I don't as I am not a trainer and my experience in January is probably not relevant. JJ and Jess seem to have a pretty good read on the current situation.

Thank You for taking the time to answer the questions from this newbie.

Got lucky and have a tri pack on my assigned company 06, T2k. I was told since this is my company truck, I can take the tri pack and install it on my O/O truck when they retire this truck at the end of this year of which I plan to go O/O. Of course I would have to pay the labor to have that done but can any of the vets here verify this? Thx and excited to be on the Central team! It's a good group throughout.
Trained on a W9, 13 speed and gotta have that 13 from now on and the T2k has it. The only thing I don't like about it from the few minutes I check it out in detail (won't get it from detail/maint until tomorrow) is the steering wheel won't angle down to where I like it so if the Prostar angles down like in the W9 then that is the one for me. Also considering a Pete 386/387, whichever has more space between the seats. My trainer tried to cut me loose after week 3 but miscommunication led me to miss drop off in Fontana so ran another lap around the country for another 2 weeks which was a big help to me since we did things not done in the first 3 weeks. Coors loaded us 79,780k on the last run so I had to trip plan fuel to be no more than 30 gals at each weigh station from Elkton, VA to Golden Co. We were ready for each and got the red only once.

On a previous run we ran out of gas scaling the Allegheny mountains just before one climb in the fog, so I consider that lucky we didn't run out on the climb. What say you vets? What do you do if that happens? (I know not run out of gas) We were just pulling out from the shoulder of an on ramp after a leak stop and rolled about 20 ft back onto the shoulder luckily since that was all the momo we had. It was 2am so out go the reflectors. My trainer said the fuel gauge was off on that one. $408 for 20 gals of fuel.


FYI Techiekate completed her training and is running solo now. One failed to pass the upgrade in our class and was sent out for another week to improve his shifting. He returned for the 2nd upgrade test asnd would not shift higher than fourth to not have to shift too much even after the tester told him to shift more. So the tester made him go on the freeway (the only one that had to) so he would have to shift more. There was 4 in the truck (I went the day before) from a different class that I knew and only they were at the reorientation so he didn't pass his second upgrade driving test. Don't know what is next for him. He is a nice guy so hope he gets it together. BOL all and as Hill st Blues used to say, "lets be very safe out there."

Awesome, thanx for passing on the info on Techiekate. She made it though, proves that you don't have to live on the message board all the time.

Originally Posted by wolfden
I did not come here to get jumped or anything, just stating a fact for what i see. People are giving up jobs to come to Central. As anyone at Central can tell you, don't plan on making any money anytime soon here.


I guess I need to say a little something. My wife (Mama Mia)has been posting here some and I don't want anyone to feel jumped on or anything of the sorts. This forum thread is a valuable source of information that cannot be obtained anywhere else. That being said I feel that any information I post ,whether here or an automotive forum, be accurate and if it is opinion it is well thought out. So now for my situation,it is one that calls for a life change and it really has nothing to do with the economy or how much money I am going to make ect..I have been working as a mechanic for the past 15 years the last 10 at the same place and during that time I have made a very comfortable living. The last year has been alot slower but nothing like the trucking industry from what I have read. I have givin everything to the company and running myself into the ground pysically to get the job done I had a 14 day stay in the hospital two years ago that really put my life in perspective and I felt like if I died tomorrow will I check out of here happy. The answer is a resounding NO. Though it has taken a little time to decide what to do and work up the courage to make a change we believe this is the direction WE WANT to go in. My wife is highly educated and can now sit for the CPA exam but we wanted to find something we could do to be together and still make enough money to get by. I first got my cdl when I turned 21 and and drove OTR for about 4 years(2 at Boyd Bros and 2 at Noble and Pitts). I loved driving, being out and about, not having a manager watching my every move and setting my daily bathroom and cigarette breaks ect.. The problem was my kids were 1 yr and 3 yrs old and I felt like I needed to be around them more than I was. Now the kids are starting college me and my wife can go together,thats the only way it will work, so that when we DO sit wherever that may be for however long it may be waiting to load, unloading, service or repairs, we will do it together we will share in the ups and downs and we are expecting mostly downs. If it was all about how much money I can make I would definatley stay where I am, my wife would finish her MBA and we would work seperately see each other a few hours at night and all day sunday we would have money but we wouldn't be happy. Ok I am starting to sound like a women now LOL ,so I hope no one finds my post offensive as it is not directed to really anyone specific just wanted to tell everyone how I felt. Wow I am glad I got that off my chest. And by the way thanks to JJ, Jess, well really everybody for making this thread informative, intertaining, and updated.....Chris..

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Maybe Someday....

To Rakusa,

I guess I have a small question about the fellow in your class that failed his upgrade because he was having trouble shifting?
Wondering how one gets a CDL to begin with when they can't shift.(that is how we put a vehicle into motion as well as maintain control)

They do just enough at the school for you to get your CDL!!

Its fast paced and you really don't get a lot of driving time before you go out with your trainer!!

When your out with your trainer you are supposed to do a lot of the driving!

Yayyyyyyyyyyyyyy Boise State won

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Bugs the Navigator
Is it left then right? or Right and two lefts? IM CONFUSED!

i would love to drive a 379 but they dont make them anymore but i will drive the 389 lol or a W9 but it needs at least a 500 under the hood 18 speed tranny and 370 gears all the git up n go ya need and fuel millage 2 boot
Thanks Bro Love Ya
Cowboynidaho197

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The Only Easy Day Was Yesterday

Paratroop73,
Like JJ-J said, not much driving before CDL driving test. The second week consists of a half day for each; straight line backing, offset backing and parallel parking and the second half is for rookie road and freeway with a day downtown for one student/truck. I was the one in our group and talk about stress maximus that is it. Then there is mountains and I was in the hot seat for the descent/climbing part on the freeway and luckily didn't stall to a dead stop like some of the others. Central knows that it is not possible for one to be qualified to drive after only 1 week of driving so the 28 days is where the real world training comes.

I heard today they are changing the program very soon to 3 weeks classroom/driving from 2 weeks and from 28 days/4 weeks to 6 weeks out with the trainer. This will be good for student and trainer since the student will get more time and the trainer will get more miles running full on teams for an extra 2 weeks. We were running teams after 2 weeks and he became totally relaxed after the 3rd week letting me pull into truck stops and fueling and pulling out without waking up to supervise/guide. I think the sweet spot for trainees/me was 5 weeks. The loose ends get loosely tied at the end of the 4th week and totally tied in the 5th. At least for me it was. I feel better going solo more now than I would have had I been let loose after the 3 weeks like my trainer originally thought. Even he said I improved 10x at the end of the 4th week. I had a very good trainer beating things into my head and had my minimum 40 backs before the 2 week mark.

At the beginning it's tough to turn on the fly vs. stopping for red and turning on green. Moving and having to set up for the turn, turning, downshifting into the right gear, reading signs watching tandems/front of tractor and 4 wheelers and curbs/fixed objects is overwhelming during the first 2 weeks. You forget about those tandems sometimes during the first two weeks focusing so much on shifting, setting up for the next move and stopping distance feel with a loaded truck. It's scary when on the freeway cruising and seeing traffic stopping with a loaded truck at the beginning. But by the 3rd week the initial things that consumed me at first lessened and then I could focus on tandems, signs/directions etc.. In summation it was all fun from start to finish... except for maybe the first day which is the most stressful with the physical tests. One arm shook lifting the 75 lbs overhead the 3rd time. I wasn't expecting that since none of the other posters from school prior mentioned it. It was probably easy for them.

Some students are in the hotel from the start due to large classes nowdays and they think they are lucky but the first week is beneficial to be at the VIP Lounge since you get to hang with your classmates. study and share what you learned or need to learn and clarify the confusing parts. There is a lot of info in one week for the permit tests. Anyway someone said you get 2 tries on the upgrade test but who knows what's true until it happens.

For the guy that ran out of fuel.
An easy way to get going down the road again is to have a siphen hose with you, and take 20 gal from the reffer. I know this is not the best way for an owner op, but I would rather be honest and pay the company for 20 gal of fuel from the reefer than pay for a road call.
Make sure you mark it down if you do this though. It is illigal if you do not mark it. Because Reefer fuel is untaxed as off road fuel. So if you use it in your truck tanks you are actually breaking tax laws.
Will you get cought? Probibly not. But who needs the hassle of worrying about it.
I also kept a pair of 20' jumper cables with me. If a reefer will not start due to dead battery I could jump it, or if you really screw up and your truck battery is low you can go the other way and jump the truck (if it is not too low).

As for Marten. Well, they may have gone down hill some. I am guessing allot of that was based on there shorter run set up they have been trying. With the intermodal, dedicated and regional runs. I did notice they had put in a sliding scale for short runs recently. So that short runs pay more. And there starting rate is .36 a mile.
They have APU's. They still have all there bonuses. And looking at there numbers they are still making a good profit.
Maybe they have gone down hill some, but the question is, are they better than Central right now?
That is a personel question that people would have to ask.
I would not go back to Central right now. Even if it was directly to my old route on Kraft.
The paperless logs, lack of forward thinking, and shafting of the people that make them money are enough reasons.