[PeterPrinciple]

I saw this firsthand on the rigs. The best company men and drillers had a feel for the formation that bordered on instinct. They could read the mud returns, sense a kick coming, know when something was off before the instruments caught it. That kind of knowledge takes decades to develop and it’s walking out the door.
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and why is it walking out the door?

[vpintheak]

Age/retirement according to the article.

[Deaf Smith]

Boom-bust cycles where everyone is laid off, company yards closed and equipment sold off.

I was recruited out off college by Haliburton, worked 80+ hours a week; then the bust of the early 80’s came and everyone was laid off.

That is when one understands the oil field is not a career.