IC_05-18_OnlineEdition

CONTENTS 

MAY 2018 • VOLUME 21 • ISSUE 5 

TRUCK STOP 

Trucker Paul 

Barton : Military to 

Trucking 

IC NEWS 

Page 12 

Schneider Partners 

with Trainco Truck 

Driving Schools 

Page 22 

PRODUCT PROFILE 

Preventing Costly 

“Lights Out” Fines 

and Downtime 

s t a f f 

General Manager Megan Hicks 

Sales Manager Jerry Critser 

Creative Director Chad Singleton 

Administrative Staff Tammy Borrelli 

Charlene Abernathy 

Editor Sean O'Connell 

Advertising Account Executives 

Sean Hayes 

1.256.405.4017 

seanh@htwoservices.com 

John Hicks 

1.770.418.9789 

johnh@targetmediapartners.com 

Meg Larcinese 

1.678.325.1025 

megl@targetmediapartners.com 

Greg McClendon 

1.678.325.1023 

gregmc@targetmediapartners.com 

Carol Trujillo 

1.213.221.9993 

CarolT@targetmediapartners.com 

Page 36 

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Trucker Paul Barton : Military to Trucking 

It’s not every day a student can 

prove a teacher wrong, but trucker 

Paul Barton has done it his whole 

career. 

“I get to think back on a teacher 

when I was in high school that told 

me, ‘You will never get paid looking 

out the window.’ Well Miss 

Hart, I get paid for looking out the 

window,” said Barton, 66. 

The 42-year career trucker is 

an owner-operator, driving a 2000 

Freightliner FLD 120 flat top and 

pulling a step deck for Admiral 

Merchants Motor Freight Inc. out 

of Minneapolis. He is out on the 

road typically eight weeks at a time, driving 

the lower 48. 

Barton has amassed about four million 

miles, which is a feat, considering he never 

saw himself as a trucker. 

“A friend offered me to go for a ride in a 

truck. I’d never been in a truck and I was a cab 

driver back then,” he said. It was the mid-70s 

and on one trip, his friend let him drive the 

tractor on a dead-end road in Berkley, California. 

“It was all with the idea of now I can say, 

‘I’ve done this,’ that was all it was about.” 

Growing up as a military brat, Barton’s 

dream was always to serve his country. He 

signed up for the U.S. Marine Corps through 

the CWO (chief warrant officer) program 

during the Vietnam War in the hope of flying 

helicopters. However, he could never go and 

I thought, ‘well I’m only going to do 

this for a little bit,’” and purchased a 

1973 International cabover in 1976. “I 

never intended to do it for a career. 

I’m the first truck driver in my family. 

found out why when his father, Louis “Buddy” 

Barton died in 2009. 

“They explained to me it because my dad 

kept volunteering every time I was to go to 

boot camp … the rules were if your father is 

in a combat zone you cannot go if you’re the 

only blood son. My brother was adopted. So 

every time I was supposed to do this, he was 

in Vietnam. He did this for two and a half 

years, doing 90-day tours over there. He kept 

12 INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR 2018 HUNDREDS OF JOBS www.TruckJobSeekers.com

me out of Vietnam,” Barton said, adding that 

he was shocked to find out. His dad was a tech 

sergeant in the U.S. Air Force for 27 years. 

“My dad has always been my hero. Of course 

we haven’t always seen eye to eye. He was 

in Korea and Vietnam and to me that says a 

whole lot about a man. Being a military brat, 

that’s all you think about.” 

Though he couldn’t follow his dream, the 

trucking industry became his life. 

“I thought, ‘well I’m only going to do this 

for a little bit,’” and purchased a 1973 International 

cabover in 1976. “I never intended to 

do it for a career. I’m the first truck driver in 

my family.” 

The trucking industry has gone through 

challenges in every generation and Barton 

said he remembers well the widespread 

trucker strikes in 1980. “The Teamsters were 

on strike and they were hanging bricks from 

the overpasses and a driver got hit by one and 

it knocked him out,” Barton said. His truck 

plowed into the side of a mountain by Hershey, 

Pennsylvania, on I-76. “I pulled over. Luckily 

a trooper pulled up and wanted to know what 

was going on. I said, ‘this guy is hurt bad, he’s 

bleeding on his face and he’s out.’ The officer 

and I were able to get him upright and he kind 

of came to.” 

The trooper called for an ambulance and 

to make room, Barton left and never found out 

what happened to the man. 

There are countless stories of tough moments 

on the road and Barton said a big key to 

preventing some tragedies is safety. 

“Get a CB and stay off the phone. [New 

truckers] don’t pay attention and they don’t 

look in the mirrors. They’re focusing straight 

ahead. Well you only look out the window 

maybe 25 percent of the time and the other 75 

percent of the time is checking your mirrors 

for stuff that’s going on alongside you,” he 

said. That kind of safety mentality has served 

Barton well, especially with unique loads. His 

largest load was a cell tower, which was about 

13 feet wide and grossing 120,000 pounds. 

“Pay attention; know where you’re at and 

where everybody else is at. You’ve got to think 

ahead like [for] bridges. On freeways, the 

bridges always seem to be a little narrower,” 

Barton said. 

When he is at home in Sacramento, California, 

he can be found cruising around on his 

Harley Davidson throughout what he called 

“Gold Country, California, and the coast to the 

Redwood Forests. Those are a couple of the 

best areas to ride.” 

Barton admits when he joined the industry 

at 24 years old, “it was just a whim.” But it’s a 

whim he’ll follow for as long as he’s able. 

“‘Til they throw dirt on me,” he said. 


NEWS 

Independent Contractor 

April 2018 

Schneider Partners with 

Trainco Truck Driving 

Schools 

Schneider has partnered with Trainco 

Truck Driving Schools to provide paid Commercial 

Driver’s License (CDL) training for 

those interested in a career in truck driving. 

Schneider states it is making it easier for 

someone to enter a career in professional 

truck driving by providing the following allexpense-paid 

course options with Trainco. 

Three-week auto and manual transmission 

class: Schneider and Trainco will get graduates 

in the driver seat after three weeks, with 

the first week being an auto permit assistance 

course for those struggling to find time to 

receive their permits. Tuition, transportation 

and lodging is provided. 

Two-week auto-transmission-only training 

class: It’s time for manual clutching and shifting 

to head on down the highway, and Schneider 

is one of the few carriers able to guarantee 

drivers are assigned an automated transmission 

truck for easier driving. Tuition, transportation 

and lodging is provided. 

Three-day refresher course: Anyone interested 

in restarting their truck-driving career 

will be covered by Schneider. The company 

will even save a position once the driver 

passes its expert-led refresher course. Tuition, 

transportation and lodging is provided. 

While the company currently offers overthe-road, 

regional, local and dedicated opportunities 

to drivers looking for well-paying 

jobs, it has a larger sign-on bonus for those 


UPS Freight Truckload 

Big Name, 

Bigger Rewards 

Drive for a name you know and get the 

rewards that come with it! 

• Dry Van & Flatbed Opportunities 

• Multiple routes 

• Multiple home time options: 

• Home nightly 

• Out 1-2 nights/week 



888-521-7212 www.jobs-ups.com 

© 2018 United Parcel Service of America, Inc.


NEWS 

interested in driving on a Dedicated account 

based in Lima, Ohio, that offers daily home 

time. 

Walcott Truckers Jamboree 

Concerts Announced 

Iowa 80 Truckstop is pleased 

to announce the musical acts who 

will take the stage to entertain 

attendees at this year’s Walcott 

Truckers Jamboree. 

On Thursday, July 12th attendees 

will enjoy a performance 

by Logan Mize courtesy of CAT 

Scale. “Logan is a great entertainer,” 

says DeBaillie. Some may 

recognize his hit “El Camino” 

and his latest album “Come Back 

Road” which was released and 

debuted in the top 20 Billboard Country Albums 

and reached no. 2 on the iTunes Country 

Charts. 

Friday, July 13th will feature the Grammy 

winning group The Kentucky Headhunters, 

brought to you by Mobil Delvac. “Their high 



NEWS 

energy show is sure to have everyone on their 

feet”, says DeBaillie. 

Join the Jamboree fun and experience the 

Super Truck Beauty Contest, Antique Truck 

Display; Iowa pork chop cookout; over 175 

exhibits, Trucker Olympics; carnival games; 

two fireworks displays, a 100th birthday 

party for Iowa 80 Trucking Museum’s 1918 

Independent (built in Davenport, Iowa) and 

lots more fun for the whole family. Admission 

and parking are FREE. Concerts are FREE. 

Complimentary shuttles will be provided from 

the parking area to the event grounds. 

The 39th Annual Walcott Truckers Jamboree, 

will be held July 12-14, 2018 at Iowa 80 

Truckstop, I-80 Exit 284, Walcott, Iowa. 


PRODUCT 

PROFILE 

Preventing Costly “Lights Out” Fines 

and Downtime 

BY DEL WILLIAMS 

For OEMs, fleet managers and owner-operators 

of Class 7 or 8 trucks, keeping all the various 

lights on a trailer functioning properly can 

eliminate a considerable amount of trouble. This 

includes avoiding CSA fines or citations for severity 

points, but also eliminating a glaring reason 

for law enforcement to pull the vehicle over. 

In fact, more than 25 percent of all CSA 

violations in the heavy-duty trucking industry 

are related to lighting outages from inoperable 

lamps or defective/broken lights. As such, it 

represents one of the largest annual expense 

items, when CSA fines, maintenance, downtime 

and repair are factored together. 

Given that lighting-related CSA violations 

are so common, the industry is responding 

with new “smart” systems that provide continuous, 

real-time monitoring of all lights on the 

trailer to identify outages or electrical shorts. 

For notifications and alerts, today’s solutions 

go far beyond the flashing indicator lights of 

the past. In more advanced systems, real-time 

status of every light on the trailer can be transmitted 

via on-board telematics or wirelessly 

through Bluetooth where it can be accessed 

through a user-friendly smartphone app. 

Armed with this level of information, owneroperators 

as well as fleet and maintenance man- 


PRODUCT 

PROFILE 

agers are able to maximize safety and increase 

uptime, while minimizing CSA exposure. 

Lighting Systems Get Smarter 

Every trailer requires fully functioning 

lamps at all times on the road. This includes 

those for stop, left and right turn signal, tail, 

license, clearance, side marker, and identification. 

However, problems arise due to lamps 

burning out, corrosion in the wiring or plugs, 

electrical shorts or issues related to shock, vibration, 

or physical damage. 

Fortunately, lighting issues are typically resolved 

quite easily with spare fuses, replacement 

lights/bulbs and the right tools. The difficulty, 

therefore, is simply knowing a problem 

exists so it can be addressed immediately. 

Although pre- and 

post-trip inspections (if 

conducted diligently) 

may expose a problem 

with one or more of the 

lights, outages that occur 

while on the road 

may not be known about 

until much later. As already 

suggested, this 

could draw the attention 

of law enforcement and 

even up the possibility 

of additional CSA citations. 

“Lights that are out are an easy target for 

a state trooper,” says Kevin Cornelius, Business 

Development Manager of Power Delivery 

at Grote Industries, a global manufacturer 

of lighting and safety equipment for trucking 

fleets. “When a truck is pulled over, it can trigger 

the officer to investigate everything else 

like the driver logs, brake wear or tire tread.” 

Although there are lighting monitoring 

products available, until recently there have 

been a few drawbacks, says Cornelius. One 

system utilizes only a flashing light to indicate 

an outage. Another uses an indicator light on 

the outside of the truck, but can also be connected 

to telematics. However, it works only 

with LEDs and requires extensive trailer alteration 

for installation. 

However, a new approach from Grote called 

the Grote Guardian Smart Trailer System can 

be easily integrated into the trailer’s wiring 

harness system at the nose box. The system 

was created in collaboration with one of the 

largest trailer manufacturers in North America, 

and is currently being used by more than a 

dozen fleets across the country. 

The fully integrated smart system delivers 

real-time status of the entire trailer lighting 

system and works with any type of lamp. 

The system’s sensor continuously monitors 

voltage and current passing through the wire 

harness. The system is programmed to differentiate 

notable or sudden changes from those 

that are gradual and could be caused by lights 

warming up or ambient temperature conditions. 


PRODUCT 

PROFILE 

The system alerts a driver, maintenance or 

fleet manager using a smartphone app or it 

can be connected to the on-board telematics 

system. All the information on status and any 

changes are logged in cloud-based storage for 

data analysis. 

According to Cornelius, the same sensors 

could be used to measure temperature, humidity, 

pressure, or other factors as part of a bumper-to-bumper 

solution 

as the industry moves 

more toward monitoring 

of additional tractortrailer 

functions. 

Because of the importance 

of collecting 

accurate data, Cornelius 

adds that the wire harnesses 

used should be 

extremely reliable and 

resistant to corrosion 

for the smart systems to 

function optimally. 

For this reason, he 

recommends utilizing 

wire harnesses that are 

resistant to moisture, 

chemical and UV attack, 

which will stay flexible 

and not harden or crack. 

Although this type of wire harness is available 

from Grote, Cornelius notes that the Guardian 

system works with wire harnesses and lamps 

from other manufacturers as well. 

Next Generation Smart Systems 

One aspect of the next generation system 

from Grote, planned for release in April, 2018, 

that is of particular interest to trailer OEMs 

and fleet managers is a “geo-fence” feature 

that will automatically upload trailer lighting 

and electrical system information and send 

alerts for priority attention, as needed. 

Geo-fencing allows a virtual geographic 

boundary to be drawn around a specific location, 

such as a facility or repair depot. When 

the geo-fence is crossed and there is a lamp 

or light outage, it can be programmed to automatically 

trigger a warning 

via e-mail or text message 

to appropriate personnel. 

“Once the tractor-trailer 

crosses the established 

geo-fence, the maintenance 

manager will immediately 

be notified,” explains Cornelius. 

“This approach 

could even allow for automatic 

electronic ordering 

of replacement lamps, if 

desired.” 

Although some companies 

charge a monthly subscription 

fee for this type 

of service, Cornelius says 

Grote has no current plans 

to charge for the geo-fencing 

feature. 

“The ability to proactively identify and resolve 

any lighting, electrical, or other tractortrailer 

issues will only grow as this kind of 

real-time monitoring system becomes more 

sophisticated,” concludes Cornelius. “In the 

trucking industry, access to this type of information 

is going to reduce CSA violations and 

ensure safer, simpler operation.” 



ADVERTISER 

INDEX 

COMPANY PAGE COMPANY PAGE 

Admiral Merchants Motor Freight, Inc ... 16, 35 

Baggett Transportation................ 2, 31 

Baylor Trucking .................... 15, 20 

Carrier Logistics, LLC................ 10, 39 

Celadon .............................27 

Clark Transport .................... 29, 39 

Dotline. .............................25 

EM Way Inc........................ 24, 41 

Fed EX Custom Critical ........... 11, 33, 48 

Hurricane Express . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 

KL Breeden ....................... 10, 47 

Miller Truck Lines .................. 26, 46 

New Waverly .................. 8-9, 42-43 

Progressive Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 

Red Eye Radio ........................21 

Robert Heath Trucking ..................19 

RTI.......................... 6-7, 44-45 

Sherwin Williams ......................17 

Skyview Transportation .............. 13, 32 

Stageline .......................... 3, 28 

Star Freight ...........................4 

Truck Job Seekers. ................. 30, 34 

Turquoise Trucking. ................. 26, 41 

UPS Freight ..........................23 

US Xpress ..................... 19, 27, 37

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