Just another new drivers experience with TMC

Day 1- Worst winter storm of year 7degrees. Bus late to the hotel. Arrive at training facility...new drivers meet George. Lmao he's funny. Lots of official paperwork then drug screen and medical physical. Lost 3 trainees to physical. Start taking knowledge, dot and math tests. There are 5 tests and you need an average of 70 across all tests. So you can fail math and the other tests bring up your average.
Next comes the physical skills test. You have to balance (steadily) on each foot for 30 seconds. Then you have to get down to your knees under the trailer and stand back up without knocking your brains out. Then you have to get 120lbs tarp from the ground to your shoulder and place it on trailer. Then you jump or climb on trailer and pick tarp up to shoulder again and place it on the side of a coil and roll it up on too of the coil. Using three points of contact you climb around the coil and drop tarp to deck. Climb off trailer and roll tarp onto your shoulder and carry it to back of trailer and drop it. I lost my roommate and driving buddy. He got the tarp up but he was struggling. He then dropped tarp off coil and had to pick it up a third time. I don't know why he was dropped. He struggled but got the job done. He would only get stronger. Anyway, you have to climb up a ladder to about 13'.
The wind chill is below freezing and snowing like crazy so the hardest part was crossing the parking lot back for lunch. Served really good food, country fries steak. A boy from Philly asked me what we were eating. City boy/Yankees lmao.
More forms and tests the rest of the day. You have three days to take 5 tests so no pressure. Took an hour to get back to the hotel in the storm. It's about 6:30pm. Survived day 1.

 

Day 2 - Freezing!! 10degrees. In the classroom all day. Worked on or tests. Watched basically the same videos u watched in truck school and filled out employment paperwork(I9, w4, etc) till 4pm. Had 1 quit this morning, said he didn't feel comfortable with the requirements of the job. Yes a couple
hours a day flatbeding is hard manual labor.
In the evening we broke into 4 groups. We rotated every hour from 4 till 8 in either the classroom, on the simulators practicing 13 speeds or on the range straight line backing.
On the way to the hotel the bus did stop in an area where there was a gas station and a couple fast food restaurants for 20 minutes. Didn't leave much down time at the hotel but we did get to eat hot food for dinner.

 

Note - if you do not stay at TMC for 6 months they withhold 1/3(est) of your 1st three weeks of orientation/training and you have to pay for the physical u received.
I've never been at a job less than 7 years. If every business in America did this maybe our our workforce would be more productive.

 

Day 3 - Not much new. Hours of service in class and tested after lunch. VA and school reimbursement paperwork and the we took a personality test that I guess helps our dispatcher get along with us.
At 4pm it's an hour of straight line, hour of simulator and 2 hours of class to finish any outstanding tests or videos we are required to watch because they are all due Thursday.
Wednesday was Walmart day...the bus gives you 30 minutes in walmart and the southern boys bought all the arctic bibs and fur hats they had. Tonight ... -15 degrees.
*Tip*. Go back to the same seat or area on the bus when u return. We thought we were leaving someone and waited 10 extra minutes for a dipsh1t that went to the back of the bus to make a call.
Back at the hotel around 9:15pm

 

Day 4 - in the classroom finishing our employment forms. Filling out our benefits package (have the wife by her phone for all the questions that will come up). Went over the performance pay and ways to get our pay higher just by working smarter. Reviewed the 401k and ESOP plans.
We left at 4pm today, but start coming in at 6am from now on because we are working outside. ***If you are not from the frozen north bring winter clothes. Heavy coats, insulated bibs...something you would go hunting in to stay warm. Iowa is cold!!!

 

Day 5 - We started an hour earlier today. We have a new trainer. Mike. You will be in a different classroom and start learning securement. It's a lot of information but he presents it well in another good humored setting. Just pay attention and get the basics because we go hands on with chains and straps on day 6 and there will be another written test on day 7.

 

Day 6 - Load securement. We are broken down into 4 man groups and secure the 8 different loads in the garage bay. Mike went through the 5 we secured Saturday an we also have our handouts. It was good to finally get out of the classroom and do real work. We finished around 4pm.

 

Day 7 - Playoff Sunday. We finished securing the 4 loads we didn't do yesterday. Everyone was much faster securing the loads after the hands-on yesterday sank in. We tarped a load with a steel tarp and then broke it down, folded the tarp and put all the securing devices away. After lunch we took our securement exam on the computers. Everyone passed with at least a 90%!!!
We got back to the hotel by the second quarter of the first playoff game.