Most likely rookie drivers Ken.
My Freightliner would do 80 plus with a load on. Seldom did it but it was nice to know that I had some passing power if I needed it.
Most owner ops are pretty fuel conscious. If you want to play bandit all day long and blow your meager profits out your smoke stack, have fun with that.
At 5 miles per gallon, it doesn't take long. I ofter got passed by a super B unit doing 80 plus. he was getting 3 miles per gallon if lucky. I always thought, now there is one rich owner or someone not paying for the fuel.
At the end of the month, if I was looking at a drivers mileage and fuel receipts and he was getting that kind of mileage, he'd be looking for a new job.
Many times driving in the US, I'd be tooling along at a comfortable 70 and get passed like I was standing still. An easy 90 MPH.
60 is too boring and gets you no where at the end of the day. 70 is a comfortable cruising speed. Anything above 70 is burning way too much fuel and your reaction times have to that much more quicker.
Altho with having log books with such little driving and on duty times, I can see where an owner has to burn a little extra to try and get there a bit quicker, pick up a turn around load and try to make a decent living. Short term that may seem ok but increased fuel costs and wear and tear on the equipment will cost you in the long run.
A bit of give and take with your fingers crossed.
There are many great drivers out there but with the demand for drivers these days, there are a ton out there that shouldn't have their hands on a big steering wheel.