Dan Rather Interview – “Queen of the Road”
Big Week Y’all
Yes, I was interviewed by Dan Rather and as it turns out this is not the first time he has covered the American Trucker.
The episode called “Queen of the Road” , was so popular that the Dan Rather Producers made the video FREE which is HUGE for us poor peons who have trouble getting online in the first place. It is also available for purchase on DVD or download on itunes for $1.99, it took a long time to download so I’m glad about the free link. Watch it now :
“Dan Rather Report – \”Queen of the Road\”
Despite a fleet message telling our drivers to NOT talk to media, I know some were eager to find an outlet to share their story.
Here is an email for the Dan Rather Report to share your CDL School Story and/or Training Company Story to the Dan Rather Report viewer@HD.net
A follow up show is planned so please take this opportunity to share your experience.
Most of the feedback has been positive but I have had some haters, the usual suspects of course. One guy from my company who has worked there 8 years showed how he practices his “Commitment to CARE” by calling me some names that Allen & Donna Smith at “Ask the Trucker” did not feel comfortable posting on their site.
Here is a link to the post on “Ask the Trucker” about “Queen of the Road” with comments section. Remember that not even a smidgen of my Student Trucker Story was told on this show because of the time constraints, so before the speculators start speculating you have lots of research to do before you make commentary. Remember, I scattered around the internet to create a puzzle. ( for social media experiment)
I have been busy responding to comments and emails in the last couple days but one of my comments has not been published. It is one that I made regarding the following article about the ATA response.
In this article on TheTrucker.com I did not have a place to make a comment but it did provide an email to the editor so I wrote the following:
“Subj: Want my comment?
Date: Thu Oct 22, 2009 4:43 pm
To: editor@thetrucker.com
All interviews were cut down for time constraints and many more drivers were interviewed.
As I stated in the HDNet Blog and on the “Ask the Trucker” post, all original
uninvestigated statements I was ASKED to write by my company plus photos, police
report and emails were provided to Dan Rather Report.
I even called the Head of Security of the location where the bleach incident occurred
to ask if anyone from my company has EVER contacted him about my co-driver who threw
bleach on me and was highly intoxicated and took possession of the high dollar freight
that night on I-40 has ever contacted him, he said NO, never has anyone tried to
investigate why an intoxicated driver drove their truck with high security freight
after having several long island ice teas.
That is but ONE complaint in a 9 month training fiasco which is NOT uncommon from
the standpoint of us minions down here behind the wheel.
Thanks,
Desiree”
That’s what I wrote but I have not seen it published anywhere.
The ATA response does prompt some questions , I have copied and pasted a paragraph here:
“The open road has always lured its share of dreamers, and with the trucking industry’s chronic driver shortage, it was an easy match for Desiree Wood,” Rather said, apparently without noting that the industry doesn’t have a driver shortage now and that, in fact, it’s lost almost 200,000 jobs in the past three years.”
It seems that the ATA is upset that Dan Rather did not say that there is NO DRIVER SHORTAGE. This is something Allen Smith has been saying in “Truth about Trucking” for a very longtime.
I know at my company we still get many students each week and so does CRST , so what is happening to the experienced ones?
Also, why don’t the tell the CDL Schools there is no driver shortage and to stop giving loans to people for a job that does not exist?
A good deal of people who have paid to go to truck driving school cannot get a job right now as a truck driver but they still have a loan payment for CDL School, is that fair?
The story is about the “Student Trucker Industry” which includes, selling loans to people under false pretenses, using people to work for less than minimum wage with a promise of a long term career in the trucking industry.
There was a lot cut out from this broadcast and other people did interview and corroborate, I’m pretty confident the ATA, my Company and CRST do not want to hear from those who ended up on the cutting room floor.
One really funny coincidence is that one of the characters in my story was at my CDL School when this camera crew was there, that was not planned. He was in a brand new truck in Miami!
I wonder what he was doing???? recruiting maybe??? Hmmm….. Interesting fer sure.
Anyways, looks like there is going to be a follow-up show , so KOOL! Right On!
[…] Dan Rather Report with TruckerDesiree had nothing to do with the good, professional men and women of trucking. It had nothing to do with […]
I thought the report left out some very important issues. First, what has ATA done since its formation in 1933 to improve things? It appears that the prime objective for ATA is to help company members be more profitable. This is literally on the backs of drivers who’s compensation has actually declined over the past 25 years. Second, I think more in depth examination of out of service orders pertaining to maintenance issues needs to occur. Finally, more on hazmat.
[…] Queen of the Road – Thousands of new truckers are hitting the road every year. Are they properly trained to handle the big rigs? Watch Dan Rather Reports, Tuesdays at 8 pm ET. Read More… […]
My husband attended a “CDL mill” in summer 2008. The equipment was apalling, the curriculum a farce. Now the company’s finance arm is threatening to sue us out of state for over $9,000.
Diploma mills are a safety issue, yes, but also a consumer issue. If one is ripped off for thousands of dollars for a farcical training, whether he/she passes or not, to whom do we complain? How do you skewer a school for substandard training when it’s really hard to find any standards? (Check CVTA and PTDI.)
We have contacted Rather and Co. and hope to add to their data base. Did you know the President of Truck Driver Institute owns over $11 million worth of real estate in 8 states? Including a $1.5 million house in Belleaire Florida with a spa and pool? And that’s just the stuff we managed to find.
Your story is the toe bone of a very large skeleton!
Here are posts about other CDL Mills & comments about Government $$ that help the Industry determine who will be targeted for recruitment http://www.askthetrucker.com/truck-driving-schools-and-trucking-companies-post-your-comments-about-them-here/comment-page-5/
Being a long time friend of Desiree’s, I thought what she had to say about the trucking schools took a lot of guts. She really put herself “out there” with her face and name on the line. With the blogs there is a certain amount of anonymity, but in pure Desiree fashion she boldly just laid it all out on the table for everyone watching to look at. I think that people like her that put themselves “out there” and stick there necks out are the ones that make changes happen. I think she has the power to make this industry clean up its act and make some positive changes. Maybe in the future this can be an industry that is safe for women truckers, and safe for the rest of America who should be sharing the highways with capable truck drivers. So for all those responses that are in a negative light towards Desiree and her opinions, my question is What are you doing to make some positive changes?
You’re a great living example of a “last chance”