A friend has offered to help me buy a truck so I have been doing reasearch into the possibility of starting my own company. I know that I would need to get my own authority. Not sure if I can find insurance being a new driver. Also not sure what else would be required/ permits,etc. Suggested trailer? flat, DD, van?? I want to get all my ducks in a row before spending the money on schooling only to be left holding a CDL-A thats basically worthless since everyone seems to want 2+ OTR. I am 45, 20 yrs virtually spotless DMV, I have 1 felony (2002)(no drugs or violence) that makes it hard to find work in any field that would allow me the kind of income I need to support my family. Not looking forward to being away from my family but caring for them is my FIRST priority. Any help and proper direction would be appreciated. Thank You

i wouldnt advise getting a truck as a newbie...for one thing insurance will be like pulling hens teeth

add to it the fact that you know nothing of this industry, let alone good frieght lanes or even what kind of trailer to pull

flats pay better than vans, double drops pay even better but then you hafta get permits and will probaly have alot of d/h

flats and d/d can be dangerous if you dont know what yer doin

get yer cdl....get a few years experiance...then go o/o if you still want to

goin independant is alot of paperwork, headaches and expences.....but gaunteed to fail as a newb...

sorry not trying to rain on yer parade, but being honest

I am in no way offended by anyones honesty. That is why I asked the pro's for thier opinion. If I wanted to be lied to I would call my Ex lol With that in mind do you know any companies that would take on a newbie with a 5 yr old felony?????? Thanks BTW Broncrider I found your thread about going o/o and have enjoyed it very much.... Thank you

you can go to the bigger companies out there and get your time in and then jump to a better company.

for instance, you can jump to swift or hunt or england , etc... get in your time, usually a year, then jump to a better company due to the fact that you will have some exp and your felony will be yet another year older.

if you want some other adivse, don't find a o/o who is desperate for a newbie and will put you in a truck right after trucking school. i did that 11 yrs ago right out of school, i got so many tickets and warnings in my first week than i have had since after that week combined.

the school never told us about weigh stations, neither did the o/o and i knew nothing about them. for some reason i was always ticketed for running the weigh stations. turns out, when the guy in front of you gets the signal to go through without stopping, it dont mean follow the leader...

i didnt know anything about the lights and signals the DOT flashes at you when you pull in, I always seemed to follow the empty flat beds and always within a mile or 2 i would see them nice lights in the mirror. i tell them why i went through, they thought i was lying and wrote me up. after the 3rd one, i stopped at a truck stop, depressed and mad and a old timer explained what i was doing wrong cause he was behind me at the weigh station...

you too will make mistakes, best you do it with a company truck and not your own. you got great advise above, dont start out with your own truck .. and if you dont know a answer, never ever be afraid to ask anyone on here or at a truck stop ... we all share the road and if we can make things run smoother... we will share experiences and help eachother out ..

bubba trucker

Thank you very much. I'll just have to beat the streets to find someone that won't be prejudice right off the bat. No matter where I apply in any field having a felony makes it tough, but someone somewhere will be willing to give me a chance. The trainer I spoke with at the school I intend to attend is an OTR driver and after speaking with him I felt confident that he had no intentions of sending anyone out on the road ignorant or unsafe. I just can't afford to spend 4g's on a new piece of plastic for my wallet. I drove locally for a year, about 20 years ago hauling logs. I also have one friend thats an O/O leased on and a great nieghbor that is semi-retired with his own authority and has offered to help me in any way that he can. So while I have no recent experiece I am not a dreamy-eyed newbie expecting to make millions driving the open roads in a brand new shiny Pete. I currently own my own business repairing Jetski's so I understand the headaches involved with taxes and forms and permits and such. To answer the question before it is asked.This business is too seasonal for a family which I didn't have when I started it. Now I have the responsibility of a wife and her/our 3 kids to consider. I want the best for them even if it means not being able to spend the time that I have been able to lately. Thanks,,,Be Safe

i personally would stay away from the large outfit's....but thats my opionon

i'd find a small outfit ( 100 trucks or so) to get my feet wet, in my experiance there is better comraderie, yer known by name and everyone is willing to help

its to bad the outfit im leased to is goin just o/o and l/o...they had one heck of a training setup for runnin a skateboard

watkins shepard is supposed to be pretty good, and they have a flat division

2nd that (10)

One other thing that you can do, is to do as I did; which is to go to one of the local freight companies nearest to you ( UPS Freight, ABF, Yellow or Conway ) and inquire about apprenticeship opportunities. I started out as a dockworker at UPS Freight last September, where I worked the dock and went out after my shift on most nights and practiced driving the 48' and 53' vans around the yard and backing them up to the docks, as well as learning how to hook up the doubles. Now I am a dockworker/driver, where I go out in the city and make pick ups and deliveries, and I have pulled a set of doubles twice so far, as freight volumes have continued to climb. And I must add that this has been the best move that I have made so far. From what I was told by my supervisor when I first got there: As long as you are dedicated to job, and willingly show that you want to learn the business, and you are dependable, they don't mind moving you up from the docks. You can work the dock and practice with their equipment after work, then go and take your state CDL exams and the road test using the company's equipment and not have to worry about paying $4,000-plus in tuition at a training school. Plus, by you going through a company that will train you in that way, you don't have to worry about sharing trucks with other students who are trying to practice. You just simply clock out when you're done with your shift, then go and get into one of the old tractors, hook up to an empty van, and practice backing up, ally docking, and shifting to your heart's content. Anyway, I won't bore you anymore..... Just my 2 cents..... Be Blessed!!!!

1.Go to school,get your CDL.If cost is a problem,there are state sponsered schools at half the cost of private ones
2.Will a company hire me with a felony?Yes.You may have limited options as far as companies but you can get work.Search Truckers Dispatch.They have info on felons and hiring prospects.
3.Can I get insurance as an owner/operator with no experience?Yes.My insurance company farms out the commercial part to Progressive.I talked to a rep and was told they can insure a new CDL holder and truck with no experience.
4.I was an o/o for 7 years.I liked it,I learned it, but I was single back then and didn't have any mouths to feed other than my own.You need a steady paycheck.O/O can't guarantee a steady income until you learned the business.