Burleson Terminal

Discussion in 'Millis' started by stevenneill, Nov 19, 2013.

  1. sapamil

    sapamil Medium Load Member

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    Middletown Ohio
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    Keep the faith and keep us updated
     
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  3. stevenneill

    stevenneill Medium Load Member

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    Nov 11, 2013
    Weatherford, Texas 76086
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    It is 6:10 of day 2, and I am about to go down for breakfast, but I thought I would add something. I have seen a lot of questions about how the Millis School works, and when I was looking I had those questions too, but I couldn't find a lot of info, so let me break it down. Millis Transfer requires 1 year of experience to hire on with them, if you lack that 1 year, then they make one exception. The exception is MTI The Millis Training Institute. Now something I didn't know until yesterday is that Millis owns the Transfer company and the Training Institute, however, they run them separately where this issue is concerned. If you do not have experience, this is the only way to get into Millis Transfer. If you go to college to learn trucking, or if you pay out of pocket for your own training, they will not hire you or reimburse you. With Millis Transfer, you have to be accepted into thier training branch. To be accepted here means that you have been offered a job. Your cost is $5,000.00 That is split between MTI and Millis Transfer. You pay $100 out of pocket to hold your seat at school. You pay $400 cash the first day of school, and then you sign a promissory note for the remainder. The promissory note states that you will allow payroll deductions of $20 per week to be taken from your check for repayment to MTI for $,the remainder of the $2,000.00 owed: $2,500 minus $100 deposit, Minus $400 out of pocket. The last $2,500.00 is owed to Millis Transfer. From the date of hire, In my case it is December 26, you agree to work for them for one year. At the end of that year the last $2,500.00 owed to them is forgiven and you owe nothing else. So that is how it works and why it works as such. Hope this helps. I'll log back in tonight to update today's progress. Meanwhile, breakfast is calling my name...loudly.
     
  4. 77smartin

    77smartin Road Train Member

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    I dunno.
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    $20 will be deducted for 2 years.
     
  5. stevenneill

    stevenneill Medium Load Member

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    Nov 11, 2013
    Weatherford, Texas 76086
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    Yes it comes out close to that. 100 weeks. I am going to opt to pay it off sooner. Harold told me I had the option of paying a large lump sum at any time, so I'll do that after the first year.

    Anyway, second day down, and I don't mind saying I don't like classroom time. I like it cold, you know around 68-66, Harold likes it warm, around 74. It puts me to sleep. Today we worked on trip planning and going over a lot of info I already knew concerning the airbrake system, truck controls, ect. I did learn a lot though. It seems that when I find myself getting bored because I've already studied this stuff over and over, Harold busts out with something that just catches my attention and I learn something new. We have a little more classroom time in the morning then finally, I get to get on the truck and learn shifting. The trainer truck is a little ugly. White with Maroon Fairings, fenders, and a few other odd Maroon parts, so it looks like it is scrapped together, but I'm sure its top notch like all the trucks.

    Dan Millis came in today to do safety meetings. Harold decided I needed to sit in on it, and I actually enjoyed it. Again, nothing new, mostly about rear end collissions and how to avoid them, but he did talk about the Dash Cam issue and how Millis Transfer expects to have them in all trucks by the end of 2014. They had about 20 trucks come in today to get Dash Cams and scanners installed...I think its obvious that they can't do that much. Millis is also installing scanners in all thier trucks so all paperwork gets scanned in and sent via sattelite to wherever it goes. So, no more mailing documentation in as soon as you get a scanner. The trucks with the older qualcoms are being phased out. Dan said the 2009 trucks should be traded out for new models by spring or early summer, with the new truck will come new dash cams and scanners as well as updated qualcoms. Harold requested that Dan sit me down and go over all the Dash Cam stuff as well, but he could not get to me today so he said he will get me in tomorrow. I know most people don't like the Dash Cams and I don't know enough to say right or wrong here, but Dan is showing videos of instances where the Dash Cam has exonerated drivers and he is...of course...focusing on the positives. There were a couple of complaints from a new driver who had a couple of critical events, so it certainly didn't go over without some complaint. We will see on this issue. All in all, I am glad today is over. Classroom time really wears me out. I'm moreoutside, hands on than inside watching films and taking tests...Anyway, I am happy so far.
     
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  6. stevenneill

    stevenneill Medium Load Member

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    Nov 11, 2013
    Weatherford, Texas 76086
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    Well, good morning all. Day three at the MTI acadamy here in Burleson. I left my phone in the car last night because I made a late run and when I got back to the room I decided I was NOT gonna go back down and get it, I mean no one calls me anyway, and I have facebook which is how I connect with everyone here in the room. All I really needed the phone for was for the alarm, and I had the front desk calling me at 5:45, plus I had the tablet with an alarm app for a back up. Sooo...

    I set a redundant alarm for 5:45 and 5:55 just to make sure because thats how I roll. At 5:45 this ungodly screeching bolts me out of bed...I realize its this alarm, so I grab the tablet to stop the screeching in my ears and it...won't...stop...I'm struggling to open the alarm app, and the phone rings...This is your early morning wake up....yeah, I know, I know...meanwhile the alarm is still screeching...Whhhhaaaa, whaaaaa, whaaaa, loud enough to wake the friggen dead. I hang up the phone, hit shut alarm off on the app, and nothing happens, it is still screeching. I delete alarm...nothing, it is still screeching, I finally had to shut the tablet down...needless to say, I am now wide awake. I think tomorrow I will make sure I have my phone.
     
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  7. stevenneill

    stevenneill Medium Load Member

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    Nov 11, 2013
    Weatherford, Texas 76086
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    Day three is over, and man am I tired. Roughly an hour in class then into an older Peterbilt converted to a 10 speed. Tough clutch and my leg cramped up twice today, Had to get out and walk it out the first time. Second time I toughed it out. Drove the Petey for about 4 hours around in circles, shifting through the first five and downshifting back to third. I've driven sticks most of my life, but I don't remember it being this hard. Finally I got about half way decent, and just when I got it so I was only grinding once or twice every fifteen minutes or so, he switches trucks on me. Moves me into a 2012 KW, the clutch was much softer, I kept burying it in the floor, the RPM's dropped twice as fast, I had just gotten used to the shift rythem on the Petey and now its like I've never shifted before...Arrrgggghhh, I was so frustrated. I had to stop, take a breath and calm myself. Finally I got it, I sped the rythem up, found the sweet spot and was able to make it work. Even got downshifting figured out Then Harold decided to take me out on the road. I hit the service road, got through the high 5 and did some Interstate miles, albeit only about 5 of them, but it was an accomplishment for me. Getting into the high five created a whole new nightmare for downshifting...I screwed it up enough that I was not satisfied with my progress. Harold says I am doing great, but I'm just not satisfied. Class time tomorrow, and we are suppossed to get freezing rain, so I guess thats good. Got a one on one with Dan Millis concerning the camera system, and I like the guy, so anyway, thats about it for today.
     
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  8. stevenneill

    stevenneill Medium Load Member

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    Nov 11, 2013
    Weatherford, Texas 76086
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    I didn't update yesterday, not much to update really, and not sure if anyone is even reading this, or if my experience with Millis will even matter to anyone else. I started this because when I was looking for a carrier there were plaenty of "My Experience" threads for all the other carriers, but nothing for Millis. I think perhaps The fact that I found so little negativity on Millis and baritone's OneTrucker'sView You tube is ultimately the reason I decided to apply here, but even so, there are two types of threads I wish I had been able to follow, the "My Experience" thread like this one, and one I have seen nowhere...a "My experience as a trainer" thread. You know...getting inside the head of a trainer and seeing how his experience with a trainee or trainees, I think would help immensely.

    Anyway, Yesterday Harold asked how I thought my progress was going. I answered honestly, I have nothing to compare it to. I am the only person in class, so I can't look at Driver 1 and say I think I'm doing better than him, or driver 2 and say I wish I was doing as good as him, orf the whole class and say, well at least I'm about average. No, for me its just me. I know I am a good driver, so when I look at the trouble I am having, I am not satisfied at all. It took me too long to get double clutching down. Upshifting I still have problems on when I'm on a downward grade, downshifting sometimes just really screws me around. Even being comfortable driving the yard, I'm not confident at all on the road. Our one time experience on the road, I feel was horrible.

    Harold says, you've only been behind the wheel one day, you are really doing good. Is he just being encouraging or am I being too hard on myself? I don't know. I have nothing to judge it by. Being the only student in class has great advantages. I get solid one on one time, I can ask as many questions as I want, and I take advantage of that. Harold can spend more time answering those questions because we don't have 4-5, or even six students with questions of thier own. I get more drive time...in one day I got roughly 7 hours of drive time, and that was with classroom time...so there ARE advantages, however, there ARE also disadvantages. I have no way to judge my progress, I don't have the benefit of learning from someone else's mistakes, I can't get the answer to questions I didn't think to ask, and of course, I am alone, so I have no one to talk to to bounce things off of...It isn't a shared experience...in fact its almost a lonely one. At the hotel, I have no one to talk about yesterday to, no one to share expectations with, its just me. And I guess that is something to get used to, because that's how life will be the next few years. Maybe that should be an advantage and not a disadvantage?

    So, I told Harold I wasn't satisfied, and that I know it is all a process and it has to be done in a specific manner and you can't rush it, but I wished that we could fast forward through all of my mistakes and move on to graduation. He laughed, and then told me that he recieved a communication from Mike Millis that Mr. Millis wanted me graduated by the 20th. That is 6 days before I was originally set to graduate. That is 14 days from today. I've only been on the road 1 time, I'm set to take my CDL class in 13 days.

    Anyway, weather today is bad...for Texas, freezing rain, sleet, ice on all the roads, temperature below freezing all day, wind is cutting through pretty bad, Harold instructed me to be at the Terminal by 9 AM unless he called before 8:30, its 8:26 and no call yet, so I'll be getting ready to leave in a couple minutes. Suppossed to train on coupling and uncoupling today, as well as pre-trip. I have warm clothing, and a heavy leather jacket and gloves, but couldn't find a rain coat or parka that fit me, so I don't have that, and I left my #### leather bush hat at the house...dagnabbit. I KNEW I would forget something.

    Yesterday at the end of day, I went out to the car and checked my phone, had a missed call from my trainer, David from Alabama, didn't catch the last name, but how many trainers named David are there in Alabama? Don't know much about him but based on our short phone conversation, he seems like a good guy. He will pick me up on the 1st of January after he takes a little hometime Vacation and I will get started on my 15k. All in all I am still pretty nervous. I really don't want to screw this up.
     
  9. d o g

    d o g Trucker Forum STAFF Staff Member

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    Sep 20, 2010
    Texas
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    Don't mistake our silence for ambivalence. Your thread has been followed by 39 members over the last seven days. That doesn't include the viewers who aren't registered, or members who might not be logged in at the time that they read it.

    Thanks for the posts - you're doing a great job. Keep up the good work!
     
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  10. Coragran

    Coragran Bobtail Member

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    Apr 8, 2013
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    Exactly as d o g says. I look forward to your updates and check in here every day. Thank you for taking the time to share your experiences!
     
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  11. Captain Call

    Captain Call Light Load Member

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    Sep 29, 2013
    Southern Pines, NC
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    Keep it coming. I love these kinds of threads.
     
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