Meet Trucker Pamela Febbo

The release of the Girls Can’t WHAT? Trucker design attracted female trucker Pamela Febbo to the site and I couldn’t resist requesting an interview with her. I mean how often do you see women truckers, let alone meet one? Pamela was kind enough to indulge my questions.

GCW: What is your name, age and current location?

My name is Pamela, my handle on the cb is “hot red head”, I got the name more than one way. I am 30 years old, and I live and work in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada.

GCW: What is your main passion and describe when you first became interested in it.

Pamela: My passion is driving, I love driving anything. You give me a piece of machinery no matter what it is and it’s either I know about it or I will figure it out quickly. Ever since I was a little girl I have always wanted to drive a big rig. I love that they sit up high off the road and the roar of the engine under your feet.

GCW: Have you ever been injured or encountered any setbacks while on the road?

Pamela: Yes I have, I posted it on your site (see photo). I have been on wsib since November 15 of 2007 and I don’t know when I will be able to go back to work. Before the accident I was studying to get my A license to pursue my full dream and I think now it’s either over or on hold for quite awhile.

GCW: What is your favorite type of truck?

Pamela: My favorite trucks are the Freightliners, they sit up nice on the road and haul a lot of ass, depending on the engine.

GCW: Do you have a favorite event or memory?

Pamela: Going to truck shows and seeing all the trucks decked out nice.

GCW: What are some of the highlights of your trucking career?

Pamela: The day that my husband taught me how to drive a tandum 10 speed. I was in my glory and it didn’t take me very long to get the handle of it. It took me only 5 minutes and I was shifting like I had been driving a tandum for years.

GCW: What challenges have you faced as a female in this industry and how did you handle them?

Pamela: Everyday I was dealing with men either looking at me sideways or their comments about me driving a truck. At first I was upset that they could talk to me like that, but after the first month I got sick and tired of the crap that I was getting and so I started to grow an attitude. And every time I met a real [jerk] that wanted to run off his mouth, I would give it back to him full force. After awhile I just started to look at them sideways like I am going to rip out their lungs and shove them where the sun don’t shine.

GCW: Tell us how you really feel, Pamela! LOL Have you ever been told you “can’t” because you are a girl? What did you do about it?

Pamela: I use to work for this company called Sure Track Courier in Concord, On. My husband worked for the company and I kept going in to get a job cause they were screaming for drivers. They wouldn’t hire me because I was a girl. The owner was a real chauvinist pig and he told me one day that he wouldn’t hire me because I was a girl. That is what you call “a lawsuit coming”. Well that other owner found out about it and called me in the next day and gave me a job driving one of their trucks. They were glad that they hired me cause between my husband and I, we were doing 60 calls a day for them and the other guys were doing between 4 to 8 calls each for the company per day. The company wished that they could hire more people like me and my husband.

GCW: So not only did you show them woman CAN drive trucks, but you out-drove everyone else. Very cool! What do you think is your greatest accomplishment?

Pamela: That I overcame everybody’s bull**** that I couldn’t drive a truck. And the day that I learned to drive a 10 speed in 5 minutes.

GCW: How would you encourage other girls who are interested in trucking?

Pamela: Go for it girl!!!!! Any questions that you have or you want me to teach you, just ask, I am always to here to help a girl out. NOT MEN.

GCW: What other interests do you have?

Pamela: I would love to learn to drive all the construction equipment, anything on wheels I want to learn.

GCW: Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Pamela: I also love the clothes that you have and would like to purchase some t-shirts in a couple of weeks. If I wore them to work that would get everybody going, the office would be telling me to go home and put on a company shirt. My company has black shirts…now do you know what it is like in the summer wearing black? You have to go home right away and jump in the shower cause you smell so bad. We have been telling the company for years to change the colours but they don’t listen. So when we leave the office we wear what ever we want.

Hope everything is okay with this interview, sorry about the swearing, but it really gets me going when men out there don’t appreciate women doing a “man’s” job. What am I saying…we need to make it a woman’s job cause I don’t see anybody complaining about men doing some “women’s” jobs ie nursing, etc. Men are worse than women they always got their jaws flapping but nothin’ is coming out that we want to hear. You know that old saying women are to be seen and not heard, well that’s what I think about men. I see them but I don’t hear them. (I hear you knockin’ but you can’t come in). I could go on and I hope that this helps a little. Any more questions that you have for me just ask, I am always here to help out.

GCW: Pamela – thanks for your time and best of luck in pursuing your dreams.