OK, I gotta chime in here.....I did 4 years in college & graduated with a BS in Business Admin. Graduated with honors, had a blast, consumed ridiculous amounts of alcohol, had numerous women, blah blah blah. I don't use a damn thing I learned in college other than the ability to tolerate crap. But, I have the degree & nobody can take it away from me. Stick it out & then go drive trucks. In this economy, you absolutely NEED a backup plan. That stupid piece of paper IS your backup plan.
As you can see, I'm in the trucking business & have been for about 14 yrs. It is a HARD way to make a living. I'm fortunate that I've been successful but I've busted my ass every step of the way. I've had years where I made crazy money & more recently, years where I wondered if I'd be around when the sun came up the next day. I would strongly advise you to stay far away from the trucking industry right now. Too many things changing at once. Now, I'm in a bit of a niche market hauling cars & it pays more per mile than most freight out there but the operating & equipment costs are higher than everything else too. I'm an owner/operator now (again) because I don't do well taking orders blindly either, but the only way to last in trucking is to work your way OUT of the drivers seat. As it was said earlier, you WILL burn out & your body will break down on you no matter how tough or healthy you are. I will be 39 next week. I was a high school & college athlete, weightlifter, moutainbiker, healthy eater, firefighter/EMT & pretty good when it came time to jack someone's jaw..... about 10 years ago. Life on the road will beat the **** out of you & change your lifestyle habits. I've got shoulder & knee problems that stem from a bad motorcycle accident when I was younger, coming back to haunt me because the lifestyle is ******* you all the way around. Both hands hurt from old fight injuries & sometimes if I bang my hand on something, it brings tears to my eyes. It's a rough life. Try to find somewhere to park an 80ft. truck & 3AM to get something healthy to eat instead of McDonald's in the truck-stop (because that's all that's open @ 3AM). Doesn't happen. And, the crazy thing is, I get home alot!! I'm not on the road for weeks at a time. I'm not trying to scare you away from this line of work but what I'm telling you is the god's honest truth about what goes on out here. I love what I do fortunately, even when it sucks. But, as was also mentioned before, I'm locked into it for good. I couldn't get a job making the kind of money my family has become accustomed to anywhere if I left this. I've been on my own for too long with no verifiable work history. My point in telling you all this is you need to be DAMN sure this is where you want to go if you go. It seems to be a one-way road.
Now, to answer your question about dually's & carhauling, yes, you can make money doing it. The trick is to register the truck & wedge trailer for tags & fuel taxes just like you would register a tractor trailer. Run a log book everyday. Apply for an ICC & DOT #. Carry slightly more insurance than is required for your equipment. These few things will keep you out of trouble in the scale houses & open MANY more doors with potential clients because it shows a level of commitment to doing things right & that you aren't a flybynite operation. Carmax is an excellent source for work to get started as well as
www.centraldispatch.com If your going to do this, buy the biggest medium duty truck & the newest trailer you can afford. Do not buy junk, the scales & DOT will destroy you. Those 2 agencies are most of the reason guys that tell you you can't make money with a wedge. They half assed it & got crushed for doing it wrong.
I hope all this helps you decide which way to go. I make a very good living but it has been tough the last 2 yrs. You need to be creative & self motivated all the time but especially when times get tough to survive in trucking. Get a degree first, it's your safety net.
