Peak horror stories

Harley Rider · 09-27-2007, 07:11 PM

Its just around the corner boys and girls. I have people tell me that they are ordering for Christmas already (especially the QVC ladies that are embarrassed they see me everyday) when I make a delivery.

Whats some of the worst peaks you have endured? I've had some good ones but more bad.

We had a bad winter storm here one year. Any storm is bad here since we don't generally get snow and ice. The state is ill prepared to do much of anything. Everyone was bringing in undeliverable packages due to ice on the streets. We finally got a break in the weather and the streets were in pretty good shape a few days before Christmas. There was a backlog of packages so they decided to unload them all and go for broke. I was delivering out of a P800 that was literally packed from front to back. Had a helper with me and it was turning bitter cold again at sunset.

Met a supervisor with my pick-ups at about 6pm and he asked what time I would be in. I told him about 1am and he laughed. Thought I was kidding. I pulled in at 12:45 am with an empty truck and a hysterical C/M. District Manager was there too. All he did was walk up to me and ask me how many stops I had run. I told him 301 stops and I think it was over 450 packages. He just smiled and walked away. I was about 5 minutes from violating hour wise by the time I did my paperwork and punched out. That was back when you could work 15 hours a day until you surpassed 60 hours in a 5 day span.

I hope I never see another day like that. If it is any indication what this peak will be like, I am not liking what I am seeing so far. I was on vacation last week but the week before I had 13 hours overtime. They finally put on a p/t driver this week to help out some after he preloads. Figure I will run out of hours early in the week this go around.

Griff · 09-27-2007, 07:21 PM

Anyone else feel like they are starring in their own personal UPS version of the movie "Groundhog Day"?

YouTube - GROUNDHOG DAY TRAILER

This is exactly how I feel everyday. I'll be at 280-300 stops everyday during this peak, I just know it. I was at 260 for 5 days straight last year...

BLACKBOX · 09-27-2007, 08:12 PM

No! No! Not that "P" word! It's too early! Can we turn back the clock to early March??

satellitedriver · 09-27-2007, 09:11 PM

The worst peak is always the next one.
Anticipation of the worst always seems to get the blood flowing.
The weather turns bad.
The work gets insane.
We sigh and laugh when it's over.
Then, we worry all year about the next peak.
It really isn't any worse than January, when they cut routes down and double up on drivers because their isn't enough work.(what a crock of BS)
How about Peak stories that are positive?
Here is one of mine.( If I am highjacking this thread by being positive, let me know)
Older woman on my route just lost her husband. She told me her daughter wasn't going to be able to come home for Christmas, but was sending her a gift through UPS. I told her I would get it to her as soon as I got it. She was very lonely and depressed.
The package arrived two days before Christmas.
The weather turned to $#!*. In this part of Texas we get ice storms not much snow.
The CM sent a message out to shut down at dark.
I got in my personal car and drove 20 miles in the storm over ice covered wooden bridges way the f in the country and drove up to her house at about 9 o'clock.
She was home alone and started crying when she saw me standing there with her gift.
She then jumped my ass for bringing it to her in this weather. She tried to make out that it wasn't that important.
It meant alot to her and it meant alot to me ,that I could bring that kind of comfort to someones life through just a little selfless effort.
The bitch was getting back home, but I made it.

tups · 09-28-2007, 01:56 AM

The two peak helpers I had one year.......One of them said he was living in a halfway house trying to rehab a heroin addiction, and the meds he was on made him move slow all day. He lasted 3 days before he was canned. And the second one who actually fell asleep in the jump seat three times one day, and always complained about having to get in and out of the truck, and never could move faster than a crawl. For 5 days he made peak a nightmare. I just said one day that he wasn't working out, and he was slowing me down, and I left him out on the route and called the center telling them I had to get rid of him.

retired2000 · 09-28-2007, 04:42 AM

i had one helper kill himself during peak. now that is pretty bad

Lobofan5 · 09-28-2007, 06:37 AM

A driver I know had an 'eager beaver' helper... wanted to stand up and not use the jump seat so they could run out faster at stops.

The driver got to the next stop and realized that the helper was GONE... seems the helper fell out on a corner and was standing in a ditch waiting for the driver to come back.

over9five · 09-28-2007, 06:52 PM

Worst Peak, had a helper who didn't want to get out of the car when it was raining. Dropped him off at his car and told him I didn't need him again EVER. UPS rewarded the lazy idiot by letting him help the mall guy.

Best Peak, had a young girl helper who lived in town. Would pick her up at her house (her Mom made lunch for both of us!). She was drop dead beautiful, fun, and liked to work fast.

Second best helper was just out of the Air Force. You gotta love a helper who can work hard!

Now it's been about 7 years since I've had a helper. This is good, too! Instead of help, they take work off you!

samiam · 09-29-2007, 01:18 AM

As we all know the work we do during peak is just crule at best. What I look forward during peak is trying to pick the day I will be out the lastest. I make it a game. After 10 or 11 hours on the clock, I try to see just how far I can push it. My max happened last year, 11 hours 52 miinutes. I only run an 8 hour route. It was coming in and having to take 80+ resi. from another driver. There is just nothing better than delievering to an unknown resi. area in the dark, or even better , an apartment complex.

tups · 09-29-2007, 04:08 AM

Endless boxes of Harry and David pears. By the end of last peak I was as sick of that company as I am of Pottery Barn.

And another helper story......Had one kid who liked to run the stops off. He was the best helper I ever had. College basketball player home for Christmas break, ran from the truck to the house everytime! But one night as he was running off one stop, I was in the back looking for the next stop, and heard this dull thud on the side of the truck. Figured he threw a snowball at the truck. I got into the seat, started the truck and saw no helper in the jump seat. I looked toward the house and didn't see him. Shut off the truck to take a look around and started hearing a muffled "HELP HELP" The carzy kid had run back to the truck, tried jumping over a snow bank on the side of the road and ended up slipping, then sliding right under the truck, wedging himself between the truck and the snow bank. Literally had to dig him out of the snow, which was not that easy considering we both were laughing our asses off so hard we could hardly breathe!!

tups · 09-29-2007, 04:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by retired2000

i had one helper kill himself during peak. now that is pretty bad

I'll bet a lot of us feel like that sometimes!

Treegrower · 09-29-2007, 04:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tups

Endless boxes of Harry and David pears. By the end of last peak I was as sick of that company as I am of Pottery Barn.

And another helper story......Had one kid who liked to run the stops off. He was the best helper I ever had. College basketball player home for Christmas break, ran from the truck to the house everytime! But one night as he was running off one stop, I was in the back looking for the next stop, and heard this dull thud on the side of the truck. Figured he threw a snowball at the truck. I got into the seat, started the truck and saw no helper in the jump seat. I looked toward the house and didn't see him. Shut off the truck to take a look around and started hearing a muffled "HELP HELP" The carzy kid had run back to the truck, tried jumping over a snow bank on the side of the road and ended up slipping, then sliding right under the truck, wedging himself between the truck and the snow bank. Literally had to dig him out of the snow, which was not
that easy considering we both were laughing our asses off so hard we could hardly breathe!!

I NEVER let a helper run. Not ever.

Harley Rider · 09-29-2007, 04:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by over9five

Now it's been about 7 years since I've had a helper. This is good, too! Instead of help, they take work off you!

My thoughts exactly! I have always refused a helper if I can get by with it. Sometimes they have forced me to take one. Some routes a helper doesn't do you any good. If you are in a congested area and you can both take a stop then its a good deal. Otherwise what difference does it make who delivers the stop? Me or him? There is only so much sorting you can do while he is gone especially when your truck is packed full. I wind up with too much dead time.

Our CM's favorite thing to do is load you up with a ton of extra work and then put a helper on your car for 3 hours. Then he puts the helper with someone else for 3 hours. No way you can even make a dent in all the extra work in that amount of time.

They can't keep helpers down here. They hire a ton of them and then only work them a few hours a day for maybe two weeks. Most don't even get the chance to work at all. Pretty soon they quit answering their phones. They have the assumption they will work 8hrs a day for a month or so. I have them come up to me on my area all the time asking when they will get to start.

RockyRogue · 09-29-2007, 06:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cachsux

In April of my first year they found a Swiss Colony trailer that had been lost since mid December.

I've always wondered how often this kind of thing happens. With the number of loads we process everyday, I'm surprised it doesn't happen more often! -Rocky

Fnix · 09-29-2007, 06:31 PM

One time during peak... It was cold

under the radar · 09-29-2007, 07:08 PM

After 31 years I've learned to not look past my next stop.

mikeb · 09-29-2007, 07:42 PM

Last year we had a driver in our ctr pick up his helper and the guy reeked of alcohol. this was like at 9AM. after stumbling around the first few stops the driver dropped him back off. needless to say, he wasnt called back.

longlunchguy · 09-30-2007, 03:14 AM

Last year my helper was one of he kids off the preload. Seems we have a policy down here, you're supposed to find your own helper and have them do the hiring paperwork with the company. I'm 50 yrs old, all the folks I know already have jobs. So I get a preloader. He has already worked 7-8 hrs before we start every day. By 2pm he is absolutely fried. I cut him loose and still have 100 stops and 30 pick ups left, every day!Most $$$ I made at peak in my career.

We're goin' slow, we're makin' dough

Lobofan5 · 09-30-2007, 04:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fnix

One time during peak... It was cold

Thats just plain mean!!

Funny. But mean!!

I say the snow only makes peak THAT much more fun!

Dirty Savage · 09-30-2007, 05:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lobofan5

I say the snow only makes peak THAT much more fun!

Agreed.

Jack4343 · 09-30-2007, 06:13 AM

My first helper on my 2nd peak met me at an high-rise office building. She had previous experience with helping and a DIAD so I gave her the board and loaded a floor's worth of stops and sent her on her way so I could sort thru the rest of the building's stops. 40 minutes later, I'm done sorting my whole truck stop per stop and I'm getting ready to go up and look for her when she finally returns with the handtruck in one hand and a container of lunch that she had just ate. She had decided that she was hungry so she stopped at the restaurant on the main floor and plopped her fat butt down for some food. Of course, she was sluggish and tired and was crap the rest of the day. I would get out at a resi, give her one stop and I'd take stops for the 3 neighbors. I'd walk up and down those 3 driveways before she'd finish that one house and I parked at that driveway. Finished with 190 that day and I doubt she did 20 of those. I would've been done faster without her help. She complained all day also.

Some of the drivers in our center refuse helpers and the center lets the run without them. One driver in our center ran 283 stops without a helper and clocked out before 6pm. I asked him why he ran so hard and he stated that he hated delivering in the dark so he ran every stop. His SPORH was over 35 that day. Incredible. I can run 30 an hour at times but not EVERY hour. I think my legs would fall off first. His driveways were not short either. It was a well-to-do area in our center and had plenty of long uphill driveways.