Featured Driver in Documentary To Visit IdleAire Booth
Alligator on the Zipper is a feature-length documentary that tells the story of seven women truck drivers as they crisscross America. As they trek across the country, 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.
Jackie Wheeler is one of the seven drivers featured in the film. Though she thinks of herself as an inventor first, Jackie is also an over-the-road driver. Jackie has been a trucker for six years, and she currently works for AMX (Alabama Motor Express), based out of Dothan, Alabama. Right now she drives a 10-speed Volvo, but her favorite kinds of trucks are automatics, because she doesn’t like worrying about switching gears. “Maybe I should say something more exciting, but the truth is I really just like automatics.”
Jackie loves being a driver, and knows that certain companies actually prefer women drivers to male truckers. “I don’t have to deal with that whole macho thing of driving too fast. In certain ways, women truck better.”
Though she believes that all women are up to the challenge of the physical aspects of being a trucker, she does admit that she faces certain challenges as a woman who is constantly on the road. “Sometimes it is hard for women to preserve their femininity on the road. I am a trucker, but I am a woman first, and I think that some women feel like they need to act tough and wear a hat, or whatever. But I do my makeup every morning and I do my nails. I take pride in being a woman, and I know that doesn’t hurt me as a driver.” One of the reasons why Jackie likes the trucking lifestyle is that she can still be a woman and be a perfectly capable driver. “Some women drivers act tough, like I said, and try to make themselves into men. But the truth is, you don’t have to compete with the men in that man’s world. You can be successful just by being yourself.”
Though Jackie is adamant that she has been able to preserve her femininity on the road, there are certain things about a domestic woman’s life that she misses. “When I was younger, I used to do all the interior decorating, you know like picking out the carpets and the curtains. I would clean and I love to cook. You don’t get to decorate on the road and basically all you have to cook with is a microwave. So you can cook on the road, but not really in the same way at all; so I definitely miss that.”
Jackie is quick to point out though that these are merely things she misses about a more rooted life, not things that take away from her experience as a driver. “Don’t get me wrong, I love driving. I miss this stuff, but I love [being on the road] more than I miss these things.”
The 2007 movie Alligator on the Zipper gives a more in-depth look into Jackie’s life and the lives of other women truckers. It is exclusively available for purchase at www.alligatoronthezipper.com. 

---