Alcohol while on the road, what's your opinion?

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Riiakess@reddit

I only had alcohol when I started my 34, like how a lot of people celebrate reaching Friday in regular jobs. I'd get to wind down after maxxing out the 70 that way.

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sbcountydweller@reddit

I have a shower beer or two at the truck stops. Fall asleep like a baby.

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NoRelation1491@reddit

Man I ain’t ever think of that, granted I’m a local boy. I like the way you think.

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Top-Confidence4496@reddit

I'll never get over shower beer. I can't believe how popular it is 🤣

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Caveman23r@reddit

You can't have alcohol 24 hours before you get behind the wheel of a truck is what I thought so really no point in having it at all

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Critical_Opening_526@reddit (OP)

4 hours before being on duty is the written law.

I usually go with 12 because 4 isn't enough.

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Caveman23r@reddit

I was mistaken but I keep it to 24 just because you just don't know.

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No_Teaching_8273@reddit

I don't drink at all while On the road . I leave that to when I get home

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FantasticPainting232@reddit

I quit drinking when I started trucking school. Went from 2 handles a week to nothing. Now when I go home I intend to get my drink on by I never do. Got too many things to do people to see.

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translinguistic@reddit

Were you able to just quit cold turkey after drinking that much regularly?

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Its easily for some folks. I was drinking a fifth a day, maybe some beers in there as well for about 10 months straight. One night I got pulled over after 11 double shots, one 24oz ipa, the rest of my wife's margarita, and I just finished smoking a blunt. I passed the sobriety test, got to the hotel, looked in the mirror and said im done. I could have lost my career and went to jail! That was my last night drinking for 3 years and 3 months straight.

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Mydogfartsconstantly@reddit

Think hes asking because quitting cold turkey while drinking that much can kill you with a seizure. I drank a handle a day until my pancreas and liver started failing and had to take medication to prevent seizures from not drinking.

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translinguistic@reddit

Correct. It can be incredibly dangerous

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erything4sale@reddit

It can be, which is why I said for some folks. I know quite a few folks that have done it though. I didnt think I could. Spending $5-700 a week on alcohol was really stupid!

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BriskManeuver@reddit

Only on 34 hour breaks. I like to stop near a downtown city and get some drinks and a little buzz and have nice local food and talk with the locals

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Intelligent-Site7686@reddit

I used to drink beer in the sleeper everyday. I quit drinking 9 months ago. I would just buy what I would drink on a 10 and be sure to get rid of the trash.

My opinion of drinking on the road... same as normal 9-5 people drinking after work. Some people have a problem with alcohol dependency, others don't

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Critical_Opening_526@reddit (OP)

This is definitely a social aspect. Sitting in the truck every day bums me out.

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ItsjuztD@reddit

I only drink on the road when I get lucky enough to get a stop near a restaurant. Been only twice these last couple of months. One was a Japanese place, had a kirin and some warm sake early Jan, sake was amazing with how cold it was. I slept like a baby. Other time was about a month ago, they had a Texas Roadhouse in the same center and I grabbed a steak, fries and a Stella. Otherwise I just wait till I get home.

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RichCypher@reddit

I was never a big drinker so I just chose to stop completely when I got my cdl. It just doesn't have any place near a truck and just isn't worth the risk. Get pulled in for a level one the day after you were drinking and they can smell it on you and then what happens? Just doesn't seem worth the risk with how much scrutiny we are already under. Easy for me to say since it was never important to me though.

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Dezzolve@reddit

Nothing would happen besides maybe a breathalyzer and some field sobriety tests if you were sober.

The only DOT regulations in regard to consuming alcohol (disregarding the obvious inside of the cab ones) are that you don’t consume alcohol within 4 hours of being on duty, and that your BAC is 0.00 while operating (or being “in control” of) the vehicle.

You can get as trashed as you want to get as long as you are completely sober before being in the truck. Most companies tell drivers not to consume within 24hrs just to be safe, but it’s not a law.

I’m OTR and drink occasionally, but only if I can sleep at a hotel for the night. Not worth the risk trying to do it in the cab, no matter how safe you are there could always be some idiot that backs into you while you’re parked. Then you gotta deal with the police and your company while you’re under the influence.

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PAPervert@reddit

Pretty sure you can’t have any alcohol in your cab on duty or off.

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Noidea159@reddit

“the day after you were drinking and they can smell it on you”

Lmao, what?

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RichCypher@reddit

Ya I guess what I say is crazy. Otr driver's are known for their high standards of hygiene. Even for friends who do shower and brush their teeth consistently I can sometimes smell it on them that they were drinking over the weekend.

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Noidea159@reddit

Except you weren’t talking about any random otr driver in your comment, you were referencing yourself lmfao

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mindsunwound@reddit

Some people's noses are stronger than others, especially non-smokers vs smokers or vapers. I can usually tell when someone has been drinking or smoking without even being near them.

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TheBeanMan_@reddit

Man you wouldn’t believe the amount of times we have to call the sheriff because someone runs over our security gate at the distribution center I work at.

They think hell, I can crush a few beers and sleep it off once I’m getting loaded. So the bar is low my friend.

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Redsit111@reddit

So technically? Never. If you know you're taking a 34 you do you. If I see you in the diesel island buying beer fuck you I am calling DOT.

And if you read any of this and got mad, fuck you I hope you die slow and your kinfolk get raped with pineapples coated in super glue and I hope they know it's your fault specifically.

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LuckyMarshmallow0710@reddit

I'll drink a few beers a day when I'm in a hotel due to a breakdown, and then maybe some rum when Im home for a few days but that's about it. I just know with my luck I'll finish a can and then have a cop knocking on my door

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sunnypolarbear@reddit

I am of the opinion that it is better to drink with friends and loved ones at home than it is to do it alone. That being said I don't drink especially if I have to be behind the wheel even if I'm at home. My family depends on my paycheck too much for me to get pulled over or worse not come home. Last time I drank I told the bartender my dad wasn't allowed to drink and it was only bc we were celebrating a friend's life after she passed.

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747big@reddit

Years ago we carried a 12 pack in the side box in the winter time and always had cold beer. People in California would pull up beside us on a hill and hand us a couple beers. Arizona d o t shut me down one day and I went across the street and got a six pack. They watched me and did nothing

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LittLeSaucyHood3rd@reddit

Nah you good Brodie. I drink a beer every now & again in my truck when I’m done for the day. (15 years experience)

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External_Result_8560@reddit

Last week I did it for the first time. It was at a truck stop with nothing else around. I got 1 tall boy simply spiked lemonade (8%) and it hit good. None of that 3-4% shit. Drank it with my curtains closed and threw it in a bag when done and tossed in the am

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erything4sale@reddit

Where did you, relieve yourself?? 🤣 nevermind driver. But yeah, I used to do it all the time and I've learned to toss the evidence right away. Never know what can happen during your slumber.

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WallaWallaby011@reddit

Omg you crazy 😂🤣

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HipKat2000@reddit

Man, back in the day, meaning in the 90s lol, I knew a guy that had a cooler between the seats and kept a six pack in there and ice and would drink a beer going up and down the road. I used to tell him that if he ever wanted to run together, I would probably just not want to.

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bassnote1@reddit

Nope. Not even a single beer

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mindsunwound@reddit

I only drink at home, and not a drop for the 24 hours just before going back out on the road.

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Parking-Signature867@reddit

When im out I dont drink at all. Now when im home ill drink and thats maybe a few beers. Then Im not going anywhere for 12 hours minimum.

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No_Waltz5489@reddit

Only time I'll drink while on the road is for a 34 reset or a 10 but while on a 10 I'll usually have no more than 3 drinks and that's about it. I'm not a big drinker so id have to really been in the mood for it if that makes any sense

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StonedTrucker@reddit

I dont drink during the week but i do partake in another substance after work. I dont see anything wrong with a few beers after your shift

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Initial-Relation-696@reddit

It is like gambling, you could go to the casino every night almost anymore. But if you save it for the vegas or reno trip, it is always funner. After I grew up, took a while, now drinking is only occasionally on an out of town trip, couple days off with the wife. good to have some rules. be safe driver.

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Initial-Relation-696@reddit

reminds me of the man who taught me to drive, old gruff logger. one day out in wheat fields in Idaho, nobody around, one student did not use a blinker. old guy pipes up, you can make the excuse that nobody is around and not use your blinker, pretty soon your finding other excuses not to blink. same with all our vices. only you can watch you.

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DapperConversation84@reddit

I used to roll 3-5 months at a time and then take a month to a month and a half off for sometime. While out on those 3 to 5 months I often had some beers on my 10 in the sleeper. Company policy was it wasn't permitted but in my mind the truck was my home and I wasn't being paid while on sleeper time. I know it's frowned upon but I did it all the time. Never drank and drove , never had any accidents and rarely even got drunk. I just enjoyed the taste of beer .

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notfrontpage@reddit

Y’all shower while being sober??

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jessithecrow@reddit

gettin trashy in the sleeper is one of my favorite activities. we're truckers! have a little fun if you want.

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Excellent_Pay_8782@reddit

I typically have a 30 pack before work, 30 pack during and a 30 pack as a night cap

Stay blitz my friends 😅😅😅

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Violet_Apathy@reddit

I don't drink while on the road at all.

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No_Swimming_5684@reddit

Just remember that.04 is a very low threshold. For myself, having something that is not my fault; become my fault for being over that limit would not be worth the risk.

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Maxxatrillion117@reddit

Hell yeah this is the way.

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Mitch13@reddit

Based on the amount of liquor and beer I find tossed at the highway rest areas your responsibility is that of a nun.

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Aromatic-Scratch3481@reddit

I grab a water jug that is yet to be pissed in and pour whatever alco-pops, mikes hard lemonade, shit like that into that and drink that in the truck. You cant tell its booze by looking at it if anything goes to shit and how fast you metabolize alcohol is just math

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_877-CASH-NOW_@reddit

Slippery slope. Best to keep driving and alcohol separate imo. Not saying you can’t. Not saying you shouldn’t be able to. But it’s not a good mix

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Hexum311add@reddit

Nah I don’t really ever, I only like to drink if I’m with my friends and when I’m on the road , friends ain’t with me. What you’re doing doesn’t sound all that crazy to me, 🤷‍♂️

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LTL1014@reddit

No

I used my credit union. Get buyers order. Credit union gives check….buy car with check.

Pretty easy. 5.24 interest rate vs almost 8 at CarMax

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_GRUMPY_@reddit

Nope. I’ll drink at home. What would happen if you were laid up in the bunk with a buzz and all of a sudden there was a fire or hazmat spill at the truck stop and you need to move away quickly.

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Top-Confidence4496@reddit

It just occurred to me that I never drank otr. In my mind I'm at work so it just didn't compute but it's always fair game on my home time.

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ksgif2@reddit

I like to have a couple cold ones

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bmf1989@reddit

I’ve never once drank while I was out on the road. Seems depressing to me for one, and with all the shit that can happen in this job it just seems like a lot of risk for nothing.

What if some guy backs into me when I’m sleeping? Cops show up and smell the two beers I drank a couple of hours ago before going to bed. I don’t want to have to deal with that bullshit for a buzz that i don’t need.

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wewanttopleaseu@reddit

I love my crown Royal. I found my spots Where I could park my truck? Walk to a liquor store and get a small bottle for the night. Get ice for my yeti. And a non-alcoholic drink to hide the smell. I would fill up the yeti throw the crown bottle away. I have my cocktail for the evening. Fill up my Yeti with a non-alcoholic drink to kill the smell. Go to sleep, wake up, sober and start another day driving. Personally, I think the law is stupid but there are stupid people out there so they have to make stupid laws

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taco-force@reddit

Idk man. I've known to many dead casual daily drinkers. Is it really worth it? Unless it's like a social thing and you're trying to get some human interaction.

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WallaWallaby011@reddit

Forget the beers. Get some Rosè!

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ExtentAggravating733@reddit

If anything gets spilled or if you leave a container in the cab, it will smell like booze. You don't want a cab that smells like booze.

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homucifer666@reddit

I drink on hometime, but I make sure I can blow a zero before I report for work again and don't have any again until the next time I'm home.

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AsphaltPirate74@reddit

Everytime I've tried drinking in the truck on a work night, I'd buy a tall boy from the truck stop and it just doesn't hit, so I pour it out and I settle for takeout and nicotine and dispose of the trash immediately. I only get the urge on really long rough days, even then it doesn't hit. I always settle for truck stop food or uber eats sushi if possible.

Only on 34's can I drink and enjoy it, and that's only at a bar, I think because I'm socializing. Then I uber too, to the bar and back to the truck.