Prime: Orientation and Training?

that's what i was saying....for me, since i'm only 5'8" it's easier. As for you guys/gals who are 6 foot and taller, this truck is a joke. For your information, i'm not another smiley face for the sake of the company, but i am thankful for a job. With the way the economy is today, who the hell am I to complain. Your taking my phrase out of context regarding "its all part of being an OTR Driver", what I was saying is, nothing ever goes as planned for a truck driver, we just adapt to it. As a Marine, we learn to improvise. That's all i was trying to say.

 

"Semper Fi" and thank you for your service!

Jim Menke

 

You are all right in my book CJ. Right on man.

 

I haven't forgotten about the pictures, I'll try to get those up soon. Runnin' crazy miles right now (did I mention I enjoy everything else about Prime?) but still like to pop in to see what's goin' on around here.

Cactusjack, I've got to agree with everything you're saying. I give 8 weeks of my life at a time to driving a truck. At what point does profit become more importaint than basic necessities and basic comfort (or even basic wants) of a driver? I mean, look at us. We're talking about having enough room for food and water?!? For Christ sake!

Let's break it down to the four basic necessities of LIFE:

Food: Not really enough room in the truck. Try fast food or truckstop menu's / buffets from now on. Don't worry about the added expense. But keep that BMI under 39 or else!

Water: Try sticking to the 12oz or 1L bottles as needed. If you choose to purchase gallons of water, please drive with them on your head to save on storage. Once again, the added expense isn't our problem.

Clothing: We'll give you a few inches to store that in. Otherwise, try the floor or the glove box.

Shelter: Sure, we'll give you shelter. But no standing....oh, and no AC in the summer. You'll deal with the lack of sleep in 100 degree heat. Also, no room for entertainment. Just work and sleep, please. But we'll keep you dry!

I hate writing these posts. I hate complaining (and yes, I'm now complaining about complaining! ). If you search through all of my posts, you will not find one complaint about Prime, about trucking, about anything to do with this industry, until we started discussing this topic. I don't partake on channel 19 complaints, and am generally very happy with my life, with my job, and with this company. I hate having drama in my life and avoid it at all costs. But this just gets under my skin. That's hard to do.

To be completely and totally honest Cactusjack, I'll probably be the exact person you're telling us not to be! I WILL fight this. I will go up the chain of command a couple levels if they want to stick me in one. But if my initial complaints don't work in my favor, I'll probably go quietly in my little truck and they'll never hear from me again. I'll have just over a year of driving experience when I get my new truck, so I really have nowhere to go. Who's to say any of the other companies that would be willing to take me will be any better?! They might force me to team, or force me to lease, or force me to drive illegally, or force me to run with unsafe equipment....or whatever. So I'll just take my toy truck and adjust. It aint right, but I have no power over this. I'm an inexperienced driver who, in the grand scheme of things, loves this job. It's in my blood now. It's like a drug. Dare I say it's a passion? I don't want to get out of OTR trucking in any way, shape, or form. So until I get enough experience under my belt to go with a top notch company, I'll honestly take what they will give me during this current economy and with my level of experience. Sad but true.

 

I will not make this a prime thing ....
I will however make it a how can you live with a smaller cab then we are accustomed to thing.....

You are right Truckermike you do need to address the situation and ask why...furthermore you do need to stand for your self and let them know comforts are a necessity in our business ..... why else would we be able to drive the hours and go through the day to day B.S. ..... it is that we can unwind at the end of the day and stretch out and watch a movie , reach into our coolers and get a cold water , make a sandwich and not have to worry about if our food is still good by the time we stop because there is no proper storage....I love to carry a barbque with me... if i cant have a place to keep my meat of fixings then what good is my Q? .... where would i carry my briquettes ?

If enough of us voice our opinions and let the higher ups understand the space problems and that we do not want to slouch when we get clothed.... which will turn into back problems for the majority of us.... May be they will listen and give us an alternative.....

Lets just hope that alternative is not the door !

 

im goint to orientation feb 9 and i was just wondering about how much money could i be bringing home when im on my own

 

I am tempted to say I've heard it all but I fear that I have not although the cab overs were not exactly living in luxury.

 

Do you guy know when your 1 year contract starts when comes to training? Is it after the 60k team miles or after you get your cdl with them? Thanks

 

To my understanding, it is after you get your CDL... that makes sense too. After all, that is when you start getting a paycheck from the company.

 

Thanks, I was thinking of switching over to crete after 6 mos if they stick me in the new Pete. I saw one on the capitol beltway the other day and its small! Small enough to make me pay prime for tuition and go with another company after i get trained. I'm pro prime, just not the trucks! I do not drive right now, but I plan on spending several months on the road at a time and if I can't even stand up in a truck, I would go insane.