Starting with Roehl in February

Tarping in 10 below with a 40 mph wind gust. No thanks. Roehl offered me that and I passed. I knew flatbed was NOT 4 me after 8 weeks of training for Howard Transportation in Laurel MS.

 

Yeah, been looking at videos. Seems like an hours hard labour before driving and earning your pay

 

Open the doors, close the doors. All I want to do. Leave that skateboarding for the younger guys.

 

Probably not, if you're doing national OTR. More likely, your carrier simply doesn't have either the assets or the freight to support it.

Don't let it bother you. Refrigerated doesn't really pay any better, and you tend to spend a lot of time waiting to be live loaded or unloaded. Reefer trailers are expensive, compared to dry box, so there tends to be lot less of drop-and-hook freight. Also, there is the issue of trailers running out of fuel, to deter preloading...

You'll likely be happier in dry box. Less dealing with lumpers and comchecks, and less maintenance issues, too. Even sweeping out trailers is less of a pain, in a dry box, than in a reefer.

 

Learning van is probably best IMO for a new driver. Entirely less responsibility for you to encounter. Hone your skills with a van and seek different avenues from there once you gain pure confidence. I learned pulling a reefer. The places you go and the things I had to do to deliver refrigerated freight makes me cringe.

Good luck.

 

Not to mention washing out reefer trailers. Waiting in line at the Blue Beacon in Dallas, one time I waited over two hours plus because of a break in winter weather. Also middle of the night pickups and drops are common in reefer too. Had to babysit a few reefer loads. Reefer breaks down in the middle of the night, its Thermoking to the rescue. If you are out of hours, they come to you, otherwise, you take it to them. Dry van, more normal people hours and way more drop and hook, too. Dry van is not a bad place to start. Way less complicated!