During this week’s episode of the Oakley Podcast, Host Jeremy Kellett is joined by John Haley who is an Owner-Operator with Oakley Trucking to discuss some tips on retirement, health help, and other topics.
Key topics in today’s conversation include:
- Oakley Update: Geotabs, Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse, Eddie and Betty Stewman (1:38)
- John Haley’s career and personal background (5:37)
- Why trucking has gotten both easier and harder the past several decades (9:36)
- How John lost 25 lbs following the Oakley health tips (13:35)
- Trucker Buddy program with elementary schools (17:58)
- Building long-standing relationships in the Oakley family (24:38)
Thank you to John for sharing your experience and memories as a part of the Oakley family. We’re glad to have you a part of the team! Oakley Trucking is a family-owned and operated trucking company headquartered in North Little Rock, Arkansas. For more information, check out our show website: podcast.bruceoakley.com.
Transcription
Automated Transcription – May Contain Errors
John Haley 00:12
Don’t think driving is harder. I think the job is harder. I mean, 20 years ago, I mean, we’re even back when I was a kid, you drove a Mac with 180 horsepower, and you still have 78,000 rows load, and you shifted all day long. So the truck was a lot harder to drive. But I mean, the job itself was easier because people treated you a little different. I think back then,
Jeremy Kellett 00:35
welcome to the Oakley podcast, trucking, business and family. This show is brought to you by Oakley trucking, headquartered in North Little Rock, Arkansas. The purpose of this podcast is to communicate with Oakley owner operators and their families by giving them up to date information concerning hopefully trucking and the trucking industry. From business advice to safety updates to success stories. Also to give an insight to outside truck drivers that might be interested in joining the Oakley family. There’s Jeremy Kayla, Director of recruiting here at Oakley trucking and I’m your host for this podcast. This is the Oakley podcast, trucking, business and family. This is episode 92. So on today’s episode, I am joined with one of our owner operators, John Haley is going we’re going to discuss a few things, a few topics in trucking that I think everybody will enjoy. And the reason I asked John to do this is because he’s been around for a while he knows the trucking business. He’s done it a long time and he’s seen he’s seen it he’s seen it all so we’re gonna get John’s perspective. But first I want to give you an Oakley updating this, as always is sponsored by aero truck sales. Keith Wilson at Aero truck sales in Springfield, Missouri is currently offering $1,000 off your first month’s payment when you finance with transport funding, or $1,000 off the truck price if you bring your own financing. They’re also discounting the cost of an extended warranty by $500. Aero truck sales has been a longtime partner with Oakley trucking, and that’s because they specialize in first time truck buyers. They don’t do any leases. They have the best use trucks money can buy because use trucks is all they do. They don’t sell any new trucks. And the biggest reason that arrow and Oakley are partners is service after the sale. It is very important to us at Oakley, that when we refer you to a company, that they are a good company with good people. They do what they say and they understand our requirements. So give Keith a call at 573 to 166047 for a good use truck and tell him you heard about it on the Oakley podcast. So FarStone Oakley update today? Well, by the way, you know, it’s this is the second week of January when this comes out. I mean, it’s a it’s a new year 2022 So here’s here’s some things that’s going on in Oakley right now that I can tell you one is we got over 500 of the geo tansy in safety was telling me about that we got 500 of the new E log system in trucks and we got you know, what, 275 more to go something like that. And those are going pretty good so far. Everything’s good. It’s your seem to be with that. Now, also, one of the actually wouldn’t, it’s not an Oakley update, but it’s something that I came across today that I thought would enlighten everybody as drug and alcohol Clearing House database that there has been 93,000 truck drivers taken out of the system that that have had drug or alcohol violations. Now, that is a lot of violators right there that has been that’s taken out of the pool of truck drivers. And you know, I just thought I was reading it today and I thought I’m gonna give this op update just to enlighten our listeners of what’s going on out there in the trucking world when you’re talking about this. That’s a lot of people that are violating the drug and alcohol policies nanny 3000 taken out so they can’t get back in if they do the right things but the article I read there’s not many of them doing it and getting back again. So and now the other thing on the OIC update real quick is always like to recognize somebody that’s working for us has been here a long time and the ones I want to do today is at invading Soo Min at a Heartland Tennessee. They are great people they’ve been with us 11 years he’s done and they’ve done in dumps and pneumatics they have they got drive a 2006 Kw they’ve started on the nose but now they pull pneumatic tank and I’m gonna tell you they’re just some of the finest people you’ll ever meet. As just as genuine people as they can be and it’s always a pleasure working for them and get to see him they come in and visit with us all time and just you know all around good people and I asked their dispatcher what what he had to say about him and saw you said they’re they’re very flexible and willing to run extra when we need to help they’re great with paperwork and we’ll do whatever we need them to do so good people Rutter, congratulations on 11 years ad and Beatty statement we appreciate you. Alright, let’s get cranked up here with Mr. John Haley what’s going on today, John? You
John Haley 05:08
doing all right? Oh, yeah, just another day in trucking paradise in though.
Jeremy Kellett 05:12
No, it’s not coffee here coming out of the E log class this afternoon. So I hope your minds clear. You know, hit some of these topics as want to talk about but first, as always introduce yourself to our listeners let him know who’s who they’re talking to.
John Haley 05:31
Alright, well, my name is John Haley. I live in Wickenburg, Arizona, with Oakley coming up on six years now. Married Sandy and my wife I got three kids two up in Minnesota and one lives still in Massachusetts. For grandkids for hobbies, I sold pretty much everything I had when I left Minnesota. So all the old cars except for one on one old trucks left and now my hobbies are just mini toy trucks there which is costing almost as much as the big one. Oh, what
Jeremy Kellett 06:00
size or the meaning? Whatever. I
John Haley 06:02
get my hands on Table Topper. Yeah, little 164 scale. 1/24 just keep collecting a whole bunch of them. And then like I told my wife when I sold the garage. I was going to downsize in my hobby. So now instead of five trucks, I think I got 100 of them in there.
Jeremy Kellett 06:20
In a cheaper, it’s not cheap.
John Haley 06:22
Nah, they’re pretty pricey for good ones.
Jeremy Kellett 06:25
I guess that’s that’s a good little hobby. You know? See allow them let’s Truck Show. Watching my bag. So you’ve been at Oakley almost six years. Man. Has it been that long already?
John Haley 06:36
Yeah, you guys are pretty tolerant. Most people fire me before so he never Mikey
Jeremy Kellett 06:43
That’s mighty stay here six years? And I really don’t know. I know you got nice.
John Haley 06:49
Well, I think it was probably Bradley Bradley for a dispatcher. And I think I started hauling cement 1980. And I can say that Bradley has to be the number one dispatch I’ve ever had since the whole time I’ve ever done trucking has been 40 some years now. So and he tolerated a lot. So it was the dispatch. He treated me good. He knew where I wanted to go. And he knew I was pretty flexible on staying out stuff close. When I get home. It was another story. I had a hard time getting me back out. But I would say Bradley. That’s good.
Jeremy Kellett 07:21
Yeah, he does a great job. Now he didn’t you know, counting operations. And so you got other your dispatcher now, Trevor? Oh, yeah.
John Haley 07:30
Yeah, he’s good guy. Good personality. I mean, you can carry on a little bit, so I got no problem with Trevor. Well, you’re a pneumatic division just moved over to the backside.
Jeremy Kellett 07:41
Did you start out in pneumatic. Okay, I thought you couldn’t remember if you started out in pneumatic or if you’d pull it up for a while
John Haley 07:48
Rob Starling pneumatic and one of them all Hiles he had and then I think I had it for about a month. And then Bradley gave me one of the 2000 Cube trailers that was only going to last for one day or one load. And then I stuck with that for like five years, then moved over to the bacteria list.
Jeremy Kellett 08:05
That’s a whole different beast in it.
John Haley 08:07
Yeah, considering a 40 some years of doing bulk work, and then never did vac work at all. So that was definitely different. But it’s pretty easy. It’s cleaner. And I like it dirty. So it worked good. For me.
Jeremy Kellett 08:20
It works good. You know, being in it. 40 years ago, we were having that conversation you call because you’re originally from up in the northeast of New England somewhere.
John Haley 08:30
Massachusetts, Stoughton. Not too far from the guy that was in Halifax. I worked not too far from where Halifax
Jeremy Kellett 08:36
was. Oh, yeah. Yeah, because he’s making fun of me because I couldn’t say Massachusetts.
John Haley 08:41
Yeah, it’s Massachusetts. But if you ask him, they don’t say it his way from from Boston.
Jeremy Kellett 08:47
And then you went to Minnesota and now in Arizona. We
John Haley 08:50
moved to Minnesota to work for Shanell and all the reefer for a short time. And that was back in the Mumford days when we used to haul meat. And then that was good. But then when meat chains to box meat and not swing and then you turned into a human forklift, and like now, not for the reefer stuff. So
Jeremy Kellett 09:06
you’ve seen a lot 40 years I’m assuming driving a truck.
John Haley 09:10
So they dad on trucks, grandfather on trucks before I get into it. So whole life whole trucking.
Jeremy Kellett 09:17
I mean, How’s it changed? And nowadays that you know, with technology, just me talking about the drug and alcohol Clearing House is taken out 93,000 truck drivers who knew it was that big of a problem drugs or I mean, in Course Technology essay about cell phones and people driving and not paying attention to me. Is it a lot harder now than it was 20 years ago?
John Haley 09:43
I don’t think driving is harder. I think the job is harder. Me 20 years ago. I mean, we’re even back when I was a kid you drove a Mac with 180 horsepower and you still have 78,000 pound gross load, and you shifted all day long. So the truck was a lot harder to drive. But I mean, the job itself was easier because people treated you a little different I think back then, but I think drivers treated people different back then. Because my dad had drivers they weren’t called drivers. They’re called chauffeurs back then it’s like the guy is good chauffeur we just hired a something. That’s how it worked. Now it’s a driver, then trucks now, I guess I had an old truck that didn’t even have a radio in it. Now, I mean, I drive down the road crew is on listening to this on the radio, a TV set and microwave the whole nine yards. I mean, things have changed there. Used to just climb in lay down on the bunk I mean, go to sleep. Now you walk back to the coach another bed and the whole nine yards. So that part’s gotten better, but but for the driver thing, I don’t think drivers have definitely not gotten better. There’s a handful I think better, probably are really good drivers. But I think what happens is they get into the business, and then they’re not treated as well as they should be. And they move on really quick. I think that’s part of the problem. Because before people were drivers, their drivers for years. I mean, they just that was it. I mean, like me, and it’s the only job I’ve ever had as a truck driver. So, yeah, I think some things have gotten better, some done
Jeremy Kellett 11:17
it well. It’s, you know, he’s just all all about change and who can adapt to things that are changing all the time. I mean, it’s, we see it here at Oak Leaf things have changed over you know, years or stuff. I mean, there’s like you were talking from the Piper log to the Qualcomm to the malware on a, you know, you got the log book on your phone or your tablet. Things change, you just gotta adapt and, and move on. And I know some of that stuff’s gotta be challenging, but the, you know, what’s the hardest part? I mean, is it is that the hardest part the technology?
John Haley 11:52
For me it is because that’s not my generation. I mean, because I don’t I mean, I don’t know how any of that electronic stuff works or anything. So that’s pretty hard for me, but it’s getting simpler and simpler. But the electronics probably the toughest thing for me and even my TV I don’t even watch TV at home because I can’t figure it out. I’ve turned it on lifeless and wife’s there. And that was a TV Mitch told me to buy I used to get a smart TV. It’s like, Yeah, well, that was Mitch is gonna come over so I can watch television. I know that.
Jeremy Kellett 12:21
That’s the way it works. We ran the conversation while ago before we started this podcast me GLC bed smart TVs. I don’t know what you know what happened to turn it on. I told my wife was I’m going back to cable. So I won’t go back to cable make it simple, tired off and on. Plus, it’ll stay on during stonework. It won’t go out. So but I don’t watch enough of it to make any difference.
John Haley 12:45
I got TV in the truck never get turned on.
Jeremy Kellett 12:47
Hey, I was gonna ask you the health, you lost a bunch of weight. Yeah,
John Haley 12:51
that was from one of your podcasts from way back from John. I never got to talk to him. But I talked to his office calls me every week. But then yeah, that worked good. It was I took it as a kind of a joke and see what happens here. And, and I lost 2527 pounds and didn’t really have to work at it at all just follow the simple instructions and didn’t change much what I was doing. And still, it’s not cutting into my daytime or anything. It’s just easy, just simple adjustments. Pretty much I mean, the things my bad habit was that I had to do right off the bat was I would go to bed and I lay there with a can of ginger ale and a package of potato chips and read a magazine or a book and chop that down while you’re laying in bed. So I gave those two things up right away. And then they give you the information on there. I asked a question. And it was like What’s, what’s the perfect breakfast and the woman from my coach? There’s no perfect precious, but this is such a thing that you could look up and think, wow, I want to be looking information up, I want you to tell me, Well, you look it up and you find a whole big bunch of things of information. And then when you start putting all that together, things become pretty easy. And I didn’t do much of anything to walk 7500 steps is what they asked you to do in a day. Which Believe it or not, you don’t walk very much if you work hard, and you don’t do much 2000 steps, but you CAN bus 75 off pretty quick. And I’m up to probably on an average day now. Nine or 10,000. Some days more. If I go home and I do the treadmill, I can run it way up.
Jeremy Kellett 14:19
You just do that in the parking lot or wherever you stop. Yeah,
John Haley 14:22
just a heads up over the day. Usually I tried to do it. I’ll try to get 2000 in the morning, before breakfast, just get ready. But that doesn’t take long. You can do 2000 Steps pretty quick. And then supper time comes up. I look at my Little Reader thing. And if it’s got 6000 steps, I’ll make up the six to the 10 I like to give at least 10 and then get the 10 before supper. That’s the promise because we eat for us. I gotta do nothing but lay in the truck. Right? And then that was it and they tell you the information on foods that are good things how they work. It’s not like just eat this don’t eat that eat that they tell you why you should do it but little small bitty steps. So it’s easy to do.
Jeremy Kellett 15:04
I mean, it doesn’t even cost you anything does not they send you an electronic scale, which you have to have a CDL. To do. Did you ever have to show these? No,
John Haley 15:11
it was even labor. It was it’s back in April is when it was because I just called up the number and I got one of John’s workers. And then she run through the whole thing because she sets it up on your phone, because they send you over a podcast. And then they do all that for you right over the phone, because I’m not good with that stuff. So they send it all over to me, they send you an electric scale in the mail, and then your way in the morning or whatever time you choose, and it automatically sends it to the people that keep a track of your Midas stuff, or whatever the name is, I forget now, they keep track of it. And then it keeps your track you put your meals in what you ate in the morning, lunch, dinner snacks. That’s all you really had to do. And then they don’t tell you doing it, right. They don’t tell you you doing it wrong. They don’t say don’t eat this don’t eat that. They just, they give you suggestions. And if you follow it, it works. Yeah, cuz I was, I think I’m probably 171 this morning. And then I think I started off as 198 or something like that. And then I think it was 207 was my highest, but it’s just always goes down. There’s a little graph on it. But when I went go my last physical for you guys. The doctor says we should be under 100. needy. Yeah, okay, right. Well, getting down to the 180 was a piece of cake. And then no, it happened because they set your goal. And then the next goal was 170. I think that was a little tricky, because I think I wait aren’t 60 and 100. School? I never seen 170 since then. But yeah, I’m in 70s 71. It just it’ll maintain if you just use common sense. And yeah. I mean, I like it. I mean, I don’t even want it to end. And I keep talking to him every week they call me every week and get updates on it and news. So I think it’s well worth it didn’t cost anything. I just filled up the information. And
Jeremy Kellett 16:58
that’s a good deal. And it works works for you. So you feel good, feel better.
John Haley 17:03
Oh waiver. I mean, I used to I mean, not that I was in total bad shape. I get up on top of the trailer. And it’s like, get me out of breath on there and just do nothing. Now. I have a weapon down there and be my knees feel better. I mean, yeah. And when I sent it to the lady site now I lost 20 pounds. I need a lot. I mean, because when we talk about weight, we’re talking tons. You know, I get another tonight. Yeah. And then she was go to the store and pick up two bags of potatoes that are five pounds apiece and carry it around all day long. Like Well, I guess you look at it that way. Yeah, it is a lot.
Jeremy Kellett 17:35
It is hard on you. Oh,
John Haley 17:37
yeah, I recommend it. 100% I can’t say one single thing bad about it.
Jeremy Kellett 17:41
What about your you’ve mentioned it to me before you trucker buddy deal that you’ve done in the past? Are you still doing it?
John Haley 17:47
Oh, yeah, I think it’s up to like year 16 or something 15. Nice. I had a second grade class that have actually already graduated school that I’ve written so many so long ago. So the class of Minnesota and Vermillion, I got another one where the teacher moved from California back to Arizona. in surprise. like eight years, she said that we’ve been writing it doesn’t seem like that long. But so you write every year. Yep. And then the two classes I had the first class I had a class in New Jersey and the teacher dropped out. So they assigned me another asked me to do the one in California, I just finished a year off cuz she lost her driver. And then sure, and then I just stayed with it. And so what your responsibilities are that you just send them a letter where you’ve been or card I use postcards, because you can take five minutes to write a postcard off. So you send them a postcard telling them where you’ve been or the sites around, or what that part of the country looks like weather just general stuff. And then both of my classes, the teachers, actually they’ll write back, each kid will write back a card. And I don’t do any on emails at all, because I can’t figure that stuff out. But then I just write them back letters and send the cards to them. And then sometimes I’ll do a coloring contest, I get an old coloring book, which Chuck pitches in and I’ll take a truck picture, put a couple boxes of crayons or paints in there for prizes and teacher gets a coloring contest for him. So they’re pretty happy with it because of it. I mean, it’s something so simple, but you think about as a kid in second grade, he’s actually gets mail as a postcard from a truck driver that
Jeremy Kellett 19:19
well, you know, and those kids will remember that for long.
John Haley 19:23
That’s what the principal of the school says like, it’s just you can’t believe how many people their mothers because it’s Catholic schools, they still see him at church that because plaque cards was my thing. I sent him a plaque card and the little orange book was on chemicals. How many kids is still talking about that plaque card book and check it out a plaque card on a railroad car shark going by
Jeremy Kellett 19:44
and that’s how they knew about it was
John Haley 19:46
and that’s that’s stuck in their mind for years and it’s like I don’t do the placards any work at all any hazardous anymore. I haven’t got them handy, but that’s one of the things that she says that kids are still talking about.
Jeremy Kellett 19:58
That’s a great That’s a great story. So good as you keep doing it. That’s awesome. Man. I bet we got more guys that do that too. We just don’t know about it.
John Haley 20:06
Yeah, there was a guy man here at Red Freightliner. I don’t know if he’s still here or not that was doing it. No, really. I just was lucky because I think I was like trucker buddy in a year for two years in a row. And then we’re not two years in a row, but two years old with all the time and then what happens when you get to be driver the year the school gets a $500 gift card or something that you spend money on for school supplies? So So yeah, it’s a good program. I like it. Real quick, before
Jeremy Kellett 20:30
we go, you know, a couple of things. One was, what’s your thoughts on this truck parking? I mean, you know, you hear about it all the time I do on the news. isn’t that bad? Is it as bad as they say it is? I mean, we drill is hard to find a place to park at night when you get really shut down? Oh,
John Haley 20:48
absolutely. Especially if you make it out to the east. I mean, if you ever got a parking space, by one o’clock in the afternoon out there, you’re done. And then, I mean, there’s just so many trucks and I think when the logbook changed, where everybody had to take that 10 hours off, instead of you grabbing a little nap here and there and being gone. Now space is tied up for 10 hours, because you guys aren’t going to go anywhere. So it’s not like a rotating constant open thing
Jeremy Kellett 21:13
is like that’s part of it. That’s part of the people that made that rule didn’t think about, Well, everybody’s gonna be taking the same 10 hour, you know, typically that most people’s gonna take their 10 hour break in that. So now Where’s everybody going? Park?
John Haley 21:27
Yeah, nobody. Think about that. And then the people parking on rest area driveways and exit ramps. I mean, I don’t I mean, because you just don’t bring yourself up to a giant liability. And then if you did stop, I would stop going down the road not coming off. Because there’s a guy in Texas going 70 down a ramp to get off and you’re there, at least the other way. He’s just creeping down,
Jeremy Kellett 21:51
get more you end up staying. I mean, you stay in a lot of the shippers and receivers,
John Haley 21:55
if they let you I like to ask before I get there if you can stay there. But I try to plan my day where I’m in a parking space at five o’clock in the afternoon. That’s decent, because you don’t want to be in a spot that’s in the middle or something. Because now you got this guy that probably couldn’t drive it if he had to. He’s gonna back in next year at nighttime. Like, can you really sleep at night guys back in the next year? truck parking is an issue and everybody knows it. I mean, I’m sure the public knows about it because they look at him on a ramp. Oh, sure. It’s the same thing as homeless people. We get to do something about homeless people as well. Let’s build a homeless shelter in your town. Oh, no, not my town. Right. Well, let’s build a truckstop in your town. No, not in my town, but do something about it. Yeah, exactly. Right. And that’s how it works. But it’s bad but I tried to plan it out. I either want to start at work and drive all night to morning. Or got to be parked at five o’clock or so or just take the gamble of you know, finding a place to park and you know, drug stuffs or making a fortune because they’re selling you a parking space every time because they know people are going to park now.
Jeremy Kellett 23:05
Are you talking about the reserved spot? Yeah,
John Haley 23:07
I mean, that’s so ridiculous. You can go in and buy foreigner dollars or the fuel and want to go take a shower which can find a place to park I mean that’s but you can buy a spot parks reserve it for you get there. Yeah, it’s I mean, I understand it’s an issue but if you’re going to pay to park I think they should charge you like when you get in the gate like when you walked Ontario everybody pays and then they’re in and out. But if you get there early, you get a bonus because you can park for free. But if you want to work a little harder. You’re gonna pay for a spot.
Jeremy Kellett 23:40
I mean, yeah, you’re gonna have to take 10 hours you need some services there ain’t you’re gonna be there 10 hours you need. You need to be able to be at a truck stop or somewhere where there’s something you can take shower, restroom or eat Nala I would think yeah, it
John Haley 23:57
makes it tough on a guy that’s gets a spotlight I mean, I’ve loaded it places you got to leave the shipper and you got to park up the street and you can’t go nowhere. I mean, what do you do? I mean, if you’re driving that old truck that you couldn’t lay do nothing middle he down and you’re gonna starve to death there but at least now you do have a TV set you have some conference but it’s still there’s no shower no bathroom no restaurant. So you they let you use their bathrooms and stuff and you have your own food. Last
Jeremy Kellett 24:22
thing I’ve got a nice kind of put me on the spot any good stories while you’ve been at Oakley any whether it’s with loads or with interesting things has happened or while you’ve been at Oakley think of anything. Oh a lot
John Haley 24:35
of things are happening like I mean like I said my probably my best buddy Mitch. I mean this and stories right there. And yeah, I mean I’ve I’ve run run into a lot of good friends here that I mean not probably don’t forever. There was a guy when I first came here, Mark that was they wanted me to ride with and he’s been gone for quite a few years, but we still still in contact. Oh yeah. He’s a nice guy, Mitch. I think he’ll be around forever. And then, I mean, I mean, I could probably sit and think of a whole bunch of them. But do you make some good friends here? Oh, absolutely. And I mean, the people in the office have been really good. And then like I said, Bradley 40 Some years and nobody is going to be Bradley. And then because I mean, like I said, I’ve fired a lot of times for being outrageously out of control. So Bradley’s tolerated a lot. I think he fired me once and then he hired me back again because it was a snowstorm and you need me to go to Northern Alberta or something. So then he hired me back to punish me for that.
Jeremy Kellett 25:33
Well, you quit once and then came back. Oh, I didn’t claim week or something that was that this
John Haley 25:39
year? You guys told me I quit. Weed? Yeah, I told him I was gonna go pull a dump trailer and then somehow it got changed over to he quit. And then because when he called me and told me she needed my stuff is sick. Really, this is the day you’ve terminated me. She’s like said you quit, like quit your job, because you didn’t give me a loan. And then when I came back, Tiffany bumped into me and said, Why don’t you come over and pull it back trailer and try that because I was gonna go over to the dump trailer side. And then like, I’ll try it and which worked out good. I’m happy with that. Yeah, it’s cleaned. I mean, plastic clean and I don’t have to shovel anything. And then if I overloaded I got nobody to blame but myself because you put it in you take it out. It’s not like I’m standing there with the guy at the hopper it’s like Yeah 23 ton and he’s up there just yapping on his soul for the next thing you know, stuff blowing everywhere while you’re under 80 year okay, like why but it’s all in the back pocket.
Jeremy Kellett 26:37
You’re putting it on there yourself. So you know
John Haley 26:39
yeah, you got nobody to blame but yeah, the fact things worked out good for me I’ll stay there till I retire but which was going to be last September that just went by too.
Jeremy Kellett 26:50
You still got some using?
John Haley 26:51
Well, the wife’s got some health issues. I figured I’ll work that she can’t take it anymore to Trevor gives me a bad load and then then I’ll retire because he asked me that when you retire as soon as you send me to New York or northeast section. That’s the day Yeah, cuz I don’t want to go to any state that touches the ocean. I’ll bend I’ll go bend to live on the Gulf of Mexico. I just want the big square ones because I don’t need to go to any ocean states are bad or Houston timezone. And my parents live up there. I don’t go up they’re
Jeremy Kellett 27:20
just not going to go with them and see them.
John Haley 27:24
They can come see me It’s nice in my house. I mean, it’s 70 degrees.
Jeremy Kellett 27:28
Know me John Willis. Boom. I hope we got you a few more years. Hopefully, Trevor won’t send you up to any of those places. I’ll keep you around for a while.
John Haley 27:40
Trevor treats me good I can’t say anything bad well yeah, he’s not a Bradley but he’s good. You’ve done a
Jeremy Kellett 27:45
good job of your and we and that’s no kidding. We try to find guys now it is finding owner operators like yourself. I mean, that been doing a while a lot of them are on the brink like you are retiring. A lot of them have retired this year.
John Haley 27:59
I don’t I have a lot of friends that retired and I think it’s probably the business itself is driven amount they’d like to stay doing what they’re doing. Not retired from here but retire from trucking. But who wants to put up with some of that, you know, like trying to find a parking space and get up every morning hassled by a D O T guy that’s nothing more than a meter may collect and revenue for corrupt government really? And then you put up with that just retire and get your money and enjoy yourself. But no, I’ll be here to like I said to you guys, fire me. And then I keep waiting. And that didn’t work. I know cuz I’ve done some really outrageous stuff. And I thought logbook machine that I just get that that way. Really? No,
Jeremy Kellett 28:38
that might be that may be the end of thing. Newbie loan. This time. It might be the one
John Haley 28:45
that just can’t figure out what’s going on. No, I was gonna try to go for the 100 or the million mile mark here. But I don’t think I got that many years because I only probably at 500,000 Maybe now. Yeah. So you’re gonna have five years to get that because you could ask Bradley I go home there for six weeks. That’s hard. They add up 10,000 miles a month when you’re home? No, I do. Okay, here I can’t complain.
Jeremy Kellett 29:10
Well, we appreciate it. We enjoy having you do John, always good to visit with you. I appreciate you. You know, and I’ll put you on the spot coming on and doing this for me. But, you know, to hear from from people like you and our listeners here that I mean, they know it’s authentic. It’s for real. And this is this is kind of people we have working for Oakley trucking and I’m always like, Good afternoon I get, you know, I like to get guys perspective. Like you there’s done it for 40 years. I mean, that’s a long time to be doing it. You know what’s going on out here. And it helps. It helps me for you to explain it to our listener. So I appreciate you coming on and doing it man. I really do. It was good stuff.
John Haley 29:50
I’m glad to. Thanks for having me.
Jeremy Kellett 29:52
Yeah. Glad to do it. Well, I appreciate everybody listening to the podcast, you know again this week. Appreciate John Haley coming on with us and hanging out with us. For a little while, and looking forward to the new year coming 2022 is going to be a good one. Y’all stay with me. We’ll talk to you again next week. Thanks for listening to this episode with Oakley podcast, trucking, business and family. If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to write or review the show in the podcast platform of your choice and share it with a friend. We love hearing from our audience. So if you’ve got a question, comment or just want to say hello, head over to our website, the Oakley podcast.com and click the leave a comment button. We’ll get you a response soon and may even share some of the best ones here on the show. We’ll be back with a fresh episode very soon. Thanks for listening.