"When I started trucking, someone just threw me a set of keys and said,
'Take that truck and deliver that load.' They don't do that
anymore."
Larry Higgins is a veteran truck driver. He says he got into trucking initially
because it was a job -- and a well-paying one at that. He's stayed in
it because it kept paying well and it gave him a chance to see the country.
"I've done about 90 percent of my hauling in the United States, a
lot of the eastern seaboard, New York City and the Mississippi," says Higgins.
"You name the town, I've probably been there."
In addition to seeing it all, Higgins has also hauled it all -- including
one very strange load.
"I once brought a million-dollar chandelier up from New York," he says.
"It was hanging from a frame in the center of the truck and it was all I was
hauling."
Most of the time, though, Higgins hauls less specialized cargo.
"I've hauled general loads, some dangerous goods -- a little bit of
everything," he says.
While it's interesting to see the country, Higgins admits that trucking
has a downside. A typical day is long and lonely. Depending on where they're
going, truckers can be away from home for anywhere from three days to two
weeks. It's a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week job, says Higgins. And
that can take a heavy toll on a trucker's home life.
"I'm on my third marriage because of trucking," he said. "There's
also a lot of stress. The hours are long, sometimes you don't get enough
sleep, and often there's too much demand from dispatchers."
Driving a truck can be lonely, but many truckers think of their travels
as a way to meet new and interesting people.
"I've probably met three or four million people," says trucker Jill
Orevik from Portland, Oregon. "It may have only been for a brief second or
so, but I love it. I was born a people watcher."
Higgins has seen plenty of changes in the industry. For one thing, traffic
is a lot worse than it used to be, he says. And the big thing is on-time delivery.
This is especially important when you're delivering perishables. It's
no good if you show up with a load of rotten produce.
Higgins has met lots of colorful people in his travels. He says he enjoys
talking with locals at the truck stops, but points out that you can't
be spending too much time doing that.
"You only make money when the wheels are turning," he says.
Higgins also works as a driver supervisor, hiring and training new drivers.
He says it's a tough field to break into because training itself is not
enough -- you need some experience, too. Beginners also have to put in their
time doing the tougher runs when they first start out.
"Some people come in, ask for a job and say, 'I want to work in the
city,'" says Higgins. "And I say, 'Well, so does everybody.'"
Higgins points out that truck driving is both a job and a lifestyle.
It takes a certain type of person to succeed in this business.
"You've got to be able to think for yourself, you can't mind
being alone a lot, and you have to be able to handle the stress and
fatigue of the traffic," says Higgins.
"It's a good job for a single person. It's a good living."