Over the Road

Paul pays tribute to friend and fellow storyteller Shoestring Waugh, who was part of Over the Road’s original “Haul of Fame." Hear “It Comes In Waves” on YouTube. And on Spotify.

Greetings! It’s been a while, but we’re back with an update on the state of the trucking industry in 2021, and a taste of new projects from the Over the Road team: some music, another podcast, and a book. Long Haul Paul has released a new record called, “Cornbelt Cafe.” Find it wherever you stream and download music, or head over to LongHaulPaulMusic.com.  OTR producers Ian Coss and Lacy Roberts recently collaborated on a hybrid podcast/album about marriage, divorce, and the meaning of lifetime commitment. Listen and subscribe to Forever is a Long Time on Apple Podcasts or wherever you find your podcasts. And don’t miss Shining Man, the novel recently published by OTR editor Todd Dills, from our production partner Overdrive Magazine. Can’t say when we’ll be back in the feed again, but stay safe and take care out there! Over the Road is a collaboration between Overdrive Magazine and PRX’s Radiotopia. Learn more about the show at overtheroad.fm.

In our series finale, Paul checks back in with truckers we’ve met throughout Over the Road, as the team convenes at the Great American Trucking Show in Dallas to ponder the million-dollar question: will self-driving trucks render American truck drivers obsolete? Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

For this final mini-episode Paul is in the hot seat, taking your questions on everything from pet policies to hitchhikers, ‘how’s my driving?’ and highway hand signals. Got questions about trucks, truckers and trucking in America? Give us a call. +1 765-245-4844 Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

Meet a handful of Paul’s unsung heroes from within and around trucking, including a pistol-packing grandmother, a disc jockey who brought meaningful overnight trucking radio back to the airwaves and a fellow refrigerated freight hauler who helped Paul pick up the pieces after a pivotal tragedy in his career. Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

For all the “four-wheelers” listening, long-time trucker and trainer Gary Buchs lays out the dos and don’ts of sharing the road with semis. We cover following-distance, blindspots, light etiquette and a few tricks that might just change the way you drive on the highway. Got questions about trucks, truckers and trucking in America? Give us a call. +1 765-245-4844 Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

Punjabi-Americans represent a large and fast-growing segment of the trucking community, especially among California’s Central Valley produce haulers. In this episode, Binda Atwal tells the story of how Punjabi drivers got into the politics of trucking: leading the largest trucker demonstration in a generation, and changing a few hearts and minds in the process. Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

We take a tour of “The Goose,” a forest green Freightliner with more than its fair share of creature comforts and personal character. The Goose’s owners, Daniel and Phyllis Snow, offer a good example of just how far some truckers will go to make a truck their own. Got questions about trucks, truckers and trucking in America? Give us a call. +1 765-245-4844 Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

The stresses of trucking on family life are well-known to those working over the road. In this episode, Over the Road producer Lacy Roberts heads home to Montana to explore her family’s three-generation history in trucking, and how this job has shaped them all. Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

Paul checks back in, this time with a story of kindness amidst the challenges and strain of trucking during a pandemic. Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

A speed round of questions on the theme of truck mechanics, featuring veteran owner-operator Ingrid Brown. Got questions about trucks, truckers and trucking in America? Give us a call. +1 765-245-4844 Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

On this tour of independent truck stops in Eastern Kentucky, Long Haul Paul investigates the enduring and alluring mystique of the “nanner nanner pudding,” and learns how each stop is keeping the lights on amidst the ever-expanding, seemingly ubiquitous national chains. Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

The impacts of COVID-19 have radiated out into every corner of the trucking industry. We check back in Paul and four other drivers to hear how life on the road continues to change. Hear more from Paul's dispatches, and more perspective from produce hauler owner-operator Ingrid Brown, in last week's edition of Overdrive's podcast: ‘This thing is on’: Method amidst the mess, madness around COVID-19.

What do drivers listen to on the road? Got questions about trucks, truckers and trucking in America? Give us a call. +1 765-245-4844 Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

Paul sits down with Finn Murphy, author of the memoir “The Long Haul,” for a genuine, over-the-truck-stop-counter discussion about regulation, de-regulation and the myth of the cowboy trucker. Plus, we meet one of Paul’s personal trucking heroes. Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

How is COVID-19 impacting truckers? Long Haul Paul offers a quick check-in and some initial observations from the road. You can read more from Paul in his essay, ‘We drive on’: A week in the pandemic, from truck stops, picks and drops, to home published in Overdrive magazine.

What’s your favorite road to haul? Got questions about trucks, truckers and trucking in America? Give us a call. +1 765-245-4844 Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

A tale of two truckers in Grand Island, Nebraska: former real-estate agent Kenyette Godhigh-Bell, and third-generation owner-operator Jared Sidlo. One is testing the waters of a new career, while the other weighs the personal costs of a job he can’t (and won’t) quit. Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

What are CB handles? Got questions about trucks, truckers and trucking in America? Give us a call. +1 765-245-4844 Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.

Over the Road host “Long Haul Paul” Marhoefer drops into the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Kentucky, where drivers from all over the country converge each year to show off their chrome and exchange stories, tips and gripes. Find a transcript for this episode and learn more about Over the Road at overtheroad.fm.