He’s driven 7.5 million kilometers across North America. He’s bought and sold six trucks and four trailers while at it (and too many tires to mention). That encompasses Don Slater’s 50-year trucking career as an owner-operator and company driver.

Slater has pulled reefers and dry vans and spent decades strapping loads on flatbeds while working for different trucking companies. He’s hauled freight that included grain, produce, bales of tobacco, steel, fish, empty boxes and frozen pies.

“Back in the day those frozen pies were not loaded on skids but placed in cases in the trailer,” the 70-year-old trucker said. He used to hand-bomb hundreds of cases onto skids while delivering them at warehouses.

Growing up on a farm, Slater loved working with equipment. He began his trucking career in 1974 just before his 20^th birthday when he got hired at Bruce R. Smith.

“A longtime employee took me under his wing and showed me the ropes. I rode in the truck with him a bit and learned,” Slater said. Trucking fueled his love for travel as work took him to other carriers on regional routes in Ontario and subsequently into other provinces and parts of the U.S.

“Older drivers showed me how to put 45,000-lb. (20,400-kg) coil in the middle of a flatbed trailer, chain it down and not have problems,” he recalls.

Family life

And trucking led Slater to his life partner. He used to stop for a meal at a restaurant that had truck parking. His future wife Marion, a waitress at the establishment, said she didn’t like truck drivers. But she saw something special in Slater and they married in 1985.

Marion chose to stay home and raise their two boys. “She used to cut grass with our son on her hip. It wasn’t a self-propelled mower,” Slater says.

“It was not easy,” Marion admits, adding that Slater was an excellent provider for her and the family.

She recalls that trucking was not the same when the boys were little, and Slater would be home for two days a week. But as the years went by, he would be gone longer and was also more stressed.

By then he was operating his own truck and was focused on work and keeping his vehicle running. Marion said he’d spend his time at home working on his truck.

“Neither one of our sons — they are 38 and 36 years old now — are truck drivers because it was a tough life,” she said. “They do say their dad did an amazing job and understand hard work.”

Changes in the industry

Over the years trucking has changed and Slater notes that lots of rules have been introduced.

He recalls, “We didn’t have logbooks. We didn’t have cell phones and fax machines. You used to walk into a truck stop and you had 10 payphones on the wall.”

For route planning he used an atlas. He’d draw a line to his destination and note the interstates that led to it. “Once you’ve done it, you get to know your way around,” he says.

His years on the road have also taught him many life lessons. As a trucker, make sure you get along with your dispatcher. “There’s nothing worse than having a dispatcher as an enemy,” he says.

And Slater’s mantra for safety is simple. “Stay in the right lane as much as you can and run with the flow of traffic. Quit trying to be number one.”   

After 50 years on the road, Slater is already looking at the next chapter in his life. He tinkers in a new workshop constructed on his property. He’s also open to working at a nearby golf course or delivering auto parts to workshops.

His wife Marion said he’s got a honey-do list that’s been pending for 39 years. Maybe he’ll get around to completing it.