' spread on a stretch frame and also been unable to straight back a daycab with a 28' pup into a hole, it is a heady combo of exhaustion, tractor, distractions like traffic, and did I mention the exhaustion?
I'm a logistics manager and have seen thousands of trucks dock. You can instantly spot the guys with experience, no wasted movement.
I also feel a bit bad for the newcomers though, even if we have a huge yard with enough space and no private traffic, sometimes they get nervous and it makes it even worse when everybody starts looking.
Sometimes the more experienced guys get out of their trucks to help or give tips ( they're waiting and don't have much to do) which is always nice to see.
As someone who has done both, the position isn't terrible, it's the traffic. I had to put a flatbed into a similar dock in LA a few years back with two-way road traffic being absolutely unwilling to slow down for a millisecond until they got a pair of flaggers out there.
Having worked in/around warehouses for the past 20 years, with sufficiently large lots / lanes JUST for us? Yeah no, this is A+ extra-credit shit right here.
My dad was an otr driver. He would put into much tighter spots than this in NYC all the time. He g9t paid well becsuse he would take trips to NYC that other drivers didnt want to do.
You'll manage fine, there's far dumber people than you with their CDL. Just take your time, assess every back, and do *not* be too proud to ask for help. I've had random 4 wheelers just up and stop traffic for me cause they see trucks doing what I need to do every day and 3 minutes blocking the cars saves them more on their commute than 20 mins of me dryfucking a hole.
You'll do fine. Once you get a feel for it, it's not as bad as it looks. And always remember, there is no need to hurry. If it takes you 4 or 5 tries, that's fine. You won't need that many tries for long. Good luck!
Take it slow, fuck the haters. Better to take your time than end up with someone taking a video of you and putting it on YouTube cuz you tried to do a u-turn, got stuck on a rock and now you're blocking the entire road.
I always pop on a big fake mustache when I'm trying to drop off a trailor like this, so if someone records it for youtube/facebook everyone will think it'd a bit and it won't go viral.
Also protip: avoid cities during rush hour if you can, and park early (before 5pm) or you'll have a hard time finding a place to park. It gets worse the closer you are to a city.
I once spent a lunch hour watching the shortest cabover with the shortest trailer stuck on a one way street trying to do a 3 point turn, with a spotter. All he had to do was back into a parking lot and turn. The street was dead. He was just going back and forth without accomplishing anything but burning diesel. That and amusing the people waiting at the food trucks.
One of my favorite things I learned in my CDL training was how to park a trailer in a 90 degree turn. Was told if you can pivot a trailer 90 degrees into a dock, you can park it from anywhere. The hardest part in this whole video is keeping a good attitude and patient waiting for that fuckin traffic lmao
First grocery store I worked at, our loading dock was low and had a hydraulic elevator, and only about a truck length and a quarter in front of the dock. Luckily it was behind the store so no traffic, but we had one dude who took two hours to hit that dock.
There's an Asda in the UK where the loading dock is underground. Drive drives in, stops, and a turntable spins the entire truck around. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuWnBooYsMM (If I had a dollar for every pixel in that video I'd have about twenty dollars)
I spent a few years silo loading trucks at a power plant. The scales we had were very unforgiving. Barely 2 feet on either side of a centered truck. I would do my best to direct from the front of their vehicle, but some people trust their feelings more than a third party. Several trucks ended up in their sides or damn near close to it in those few years.
Couple of the mills I would load at had elevated scales that were literally 9' wide. They had a cute little rail on the side, barely a foot tall, and you had to thread the needle to get all your tires on that plate the first time.
Cheap customers do cheap shit and we just gotta deal with it.
Oh shit you're right. Yeah those things only travel very short distances if they are on the road at all and this guy is backing up trailers all day every day. Usually in the same yard.
What makes it even worse is half the time these indoor docks are poorly lit and if you're outside on a bright sunny day you can't see shit till you get inside.
You might be surprised how quickly you can pick it up if you put in the effort. CDL trailers are actually easier than many car trailers because they are a lot longer (giving you finer control and more time to catch it) and prime movers often have much sharper turning radii. The technique isn't too complicated - you are watching the inside wheel of the trailer and adjusting its turn rate via the angle between vehicle and trailer (1/2)
The hardest trailers to back for me are short narrow ones with wide cars since you have really poor visibility of the trailer itself and because the angle between the trailer and car can change really fast. You also have a lot less total angle to play with before it jack-knifes and even less before you can't catch it (full lock doesn't straighten trailer). The real truck wizards are the ones that back B-doubles and road trains, nothing but respect for them. (2/2)
a normal wild tram or a tony scott wild tram? (burning, with a woman giving birth and with a nuclear bomb in it ticking, while the woman tries to defuse it),
I make over a 100k and I'm local you don't have to go otr to see those numbers just have to know where to look but I will say that seeing that type of money otr is easier to find if you do go otr
I'll never understand how so many car dealers are allowed to use public roads to unload new cars. Every car dealer on Ogden Avenue, I'm looking in your direction.
Nah, I'm mostly sick of the car trucks around me that stop and unload on the side of the road instead of the giant fucking parking lot right next to them. It's only tangentially related, but it now pisses me off when businesses force trucks into positions that endanger other drivers.
mikeatike
Was the camera part of his sunglasses?
Madone7
Every time I drive long distances I'm reminded how awesome CDL drivers are.
Dalael
This guy can do this while others cant park within the lines at costco
AtaSeaParks
Fuckin' beautiful
Raikupath
Fuck Meta Glasses. Fuck Meta. Stop pushing this bullshit
VoidForScreaming
+1
flashboredom
Much respect.
IamTOOOLDforThisShite
One time while waiting for my bus, I watched some poor soul for about half an hour trying to back his rig into a loading dock downtown.
He had blocked 4 lanes of traffic for long stretches of that time, and just seemed to make things worse with every attempt.
He somehow managed to manoeuvre himself into such an angle that he could not go ahead or astern without rubbing the walls hard.
I finally got on my bus ... some say that trucker is there still.
thrashingcows
As a veteran commercial trucker myself this guy is really good at his job!
I suspect by the truck he’s driving that his job is a shunter…so the line haul/highway truckers drop the trailers at a yard somewhere close by and then when the product is needed this guy, with a smaller cab over type truck, rips them down and back them into the dock.
The smaller short wheel base shunt trucks have way more manoeuvrability and can swing those trailers around a lot easier.
DonaIdJ
This! Much respect all around but it is much easier with a shunt tractor.
thewiggins
I once spent a lunch hour watching the shortest cabover with the shortest trailer stuck on a one way street trying to do a 3 point turn, with a spotter. All he had to do was back into a parking lot and turn. The street was dead. He was just going back and forth without accomplishing anything but burning diesel.
IHaveGreatKittenRecipes
Sometimes the brain just shuts off and you're stuck repeating the same scenario over and over again. I've pulled off pure miracles from gawd himself in heavy traffic with a 53' spread on a stretch frame and also been unable to straight back a daycab with a 28' pup into a hole, it is a heady combo of exhaustion, tractor, distractions like traffic, and did I mention the exhaustion?
FPAlpha
I'm a logistics manager and have seen thousands of trucks dock. You can instantly spot the guys with experience, no wasted movement.
I also feel a bit bad for the newcomers though, even if we have a huge yard with enough space and no private traffic, sometimes they get nervous and it makes it even worse when everybody starts looking.
Sometimes the more experienced guys get out of their trucks to help or give tips ( they're waiting and don't have much to do) which is always nice to see.
pinpuller2365
Spotter driver. Guy does this all day every day. OTR driver would screw this up for hours.
misterwilson
As someone who has done both, the position isn't terrible, it's the traffic. I had to put a flatbed into a similar dock in LA a few years back with two-way road traffic being absolutely unwilling to slow down for a millisecond until they got a pair of flaggers out there.
ChazzK
Having worked in/around warehouses for the past 20 years, with sufficiently large lots / lanes JUST for us? Yeah no, this is A+ extra-credit shit right here.
taichanie
as not the best otr driver. this is actually not that bad. imagine doing that on a 2 lane with a bunk road vs 5 lane with a shunt truck
mikeatike
My dad was an otr driver. He would put into much tighter spots than this in NYC all the time. He g9t paid well becsuse he would take trips to NYC that other drivers didnt want to do.
taralanth
Oh thank god lol im going to school for a cdl in september for otr and idk how the fuck id do that. Gave me a lil bit of a panic attack lol
IHaveGreatKittenRecipes
You'll manage fine, there's far dumber people than you with their CDL. Just take your time, assess every back, and do *not* be too proud to ask for help. I've had random 4 wheelers just up and stop traffic for me cause they see trucks doing what I need to do every day and 3 minutes blocking the cars saves them more on their commute than 20 mins of me dryfucking a hole.
Rips4w
You'll do fine. Once you get a feel for it, it's not as bad as it looks. And always remember, there is no need to hurry. If it takes you 4 or 5 tries, that's fine. You won't need that many tries for long. Good luck!
Avarice4020
Take your time, figure your distance, set mental markers, and honestly, GET OUT AND LOOK.
Quizz25S
Take it slow, fuck the haters. Better to take your time than end up with someone taking a video of you and putting it on YouTube cuz you tried to do a u-turn, got stuck on a rock and now you're blocking the entire road.
hyptosis
I always pop on a big fake mustache when I'm trying to drop off a trailor like this, so if someone records it for youtube/facebook everyone will think it'd a bit and it won't go viral.
Quizz25S
Also protip: avoid cities during rush hour if you can, and park early (before 5pm) or you'll have a hard time finding a place to park. It gets worse the closer you are to a city.
colweb29350
https://media1.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1aHFvOHJ3YmpoNG1tM3B3cm9wZWduZnBuMGsxZnFid2Q5eTFqNGw0ZSZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/vdUSqFTK0RPKU/200w.webp
Groose
Of i witnessed a truck doing this id get out and clap
netutoring
This is the type of tractor trailer driver that led to the old maxim 'get behind the tractor trailer driver' to stay safe.
thewiggins
I once spent a lunch hour watching the shortest cabover with the shortest trailer stuck on a one way street trying to do a 3 point turn, with a spotter. All he had to do was back into a parking lot and turn. The street was dead. He was just going back and forth without accomplishing anything but burning diesel. That and amusing the people waiting at the food trucks.
ClutterMonkey
Way better than the U-turns on the Interstate California CDL crew.
InfocalypseRising
No I definitely give that guy credit. No way I'd do that without tearing half the building down
robertdoobies
I would've stalled it right there in the street, then shamed away
LowBrowHighJinx
One of my favorite things I learned in my CDL training was how to park a trailer in a 90 degree turn. Was told if you can pivot a trailer 90 degrees into a dock, you can park it from anywhere. The hardest part in this whole video is keeping a good attitude and patient waiting for that fuckin traffic lmao
AyatollahBahloni
https://media0.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1aWl6OHA0ZTdsNWx2NjkwNDR0MjhpeHMzcmx6cGs1MWs0Z3F2ODkxbSZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/D6WuLOKOpR2fK/200w.webp
copingcabana
My dad was a truck driver in NYC for 40 years and I never heard him say an unkind word about another person. My point is, patience is not hereditary.
CyberHexx
First grocery store I worked at, our loading dock was low and had a hydraulic elevator, and only about a truck length and a quarter in front of the dock. Luckily it was behind the store so no traffic, but we had one dude who took two hours to hit that dock.
CarlBassett
There's an Asda in the UK where the loading dock is underground. Drive drives in, stops, and a turntable spins the entire truck around. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuWnBooYsMM (If I had a dollar for every pixel in that video I'd have about twenty dollars)
Rips4w
I spent a few years silo loading trucks at a power plant. The scales we had were very unforgiving. Barely 2 feet on either side of a centered truck. I would do my best to direct from the front of their vehicle, but some people trust their feelings more than a third party. Several trucks ended up in their sides or damn near close to it in those few years.
IHaveGreatKittenRecipes
Couple of the mills I would load at had elevated scales that were literally 9' wide. They had a cute little rail on the side, barely a foot tall, and you had to thread the needle to get all your tires on that plate the first time.
Cheap customers do cheap shit and we just gotta deal with it.
ThailandExpress
i'd drive a semi-truck if it was only depot to depot (that are right off interstate) so i'd never have to drive it in a town
LoftheDesert
I cannot even back a simple wagon. I'm always so impressed with truck drivers.
TheFastpaws
Ya, the average driver is indeed an ass.
isthisjunkmail
Art and the artist.
Kyzyl
He's done that before.
RXJ235231
I driver once told he had to wait 15 minutes for an opening once
dohcohv
That's a yard truck, great maneuverability, but slow.
Quizz25S
Oh shit you're right. Yeah those things only travel very short distances if they are on the road at all and this guy is backing up trailers all day every day. Usually in the same yard.
NostraDamnEveryone
Gotta be his fourth or fifth rodeo.
alaric
picselator
Great use of spectacles.
Quizz25S
What makes it even worse is half the time these indoor docks are poorly lit and if you're outside on a bright sunny day you can't see shit till you get inside.
Koztericard
That’s how you loose doors.
Quizz25S
100% or at least damage them
MCpeepantz
Always amazes me that the driver's can pull it off. That, and the fact that a business would't cater for receiving loads (giggity).
Agouti
You might be surprised how quickly you can pick it up if you put in the effort. CDL trailers are actually easier than many car trailers because they are a lot longer (giving you finer control and more time to catch it) and prime movers often have much sharper turning radii. The technique isn't too complicated - you are watching the inside wheel of the trailer and adjusting its turn rate via the angle between vehicle and trailer (1/2)
Agouti
The hardest trailers to back for me are short narrow ones with wide cars since you have really poor visibility of the trailer itself and because the angle between the trailer and car can change really fast. You also have a lot less total angle to play with before it jack-knifes and even less before you can't catch it (full lock doesn't straighten trailer). The real truck wizards are the ones that back B-doubles and road trains, nothing but respect for them. (2/2)
GenerallyLurkInBed
The building may have been there for ages and the roads became busier around it. But I do get what you’re saying.
bobthefunny
At least once...
Lurch1911
Maybe twice… he didn’t specify in the video.
TheStreetForce
suddenly a wild tram appears!!!!!!
SMarkt
a normal wild tram or a tony scott wild tram? (burning, with a woman giving birth and with a nuclear bomb in it ticking, while the woman tries to defuse it),
TheStreetForce
Most likely the former but there is still a chance
Nukls
not paid enough
BeaverOnFire
Please. We just need self-driving trucks. They probably can get this done in 5 seconds not 5 minutes by just not waiting for traffic to stop. /S https://media3.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1dTdzNnB3cG9nYzg0ZjRucHliemY4b2JyZmM5cG1rb25qbXFjaGl6cSZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/2eQoxMsQVD68MAATEe/200w.webp
unluckyandbored
The overwhelming majority of workers are not paid enough for what they do for a living.
brownribbon
How do you know?
Nukls
Essential Workers rarely are
livingonagiantfireball
Unless it take a trade ticket and you have to go to school for 4 year, than it pays ok
brownribbon
Got it, you know nothing.
Nukls
correct
Nukls
..not about to argue with some internet warrior who just wants to farm comments and rage about what they "know more about".. like it matters
Quizz25S
Probably $25-30/h
threepotatoesinatrenchcoat
If he's long haul, at least double that. Even local would generally be more. In my city, CDL bus drivers start at that rate, and they get a pension
mrsparkle001
Some of these guys get paid way more. It depends.
swofromtherock
Some get less.
SquashDemon
I've never met a trucker that makes more than 30, who/were are they paying more than that?
ComehereAreyouticklish
UPS transit drivers pull 6 figures after a few years
Isthe4thtimethecharm
Ups delivery drivers pull 6 figures after 5 years.
mrsparkle001
Depends on routes and distances. Some can make 80k-100k/year if they're long distance interstate. It's not the norm though.
Useyourhead165
I make over a 100k and I'm local you don't have to go otr to see those numbers just have to know where to look but I will say that seeing that type of money otr is easier to find if you do go otr
Quizz25S
Concrete pump truck operators make 30-45 depending on experience, but that's much less driving and far more operating machinery.
SeasonedCitizen
I'll never understand how so many car dealers are allowed to use public roads to unload new cars. Every car dealer on Ogden Avenue, I'm looking in your direction.
FPAlpha
Well, they can't magically make a big parking lot besides the street appear, can they?
In either case it's a minor nuisance, you can spot them from a hundred meters out and it's enough space to change lanes.
BarryTheCyborg
Maybe don't put your fucking loading dock on a main street? City planner that signed off on this should be fired.
SeasonedCitizen
Has likely been there for 100 years.
BarryTheCyborg
It's still a failure in city planning. Building has obviously been renovated at some point and someone signed off on those permits.
fubizdaddie
You don't look as smart as you think.
BarryTheCyborg
Nah, I'm mostly sick of the car trucks around me that stop and unload on the side of the road instead of the giant fucking parking lot right next to them. It's only tangentially related, but it now pisses me off when businesses force trucks into positions that endanger other drivers.