CARGO VAN · OWNER-OPERATOR · EXPEDITE
More miles don’t mean more money. Hidden costs do.
If you’re about to buy a cargo van—or already running loads and wondering why the bank account doesn’t match the hustle—Hard Miles is the field manual for the math behind the road.
- Insurance, fuel, deadhead, and wait time quietly erase a “good” rate.
- Lease-on vs. own authority looks simple—until the first slow month.
- Load boards and brokers sell activity. You need profit per run.
Written by Edivaldo A. Fontes—who also put VLM Press on the road as a motor carrier. No fluff. Structure and numbers.
Edivaldo A. Fontes — author of Hard Miles
What operators are actually asking
Language and questions drawn from owner-operator forums and industry guides—not invented testimonials.
STARTUP REALITY
RATE VS. PROFIT
CASH FLOW
Hard Miles
What No One Tells You Before Starting a Cargo Van Business
Cost-per-mile models and profit-per-run frameworks to judge loads, brokers, and authority with numbers—not hope.
Why I Wrote Hard Miles
I brought my three sons to America and did whatever it took to keep us together. Hard Miles grew out of that—and out of the road that followed.
Why listen to this author?
I’m Edivaldo A. Fontes, author of Hard Miles and founder of VLM Press. I wrote the book from operational reality, not recruitment marketing.
Before you take the next load
Get the Cargo Van True-Cost Checklist—the same categories operators forget until the statement arrives.
Free checklist
Fuel · insurance · maintenance · tires · deadhead · wait time · payments · reserves. Print it. Use it on the next rate confirmation.
Secondary
More from Eddie
Publishing, immigrant entrepreneurship, and other books—after you’ve locked the van math.
VLM Press
VLM Press — self-publishing for authors in the U.S. — vlmpress.com
American Dream Magazine
Itpro Designs
Other books
Other titles: Autodescoberta, Fique Livre, O Caminho da Grandeza, Homens de Grande Valor, América…
Homens de Grande Valor
Recognition
