{"id":1193,"date":"2016-05-18T17:56:20","date_gmt":"2016-05-18T21:56:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/?p=1193"},"modified":"2021-06-17T15:16:42","modified_gmt":"2021-06-17T19:16:42","slug":"convoy-creatures-wild-words-trucking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/convoy-creatures-wild-words-trucking\/","title":{"rendered":"Convoy Creatures: The Wild Words of Trucking"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
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Although there\u2019s lots of alone time on the road, truckers are always communicating via their CB radios. Whether traveling in a convoy or passing others on the road, there\u2019s always something to say within the limited signal range.<\/p>\n

Truckers ought to at least be familiar with the 10-codes<\/a>. However, beyond the standard jargon, there\u2019s a world of slang with some pretty wild words for everyday encounters on the road.<\/p>\n

As a rookie, hearing the seasoned vets speaking this slang like their birth-language may intimidate you. Overtime you\u2019ll pick up most of phrases after hearing them used in context \u2014 but sometimes you may need a little bit of briefing before you realize your fellow truckers aren\u2019t just making it up as they go along.<\/p>\n

So like I said \u2014 there are some pretty wild<\/em> words out there. Oddly enough, trucker slang seems to anthropomorphize what\u2019s seen on the road in ways that are usually pretty amusing. Get ready for a safari through a trucker\u2019s animal kingdom:<\/p>\n

This Ain\u2019t Your Usual Animal Planet<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Anteaters<\/strong> – A term for the Kenworth T-600<\/a>, named for its sloped hood. This was one of the first trucks designed to be more aerodynamic, so it definitely stood out when it hit the road in 1984.<\/p>\n

Alligators<\/strong> – Refers to a piece of tire on the road resembling the reptile. You\u2019ll want to watch that they don\u2019t bounce up and \u201cbite you,\u201d \u2014 damaging your hoses, belts, fuel crossover lines, or other vehicles!<\/p>\n

\"blowntire\"<\/a>

Image from Roadtreking.com<\/p><\/div>\n

Bambi<\/strong> – Whether dead or alive, you\u2019ll be sure to see your share of deer throughout the country. These creatures cause over $1 billion dollars in vehicle damage every year, so you\u2019ll want to take heed when someone alerts you of some \u201cbambi at your front door.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"7717536_l\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Bear<\/strong> – Depending on where you are in the country, this term might seem a little out of place, but that\u2019s because it refers to a law enforcement official, usually a State Trooper or Highway Patrol. A bear may be \u201cin the bushes\u201d \u2014 hiding with a radar gun \u2014 or \u201cin the air\u201d with speed monitoring aircraft. Again, it\u2019s best not to get bitten (speeding ticket)!<\/p>\n

\"21718974_l\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Bobtail<\/strong> – Referring to a tractor without its trailer attached, just like the stubby tail of those forest-dwelling felines… sort of.<\/p>\n

\"439502_l\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Donkey<\/strong> – If there\u2019s a \u201cbear on your donkey,\u201d it isn\u2019t a prey scene from Mutual of Omaha\u2019s Wild Kingdom \u2014 it\u2019s basically saying \u201cthere\u2019s a cop on your ass.\u201d Very clever indeed.<\/p>\n

Dragonfly<\/strong> – If you\u2019re driving a truck with no power, especially heading uphill, other drivers may call your rig a \u201cdragonfly\u201d \u2014 quick and nimble until it comes to the heavy lifting.<\/p>\n

Lot Lizards<\/strong> – Although they\u2019re not everywhere, it\u2019s possible you may encounter a lot lizard (prostitute) once you\u2019ve stopped the rig for the night. It can be a desperate lifestyle to lead for many men and women, so avoiding these situations is usually for the best! A 2008 feature<\/a> on FOX25 News gave a look into this problem.<\/p>\n

Mud Duck<\/strong> – If you\u2019ve got a really weak or poor signal on your CB, that\u2019s what we call a mud duck. You\u2019ll want to do some troubleshooting in order to keep your communication open and efficient!<\/p>\n

\"20411426_l\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Pigtail<\/strong> – This is your cable used to transmit electrical power from the tractor to the trailer. A working pigtail ensures that your trailer lights stay on, keeping you and other drivers safe.<\/p>\n

Hopefully by now you\u2019re aware of just how diverse these \u201cconvoy creatures\u201d really are \u2013 from reptiles to the beasts of burden, you\u2019ll be sure to speak like a pro after a walk on the wild side!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Although there\u2019s lots of alone time on the road, truckers are always communicating via their CB radios. Whether traveling in a convoy or passing others on the road, there\u2019s always something to say within the limited signal range. Truckers ought to at least be familiar with the 10-codes. However, beyond the standard jargon, there\u2019s a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1211,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,43,27],"tags":[383,384,382],"class_list":["post-1193","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-road-rules","category-tips-and-tools","category-trucker-pov","tag-animal-planet","tag-industry-terms","tag-trucker-slang"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1193","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1193"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1193\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5005,"href":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1193\/revisions\/5005"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1211"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1193"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1193"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alltruckjobs.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1193"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}