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We take the red pill on trucking’s “driver shortage” narrative. Tony goes underground with Dostoevsky and Orwell to ask why drivers accept equations that don’t add up—why 2+2 can feel like 5 in this industry. From bankruptcy to Key West to accounting classes in Minnesota, this is a story about cages we call freedom, laments we call songs, and the splinter you’ve felt your whole career.
👤 Guest: Mike Ritzema (Superior Trucking Payroll Service) brings receipts on payroll, per diem, and what the numbers actually say in 2023–2025. If there’s really a shortage, why haven’t wages kept pace—while operating costs keep climbing?
📣 Bulletin Board: an all-pro rideshare driver named Angela; voices you’ll hear throughout the series (TJ Graff, Will Cook, Gord Magill); and PBS’s Driver (POV) featuring Desiree Wood / Real Women in Trucking.
🎬 Bonus: Morpheus does the scene better than I ever could → https://youtu.be/DRnr3MiGWmo?si=6OkVsOYLOGFD1wan
Stay for the 💰 Money Line and the 🧭 Post-Trip: Morpheus, Metallica, and modern math.
👥 Guest
Mike Ritzema — Superior Trucking Payroll Service → https://truckingpayroll.com
🎙️ Podcast: Driven for Success
🔗 Sponsors & Friends of the Show
💰 Trucker’s Wealth — Financial tools for truckers → https://truckers-wealth.com
📝 Trans Carolina Permits — Compliance, IFTA, mileage & permits → https://transcarolinapermits.com
📊 True TMS — Cloud-based transportation management system → https://truetms.com
✍️ Deb LaBree → https://awomantrucker.com
🚨 Upcoming Truck Shows
🚚 Louisiana Truck Show — Oct 24–25, Rayne, LA → https://louisianatruckshows.com
🎪 American Truckers Jubilee — Oct, Searcy, AR (Lee Owens) → https://www.facebook.com/groups/912050416849260
🗓️ Full schedule → https://thetruckshowlist.com
🎵 Music Referenced
Metallica — “Bleeding Me” • Audioslave — “I Am the Highway,” “Set It Off”
📚 Resources
🎬 Driver.film — PBS Documentary → https://driver.film/index.html
👥 Real Women in Trucking → https://www.facebook.com/REALWomeninTrucking
⭐ Star Behaviors (TJ Graff) → https://starbehaviors.com
✍️ Will Cook — A Driver’s Perspective → https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570019885862
📰 Gord Magill — Substack → https://autonomoustruckers.substack.com
📬 Connect
✉️ Email: [email protected]
🌐 Website: https://channel19experience.com
🎤 Book a Guest Spot: https://channel19experience.com/be-a-guest
⏱️ Timestamps
00:00 — Intro: Adding spice to the “shortage”
04:00 — Quote of the Week: Morpheus & the splinter
09:00 — Bulletin Board: Angela, the precision driver
11:00 — Voices in the Series: TJ Graff, Will Cook, Gord Magill
15:00 — PBS film Driver & safety in trucking
18:00 — Pre-Trip: Trucking as battleground
22:00 — Money Line: Going underground with Dostoevsky
29:00 — Learning the math: Why 2+2=5 in trucking
33:00 — Interview: Mike Ritzema — the payroll perspective
1:13:00 — Post-Trip: Healthcare & Orwell’s ghost
#DriverShortage #TruckingLife #OwnerOperator #TruckDrivers #FreightRecession #TruckingIndustry #CDL #TruckingPodcast #Channel19Experience #TruckDriverPay #SuperiorTruckingPayroll #DriverAppreciationWeek #TruckingMath #TwoPlus2Equals5 #Matrix #RedPill #TruckingReality #FreightRates #DriverRetention #TruckingCrisis
By Channel 19 ExperienceWe take the red pill on trucking’s “driver shortage” narrative. Tony goes underground with Dostoevsky and Orwell to ask why drivers accept equations that don’t add up—why 2+2 can feel like 5 in this industry. From bankruptcy to Key West to accounting classes in Minnesota, this is a story about cages we call freedom, laments we call songs, and the splinter you’ve felt your whole career.
👤 Guest: Mike Ritzema (Superior Trucking Payroll Service) brings receipts on payroll, per diem, and what the numbers actually say in 2023–2025. If there’s really a shortage, why haven’t wages kept pace—while operating costs keep climbing?
📣 Bulletin Board: an all-pro rideshare driver named Angela; voices you’ll hear throughout the series (TJ Graff, Will Cook, Gord Magill); and PBS’s Driver (POV) featuring Desiree Wood / Real Women in Trucking.
🎬 Bonus: Morpheus does the scene better than I ever could → https://youtu.be/DRnr3MiGWmo?si=6OkVsOYLOGFD1wan
Stay for the 💰 Money Line and the 🧭 Post-Trip: Morpheus, Metallica, and modern math.
👥 Guest
Mike Ritzema — Superior Trucking Payroll Service → https://truckingpayroll.com
🎙️ Podcast: Driven for Success
🔗 Sponsors & Friends of the Show
💰 Trucker’s Wealth — Financial tools for truckers → https://truckers-wealth.com
📝 Trans Carolina Permits — Compliance, IFTA, mileage & permits → https://transcarolinapermits.com
📊 True TMS — Cloud-based transportation management system → https://truetms.com
✍️ Deb LaBree → https://awomantrucker.com
🚨 Upcoming Truck Shows
🚚 Louisiana Truck Show — Oct 24–25, Rayne, LA → https://louisianatruckshows.com
🎪 American Truckers Jubilee — Oct, Searcy, AR (Lee Owens) → https://www.facebook.com/groups/912050416849260
🗓️ Full schedule → https://thetruckshowlist.com
🎵 Music Referenced
Metallica — “Bleeding Me” • Audioslave — “I Am the Highway,” “Set It Off”
📚 Resources
🎬 Driver.film — PBS Documentary → https://driver.film/index.html
👥 Real Women in Trucking → https://www.facebook.com/REALWomeninTrucking
⭐ Star Behaviors (TJ Graff) → https://starbehaviors.com
✍️ Will Cook — A Driver’s Perspective → https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570019885862
📰 Gord Magill — Substack → https://autonomoustruckers.substack.com
📬 Connect
✉️ Email: [email protected]
🌐 Website: https://channel19experience.com
🎤 Book a Guest Spot: https://channel19experience.com/be-a-guest
⏱️ Timestamps
00:00 — Intro: Adding spice to the “shortage”
04:00 — Quote of the Week: Morpheus & the splinter
09:00 — Bulletin Board: Angela, the precision driver
11:00 — Voices in the Series: TJ Graff, Will Cook, Gord Magill
15:00 — PBS film Driver & safety in trucking
18:00 — Pre-Trip: Trucking as battleground
22:00 — Money Line: Going underground with Dostoevsky
29:00 — Learning the math: Why 2+2=5 in trucking
33:00 — Interview: Mike Ritzema — the payroll perspective
1:13:00 — Post-Trip: Healthcare & Orwell’s ghost
#DriverShortage #TruckingLife #OwnerOperator #TruckDrivers #FreightRecession #TruckingIndustry #CDL #TruckingPodcast #Channel19Experience #TruckDriverPay #SuperiorTruckingPayroll #DriverAppreciationWeek #TruckingMath #TwoPlus2Equals5 #Matrix #RedPill #TruckingReality #FreightRates #DriverRetention #TruckingCrisis