So we need a Passport or enhanced security card to cross the BORDER as of June 1, 2009. This is part of the Western Hemisphere Security Initiative. Nexus Card acceptable, Fast Card acceptable, Enhanced Driver's License (EDL acceptable. Largest unprotected border in the world. NOT ANYMORE. WE USED TO HAVE BRAGGING RIGHTS BUT THAT CHANGED A WHILE AGO.

In fact, The United States of America and Canada (just recently) started to give their border guards guns. HMMMM leads one to ponder how safe we really are. How unprotected we really are, how much safer we really feel. Did you know that the U.S.A. and Canada are 2 of the few countries in the world, that BORDER GUARDS, have guns. Now before some of you, start attacking me, calling me names, telling me I'M crazy, I'm the devil, and other such niceties, take a look. Almost every country in the world has MILITARY PERSONNEL AT THE BORDER helping the border guards.

They do not give their border guards guns. They give them to the trained Professionals, the ARMED FORCES. There was an article recently published in the Toronto Star, that many of the Canadian Border guards, did not pass, their firing accuracy tests, the first time around, some did not even pass the second time around. FORGET THE WESTERN HEMISHPERE SECURITY INITIATIVE, I am even more concerned about my safety now than I was before.

What does all of this really mean to us, as Canadian carriers? Simple! It is an opportunity where we can increase rates, increase service, show we do as promised, and beat our Southern neighbours at their own game (SERVICE). Most Americans don't have Passports. Most Canadians do! We are prepared they are not. I think we will see a drastic decrease in U.S. based carriers coming across the border in the short term. Perhaps for good.

Some 3P.L.'s have been approached by U.S. based carriers and they are using the Passport issue as an excuse to raise rates. Well why not? SO SHOULD WE !

TTC what a great golf tournament last week, well organzied, nice gifts, LIONSHEAD was in great shape, putting contest was fun, Did not hear one complaint form anyone. The organizers did a fantastic job. Not everyone realizes the amount of time, and effort that goes into orgainzing something like this for 240 people.

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With the advent of spring, already, the ‘do-it-yourself’ renovation ads for Canadian Tire, Home Depot, Lowe’s and other big box stores are on TV, emphasizing, of course, how cheap and cheery it is to be working on bettering your surroundings.

It takes a certain kind of person to handle the ‘do it yourself’ approach to renovation work, and so if you’re anything like me, contractors are still a good bet, especially now that they’re hurting for jobs, and might actually show up on time.

I’m totally addicted to all the Home and Garden TV shows (you can send over the unsmiling but all-powerful Igor from Restaurant Makeover anytime) but I’ve only ever attempted a do-it-yourself renovation project once in my life.

It was a near disaster.

My parents were away and I thought I would surprise them with an updated paint job in their downstairs bathroom.

For some reason still unknown to me, I wanted to stencil a border around the top edge of the wall, and I chose what was supposed to be a palm-tree like stencil, but which really looked like a pineapple.

By the time I was done with it, however, having added three layers of viscous black paint, and a layer of spackle, to make it stand out, it looked like exploding hand grenades.

It was Che Guevara’s outhouse on meth.

My then-boyfriend, now-husband, took one look, left the house, came back with fresh supplies and starting furiously painting over it.

However, since we moved into our current house, ‘the Crumbalow’, a broad, squat, example of late 1950’s North York, Ontario bungalow architecture, (and requiring at least 20 years’ worth of upgrades), my husband has curiously shied away from any do-it-yourself projects.

I think his approach is all-or-nothing. No sense doing the stopgap or the band-aid, just rip it all up at once, when you can.

What this means is that unless something is dangling dangerously and threatening to fall on the kids’ heads, it stays as is, until even my 78-year old father has had enough, and comes over to fix it with a couple of parts from Dollarama.

But when the job can no longer be put off, my husband calls his friend Dom.

Last summer, we decided to put in a fence around the backyard perimeter. There’d been a break-in that spring, which was a good enough reason to set up more deterrents.

There were also raccoons coming in from the nearby ravine, and a neighbour’s unleashed dog taking poop and scoop liberties.

So the fence was going in.

Every weekend, trusty Dom and his team hauled over in his white Ford F150 pickup. There was Dom, his brother Joe, a finished carpenter who was born deaf, and Dom’s father, an elderly but sturdy Italian man wearing patched work pants and steel-toed boots. He was there, apparently, to haul bags of concrete and balance fence posts on his shoulders, two at a time.

We wondered how the men would manage to communicate their tasks, but there was no need for Dom’s brother or the rest of the family to learn sign language, because they already did much of their talking with their hands, generalizations aside.

Dom would pause, stick his pencil behind his ear, and shake his fist and fingers in various manifestations at his brother, who would then roll his eyes, wipe his forehead, and shake out his entire arm. But somehow, the job was getting done, and then some.

According to Dom, there’s lumber and then there’s lumber. Needless to say, the lumber he dealt with didn’t come cheap. But it would last through Canadian winters, more than he could say for some of the bug-laden, cracked imports, he added, twisting his fingers in an upward knot and rotating his elbow a few degrees.

At first, the men arrived with huge coolers full of fat veal sandwiches, water bottles and pop, but then my husband volunteered to provide a lunch.

Correction. He volunteered me to provide the lunch, which gradually stretched to become two coffee breaks and lunch in between.

Even I could figure out it was now payback time for the bathroom hand grenades.

So, when 10 a.m. rolled around, the men stopped all work, and depending on the weather conditions, they would proceed to the verandah and settle in for either hot or cold espresso coffee, and one of those stale Italian biscuits that would choke you silly if you didn’t dip it in the coffee or in a hot cup of milk.

Around one, thanks to my husband, out I would go to the barbecue with every piece of frozen poultry I had in the house, a stack of crusty buns and the twenty different jars of pickled condiments the men liked on their sandwiches.

Other sweltering days would find me rolling out fresh pizza dough, scooping out homemade tomato sauce and grating giant balls of mozzarella.

Four o’clock, out came the coffees again, and something sweet.

Mind you, this wasn’t the men themselves asking, and it wasn’t every single day.

They would have gladly ventured out somewhere, or relied on Dom’s mother’s 50-odd years of experience cooking for a family of five men.

But my husband somehow reasoned that they’d work harder, and finish faster, better fed, and in a climate of friendship.

“You do realize I am running a hot table restaurant in this kitchen!” I protested, hands on my hips.

“Yeah, but look at the work they did!” Mr. Outsource chuckled. “Those fence posts aren’t going anywhere.”

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Aussie Rules Vacation

My whirlwind vacation this year took me to Pelee Island with my birdwatching girlfriend for a few days, then to Vancouver for a week with my son and his family. How's that for culture clash? From an idyllic, rural, nature-saturated community of 200 souls in the middle of Lake Erie, to the sprawling hegemony of Greater Vancouver

My 13 year old godson had a hankering to snowboard Whistler so I brought him along. We caught a very early Air Canada flight out of Pearson one Saturday, and Matthew met us at Vancouver International. It wasn't long before we were rolling along the Sea to Sky Highway toward the mountains. The route is under frenetic construction to convert it to four lanes in time for the 2010 Olympics—with some tricky sections still to negotiate. Signs warn Falling Rock—NO STOPPING.

Good deals on suites and chalets in Whistler this time of year, but what surprised me was the abundance of Australian kids (20-somethings mostly) doing jobs that used to be done by Canucks. These Aussie youths were everywhere in BC, but Whistler was saturated with them. Apparently short term work visas are easy to get for Aussies and the left coast is a prime destination for them, many of whom are avid ski bums and serious boarders.

You wouldn't get me up that mountain, and you need a telescope to watch the skiers. It was actually -4 degrees on top while a fairly balmy plus 8 at the chalets level. The boys made a day of it on the slopes and came back sunburned with aching calves. BC is one province where you can snow ski at Whistler and water ski in the Okanagan the same day, if you have a mind to do so.

In Vancouver we stayed in a hotel in the backpacking and club district. Students and young travellers on the move from all over, always the ubiquitous Australians. And no shortage of street people begging on the corners while the denizens of million dollar condos stroll by nonchalantly.

Vancouver is a beautiful city and a mecca of sorts for entrepreneurs and the socially-challenged alike. All big cities have a curious mix of squalor and abundance, but Vancouver has it in spades. The city is undergoing a face-lift for the upcoming winter Olympics and construction started early on Granville Street outside our hotel window. A few miles east along Hastings, you can witness of shopping market of poverty and the rest of the strata of humanity.

The last time I hitchhiked here was 1980. My marriage broke apart and I fled west in a futile attempt to find myself on the road one last time. I arrived in Vancouver early one October morning after getting a long overnight ride from Keremeos in the interior (don't let anyone tell you there aren`t deserts in Canada, complete with tumbleweeds and desperados), after picking apples for a few weeks in Kelowna.

I promptly and luckily got a job working on a sculpture going up at a new children`s hospital and got fired a couple of days later when it was discovered I didn`t have a union card and a sheet metal worker complained. For a few nights, at least, I went from sleeping on the floor of a crowded trailer in Kelowna with a dozen other fruitpickers, to living in a four star hotel in downtown Vancouver.

Two things happened when I got to Vancouver this time. Gord Campbell and the ruling BC Liberals had just won another majority, and the Vancouver Canucks hockey team got bounced out of the playoffs by the Chicago Black Hawks. The Liberal's victory was really no surprise since the province has always been polarized between the left and right. “Liberal” is really a misnomer, since this party swings to the right side of the metronome, except for the end run that Campbell pulled on the Greens and NDP by introducing a carbon tax last year, a neat rouse which appears to pay lip-service to the environmentalists and didn't detract from his pro-business appeal.

The 'Nucks, on the other hand, blew their best opportunity to win the Stanley Cup in many years—and the last chance for Matts Sundin to get himself a ring. In my opinion, Vancouver gave this series away. It was really theirs to lose and that's what they did. How else do you explain 7 goals on Luongo in the final game. Fortunately their loss allowed me to experience the city without the crass carnival of Stanley Cup fever that would have infused every waking moment with hype and jingoism.

On the whole, I found the “laid-back” descriptor still fit my perception of most Vancouverites. People are generally friendlier than their compatriots in Hogtown; there's a Starbucks around every corner, sometimes on opposite corners, and it's not unusual to get a sniff of BC bud permeating the evening air.

This is a place where a young man or woman can make a stand, destroy themselves, or make a fortune if they're so inclined. In an Irish pub I got talking to a man of Sikh descent who had come to Vancouver via New Jersey and Oklahoma. He told me that he and his wife own a high-end lighting shop in the posh quadrant of Kitsilano and he'd decided to take his receiver out for a bit of a bender.

Across the street a young man from Montreal stopped me on my way into the Mega Pizza. “Two dollars,” he asks. “That's all I need to get a room for $12.” He tells me he's waiting to get a construction job that should be starting any day. This is not an unusual, half the panhandlers are waiting for construction jobs. But this man is grinding his teeth, and he has distant chemical look in his eyes. I pass on throwing any money into his cap and tell him I'll think about it. When I return with my pizza he's no longer in sight. He's either gone to get the room, or to fetch a $10 piece of crack—probably the latter.

But I didn't see any Aussies begging. The ones I met had a penchant for lager rather than hard drugs, and they had a plan and idea about where they were going and what they wanted to do along the way.. Mostly I admired their sense of verve and adventure, something I think is lacking in Canadians these days. Most new Canadians never see much of their province let along the rest of the country.

I have an ex-pat friend who makes his home in Australia now and we email from time to time. He's always reading the Canadian papers online, and I remember being embarrassed when he mentioned the case of the Tim Horton's server in London, Ont. who was fired for giving free a timbit to a toddler. “How typically Canadian,” he snorted to me in an email. “That story tells you so much about Canadians and their anxieties.”

My friend was right. The miserly policies of our proto-Canadian donut chain made us look like fools before the world. And remember when Dave Winfield of the Yankees was charged with animal cruelty for killing a sea gull with a throw to the infield?—on the bounce yet! We gotta loosen up folks!

My transplanted friend goes on: “If I ever move back to the farm, what I will miss most about Australia is the people, all my friends and acquaintances here who are just so much more open and generous and unconflicted...I read today that a woman in Laval, Quebec was fined $420 for failing to use, and then refusing to use when ordered to, the handrail on the escalator from the subway. In Australia there usually is no handrail, and if there were, someone would be sliding down it.”

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The length of haul on full truckload shipments within the United States has been shifting downwards for years. The trend became particularly clear to me during some freight bids with which I was involved last year. During the course of these bids, a number of the major US national truckload carriers outlined their companies’ regional truckload strategies and were very clear about their objective to build their regional businesses.

The move from national (e.g. greater than 500 miles) to regional truckload shipping (e.g. less than 500 miles) was precipitated by a number of factors. The freight recession that began in 2006 has resulted in fewer long haul truckload shipments. As fuel costs began to increase, it became very punishing financially to incur out of route miles to chase backhaul freight, particularly when these miles were not all producing revenue. In addition, the intermodal option became more attractive on longer distances, when you consider line haul and fuel costs. As fuel costs were escalating, supply chain managers sought to shorten their supply chain to reduce miles, inventory costs and freight costs.

In 2009, the sharp downturn in shipping volumes is giving this movement added momentum. The national truckload carriers are reshaping their business strategies to address the current market realities. These carriers are not abandoning the national markets but revising their long haul strategies. As an example, Werner, in its current earnings report, notes that it “is deemphasizing the low asset return, solo driver solution” while seeking “to grow several other customer focused solutions for this market, such as using team drivers, engineered networks of relay trucks, third-party brokerage carriers, power only with trucks provided by third-party carriers and intermodal.”
Schneider National has also been rolling out its regional truckload business plan. On the heels of what the company said was the successful launch of a regional service in the West last January, Schneider said it would offer regional service in the South-Central United States. Schneider first launched its regional service to western US customers in January, providing service to a seven-state area: Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Washington. The new South-Central regional service will add nine states to that list: Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama.

Regional terminals will be located in Dallas, Houston and Memphis and will serve as hubs for customer service representatives and drivers who are dedicated solely to this region of the country. Regional drivers develop regular driving routes, allowing them more time at home and consistent workloads. Heartland Express, another medium distance carrier opened its 10th regional operation in Dallas.

What can we expect in the future? More of the same. Keith McCoy, director of marketing for Prime Inc., a refrigerated truckload carrier, expects retailers to continue to shorten their supply chains by forcing manufacturers to move their distribution centres closer to reduce carrying costs. Higher interest rates and rising fuel costs will likely be major factors in the future. Prime has opened four “mini” centres to address these shifts and has plans to do more.

The shrinking length of haul is apparent from the trucking company results reported in the first quarter. Werner’s average length of haul dropped 13.5% to 469 miles while USA truck reported an 11.2% reduction to 651 miles.
In Canada, the market dynamics are somewhat different. Certain industry sectors (e.g. automotive, pulp and paper) are very challenged at this time, with a quick recovery not in sight. The severe downturn in the US economy has resulted in significant declines in cross-border truckload movements. As a result, Canadian carriers are seeking out Canadian markets that have growth and profit potential. As an example, XTL, a central Canada based carrier that historically derived over 50% of revenues from cross-border freight, outlined at a recent workshop that it is now expanding its truckload business west to Alberta and British Columbia.

Clearly carriers on both sides of the border are realigning their strategies to match their capacity to where they perceive the demand to be. As capacity continues to exit the market, it is critical for truckload carriers to apply these precious assets to the geographic areas and lengths of haul that represent the best opportunities for profits.

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The diesel engine is one of the most efficient energy converters we have available to us today, delivering an overall efficiency of about 35%. Compare that to energy sources such as hydrogen or biogas which deliver only about 17-19% of their energy to the vehicle’s driven wheels and you quickly see the advantages of trucking’s main energy source.

Where diesel fuel runs into considerable problems, however, is with its sizeable contribution to greenhouse gas. Yet, as was eloquently pointed out at a Volvo seminar on climate change policy I recently attended in Boston, that does not have to spell the end of the diesel engine. In fact, one of the major advantages of the diesel engine is that it does not have to use conventional diesel fuel or other fossil-based fuels. Through the introduction of some sophisticated technology and minor modifications the diesel engine we’ve come to rely on can be adapted to run on a wide range of renewable fuels that would give our industry a shiny new image because they emit no excess carbon dioxide in powering a vehicle.

Volvo believes that CO2 neutral transport is not a utopian dream but rather a realistic and achievable goal. In recent years Volvo has sought to examine the viability of 7 different alternative fuel sources – biodiesel, synthetic diesel, dimethylether(DME), methanol/ethanol, biogas, biogas-biodiesel and hydrogen-biogas. It has compared and contrasted the benefits and drawbacks of these seven alternative fuels in a variety of critical areas such as climate impact, energy efficiency, land use efficiency, fuel potential, vehicle adaptation, fuel cost and fuel infrastructure.

It has made for a great deal of ground breaking work from an industry supplier that has clearly chosen to neither deny the threat of global warming and our industry’s contribution to it (as some carriers and media personalities shamefully are doing) nor to ignore it or to simply pay lip service to the need for more sustainable energy alternatives. It has instead opted to roll up its sleeves and work to meet the challenge head on.

Sometimes very large companies with a specific and worthy goal in mind can change an industry, creating a market for new technologies. But the challenge of moving towards more sustainable fuel sources is not a challenge that any one company – even one the size of Volvo with its global connections – can successfully tackle on its own.

To make the switch to alternative fuels also requires a leap of faith from government, the transport industry, and the companies that serve transportation’s energy needs. Yet as Leif Johansson, the CEO of Volvo Group, acknowledged, the headway being made towards the production and distribution of renewable fuels on a major scale has so far proved disappointing. In his own words, there seems to be “lots of very good talk, very little investment.”

I think that’s a tragic reality that runs counter to our entrepreneurial business culture. To borrow from Johansson’s insight once again, when we consider the environment, and what we have to do to maintain it, we often get it wrong. We think it’s going to cost too much when, in fact, environmental initiatives such as seeking alternative fuel sources are about reducing long term costs, improving the sustainability of our practices and reaping the rewards.

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I'm no racecar driver. In fact, I was the kid who used to get kicked off the go-cart tracks for showing a complete lack of aptitude for the sport (and causing more than a few cases of whiplash, I'm sure). So it was a mixture of bemusement and terror that crossed the faces of organizers at the Bridgestone Racing Academy when I retold this story before plunking myself into one of their $72,000 Van Diemen formula cars.

Myself and a group of journalists from across Canada and the US were treated to a day of racing school about two weeks ago at the fabled Mosport International Raceway in Bowmanville, Ont. Not knowing quite what to expect, I was surprised to see that, yes, we would in fact be driving racecars. No more lawnmower engines for this guy.

The morning began with introductions and an emphasis on safety - not just our own, but the safety of those $72,000 Van Diemens. We moved through the day learning about safe stopping and following distances, shifting (only an up and down shift, which was neat), our good friend centrifugal force, and, of course, what to do if you feel yourself losing control (especially around the concrete wall on corner 12). "And did we mention the cars are worth $72,000? Yes? Okay. Moving on."

After about two hours of in-class instruction, we were suited up with racing gloves, socks, shoes, balaclava, helmet and full-body suit. Suddenly things were getting very real and my cold, clammy hands could no longer be blamed on an over-active A/C unit.

We received further instruction on the track during a walk-around the car ($72,000), and then we were ready to ride. I was mercifully slotted into Group B, meaning I would at least see some fellow amateurs in action first before seeing images of security escorting me off the premises flash before my eyes.

The first group made a successful run (with only one driver who couldn't drive a stick having difficulty) and then it was our turn. I was grouped - of course - with the guys who brought their own racing suits and helmets, recanting stories of their best times on other tracks. My goal? Avoid a lawsuit.

The group was instructed to follow a lead car at a pokey pace until we got into the swing of things. I revved the RPMs up past 2,000, eased off the clutch and took that first corner. Didn't stall. Good start. We couldn't have been going much faster than 30 km/h for that first handful of laps, but you certainly got the feeling of the car's handling capabilities. The Van Diemen certainly put my Elantra to shame (no offense, Hyundai).

After only one stall (touchy clutch) we broke for lunch before getting ready to get back out there again. My second run? Exhilarating. I read an article recently about a celebrity who likes to race cars in his spare time because it's the only place where he can stop thinking about the hustle and bustle of Hollywood. I know exactly what he means. When you're driving, your mind's thinking about that next corner and nothing else.

The cars pack 170 hp, which doesn't sound like much, but when you consider the car only weighs 1,000 lbs, you're talking more like 500 hp plus. So when you hit the straightaway before the last turn and floor it, your lips are folded neatly behind your ears. What a rush!

After two more rounds of laps (we did maybe 100 laps total on the day), we packed it in for the day (the rain started on cue about five minutes later). I had done it. No crashing, no spinning out, no security, no lawsuit.

As you looked around the racetrack at the end of the day, there was a grin on every face. Drivers were trading war stories: "Did you see me take that last turn? Are you car number 2? How fast do you think we were going? Are you sore too?"

Bottom line: it was an awesome day. The Bridgestone Racing Academy is open to the public and considered to be among the elite racing schools in North America, even compared to some of the monster operations down south. It's not cheap, but then again how often are you going to get the chance to drive a real Formula racecar?

I highly recommend the experience and encourage others to check it out here: www.race2000.com. Many, many thanks to Bridgestone and the staff for allowing me to put their 24-year injury-free record in jeopardy. Not to mention their car. How much was that worth again?...

Oh, and if the staff at the Magical Midway in Orlando are reading this, is it possible for you to remove my name from the blacklist? Thanks.

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No the simple answer is not WHY NOT? The real question needs to be answered. Why fight ourselves for THE SAME BUSINESS, and lower the rates? Why fight ourselves, with THE CARRIER SHORTAGE, and Lower rates? Why fight ourselves with DRIVER RETENTION and lower rates? Why are we fighting ouselves yet SOME OF THE MOST REPUTABLE COMPANIES continue to lower rates?

In a panic mode. Possibly! In a struggle to stay afloat Possibly. According to one Industry insider to keep business, they already have Possibly? To keep a cash flow Possibly? Certainly not a POSITIIVE CASH FLOW anyways. Now I have owned my own business in the past, I am responsible, to help with our own company's bottom line. Ask any company, and their Senior Management, should be meeting regularly to discuss present market conditions, present rates and present Economic Times. How do we survive? That should be first on the agenda!

What I do not understand is how, in these tough Times, when business is certainly not booming, we see carriers struggling to keep business and simply lower rates. Let's take a very simplistic number, and very real at the same time numbers. ASK AROUND YOU WILL SEE WHAT I MEAN
1) Driver cost per mile Anywhere from $0.38 to $0.48 cents per mile
2) Fuel Costs per mile Anywhere between $0.70 to $0.80 cents per mile

What does this mean ? Average the above 2 figures out and we arrive at the folloiwng. It's simple really, anyone selling rates at or below $ 1.18 per mile is already losing money. Of course a more realistic figure would be $ 1.70 to $1.80 per mile: That of course is just to break even and stay in business Let's quickly look at what's missing.
Maintenance, Equipment Costs, Repairs, Insurance costs, WSIB costs, Taxes, Administration, Overhead, Bad Debts ( I know, I know NOT IN THIS BUSINESS), Financing costs, A/R carrying costs. Well you get the point.

Lately some of the most reputable carriers, are, believe it or not selling rates from Montreal to Kentucky ( Home of the Bat MFG) for $ 1100.00. Yup you read it here to travel 917 miles! Yet they swear up down and sideways they have integrity and would never undercut or sell cheap rates. Well let's see. That very industrious company with the wealth of integrity is selling at $ 1,19 per mile on this trip. Good business practice. NOT IN THIS LIFETIME. Not only it will not be sustainable it is a recipe for disaster.

On a recent Roundtable Panel I participated in we looked and discussed a multitude of ideas. Yet everyone on the panel, carriers, and shippers alike, agreed on one thing. WE HAVE TO BUILD CLOSER RELATIONSHIPS TOGETHER. WE HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER. WE HAVE TO ALL HELP SURVIVE TOGETHER. The big companies realise this. The smaller companies, will wake up one day and be out of business, out of work, made a mess of the marketplace, and not cared about RELATIONSHIP BUILDING. Whether a Carrier, Manufacturer, Importer, Exporter or Intermediary. Everyone is in business to make money. Never has the adage YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR been more applicable.

Very important also is CREDIT, Whether a lender or a borrower. REMEMBER, CREDIT IS A PRIVILEDGE. Do not abuse it. The season we are coming into (SUMMERTIME) shipping slows down, somewhat, while at the same time, gets busy for certain commodities. Whether a Load broker, an Interline carrier, A 3PL, a 4PL or a Logistics Company, PAY YOUR BILLS, PAY THEM ON TIME, AND JUST LIKE IN THE MOVIES YOU TOO WILL SURVIVE AND PROSPER.

Last but not least I THINK EVERYONE IN THE CANADIAN TRUCKING INDUSTRY, SHOULD BE PROUD AND OWES A DEBT OF GRATITUDE, TO MR. RAY HAIGHT, FOR THE FANTASTIC JOB HE DID AS CHAIRMAN OF THE AMERICAN TRUCKLOAD CARRIERS ASSOCIATION. What the industry in the U.S. does, and what it stands for, and to have had a CANADIAN, for the first time ever as CHAIRMAN, speaks volumes about the RESPECT, KNOWLEDGE, AND INSIGHT Ray carries with him, both in the United States and here at home..

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Yesterday morning another informative Driving for Profit seminar was hosted by NAL Insurance and KRTS Transportation Specialists. As always, it was well worth attending. These events provide practical, real-world advice at an affordable rate and allow participants to be back in the office for the afternoon.

The most recent edition featured Ray Haight, who recently completed his term as chair of the Truckload Carriers Association. It also included tips on business networking from networking guru Allison Graham, and an insightful presentation on how to respond to accidents by Trucknews.com's resident blogger (not to mention, general manager of Caravan Logistics), Kevin Snobel.

For his part, Haight discussed how to conduct a ‘SWOT Test’ (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats).

His presentation will be covered in an upcoming issue of Truck News, but in the meantime, I wanted to share an interesting observation from Haight that came out of the ‘Threats’ portion of his presentation.

And that is the continuing threat from the lingering “undead.”

Haight pointed out that fleet bankruptcies are well below what was anticipated and the reason for that is quite simple. Banks and finance companies, which would traditionally move in on a trucking company that’s on the brink and repossess its assets, now place very little value in those assets. It’s a sad state of affairs when the banks see so little value in a trucking company's equipment that they'd rather simply give them more rope with which to hang themselves.

Instead of closing in and repossessing the assets of troubled trucking companies, according to Haight, finance providers and banks are giving these fleets more time to “dig themselves out” of trouble.

The result, in many cases, is simply prolonging the inevitable and allowing these companies to die a slow death. In the meantime, they continue to operate as what Haight referred to the “undead” – cutting rates out of desperation and providing more headaches to well-run carriers who find themselves competing with “companies that shouldn’t even be in business.”

Yet another challenge that trucking companies could do without. However, fortunately it wasn’t all doom and gloom at the seminar. Haight also highlighted some ‘Opportunities’ which simply didn’t exist when the industry was firing on all cylinders. I’ll cover those in an upcoming blog entry as well as the June issues of Truck News and Truck West.

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May 3-9, 2009 is Emergency Preparedness Week in Canada.

This subject is dear to my heart, given that my nickname among family members is Chicken Licken (“The Sky is Falling!")

Emergency Preparedness Week, sponsored by Public Safety Canada, aims to "make sure that in the event of flood or power outage, or other natural or unnatural disaster, Canadians will be prepared to take care of themselves and their families for at least 72 hours."

Years ago, I might have seen this campaign as paranoia, but in the last few years or so in Canada not only have certain parts of the country been dealing with floods and ice storms, but power outages are par for the course in many urban and rural centres now.

Last week it took me 5 hours to get through to Toronto Hydro after a 15 minute wind storm knocked out power in my parents' neighbourhood.

And just last summer, as we were anticipating a delicious roast (flu-free) piglet for my little nephew’s second birthday, a propane blast in the North York, Ontario, residential neighbourhood shattered the windows of my brother in law’s house, and the piglet was fast abandoned as they picked up and ran, a huge wall of fire blazing just two blocks away.

So no, I don’t think it’s unnecessary or even silly to think about planning for the unknown.

Ironically enough, if you live in an urban centre, you can be even more isolated during an emergency, because we’re so reliant on power and technology to keep us going.

In the country, however, many people have gotten used to hydro going off during summer thunderstorms, or winter snowstorms. It’s not unusual these days for people to have a backup generator to run at least an appliance or two.

And you can’t panic so much if you’re near a lake or other water source that doesn’t have to be pumped out, and have a wood burning fire where you can heat up a comforting can of baked beans or two.

But when the power outage lasts more than a day, most people start getting antsy.

So whether you’re on the road, or at home, here are a few quick and basic tips I’ve gathered on getting prepared.

It might seem like common sense, but it was surprising how much work it was to gather and organize everything
so that it could be found in the dark, or in a panic.

For a more elaborate list, or to buy an emergency kit, refer to www. Getprepared.ca.

For tips on dealing with pandemic threats such as "swine" flu, see Editor James Menzies' latest entry: Swine flu: Media hype or a real concern?

1) Keep cash on hand, in your truck, car or home. Keep smaller bills and lots of change. Highly likely the ATMs will be on the fritz and debit/credit banking not operating during some emergencies.

2) Keep at least three days’ supply of drinking water, in your truck or home. Even the Greens will forgive you buying plastic. If you’re the ultimate in paranoid, boil a kettle of water each night to have on the stove.

For washing, keep a supply of baby wipes in your vehicles and home, and a bottle of rubbing alcohol and/or 3% hydrogen peroxide for disinfecting.

3) Keep at least three days’ supply of non-perishable foods, like canned beans, evaporated milk, soups, and pastas, instant noodle packs, dried fruits, granola bars, chocolate, hard candies, and sterilized tetra packs of milks and juices. Mark the canned goods with a date and replace about once a year.

4) Have a small bag packed with a change of clothes, cash, and copies of your ID, bank accounts, etc. if you have to leave your home in a hurry. If you’re packing for kids make sure that you have clothes that fit their current sizes and a couple of entertainment items too.

5) If you need certain medications, make sure you have copies of prescription repeats, and carry an extra supply of medicines at all times. Some items need refrigeration, so always keep an ice pack going in the freezer, while other items are stable at room temperature for several weeks.

6) Light and heat sources: Keep flashlights, batteries, radios and blankets in your vehicle and somewhere you can easily access at home. There are wind-up/crank versions available if you have elbow grease but no batteries. A small camping stove, barbecue and supply of propane ensures you’ll be able to heat some meals if needed.

7) Evacuation plans? If you know someone in your family will need help, such as an elderly or disabled person, set up a buddy system with neighbours, family members or friends, so that that person has a point of contact if you are not there. If they’re in a high-rise building, know what the evacuation procedures are for those needing extra assistance.

8) If you somehow cannot reach family members during an emergency, set up an agreed-upon area in advance, where you can try to meet, or a third person contact, to relay messages to.

9) Toolkit: Remember that small household items like cutlery, bottle openers, scissors, nail files, tweezers, and knives are items that you always need but may easily forget, so get a swiss army knife or something similar to keep on hand in your bag or vehicle.

10) Fuel: Always stay fuelled up, with at least half a tank, so that in the event of fuel shortages you can still cover some distance.

11) The Baseball Bat: For some people, like my husband, this is the only item you need in a crisis. According to him, you can either use it to ward off people trying to steal from you, or you can use it to “barter for goods” when your supply runs out or when sadly, you did not prepare for the worst.

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