$7 DIESEL? + FMCSA CRACKDOWN?= BRACE YOURSELF! | BRAKE CHECK

Charles Gracey (0:00)

Welcome back to The Loading Zone.

Derek Barrs (0:02)

Today's deep thought, trucks have big wheels.

Charles Gracey (0:23)

Crude got cheaper, Diesel broke a record, but your rates didn't, and Washington sure as hell didn't send you a reimbursement check, because that's not how this works. But don't worry, somewhere online, someone with a A microphone- a grievance and a hopeful algorithm is preparing a 47-minute masterclass on absolutely none of it because they're talking maple syrup and getting sticky in Freight Mama drama. But not today, not this show. We're talking fuel, we're talking regulations, we're talking enforcement. Real problems that deserve real answers. No relevance, grievance tours, no echo chamber group therapy. We're asking the people who actually know what they're talking about because three things are squeezing your business right now. The pump, the rates, and the rule books. And you somehow need to know how to avoid getting left with the check. I'm Charles Gracey and it's time to check your mirrors because it's Tuesday's edition of Brake Check right here on FreightWaves. Up first is the man holding the pen of the rule book, the FMCSA Chief Administrator Derek Barrs coming off 20,000 trucks pulled off the road because they didn't meet standards and a crackdown on schools because, well, hey, training matters.

Barriers to entry matters. And he also is going to talk about the DOT Safety Expo. Then we got Phil Flynn in the house. He's going to talk fuel. He's going to talk crude oil. He's going to talk distill it. And he's going to try to make trucking sense of it all right here. But first, make sure to like, subscribe and follow FreightWaves for your top FreightCasts, Freight News, Trucking News and conversations like this one right here on the show today because well, you need to know what's happening in the world. You need to know what's happening in your business. And that's going to happen right here on FreightWaves. You can also go to F3. Use the code TAKE20 to save 20% off the current pricing. That's TAKE20 and you can see us all in Chattanooga where we're going to be bringing it to you live from well, my hometown. But first, we need to go into it. It's time for our Daily Pile Up.

That's right. And you see, like, there's a lot happening in the world right now.

And we got to have a little bit of fun with it. But we also have to be aware of what's happening in the world. We need to be aware of, you know, pump prices. We need to be aware that, you know, people are feeling squeezed. Margins are hitting them. But we also need to be able to laugh. Like, sometimes you could be separated from something that's yours for, you know, any given amount of time. And when you find it, that's a special moment, like this clip right here.

That's right, you see, look at that special moment. They've been separated for so long, they were so excited to find each other once again. But getting on to serious things, people are talking about this trucker strike. Well, my guy Larry Cawthorn went on boots on the ground at the truck stop to get the answer from today's truckers. What a crazy concept. Let's see what they had to say right here.

SPEAKER_3 (3:48)

Have you heard about that strike?

Derek Barrs (3:50)

That who? That strike, that trucker strike.

SPEAKER_4 (3:53)

You ain't heard nothing about it.

Derek Barrs (3:55)

I think they're supposed to be striking because of the fuel, half fuel price.

SPEAKER_4 (3:59)

Do you think it'll work if they did it?

SPEAKER_5 (4:00)

They tried it before years ago. They tried it when the bush was in there.

Derek Barrs (4:05)

It didn't work.

SPEAKER_5 (4:07)

You know why? People need that food and stuff.

SPEAKER_4 (4:11)

They need everything that's coming that way.

Derek Barrs (4:13)

You know, if you need drivers out there, that's family making.

SPEAKER_4 (4:21)

So I'm the owner operator.

Derek Barrs (4:22)

They might do it because, hey, they're too high for them to do it. You know, if you don't think about it.

SPEAKER_5 (4:26)

I mean, on an operator, you gotta act like you're versus a company of drivers.

Derek Barrs (4:29)

Right.

SPEAKER_4 (4:30)

See what I'm saying?

Derek Barrs (4:31)

Yeah.

SPEAKER_3 (4:32)

You gonna do that strike on top of the first?

SPEAKER_5 (4:34)

No.

Phil Flynn (4:35)

Yeah, do you think it'll work?

SPEAKER_5 (4:37)

No, I'm not ready.

SPEAKER_4 (4:38)

Yeah.

SPEAKER_3 (4:40)

I'm gonna just go to work, before it's gonna be on the safe side.

SPEAKER_5 (4:42)

Yeah. Hey, you heard about that truck or strike they're supposed to be doing?