StretchLearn Course

Run a Trucking Business on Profit Per Mile, Not Cheap Freight

The authority setup, load-board tactics, fuel math, and cost-per-mile discipline behind a profitable owner-operator or brokerage.

Preview Curriculum Back to Catalog

Beginner9 hr 55 minSelf PacedRegistered

Course Overview

What this course is designed to develop

This course takes a beginner from no truck and no authority to running a trucking or brokerage business on numbers it can defend. You will set up MC and USDOT authority, BOC-3, UCR, and a BMC-91 or surety bond, then build the all-in cost-per-mile that tells you which loads actually make money. You will learn to use load boards (DAT, Truckstop, freight brokers), negotiate rate per mile against fuel and deadhead, manage IFTA and the fuel-surcharge math, and read a per-mile profit-and-loss the way a fleet owner does. Every module is built around real federal requirements, named tools, and the actual math behind profit per mile.

Learning Outcomes

What the learner should be able to understand, build, or execute.

Calculate an all-in cost per mile covering fixed, variable, and driver costs

Find, vet, and book loads on DAT and Truckstop and negotiate rate per mile

Manage fuel cost, fuel surcharge, IFTA, and the IRP apportioned plate

Read a per-mile profit-and-loss and hit benchmark net margin and revenue per truck

Compare the owner-operator model with starting a freight brokerage and its bond and margin economics

Curriculum Preview

Inside the curriculum: a structured path from fundamentals to execution.

Preview the course structure, see how the modules build on one another, and understand the path this program is designed to take you through.

Module 1

Module 1: Getting Authority and Choosing Your Model

Decide between owner-operator and brokerage, then complete the federal and state registrations that legally let you haul or broker freight.

3 lessons

Owner-Operator, Leased-On, or Freight BrokerContent · 45 min

Preview Enabled

MC and USDOT Authority Step by StepContent · 55 min

LMS Access

Insurance, IRP, IFTA, and State ComplianceContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Module 2

Module 2: Cost Per Mile and Rate Per Mile

Build the all-in cost per mile that tells you which loads make money, then learn to read and negotiate rate per mile against it.

3 lessons

Building Your All-In Cost Per MileContent · 55 min

LMS Access

Reading and Negotiating Rate Per MileContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Fuel, Fuel Surcharge, and IFTA MathContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Module 3

Module 3: Finding Freight and Booking Loads

Use load boards, direct broker relationships, and dispatch to keep the truck loaded with profitable freight and get paid reliably.

3 lessons

Load Boards: DAT, Truckstop, and the RestContent · 45 min

LMS Access

Building Direct Broker and Shipper RelationshipsContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Getting Paid: Invoicing, Factoring, and Cash FlowContent · 45 min

LMS Access

Module 4

Module 4: Profitability, Brokerage, and Scaling

Read a per-mile P&L against benchmarks, understand the freight-brokerage model, and decide how to grow without breaking the numbers.

3 lessons

Reading Your Per-Mile P&L and BenchmarksContent · 50 min

LMS Access

The Freight Brokerage ModelContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Scaling Without Breaking the NumbersContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Built for Application

A complete learning path, not a one-off inspiration hit.

This program is designed around progression: focused lessons, structured modules, applied resources, assessments, and a course rhythm that turns information into usable capability.

owner operatortrucking businessfreight brokerageMC authoritycost per mileload boardsIFTA fuel taxrate per mile