Prime Cuts: Alec's Trucking Adventures

Patience, my man.......Patience!

Been what.....a few days?

It definitely is a lot to take in, and is going to take........TIME! (And a hell of a lot of repetition)

You have to have the mindset of "I'm going to do this!", no matter what it takes, no matter how hard it seems (for now). And, it WILL PASS! Got to trust us all on this.

A big character aspect you MUST develop out here is die hard resolve, & an ability to face difficulties & problems head on, no matter what. The last week or so I've been having has been fraught with nothing but problems & frustration. Royal pains in the arse. But, you know what? It WILL pass! Going to make me appreciate much more how good things are when back to normal.

Maybe you do need another instructor with more experience. I was told once by an oldtimer, "I can teach ANYONE how to drive a truck....that's the easy part. Getting someone to learn the JOB?.......Now, THAT'S the hard part!" Found this statement to be so very true.

Pick your head up, kick yourself in the arse & tell yourself...."######, I can do this!" Because YOU CAN. Your just letting your emotions defeat yourself. DON'T ALLOW YOUR EMOTIONS TO RULE YOURSELF! It will be your demise in ANYTHING you do, not just this circumstance.

Can't wait to see you post later on down the line, once you look back, and try to help some other new guy. Just like I see Chucktshoes doing for you. Man, you guys have a lot in common.........and you see he survived! And, I think he might actually know how to drive a truck now!

We were ALL where your at right now, that's why we care.

Good luck buddy. Make your mind up........and just DO IT!

PEACE

 

Thanks for the nod, FMJ.

Alec, everything FMJ said is spot on. I came very close to quitting several times. I thought there was no way I could get a handle on everything and safely operate what at the time seemed like this giant machine. Once I got my head right and decided that I wasn't going to let it beat me, I was able to start putting the pieces in place. You can absolutely do the same. Then in six months time when still a rookie and still green in many ways, yet you have proven to your FM and the folks whom you work with that you are one of the more reliable drivers in their fleet with a 100% on time record and a reputation for always being willing to cover loads, you can come back and tell the next cat coming through training thinking about throwing in the towel that he can do it. Just like you did.

 

Learning how to drive a truck is the most difficult thing I've ever learned to do next to learning how to flatbed. That first week on your PSD truck is grueling. I was ready to quit on day 3 or 4 of being out on PSD because I didn't think I could make the cut. I was lucky enough to have an awesome instructor whom also became a friend and talked these things out with me.

Now I'm 3 months solo, and I still can't drive, but I learned how to not care. I just run junk over and tell all the other drivers to go to that special place. Everything worked out.

 

Hang in there....... It takes time, none of us learned in two weeks.


P.S. Years ago I was behind one of your trucks that stopped dead on a uphill ramp to the x-way. I'm sure he/she got lost in the transmission . Your not the first/last one to do that....

 

Just patience I didn't fully learn to back up till I was in the oilfields so you'll get it.

 

I have been with Prime for just over 6 months and 3 months solo. No more than a month ago I was at a drywall shipper in OK and hit the side of the building with the trailer backing into the dock. One of the workers came out and had a rather bemused look on his face and pointed to where I hit. Sure enough it was crumbling from where untold numbers of trailers had made impact. Sitting in truck stops watching trailers backing in, I see students, company drivers, lease ops and owner ops fail again and again at backing trailers. Do not let your self doubts overtake your rationale mind. Everything about trucking can be broken down into simple steps. Once you have taimed the chaos, every step shall fall right into place. Stick it out Driver.

 

Exactly as jmadd said, I've been driving for 6 years have had all kinds of backing especially in the oilfields where I questioned if a truck can even get in there lol I still have bad days.

 

I try to use every opportunity I can to practice backing. Say I go to a truck stop in the middle of the afternoon and need to 30, instead of just pulling through a spot, I'll go to the back row and get a back in. If I can find a really tough back where I won't be holding any other trucks up while trying to get into it, I'm always up for that.

 

Hopefully this guy didn't throw the towel in. Hasn't posted in awhile.

 

I hope not, but I get the feeling that he has by his absence. It's a real shame. I went through almost the exact same thing and I think he could've come through it as well. I think what I had that he didn't wasn't experience trainer who is able to help me over the hump.