Are all or even most truck drivers from the South?

[MindPilot]

Obviously the logical answer would be "no" but I don't actually know any truckers. I ask because any time there is an ad on the satellite radio for anything to do with trucking, the voice over always sounds like native of Tupelo. And no, it's not the same guy in every spot.

[ScreamingMeemie]

1. No...my grandfather was from WI. My cousin-in-law's brother is from

northern Illinois. The neighborhood where I lived with my husband in MI had its share of northern truck drivers. Any time I hear an ad on the radio these days, that isn't about a huge corporation/credit counseling, has a southern accent.

[sufrommich]

2. My cousin is a truck driver,he's from Michigan. nt

[HopeHoops]

3. All of them are when they've got a CB mic in their hand.

Go figure.

[MindPilot]

6. Kind of like military pilots...

I grew up in the Air Force...guys from da Bronx suddenly turn into Jeff Foxworthy when they call the tower.

[Ikonoklast]

9. Blame that on Chuck Yeager.

Pilots mimicked his laconic West Virginia accent, and it caught on.

[Orsino]

17. I was an Army ground-pounder...

...and became aware of a generic pseudo-Southern accent across the service. I'd hear it in the mouths of soldiers hailing from California or Philly.

Military pilots, per Tom Wolfe, got it from Chuck Yeager...but I suspect that mainly it's the strong tradition of service among Southerners.

[demosincebirth]

12. thats the truth.

[aikoaiko]

4. You don't know any truckers? You should get out more.

[MindPilot]

8. Well, I encounter hundreds every day

But we don't have much chance to chat at 60mph.

[A HERETIC I AM]

5. Yes.

Every single truck driver in the country was born in Alabama.



Silly person.

[MindPilot]

11. That's kinda what I thought

Thanks for the conformation. :hide:

[Aerows]

26. Tupelo

is in Mississippi, but I agree with your message's :sarcasm: LOL

[Ikonoklast]

28. Lemme see your Long Form Birth Certificate.

You sound like one of them furriners.

[A HERETIC I AM]

29. LOL...I is.

Eye's from Verginee.


Oh shit! I just proved the OP's assertion.



I'm doomed

[gkhouston]

7. No, but all the other ones are telepaths. They're reading your mind right now and laughing. n/t

[JVS]

18. Goddamned Tellosian truckers!

[blondeatlast]

10. Not by a long shot; have you ever been on an interstate between cities? nt

[MindPilot]

15. Many times...

How do I pass an 18-wheeler at 70 and discern the driver's dialect? Is that posted someplace?

[blondeatlast]

19. Many truckers today are independent. They all have

state issued license plates.

[A HERETIC I AM]

23. The percentage of independents vs. "company" drivers is going down....

if anything. There hasn't been a large increase in Owner/Operators.

So, to say "Many truckers today are independent. They all have state issued license plates" is somewhat irrelevant. ALL trucks, be they independents or company trucks have "state issued license plates".

The easiest way to tell if a truck is likely driven by its owner is to look for the words "Leased to" or "Leased by" followed by the company name - usually the company name that appears on the trailer. That is still no guarantee that the driver actually owns the truck. There are plenty of small fleet owners who might own 10 or 20 tractors, lease them to a single or many different firms and hire drivers to drive them.

Edited to add that there are also many, many companies who hire ONLY owner operators and that truck owner/driver may not have any indication on his truck that he is an O/O.

[tularetom]

13. We were just talking about that

Our son in law was a trucker for a couple of years. During that time he sounded like friggin Gomer Pyle.

When he decided truckin' wasn't for him he reverted to his white bread California no accent accent.

I don't think he did it deliberately he was just trying to blend in I guess.

When our son played on the basketball team at the community college, he affected a lot of black speech patterns.

Again a case of adapting to his surroundings, he was one of only two white kids on the team.

[JVS]

20. I generally have an upper-midwestern way of speaking, but when I was in telemarketing...

I noticed myself developing a drawl that matched a lot of the customers in downstate IL. It was just easier to cut through the script that way and seemed better received.

[Aerows]

14. I'm from New Orleans

but I can sound like I'm from the South or California on the turn of a dime. Those of us who have lived in different places know how to adapt our accents (doesn't hurt when speaking foreign languages, either). You adapt when you have been adapting all of your life - it shouldn't come as a surprise :D

[MindPilot]

16. Yeah, that's a talent that every military kid develps early.

The parents moved from the UK to Texas when I was 12. That'll get yer ass kicked.

[Aerows]

24. Exactly

change your accent, and sound like everyone else LOL.

[Ikonoklast]

21. Did you ever consider where those companies are based out of?

Lemme see hyar...Oakley Trucking advertises on satrad, they are based out of North Little Rock, Ar.

http://bruceoakley.com/trucking.htm

I think that's Bruce doing the pitch? Can't remember if that's him or not.


Swift Transportation is based in Phoenix, Arizona, U.S. express is out of Chattanooga, J.B. Hunt is out of Jonesboro, AR, and I can't remember some of the others that advertise on Sirius, but many are based south of the Mason/Dixon line...

What do you want them to sound like, buncha guys from Phillie?


I am a trucker based out of NE Ohio, from the lands of the Western Reserve, and I am told that I speak with a vague New England (Connecticut, to be exact) accent as people from that part of the country originally settled here.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connecticut_Western_Reserve

When I am in the Deep South, oh, say the Mississippi Delta region, I frequently get asked if I am from Ontario, Canada because of my accent. I have had that happen more than once, it's kinda amusing...eh?

[Aerows]

27. I'm FROM the South

and frequently get asked if I am from California or Ontario because I enunciate correctly.

I think it is designed to intimidate people doing jobs that are supposed to be "manual labor" but pay well, into seeking other employment. People get intimidated when you do a good job and work hard.

[Obamanaut]

30. This really happened. Shortly after my retirement from the Navy in

1988, I was working in a local store here in the small Florida town where I was born.

One day a lady called, identified herself as a teacher from the local elementary school and asked if I'd come address her geography class on the country I was from, because I had the "most remarkable accent."

"I'd love to" I said, "But you must know ahead of time I was born right here in (name of town)."

"Oh!" she said, and hung up.

[lonestarnot]

31. "People get intimidated when you do a good job and work hard."

What exactly do you mean by that?

[sinkingfeeling]

22. There certainly are a ton of OTR carriers in the South.

[lumberjack_jeff]

25. My son just started driving a long haul truck.

Not my bag, but he's a grownup making his own choices and I respect that a lot.

[cherokeeprogressive]

32. Back in the day, airplane pilots ALL spoke with a southern accent...

It made them cool. They chewed Beamans gum.

Until the late 80's, nearly every commercial airline pilot spoke with a southern accent when he picked up the mike to talk to his passengers. That was a holdover from military pilots.

The guy who narrates the commercial for "Free Pass" always makes me laugh... "Waiiits in Liiine..."

I'm from the south. South of Los Angeles. I drive a Freightliner OTR. Every time a Super Trucker calls me on the fact that I have a So. Cal. accent, I track him down, stab him to death, and bury him by the side of the road.

That's how I roll.

[A HERETIC I AM]

33. So THAT'S what all those little crosses on the side of the road are.

Damn.

You get around.

And apparently get pissed off easily!

[cherokeeprogressive]

35. Awww, now I feel bad.

Those crosses make me say a little blessing in my head every time I pass one.

I never mark my graves.

[Lugnut]

34. No.

My son is an owner-operator. He's a Northastern PA born and bred Democratic liberal.

[DiverDave]

36. I'm from Oregon

where I went to a trucking school.

Mostly truck drivers are from depressed areas.

As in, "I guess I could drive a truck to pay the bills"


The money can be quite good if you don't mind being away from home for extended periods.


Some company's will train you in their trucks.
But you have to work for them for a period, making less then scale.
But after that, you can drive for whoever.