August 13, 2025· 39 min

How to Move Freight Across the Icy Roads of Alaska

Orality
Model
68%
Oral-dominant (speeches, podcasts, storytelling)

Speaker Breakdown

HostJoe Weisenthal(1,535 words)
M:29%
HostTracy Alloway(4,814 words)
M:27%
GuestJosh Norum(1,423 words)
M:29%

Oral Indicators

Agonistic35%
literally, completely, amazing
Engagement61%
you, our, your
Memory Aids100%
listen, so, now
Repetition100%
like (111x), they (103x), it's (70x)
Parallelism80%
So why would I pay for stuff I..., So have you heard the story ab..., And I'm Tracy Alloway....
Sound Patterns89%
84 question(s), alliteration: "markets move", alliteration: "barclays brief"
Formulaic Phrases4%
you know what, i mean

Literate Indicators

Hedging6%
maybe, could, probably
Passive Voice4%
are based, are moved, is pulled
Abstract Nouns17%
investment, business, verizon.com/business
Subordination4%
until, while, because
Sentence Length34%
Avg: 13.4 words/sentence
Word Complexity46%
investment, analyze, anticipate
Academic Markers0%
Impersonal Style39%
578 personal pronouns found
Descriptive Style83%
exactly, apply, monthly

Description

We're interested in trucking here at Odd Lots. It's one of those industries that can tell us a lot about the economy, both in terms of the short-term cycle, and also long-term structural trends. Of course, we know that the industry is prone to big boom and bust cycles. And Alaska itself -- driven so much by oil and natural resource extraction -- is also known for its boom and bust cycles. So on our trip there, we spoke with Josh Norum, the CEO of Sourdough Express, an Alaska based trucking company that's been around for over a century. We talked about how the business works, the history of the company, the current economic environment, tariffs, and the unique challenge (and opportunity) of moving freight in America's northernmost state. Read more: Uber Freight Founder Joins Autonomous Big Rig Startup Waabi Driverless Trucks Lumber Along With Safety-First Approach Only Bloomberg - Business News, Stock Markets, Finance, Breaking & World News subscribers can get the Odd Lots newsletter in their inbox each week, plus unlimited access to the site and app. Subscribe at  bloomberg.com/subscriptions/oddlots See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.