Editor’s Page
So, we may have a crystal ball
When we start planning an issue, it is common practice to pull the same issue from the previous year. Sometimes it’s to make sure we aren’t missing important news that happens on an annual basis, like 2290 fees or something like that. Other times, it’s to see where we were a year ago or to recall the temperature of the industry. In short, what was headlining the news?
I’m rather proud of the November 2017 cover and lead article because it couldn’t have hit the bull’s-eye any more dead-on than if I had walked the dart up to the board and placed it.
“A new hope for hours of service?” the cover read. The corresponding article laid out the political and regulatory environment with the impending electronic logging mandate. It painted a very clear picture that the hours-of-service requirements, which have long needed retooling, would become the new battleground.
Here we are a year later, fresh off an advance notice of proposed rulemaking and listening sessions that were held to consider changes to the hours of service. We could not have been more right. But, what is even cooler is this has all been because truckers took the lead in calling for reform. Not safety groups. Not litigation. Truckers.
Check out Associate Editor Mark Schremmer’s recap on what truckers had to say on Page 20.
Is anyone else down to their last nerve from hearing the constant drumbeat of news coverage referencing the supposed driver shortage? It’s maddening for those of us who hear day in and day out how terribly drivers are treated by many of the mega carriers.
To add insult to injury, these mega fleets seem to fail to grasp what the real problem is. These fat cat executives just can’t comprehend why people don’t want to work 60-70 hours a week, for weeks on end away from home for $45,000 a year.
Really underscoring this lack of common sense, Inbound Logistics ran an article recently recapping the six ways to find “hidden capacity,” which is corporate speak for keeping drivers in trucks.
Like only Contributing Editor-at-Large John Bendel can do, he dissects the six ways and highlights the ignorance that keeps driver turnover – the real problem – at a rapid pace. Check it out on Page 12.
If you weren’t in Joplin in late September, you missed out on one heck of a shindig. Bryan Martin, Brice Martin and the crew at 4 State Trucks teamed up with the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association to present the 10th annual Guilty By Association Truck Show celebrating OOIDA’s 45th anniversary.
The stops all got pulled and the event blew away all expectations. We do our best to bring you a glimpse of the fun starting on Page 42.
Speaking of bringing events to you. Staff Writer Tyson Fisher went on a four-day road trip with Mack Trucks, putting fuel economy to the test. He shares not only the results of the real-world test of the Mack Anthem with you, but also a bit of life on the “Gears, Guitars & Grub” tour. His jumpseat journal starts on Page 70.
Finally, I want to pay tribute to a longtime lawmaker and friend to truckers, Leonard Boswell. Mr. Boswell was a representative for Iowa, serving 16 years in the U.S. House of Representatives. Before that, he served 12 years in the Iowa Senate after a career in the Army. He died Aug. 17 at the age of 84.
Mr. Boswell is remembered as a tenacious public servant who looked out for the little guy. He was a friend to many, especially truck drivers and small-business trucking operations. As sad as it was when he left office in 2013, his death is the loss of another great one.
Through all the sadness of loss, there is a sort of Paul Harvey “The Rest of the Story” ending here.
Eight days after Mr. Boswell died his wife of 60 years, Dody, died in the early morning hours on the day of his funeral, Aug. 25. Arrangements were made and executed so the two were honored later that day in a double ceremony and laid to rest in side-by-side graves – beautifully honoring the lifelong love story of this tireless public servant and his bride.