are u in memphis ? if so what school are you attending ? im going to tennesssee technolgy in june....

Yes I'm in Memphis. There are a lot of options here.

I am thinking of either ASU about 90 miles west of Memphis or...

Roadmaster, or Swift.

I personally know at least a half dozen truck drivers (family, friends) and most of them have worked for Swift and say its not bad but you have to work hard to get the miles (mostly just take whatever they give you unless its illegal). The non drivers at Swift actually get paid a bonus if they keep the trucks driving so they SHOULD be there to work FOR you but if you piss them off then you will get the trashy loads.

The companies I am considering are:

Swift
USA Truck
US Express
Schneider
or CFI

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Kevin

when do you start ? im starting in june set to finish in august.im a retired policeman and looking for some good money to supplement my income.at 42 i can work another 20 years for some one else...oh by the way im in memphis too

They all said I could start within 2 weeks but I'm waiting for my 2007 Federal & State income tax refunds from when I lived in Kentucky. Should be sometime this month when I get them. I am totally broke and out of a job right now because of a misdemeanor domestic assault charge I had a year and a half ago when my wife and I were going through a divorce. I'm eligible to get the charges expunged b/c I have been a good boy

Its amazing how if you mess up once in your life almost NOBODY will consider you for employment. These trucking companies seem to be forgiving (mostly). I know there is a lot of crap said on this forum about Swift but I have talked to a couple of current and former drivers and they say the training is ok and it just depends on who you are teamed up with for a DM or Dispatch as to if you get screwed or not (and thats with any company).

I'm planning on saving most of the money I make to go back to college and finish my degree and maybe a down payment on a house.

My game plan is to drive for 5 years full time, then find a part time local run somewhere so I can go to school. My degree is in aerospace (Professional Pilot). I actually have all my single engine ratings (commercial pilot, flight instructor). There is NO money being a flight instructor. I did that for one year and made 11,000 gross.

What part of Memphis are you from? I live down hwy 72 near the Goodman Rd exit.

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Kevin

Well, driving a truck can hold you over until you find a good paying job that will help with that retirement.

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TRUCKING - SO EASY A CAVEMAN COULD DO IT... AND A FEW HAVE ALREADY BEEN HIRED TO DO SO

im in south haven .just moved here because of king willie....the infamous mayor of memphis tennessee

driving a truck is a good job right ? until i find a good job is what i consider truck driving is.right ?

Driving a truck is a great job if you are inclined toward this kind of work. If you want to make lots of money at it.... well, there are many different definitions of "lots".

You can keep the bills paid, kids fed and in clothes, and make a conservative payment on a mortgage, above that, you will be disappointed until you get some miles under you.

There have been some that have come into this profession with the idea that it is a job to make good money at, and in a way that's true. But they are soon disillusioned at the reality of it. There is much more to driving than just driving, as you well know.

I think a person that is to be successful at this line of work will want to do a good job first, and let the money fall where it may. If you can do the work right and better than the next guy, you will be noticed by those that look at these things.

Don't be late if you have a deadline, call ahead if you are going to be late, don't dump the truck or load, don't get tickets like for logbook or speeding and the like, don't call to your dispatcher and whine all the time..... notice all of the negative things to avoid? These kinds of things the unsuccessful and disgruntled driver does, and he/she wonders why they can't "get ahead" with their company.

Using myself as an example, I was driving for $10 a day when I first started, and that was OK for me then because I was single and young, without experience. As I got better, I got raises, and I got praises from my former employers as I moved on to other jobs.

Now I earn (maybe I shouldn't say, but I am not bragging) $72,000 a year, and I am getting regular raises too. But that comes with 25 years of doing the best I can and trying to improve at the same time.

Driving is more than just driving, any monkey can hold the steering wheel. When it comes time to blind side into a tight dock (for example), that's when the real driving happens. And you gotta train for these kinds of things. Train, train, train, practice, practice, practice. Only by doing the hard things over and over will you get to where these hard things are not so hard, and then you begin to look better than the next guy when you can just pull up and one shot your rig into the spot that the last guy took 5 minutes to get into.

Just my 2 cents.

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TRUCKING - SO EASY A CAVEMAN COULD DO IT... AND A FEW HAVE ALREADY BEEN HIRED TO DO SO

Well on my last job I made $8/hr as a customer service rep which is like $240/wk after taxes. I sure hope I'll make more than that pulling loads.
Even at 26 cents a mile if I drive only 1500 miles a week that puts me at about $290/wk after taxes.

If I read correctly on this forum somewhere most people consider 1500 miles a really bad week

There are OTHER jobs I can get that will pay me similar pay, but then I have to worry about being layed off.

I used to work for Dell - Got layed off (made 32k off of commissioned sales in my first year)
I worked for a bank - Got layed off (moved call center operations overseas)
I worked for a telemarketing company (the $8/hr job) and got layed off.

These office jobs have no job security. There will always be trucks to drive and there will always be a growing population that will consume things that we need to deliver. So as long as people keep living we will have a job.

Your right about the money thing though. It depends on your business relationship with your DM as to what kind of loads you get. If you complain a lot then they will give the good loads to someone who goes the extra mile and takes the crappy loads to get to the good loads. You never know what your DM has in store for you. They may have a great load waiting for you, but in order to get to it you may have to take a crappy load to where the great load is.... hope that made sense.

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Kevin

good point