Behind The Freight
Download on the App Store

Behind The Freight episodes

  • What 10 Years Behind the Wheel Does to Your Health | Kristi Rist
    Kristi Rist knows what long-haul driving can do to your body because she lived it.


    She spent around a decade driving her own truck and eventually dealt with serious lower-back and hip pain, sciatica, physical therapy and pain injections. That experience is now shaping RoadFit Wellness, her effort to make fitness and nutrition advice more realistic for drivers who spend long hours on the road.


    In this episode of Behind the Freight, Kristi explains what prolonged sitting does to the hips and lower back, why movement matters so much and why you do not need a gym to start making progress.


    What You’ll Learn

    • Why sitting for long stretches can contribute to hip and lower-back problems
    • What drivers can do when they step out of the cab to get moving again
    • Why 10 minutes of movement can still be worth doing
    • How resistance bands can give drivers a simple, portable strength tool
    • Why improving your diet does not have to mean cutting out every food you enjoy
    • How to make more practical choices at truck stops
    • Why driver wellness advice works better when it understands trucking life
    • How RoadFit Wellness is trying to meet drivers where they actually are


    It’s simple: driver wellness needs to fit the reality of trucking. Small changes that actually happen are worth more than perfect plans that never leave the page.



    Episode Highlights


    01:25 What 10 Years of Driving Did to Kristi’s Body

    Kristi spent around a decade driving her own truck, and the physical effects eventually became impossible to ignore. She dealt with lower-back pain, hip problems and sciatica, followed by roughly 18 months of physical therapy and pain injections. Her experience gives this conversation real weight: she is not asking drivers to care about hypothetical problems. She knows what happens when discomfort becomes something you simply learn to live with for too long.


    02:05 Why Driver Wellness Has to Fit the Road

    RoadFit Wellness came from Kristi’s frustration with health advice that does not reflect trucking life. Drivers spend long hours away from home, often without easy access to gyms, kitchens or regular schedules. Kristi wants coaching to start from that reality rather than pretending it does not exist. Her goal is personal, practical support from people who understand what drivers actually deal with, instead of generic programs that make healthy living feel even further out of reach.


    08:20 You Don’t Need a Gym for Movement to Count

    John puts Kristi through a quick round of health myths, including whether walking around a truck stop for 20 minutes counts as a workout and whether you need a gym to get stronger. Her answers are refreshingly practical: walking counts, and a gym is not required. For drivers who already feel intimidated by fitness, that matters. Progress can start with what is available right now rather than waiting for the perfect setup, schedule or piece of equipment.


    10:23 Kristi Lost 90 Pounds Without Giving Up Chocolate

    Healthy eating on the road does not have to mean eliminating every food you enjoy. Kristi has lost 90 pounds and still eats chocolate, which is why she pushes back on all-or-nothing dieting. Her advice is moderation: pay attention to what the carbs are, how much you are eating and where you can make a better choice. That makes nutrition feel sustainable instead of turning every meal into another test drivers eventually get tired of failing.


    17:33 A 10-Minute Routine That Fits a Truck Stop

    Kristi’s basic routine is deliberately simple: get out, stretch, walk around the truck and use the stop as an opportunity to move instead of heading straight back to the seat. She recommends taking a longer route when possible and pairing the walk with a few simple resistance-band movements during a safe break. The point is not intensity. It is creating a repeatable habit that fits into stops drivers already make instead of requiring a separate trip to the gym.

    Behind The Freight is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
    26 min
  • What New Trucking Businesses Learn the Hard Way | Telly Arnold
    Telly Arnold entered the trucking industry believing her corporate background and her business partner Sharif’s 20-plus years of CDL experience had prepared them well. But once they activated their authority and hit the first roadblock, they were forced to learn fast, ask better questions and rethink much of the advice she had received before starting.


    In this episode of Behind the Freight, Telly, Founder of TLA Group LLC and StraightConnect, shares what new carriers should understand about building broker relationships, calculating cents per mile and knowing exactly where their break-even number sits. She also explains why new authorities may benefit from booking their own loads instead of immediately relying on a dispatcher.


    One theme lies at the center of this episode: get the right information, know your numbers and build relationships with people you can trust.


    What You’ll Learn

    • Why activating your MC authority does not guarantee immediate access to freight
    • How startup costs can drain capital while a new authority builds credibility
    • Why every carrier should know their cents-per-mile break-even point
    • Why new authorities may need to build broker relationships themselves first
    • What to look for when hiring and evaluating drivers
    • Why scaling should start with the right person, not another truck
    • How to separate useful industry education from social media hype



    Episode Highlights


    01:45 Authority ≠ Freight

    Telly entered the industry believing that once her MC authority became active, she could start booking loads. Reality is different, though. In practice, many brokers were unwilling to work with a brand-new authority. Even having an experienced CDL driver did not change that. For a new carrier, the lesson is simple: plan for the gap between becoming legally operational and becoming commercially trusted, because your expenses will not stop while you wait.

    06:50 Why Telly Built StraightConnect

    Telly noticed that general business training did not always translate cleanly into trucking. Advice about finding customers rarely explained broker relationships, direct shippers or cents-per-mile calculations. At the same time, online communities were full of people selling services instead of answering questions. StraightConnect grew from that gap: a place where users are verified and the education comes from people who understand the actual mechanics, language and problems transportation businesses deal with every day.

    13:21 Revenue Doesn’t Tell You Whether a Business Is Healthy

    Social media makes it easy to post a big revenue number and call it success. Telly pushes back on that thinking. Her question is much more useful: what did you actually keep? Tolls, maintenance, insurance and other expenses can show up long after the revenue screenshot gets posted. For aspiring owners, that means judging any business opportunity by its margins and operating costs rather than being impressed by the biggest top-line number someone can put on Instagram.

    20:34 Another Truck Doesn’t Mean You’re Ready to Scale

    Telly and Sharif once operated two trucks, but the second became a money drain and was eventually sold. The bigger lesson was not about the equipment itself. It was about the person operating it. Telly says she would effectively need another Sharif before feeling comfortable scaling again. A truck can be financed or purchased. Finding someone reliable enough to protect the equipment, freight and company reputation is the much harder part of expansion.

    23:34 The Driver Can Make or Break the Business

    You can acquire another truck much faster than you can find the right driver for it. Telly warns that an inexperienced or unreliable driver can create costs far beyond wages, from damaged equipment to safety incidents that affect the company itself. Her advice is to treat hiring as an operational risk decision, not simply a staffing problem. If the person behind the wheel is wrong, adding capacity can make the business weaker rather than stronger.

    Behind The Freight is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
    26 min
  • Why A Bigger Fleet Isn’t Always Better in Trucking | Jamie Hagen
    Jamie Hagen has spent almost his entire life around trucks. He remembers riding with his dad at four or five years old, eventually became an owner-operator himself and today runs Hell Bent Xpress, a 12-truck family-owned fleet in South Dakota.


    But adding trucks was not the hardest part of that journey. Adding people was.


    In this episode of Behind the Freight, Jamie explains why fleet ownership forced him to rethink the way he makes decisions. From why saying no can be a competitive advantage and driver retention strategies to why his fleet doesn’t need more than 12 trucks, he breaks it all down. The goal still remains driving, staying involved and knowing the people working beside him.


    What You’ll Learn

    • What changes when an owner-operator becomes responsible for a team
    • Why good equipment is ultimately an investment in a driver’s time
    • How smaller fleets can compete for drivers without mega-carrier benefits
    • Why saying no to certain freight can protect both drivers and the business
    • How diversification gives carriers more room to react when a market changes


    This episode also features Avery Vise, Chief Trucking Analyst at FTR Transportation Intelligence, who joins John and Scott for the show’s monthly freight market check-in. Avery explains why spot rates remaining roughly 40–45% above last year offers carriers some reason for optimism, even as diesel costs have climbed sharply. His key September watchpoint is simple: freight should show at least some normal seasonal firming around Labor Day. If it does not, that is when operators may need to pay closer attention.


    Episode Highlights

    [01:00] Spot Rates Are Holding Up Despite Higher Diesel

    The monthly market update arrives as Avery Vise points out an unusual combination in the August market: diesel prices have risen sharply, yet spot rates have continued to follow a fairly normal seasonal pattern. Rates are also still running roughly 40–45% above last year across several major equipment types. 

    [06:45] The Hardest Part of Becoming a Fleet Owner

    Jamie says moving into fleet ownership was his biggest professional adjustment because decisions stopped affecting only him. What is best for the business can conflict with what is reasonable for the people doing the work. That forces owners to continually balance revenue, service and employee needs. 

    [10:49] Equipment Decisions Outlive Market Conditions

    A truck you buy today can still be generating payments years after the market that justified the purchase has changed. Jamie talks candidly about that tension as Hell Bent Xpress invests ahead of expected changes around 2027 equipment requirements and higher truck prices.  The practical lesson is to understand exactly what you are committing to, keep the downside in mind and avoid treating a strong freight environment today as a guarantee about tomorrow.

    [12:16] Learning That You Don’t Have to Say Yes

    Jamie naturally enjoys the difficult loads and strange situations that make trucking interesting. The problem was assuming his drivers felt the same way. His wife eventually pointed out that not every opportunity needed a yes, especially when the demands were making life unnecessarily difficult for the team. It became an important leadership adjustment: a customer request can make financial sense and still be the wrong move. 

    [14:04] You’re Paying for the Driver, Not the Truck

    Jamie offers a useful way to rethink fleet investment: trucking is a service business, so the person providing that service matters more than the piece of equipment carrying it. The truck is the tool that allows the driver to use their time effectively. Reliable trucks are not simply a recruitment perk. They reduce unnecessary headaches, help drivers work efficiently and show that the business respects the people expected to operate them every day.

    Behind The Freight is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
    31 min
  • Hospitality Mindsets Build a High-Growth Freight Company | Xander Hassan
    Xander Hassan did not take a traditional path into the freight industry. He spent years working in hospitality for Marriott, where he learned the importance of anticipating a guest's needs before they even ask. When he moved into logistics, he brought that same "get it done" mentality to his work at TQL and eventually to his own company, Hassan Transportation & Logistics. Xander shares the story of managing the structural steel shipments for the construction of SoFi Stadium and how that project shaped his perspective on the impact of logistics.


    Xander discusses how he uses Claude to analyze supply chain data and find "micro-savings" that add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars for his customers. He even shares an example of how changing the dimensions of a shipping box for earplugs could save a company $800,000 a month. This episode shines light on the future of e-commerce and why carriers and partners must work together to stay resilient during market changes.


    What You’ll Learn

    • How skills learned from different industries can be useful in freight
    • The logistics behind massive projects like building SoFi Stadium
    • How to use AI for prospecting and finding warm introductions
    • Why "micro-savings" from details like box dimensions can save millions
    • The importance of anticipating customer needs to prevent mistakes
    • How to transition from a transactional broker to a supply chain consultant
    • Why the future of freight is deeply tied to e-commerce growth


    Episode Highlights

    • [00:02:13] Building an Icon: 

    Xander shares his experience of being involved in moving the structural steel used to build SoFi Stadium.

    • [00:08:18] The Marriott Mindset: 

    Hear how working every role in a hotel prepared Xander for the logistics ringer.

    • [00:14:55] Security and Stolen Loads: 

    A story about recovering two stolen trucks and why staying with the problem and seeing it through matters.

    • [00:18:50] The $800k Earplug Math:

    Learn about the approach and effect of making small dimensional changes. It eventually led to a pretty big chunk of savings.

    • [00:22:47] AI as a Time Machine: 

    How Xander uses Claude to win back two hours of his day for customer service.


    Behind The Freight is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
    36 min
  • Build a Fleet Drivers Want to Stay with Charles Gracey
    Charles Gracey has a reputation for being the unfiltered voice of the driver. As a former driver and current radio host, he sees the gap between corporate narratives and what really happens on the road. Many carriers think everything is fine because they see positive pie charts, but the bank accounts of owner operators tell a different story. High expenses and low volumes are squeezing margins even as some claim we are in a golden era.


    You will learn why the common sign on bonus is a failed concept that drivers do not actually care about. Charles argues that real appreciation comes through fair pay for all time spent working and clear communication instead of hot dogs and Facebook posts. He also shares his concerns about the rapid adoption of AI in recruiting. While tools can help small fleets compete with mega carriers, they should not replace the human interaction that keeps the industry moving.


    The conversation covers the need for a real career path for the next generation of drivers so the industry has something worth handing off. If you want to understand the identity crisis in trucking and how to fix the hole in your boat before you start bailing water, Charles provides the honest perspective you need to hear. Success requires looking at why you are losing people rather than just spending more money to find new ones.


    What You’ll Learn

    • The disconnect between industry market data and driver bank accounts.
    • Why sign on bonuses have zero real value for retention.
    • How to fix the "hole in the boat" regarding driver churn.
    • The danger of using AI to replace human recruiters.
    • How technology like Ava helps small fleets compete with mega fleets.
    • What the next generation of drivers wants from a career.


    Episode Highlights

    • [00:08:20] The Bank Account Reality: 

    Industry reports often show positive pie charts but these charts can ignore the actual financial struggle happening on the road. Charles shares why rising expenses and low volumes are crushing margins for drivers right now.

    • [00:12:12] The Sign-On Bonus Is Not an Actual Incentive: 

    Carriers often rely on large bonuses to attract professional drivers. These incentives usually fall flat because they lack real value for long term retention. Drivers prefer honest pay for all their time rather than a one time check with strings attached.

    • [00:15:25] Fix the Boat First: 

    It is much cheaper to keep the people you have than to spend thousands finding new ones. This part of the conversation looks at the operational flaws that cause people to leave your fleet. Fixing your internal culture is more effective than just increasing your marketing budget.

    • [00:18:54] Career Paths for Youth: 

    Attracting younger talent takes more than just a job opening. Charles shares his thoughts on building real career paths and sustainable pay packages that make trucking a first choice career. The goal is to offer something worth handing off to the next generation.

    • [00:24:15] The Power Lag: 

    The industry is currently in a middle ground where control over the market is split between carriers and drivers. Charles explains why this is a great time to start healing working relationships. Understanding this balance helps both sides set better expectations for the future.

    • [00:28:08] Tech vs. People: 

    New technology can empower small fleets to compete with the biggest names in the freight world. Using AI to handle human interactions in recruiting often drives the best candidates away. You will hear how to use tech as a tool to support your team without losing the human connection.

    Behind The Freight is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
    28 min
  • Stop Buying Trucking Tech Emotionally: The Better Way to Choose Software with Nate Johnson
    Nate Johnson has spent three decades untangling the mess of trucking software and IT systems. As the Founder and CEO of GLCS, he sees carriers making the same mistake over and over: buying technology to fix a problem that is actually about people or processes. In this conversation, Nate lays out a clear hierarchy where people come first, followed by process, and technology sits at the bottom. If your team is struggling and your workflows are a mess, a new TMS will only make things more complicated.


    You will also hear about why trucking is failing to attract the next generation of drivers and how face-to-face networking can help the industry regain its footing. Success in the current market requires slowing down to gain control of your costs and data. This conversation provides the roadmap for any operator who wants to stop buying software emotionally and start building a more profitable, stable business that lasts.


    What You’ll Learn

    • The People-Process-Technology hierarchy and why it matters
    • How to diagnose if your issue is software or broken operations
    • The "Standard, Automate, Improve" framework for any rollout
    • Why compliance noise has made the industry less efficient since 2006
    • The one security question you must ask every AI vendor
    • Why the industry needs an intervention to attract younger drivers


    Episode Highlights


    [00:02:19] The Operational Hierarchy:
    Why great people and decent processes beat great technology every time.


    [00:18:54] Fixing the Foundation:
    The three steps to take before you spend a dollar on new software.


    [00:20:57] Vetting Your Vendors:
    Why SOC 2 compliance is the first thing you should check with any tech partner.


    [00:21:18] The Back Office Opportunity:
    How unstandardized data in dispatch creates major bottlenecks downstream.


    [00:24:33] Managing Culture Change:
    Why 80% of projects fail because of people, not the product.


    [00:28:08] The Automation Paradox:
    Why fleets today struggle to match the efficiency levels of 20 years ago.



    Behind The Freight is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
    35 min
  • Building a Profitable AND People-First Trucking Company with Marina Ivanov
    Marina Ivanov shares her journey from being the daughter of an owner-operator to leading a successful asset-based carrier. She admits that starting Apex Transit Solutions in 2012 was about survival rather than a grand vision. The focus changed in 2016 when she saw how steady paychecks and respect helped a driver get out of bankruptcy and buy a home. This moment turned her business into a mission-driven organization focused on people.


    Marina talks about the challenges of being a woman in the trucking industry and how she overcame her own limiting beliefs. She explains the importance of visibility and why seeing other female leaders is vital for growth. A key part of her success is a "mini-ownership" model where fleet managers handle their own P&L. This makes them feel like entrepreneurs who are directly responsible for driver retention and freight quality.


    We talk about the tension between providing excellent service and maintaining operational efficiency. Marina shares a story about how her team had to tell her it was okay to let a customer down to protect the company. She also highlights her advocacy work, such as banning predatory booting of commercial vehicles in North Carolina. This conversation offers a look at how leading with empathy and curiosity can create a resilient business that makes a real impact on the lives of everyone involved.


    What You’ll Learn

    • Why starting a business for survival can lead to a powerful mission
    • How to balance high customer service expectations with your bottom line
    • The "mini-ownership" model for empowering fleet managers
    • Why visibility for women in leadership matters for industry growth
    • Strategies for using empathy to improve driver retention
    • The importance of individualized motivation for team members
    • How advocacy work can fix systemic problems like predatory booting
    • Why curiosity is a better leadership tool than judgment


    Episode Highlights


    [00:07:00] Starting for Survival:
    Marina explains why Apex Transit Solutions didn't start with a grand vision but grew from a need to pay the bills.


    [00:10:13] The Impact Epiphany:
    How seeing a driver buy his first home changed the entire mission of the company.


    [00:12:28] The Service Trap:
    Marina shares the lesson she learned when her team told her she was over-delivering to the point of hurting the business.


    [00:16:16] Mini-Ownership Explained:
    A look at how giving fleet managers their own P&L creates an entrepreneurial culture.


    [00:23:30] Seeing is Believing:
    Why being a visible woman in leadership is the best way to motivate the next generation of female leaders.


    [00:28:00] Fighting for Drivers:
    Marina talks about the legislative win to ban commercial vehicle booting in North Carolina.



    Behind The Freight is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
    28 min
  • Freight Tech That Solves Real Carrier Problems with Don Everhart
    Don Everhart has spent his years working with both trucking and technology. He grew up in a trucking family and worked through many roles at Swift Transportation before moving into the tech side of the industry. In this episode, Don joins Todd and John at the Fullbay headquarters in Phoenix to discuss how technology is moving from "shiny" hype to solving actual problems. 


    The conversation covers the uses of AI for carriers of all sizes. For small fleets, Don suggests focusing on load acquisition and using AI to manage the heavy volume of calls and negotiations. For larger carriers, the focus would ideally be back-office automation and removing manual invoicing. Don also gives a reality check on autonomous trucking. He explains that while the technology is advancing quickly, the path forward depends on regulations and liability and not everything can be automated.


    This is a major theme that comes up is the human element in a high-tech world. Don argues for reallocating resources so that people can focus on relationships rather than tedious paperwork. He emphasizes that the goal of software should be to make the industry more personal. At the end of the day, Don shares that no metric is as important as a carrier's health and making sure every driver gets home safely.


    What You’ll Learn

    • How to tell the difference between useful tech and industry hype
    • The best way for small fleets to use AI for load acquisition
    • Why the back office is the next big area for automation
    • The truth about the timeline for autonomous truck adoption
    • How to reallocate your team to focus on relationships
    • The importance of data history when choosing a tech partner
    • Why regulations are the biggest hurdle for autonomous vehicles
    • Tips for maintaining your health as a carrier owner


    Episode Highlights


    [00:03:33] Starting from the Green Screens:
    John and Don look back at their early days at Swift and how they manipulated the old AS 400 systems.


    [00:07:16] Living on Both Sides of the Desk:
    Don explains how having a background in operations helps him build better technology today.


    [00:13:25] Where Carriers Should Use AI:
    An explanation of how different sized fleets can use automation to remove friction from their daily workflows.


    [00:17:53] The Regulatory Side of Autonomous Trucks:
    Why the technology for self-driving trucks is ready but the laws are yet to catch up.


    [00:26:43] Reallocation Over Replacement:
    Don discusses why technology should free up your staff to do more meaningful work instead of just replacing them.


    [00:32:52] The Most Important Stop:
    A reminder that health and family are the most important metrics for anyone in the freight industry.


    Behind The Freight is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
    28 min
  • The Real Cost of Truck Downtime and Reactive Maintenance with Trent Broberg
    Trent Broberg has spent over two decades leading in the logistics and SaaS space. As the CEO of Fullbay, he is now focused on how technology can keep trucks on the road and improve the lives of both drivers and technicians. In this conversation, Trent challenges the idea of a driver shortage, arguing that we actually have a utilization problem. Drivers are often only utilized for about seven and a half hours of their eleven hour clock. Improving that efficiency is one of the biggest opportunities for any fleet owner.


    A major theme of the discussion is the shift from reactive to predictive maintenance. Trent talks about Fullbay’s recent acquisition of Pit Stop and how AI models are helping shops understand when a part is going to fail before the truck breaks down on the side of the road. This transition helps carriers move away from managing profit at the fleet level to managing it for every single asset.


    The episode also digs into the human side of the business. Trent explains that while tech is great, communication remains the most important tool. He shares why "bad news is better than no news" and how predictability allows operators to make better decisions for their business. Whether you are a small owner operator or managing a large fleet, these insights into data, maintenance strategy, and connectivity will help you keep your wheels turning and earning.


    What You’ll Learn

    • The truth about the utilization shortage vs. the driver shortage
    • How to manage profitability at the individual asset level
    • The role of AI and predictive models in heavy duty repair
    • Why connectivity is the key to getting trucks back on the road faster
    • Practical steps for building a maintenance strategy
    • The importance of communication and predictability in repairs
    • How telematics and sensors drive better maintenance decisions
    • Lessons on leadership and building confidence in your team


    Episode Highlights


    [00:06:52] The Utilization Myth


    Trent challenges the common idea that the industry is suffering from a driver shortage. He explains that we actually have a utilization problem because drivers are only using about seven and a half hours of their eleven hour clock. Improving this efficiency is one of the biggest ways for any carrier to improve their business.


    [00:09:18] Predictive Maintenance


    The discussion moves into how technology is changing heavy duty repair from reactive to proactive. Trent talks about using AI models to understand when a part is going to fail before the truck breaks down on the side of the road. This transition allows shops to catch issues early and keep equipment moving.


    [00:10:42] The Connectivity Vision


    Trent shares his vision for a more connected freight industry where data from sensors and shops works together. He explains how pulling in real-time information can help fleets understand the health of their trucks using a simple green, yellow, or red status. This level of connectivity ensures that technicians have the right parts and tools ready to get drivers back on the road faster.


    [00:12:55] Managing Asset Profitability


    Many carriers only look at their profit and loss statements at the fleet level, which can hide serious problems. Trent breaks down why it is essential to manage your revenue and costs for every individual truck. Understanding the specific downtime costs for each asset helps you make better decisions about which equipment is actually making money.


    [00:15:25] Starting a Strategy


    For smaller fleets wondering where to begin with maintenance, the advice is to start simple by tracking data in an Excel spreadsheet. You need to understand your operating expenses for each asset because every truck has a different cost structure. Trent emphasizes using an eighty percent mentality to get started instead of trying to solve every single problem at once.


    [00:17:31] The Value of Predictability


    Communication is often the most important part of the relationship between a carrier and a repair shop. Trent explains why receiving bad news early is always better than hearing no news at all when a truck is being serviced,,. Having this predictability allows operators to make smart choices about their equipment rather than being left in the dark.



    Behind The Freight is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
    28 min
  • Freight Fraud, Double Brokering, and Protecting Your Carrier Authority with Dale Prax
    Dale Prax has seen the trucking industry from every angle over his 34 year career. He started as a freight forwarder and later built his own brokerage before focusing on security. In this conversation, he explains that the barrier to entry for fraud is dangerously low. A bad actor can start a fake operation for just $300 using a stolen gift card. This has led to a flood of thousands of new MC numbers being issued to people who should not have them.

    The current system has a clear double standard when it comes to vetting. Carriers go through constant audits and roadside inspections while other participants in the market often go decades without any federal oversight. This gap in data makes it easy for scammers to hide. Dale emphasizes that protecting the industry requires more than just better technology. It requires carriers and drivers to take an active role by asking the right questions at the shipping dock.

    Success in today’s market means being hyper-aware of who you are doing business with. Dale shares specific warning signs, like rates that are too good to be true or instructions to divert loads to unknown warehouses. He also discusses his work with the FMCSA to push for better regulations on the buying and selling of MC numbers. This episode provides a roadmap for operators who want to protect their reputation and their paycheck in a volatile environment.


    What You’ll Learn

    • Why freight fraud has increased so much since the pandemic
    • The $300 cost that allows scammers to enter the industry
    • Why the current vetting system has a massive double standard
    • Specific red flags to look for when you are at the shipping dock
    • How to verify if a load has been double brokered
    • Why identity theft is a growing threat to your carrier authority
    • How to use the right questions to protect your business
    • The importance of integrity and accountability in freight


    Episode Highlights


    [00:02:07] A 34 Year Journey in Freight:
    Dale shares how he went from the Marine Corps to starting a company and eventually focusing on industry security.


    [00:04:27] The Start of the Fraud Surge:
    How the pandemic created a perfect storm for bad actors to enter the market and start stealing identities.


    [00:05:11] The $300 Barrier to Entry:
    Why it is so easy for scammers to get an operating authority and why thousands of fake companies are popping up.


    [00:07:34] The Vetting Double Standard:
    Dale explains why carriers are over-vetted while other parts of the industry face almost no federal oversight.


    [00:09:13] Responsibility at the Dock:
    How drivers and operators can use simple, straightforward questions at the shipper to stop fraud before the truck moves.


    [00:10:57] The $6,000 Miami Trap:
    A breakdown of how to spot rates that are too good to be true and what happens when you ignore those red flags.



    Behind The Freight is handcrafted by our friends over at: fame.so
    15 min

About Behind The Freight

From the publisher's feed

The freight industry is more than rate trends and equipment. It’s about the people and stories behind the loads. Hosted by John Howland and Scott Feather, Behind the Freight is Truckstop’s podcast for carriers, small fleet managers and freight professionals who want to go beyond headlines and rate chatter. Each episode covers what actually matters: fraud prevention, compliance, day-to-day operations, and what the market is really doing, straight from operators who are out there running freight right now.

More shows like Behind The Freight

The Joe Rogan Experience by Joe Rogan

The Joe Rogan Experience

227,497 Listeners

The Shawn Ryan Show by Shawn Ryan

The Shawn Ryan Show

46,104 Listeners

The Tucker Carlson Show by Tucker Carlson Network

The Tucker Carlson Show

15,960 Listeners

Trucking Made Successful by Miranda TMS

Trucking Made Successful

7 Listeners

Trucking Technology & Efficiency by Kevin Rutherford

Trucking Technology & Efficiency

5 Listeners