WHO THE HELL ARE YOU ACTUALLY HAULING FOR? | Brake Check

FreightWaves (0:00)

Welcome back to The Loading Zone.

Cargo theft got smarter, fewer thefts, bigger damn losses. Fake carriers, stolen authorities, doubled barcode freight. One load could look perfectly legitimate until your freight and your money are both gone. The FMCSA can crack down all it wants, but at 6 a.m. tomorrow, somebody still has to decide who the hell is actually gonna haul this load. And on the other side of that, who the hell is actually gonna give me a load worth hauling? So today, we're gonna talk to both sides in the same room. This is Brake Check, and we are going all gas right now.

Now, up first, after we do the daily pileup, we've got Jason Schaftlein, the general manager at McLeod Express. He's the guy deciding which brokers get McLeod trucks and which ones get his voicemail. Then Desmond Clark, the president of Bear Down Logistics is in the house, 12 years in the NFL, eight with the Chicago Bears. Now, he's blocking for logistics instead of quarterbacks. Today, we have the tale of two sides, one carrier, one broker, and the same damn show. And it's all been done on purpose, because while those two sides are busy pointing fingers at each other, the criminals are robbing both sides blind. So today, we're figuring out who's real and who's full of crap, and why the hell you need to trust one side in order to move the load eventually.

And now it's time to go full stop. If you're trying to keep more money in your pocket, if you're trying to move smarter, and if you're trying to stay ahead of the nonsense in trucking today, make sure to hit that like, subscribe and follow right here on FreightWaves on your top freightcast, trucking news and conversations just like this one. And while you're at it, if you want to stop watching Freight's future happen and get into the damn room where decisions are made, F3 is right around the corner. The future of Freight Festival. Use promo code TAKE20 and knock 20% off your current pricing. That's TAKE20. Get registered now before it's too late. Now I want to give a shout out to our sponsors. Before we get started, I want to take a minute to shout out our presenting sponsors at Apex Capital, where you find better options, better solutions, and better service. Check them out at apexcapitalcorp.com.

All right. Now it's time to get into our daily pileup. We got to talk about what's happening out in the world. And there's a lot happening out there. So let's talk a little bit about the news. Like a clear example of why barriers to entry matter.

SPEAKER_3 (3:04)

We're looking at barriers to entry, look at this.

FreightWaves (3:24)

Yeah, that's happening. You know, when you look out there and you see that person on that driving simulator, you probably don't want to see them behind the wheel over a real 80,000 pound moving vehicle.

It looked like they were playing Grand Theft Auto rather than learning to drive a semi truck. But, you know, if you do let those people out on the road, it might look like this.

SPEAKER_4 (3:46)

Yeah, he is.

FreightWaves (3:58)

Or like this. Now, if that wasn't enough, here's another.

SPEAKER_4 (4:50)

Let me ask y'all a question. Now, if it's happened to you, would you just keep trying to drive it down the road, or would you at least pull over or something?

Hey, that looks awful dangerous right there. What do y'all think?

FreightWaves (5:07)

But see, here's the problem. There's no shortage of clips like that. Sometimes people confuse truck driving with tree removal services, like this guy right here.

SPEAKER_4 (5:46)

Bro! Look at y'all. Look at y'all.

Desmond Clark (5:50)

He tore the damn truck up.

SPEAKER_4 (5:51)

Look at that.

Desmond Clark (5:52)

He done hit a whole damn tree branch.

SPEAKER_4 (5:54)

Look at that.

Jason Schaftlein (5:55)

He don't even know where he hit yet.

SPEAKER_4 (5:56)

Look at that.

Desmond Clark (5:56)

Bagging up.

SPEAKER_4 (5:57)

He's still bagging up into the tree. Lord have mercy.

Jason Schaftlein (6:01)

Lord have mercy. Look at that. He don't even know where he hit yet. He thought he hit.

FreightWaves (6:05)

Look at that.

SPEAKER_2 (6:07)

Pulling off like he's going back to work.

Jason Schaftlein (6:08)

Look at that.

SPEAKER_2 (6:09)

Taking the tree with him. Lord have mercy.

Desmond Clark (6:11)

Still going.

SPEAKER_2 (6:13)

You don't see that big-ass tree in your peripherals.

Jason Schaftlein (6:17)

Look at that.

Desmond Clark (6:17)

He's still ain't got that truck yet. Oh, here he go.

Jason Schaftlein (6:20)

Here he go.

Desmond Clark (6:21)

Lord have mercy. Let me step back. I don't want you to want to see me.