Alligator on the Zipper
Alligator on the Zipper is a feature length documentary that tells the story of 7 women truck drivers as they criss-cross America. As they trek across America, these women discuss the reasons they wanted to become drivers, and ultimately why they love their jobs. Alligator on the Zipper is an in depth look at people who take risks, and live for the thrill of the road.
Patsy Van Fleteren is certainly a woman who is not afraid of big changes. She has moved to radically different places and switched to strikingly different careers throughout her life. Originally from Belgium, Patsy now makes her home in the Cascade mountains in Washington. When she was a little girl, Patsy dreamed that she would have three different jobs. She hoped that she would join the armed forces, or become a police officer, or become an international truck driver (because countries in Europe are smaller and closer together, Long Haul Truckers are international truck drivers in Europe). Patsy has fulfilled all of these dreams. She joined the armed forces in Belgium when she was 19, she joined the state patrol after she moved to the United States, and finally, about six an a half years ago, Patsy settled into a career as a driver. She started out with Davis transport and has been with the company ever since. When looking back on her many drastic career changes, Patsy points out, “Do you know anyone else that has lived out all of their dreams?”
Patsy thinks of driving as her “Dream job”, but she admits that it is not always easy being a woman and an over the road trucker. Patsy believes that one of the biggest challenges of being a woman and a driver is that other drivers think that she already gets help when she doesn’t. “It’s not like I need help all the time, but just like other drivers, sometimes I need help tying down my load or loading things into the truck. Lots of times guys will just assume that other guys are helping me because I’m a girl but it doesn’t usually happen. It seems like a lot of guys would rather bet and see whether or not I can do my job on my own rather than help me.” Despite this difficulty, Patsy loves being an over the road driver.
To find out more about Patsy, and other women truckers you have to see Alligator on the Zipper. You can buy the movie and check out previews for the film at www.alligatoronthezipper.com 

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