I rode with DH for about a year in his "big truck" -

After that, I realized that there are some things that "four-wheelers" should know.

1) If you can't see the driver's mirrors, he/she can't see you.

2) If you are right beside the unit (tractor and trailer), the driver can't see you. (Even if you can see the mirrors) You are below where the driver can see you.

3) Don't tailgate. A tire can blow and end up in your face. Or the driver might need to make a sudden stop. And you might end up under the back of the trailer - and you might end up decapitated.

4) Most truck drivers do not want to be involved in accidents. It's extremely inconvenient to have one.

5) They need to make wide swings when they turn corners so the trailer goes where it's supposed to.

6) Don't try to sneak by on the right side of a truck when it's trying to make a right hand turn. It's near the middle lane so that when it turns the trailer won't be on the sidewalk.

7) If a truck cuts you off (pulls into the left-hand passing lane) when climbing a hill, it's because he/she is reasonably sure that he can overtake the other trucks in front of him/her. It is easier for a car to maintain or recover speed than it is for a truck to recover. You might think the driver is #1, but that's why.

8) Do not park in front of a run-away spot. There are very few places that a run-away truck can get off the road. And they are hard to spot.

9) Avoid being where a driver is unsure of your intentions. If he/she needs to pass or take evasive action, don't need to worry about someone being in the left-hand lane right on one's tail.

10) If necessary, some of the rigs can travel quite fast. It's more economical to run them at a steady speed in certain RPM ranges. (Depends on the tractor, engine, transmission, etc. etc.)

11) Some loads have to stop for railroad crossings, etc.

12) Strong side winds can whip an empty trailer around.

13) If/When possible, don't crowd a truck.

Good points....and funny that you should post this not 15 minutes after we had an incident with a trucker! We ran down to the local store (donut run!) and have to pull out onto Hwy 97. This intersection has a truck stop where you come out of the truck stop onto Rosland (the road I was on) then up to the stop sign about 2 truck lengths to get onto the Hwy. We got behind a trucker that was pulling out of the truck stop....and he STOPPED in the middle of the road BEFORE the stop sign... We could see him in his mirror -- he was talking on the phone. We waited...finally, he crept up to the sign. Then he sat on the PHONE while we waited -- and waited and waited. He could have pulled out 4 times...but didn't becuase he wasn't paying attention. THEN when he DID pull out, he almost hit a car coming from the north and trying to pull onto our road. That car was in a legitimate turn lane. I know a lotta truckers blame the "other" drivers....but I've seen WAY too many truckers do STUPID dumb things. Oh, how about the guy that was on the cell phone and pulled onto Rosland...missing my car by 2" and stopping traffic coming from the south.....all the while he was on the phone driving the semi with one hand. Nope - can't convince me that the "other" drivers are all to blame.

Nor would I try to. As with most groups, there are the good, the not so good, and the awful.

Thank you for posting these reminders. As you said there are good and bad drivers of all vehicles.
With that being said: SEMI'S ARE BIG!! I surely don't want to cause one to have an accident or be involved in one with something that big cause you know who the loser would be. I think we all have to have a little more respect for the drivers of these rigs. I know I couldn't drive one--I can't even paralel park my SUV.
Thanks Bearisgray.

I DO want to stress....yes, I believe there are good AND bad AND awful ones, too. I was still shaking about that driver this morning. We drove a 36 foot motor home from Oregon to Texas.....trust me, I KNOW there are a lotta dumb drivers out there that think they can survive being hit by big rigs.....And, I, too don't want to EVER consider driving a semi!!!! I think some of them that can back them up into spots with 3" on either side are pure out and out GENIUSES!

:D

I sure had a lot more respect and understanding for DH's work after going with him for a while.

There are some places that one wonders if the designers looked at the plans and said to themselves: "This looks like the most difficult place to get to - let's put the dock here!"

I would think the same things apply to any large vehicle - buses, limousines, etc.

In most cases when there is an accident, the smaller vehicle places second.

The four-wheelers that I think seemed to have more "attitude" - old(er) people in heavy cars, high-powered sports car drivers, and the modified pickup drivers.

We all need to try to avoid distractions while driving.

Thanks for the reminder.... I know a lot of Truck drivers out there, that are glad when autos are reminded of these tips!! I'm in an area where these are used a lot, and have spoken to drivers from other areas, that are good with runs in these parts, because other drivers seem to get it, of course they get it, many have relatives doing the same as you, don't want our folks hurt either!!

Thanks bearisgray. I've driven a bigrig 1,000,000 miles. My husband and I team drove. It always amazed what drivers will do....in a car or a semi. The best thing for all drivers to do is hang up that phone and use the golden rule when you are behind the wheel. I'm now happy to be at home and I drive my sewing machine the most now!

As the daughter of a driver, I'm very aware of trucks. It amazes me the way cars seem oblivious to the blind spots!!! You see some people up so close behind you'd think they are being towed.

Thank you for posting this! Several of my family members have or do drive these big rigs. It is only by the grace of God and their good driving skills that have prevented them from being in serious accidents.

I drive with this policy: the bigger vehicle gets the right of way :)

Especially TRAINS!

Thank you Bearisgrey. My Dad is a truck driver and now my Mom rides with him. I have spent my life praying for him to return home safe and sound but now I have to worry about both of them. My Dad has had many accidents because of ppl in cars that think they can turn infront of a truck or don't realize a truck is coming to a stop and they wind up under his rig.. Problem is they don't always feel when they have been rear ended and proceed to drive before someone gets their attention that something is wrong. I am not defending all truck drivers because I have seen some lousy ones.

I love the truckers they alwasy give me the nicest smiles makes your day so I make sure to take care of them :) We have police in our state that will ride with our truckers and ticket drivers who are not so nice!! Thank you for posting this just hate to see the crap they go through because they are doing their job!!

Also:

At rest stops, especially at night - if you are in a small/short vehicle, please don't use the truck section. In some areas it is almost impossible to find a place to park so the driver can rest.

Heads - you don't win - if you drive while overly tired
Tails - you lose - if you park where trucks are banned/unwelcome

and 'of course' truckers never speed, would never dream to tailgate (and give you heart attacks), run "4-wheelers" off the road and laugh about it (heard on CB years ago and then came upon the car that had been run off, or two trucks running together would never squeeze a car, nope wouldn't happen....

it does - there seems to be more than enough stupidity and rudeness to go around -

thanks for the nice reminder, hopefully it will save lives!

Thanks!

Very good points. My dad (now retired) was a trucker...he preached these very same things to my brothers and me all the time. I am constantly pointing these things out to people.

Thanks for all the excellent advice. My DH works for our county road commission. During the winter, he salts and plows on the expressways that go thru the county. I was shocked at some of the things he has told me about the "four wheelers". Yelling and screaming, cutting him off, trying to run him off the road and giving him the finger. I guess there are lots of angery people out there.

Your right!! It does happen! There are truck drivers (so thery call themselves) that do this to other truck drivers! AND THEY GIVE THE INDUSTRY A BAD NAME! we call them steering wheel holders and wanna be's. As a driver for 14yrs over the road, and I still hold my license, and hubby still drives.We do not like anyone who purposes goes out of their way to endanger a life. The truckers for the majority are Professional at their jobs. Their job is to get the load from point A to point B. They do this by paying attention to their surrounding and looking for possible dangers and avoiding them. They try to work within the restraints of the law, and the D.O.T regulations. Sure wish the dispatchers would too!! We are not afraid to turn a driver who is a danger into the law and their company!! With the economy going the way it has , there is an even bigger growing trend for people obtaining licenses for truck driving jobs. I am glad tho that the trucking companys are trying to weed these drivers out finally!!! Instead of just hiring a body to fill a truck to hold their steering wheel!! Karren

I got to tell you as the wife of thirty years of a truckdriver I have heard it all I have often laughed at my husband when he would complain about 4 wheelers I get claustrophobia so I dont go with him often The last time I went we were in NY city slowing down to come up to a stop sign and a woman comes from behind us pulls in front of us ans stops at the stop sign needless to say accident happened fortunately for us cop sitting in parking lot across street saw everything He thinks woman did it on purpose to collect insurance money Gave her ticket First accident for husband and his truck ever. He was devastated Me I was angry.

Excellent advise!!! My son is a truck driver and has said the same things you did. What a great reminder.

and of course no "4-wheeler" would DREAM of cutting off a big truck just so they don't have to be behind them on the road...nor would they expect the big truck to be able to stop on a dime or turn a corner the same way they do in their compact car...and heaven forbid that same 4-wheeler yield the right of way to a big truck, they'd rather be ballsy and pit that 3000 lb car against that 80,000 lb truck.

When William and I were driving team, I saw an article about accident statistics. At that time (about 2001) less than ONE percent of all motor vehicle accidents involved big trucks. Of that one percent, LESS than ONE percent was deemed to be the big truck's fault.

I read a letter to an editor once that suggested that big trucks be kept off of the interstates during the hours of 7am to 10pm! I had to laugh at that one... the Interstate Hiway system was a product of the Eisenhour administration and was built for the purpose of interstate COMMERCE...for the big trucks to transport goods...

If you have it, a truck and trucker brought it... do I get a bit defensive of truckers? You betcha. Not all of them are good guys or good drivers....but our country wouldn't run without them!

We are agreed. There are some jerks in big rigs. (By the way, they anger the other drivers, too) There are some jerks on four wheels.

The point of this post is to remind people of some of the physical characteristics of handling a big, articulated (bends at the kingpin - that's a peg that drops into the fifth wheel - which is that horseshoe shaped thing on the back of a tractor that's bobtailing - it doesn't have a trailer hooked on to it) rig.

They are big. They need more room to make turns. They can't accelerate or slow down as quickly as smaller, lighter vehicles.

I had not realized, until I rode with DH, how many of these things I should have known BEFORE I had been with him in the truck.

My son drove a truck not a semi and from him I learned that if I can't see his mirror he can't see me. I had a semi pull in front of me (almost next to me), I wanted to beleve he didn't know I was there.
Thank you for the gentle reminder, to keep all of us safe:)

We have a big forestry industry around here and share the road with a lot of logging trucks. Now THERE'S a truck driver I sure admire. They say the job is 99% boring and 1% sheer panic, but there is nothing that could entice me to sit in front a few thousands pounds of logs all pointing at me, twisting and turning my way down a narrow, often icy track gaining speed the whole way. NOPE.

My very best friend is a truck driver and I have ridden with him on several occasions. I heard his stories, I actually saw them. While there are some truck drivers out there trying to be "superdriver", the majority aren't. A little bit of common sense from a smaller vehicle would be greatly appreciated by this men/women. They have a job to do and most smaller vehicles are in a hurry to get somewhere. We all have family and loved ones, a little bit of courtesy towards those big rig drivers would surely be appreciated. I want my friend home safely each time he goes out and I am sure everyone else wants their loved one homes too without incident. Unfortunately the big rig driver will survive versus the small vehicle driver.

I think all of these "rules" should be taught in Driver's Ed for all students. It should be mandatory for them to learn these facts. I never knew about all those facts until my hubby was a trucker. Yes indeedy, there are professionals and there are those that shouldn't be behind any kind of wheel that moves.

One time he had been delivering to a store when this woman came up to him, obviously drinking since she just left the bar that was practically beside his delivery point. She accused him of backing into her car. He told her that yes indeed he'd be glad for her to call the cops. There was no damage to his truck anywhere, and she had obviously been drinking, did she still want to call them????????? Didn't think so....

Well I myself will end this with. Almost everything in your house food, furniture, toilet paper, baby diapers in one form or another, was transported by a truck. Some one will say railway! It got to the railroad by truck and from the railway by truck. Some of us remember the strike way back, and remember when the stores were empty of such things as those diapers and t.p.The drivers family stocked up ahead of time, I know I did!! But the roads are their for anyone. Equally we should share them, and be curteous to others and understand we need to know ourselves, accidents are usually caused by someone . And we need to make sure that someone is not OURSELF!! I prefer to die surrounded by my family, natural causes, not someone scraping my ashes from the site of an accident!!

Not being from Arkansas, I hope I get the facts right. Arkansas was one of the states he drove to regularly. He frequently went up by Boston Mtn and the 9 mile hill I think is what it's called. If not, someone will correct me and set me straight. I know it's the one with the sign at the bottom with the warning about how many folks have been killed on it.

Anyway, I had a dream one night that his truck went off the side of that mountain. Since many of my dreams are spot on, I was worried sick until he called. I told him I was sweating bullets waiting to hear from him and explained my dream. He told me about meeting someone driving a Jaguar passing everything on the road. They were headed straight for him and there was no place for him to go to get out of the way, but off the side of the mountain. Needless to say, he decided he wasn't going to go out that way. Nice people the Jaguar was passing made sure he was able to get back into the right lane.

It always scared me on those little narrow roads in Arkansas. When you cross a bridge and look out the window and all you can see is water and no side of the bridge, I about had a heart attack. I couldn't be a trucker at all, have the utmost respect for them...

God bless everyone of them!

Great reminder....I have always had a "soft spot" for truck drivers....have been helped more than once when travelling and got into difficulty. One in particular saved me and my car when the alternator went during a stormy night on a freeway. I was stuck, with no lights, no way of getting out, vehicles travelling at speed all around me. A knight in shining truck pulled in behind me, set up hazard lights and pushed me off the road into a safe place. Checked I was ok...made sure I had phone contact with my husband and stayed 'til he got there.

There were and I beleive still are Trucking Companies out there who do go around to scholls and actually let students ride in the truck,around the area so they can see what is like to have to handle and negotiate the traffic around them. Semis especially, take a lot of concentration and work, that's just constantly staying aware of what is not only going on around you but the traffic ahead of you. You are constantly planning how you will take your next turn, how to negotiate raffic, watching for people to suddenly cut you off, and avoiding accidents. It is a very mind exhausting, mental processing job , along with keeping control of the truck should an emergency arrive . If a truck experiences mechanical problems on the road they have to safely get it off the road. Lose you air which trucks have air brakes, can be a major problem. You have to know the skills to keep that truck brakes from locking up and causing possibly a major fatal acident. It is not a glamorous job, and anyone who states it is a Know a Dr. for you!!

I personally am not a fan of San Francisco's Bay Bridge. I would have been happy if they would stop all traffic to let me have the whole bridge to myself. The lanes are narrow and the trucks have to stay to the right!! That is my nightmare bridge!! But of course they would never shut it down just for me!! George Washington and The Tappanzee 2 more but what can you do. You do what you have to do!! The Golden Gate I don't even drive a car on!! My hubby does that one or I find another way around!!!

This applies to all drivers, but trucks more so -

Along with having to pay attention to what is in front of, behind, to the left of, and to the right of - the driver has to pay attention to what is under him (road conditions, potholes, water, etc.) and what is over him - overpasses, wires, etc.

Chicago has several bridges that are LOW - more than one driver has peeled back the top of a trailer - probably only once!

My BIL, a trucker for 27+ years told me that if I can not see the drivers face in the mirror, he can not see me. Our state is cracking down HARD on tailgaters, so maybe I have to change that to "if I can't see his head shape, he can't see me'.

Okay got to tall this one. Going thru Tenn.with a load going fromCa. to Hunt Point Market, New York. ON I 40 there are always doing road construction. There the traffic suddenly came to a screeching halt! Some one wasn't paying attention way ahead of us an accident happened and immediatley everything shut down! We were all doing a steady 50 mph. till then The car ahead of us stopped, and we could see the guywatching us in the mirror. We were already slowing down cause we saw the suden reactions way ahead of him. A Semi seats you Higher of course then a car or pick=up! We were almost stopped when the car ahead hits the gas and slams into a car ahead!!When the police arrived and asked him why he did it, he said he thought we were going to hit him! Well we were like back of him 15 feet!! He was an off duty police officer and here he is telling them he doesn't deserve the ticket, he was trying to avoid an accident! Even the cops laughed!! And they gave him a sobriety test! He was just under the legal limit!!!! But even hadn't he not been drinking he would have still got the ticket!! He did get a butt chewing out from the Commander they called out to the scene and whatever came of any possible job reprimand I don't knowHowever he was told it was a poor excuse to try to blame us when it was his actions that caused the damage. The cops shook their head and smiled at us and wished us a safe trip and on our way we left! The woman he rearended fortunately was not hurt but she had major damage to the back end. She also smiled and waved as we drove away!!

A couple of years ago I was run off the road after attending meetings 2 months in a row by Road Trains - semi trailers with 3 trailers behind. Both were doing at least 120km in an 80km zone (same corner). Both went into the right hand turn only lane, and cut me off. First time I finished up 3' from a telegraph pole, second time I managed to pull over to the side of the road. The first one had 3 fully laden petrol tankers behind. Can imagine what would have happened if he had hit me.

The highway links Brisbane with Darwin (about 4000km) and the Road Trains which travel the highway every day know where the towns etc are that they have to drop their speed for. Seems they only have 2 speeds - flat to the floor, and dead stop. Two weeks ago I sat behind one who kept to the speed limit for the 35km into town. First time in 8 years I have seen one do it.

Thank you for the advice.Truckers are really great people.They helped me put out an engine fire once!

I drive a Hummer H3. the wind really makes it hard to drive when it gets around 30 mph. I can imagine what an empty box is like driving!

It isn't funny, ok maybe alittle, I used to work for a very large trucking company. And there are all types of drivers. One who was a complete,,,, umm,,, let's say confident smarty pants, was in Chicago and peeled the top right off a trailer. LMAO couldn't of happened to a more deserving person.