New Driver entering training, curious about etiquette

When I was with trainer my goal was to learn what I could from him. Not taking everything he said so seriously. To get thru the training to get my own truck. My trainer was good guy. I remember him say turn the radio up when I was driving because he liked it loud when we was in back sleeping. Looking back he probably just knew listening to radio would help keep you wake and enjoy driving.

when I was a trainer long time ago. I did not talk politics or ask guys personal questions. Two guy in truck is the hardest part of the training. I told my students do not give up now your almost don’t with the hardest part. Once you get your own truck it’s much easier.

Everyone had a story abut how they got into trucking or doing it for different reasons. Some guys were just trying it out to see how they liked it as job. Others their father was a driver, so they wanted to be a driver also.

One thing most drivers have in common is they like being alone. They feel most comfortable when they are by themselves. So living in a truck with not much privacy is not easy for most guys. I always let the student have one side of cabinets so they could put their clothes in if they wanted vs living out of duffel bag. Stopped once a day for showers and washing clothes at truck stop when needed. Your trainer should let you sleep on bottom bed when truck is moving. The top bed is not for sleeping when moving. You can easily fall down if the driver has hit the bakes hard. You probably will get hurt.

 

Team showers..don’t fight it, just let it happen.

Nothing wrong with going to Swift..They aren’t even on my radar as far as unskilled drivers go.

 

Wow. That sounds like the two drivers would be sharing the same shower room. Gross.

It isn't that.
A team shower is when the two drivers each get their own shower room using one shower credit.

 

Glad you clarified that for all.

 

You had to ruin it..thanks a lot

 

Some thoughts, not really in any order:

• You know NOTHING. I don't care how long you've been driving or about any other experiences you have that may be relatable to truck driving. Go in as a blank slate and listen/learn what you're being taught.
• If an instructor is talking, it's generally worth listening to. They are not talking because they like the sound of their voice.
• You will have a lot of Computer Based Training (CBTs). CBTs are very possible the worst way to convey information, but they are 'mandated by lawyers'. With CBTs there is no way you can claim you weren't presented with a piece of information. As you're doing the CBTs, write down questions about the material. At the end of the 'lesson', write out a short summary. This will help with both comprehension and retention.
• There is a lot of information to learn. It's like drinking from a fire hose. Don't let yourself shut down and stop paying attention. In the weeks and months after training, go back to the training materials and review them. You'll find stuff that you missed and things you thought you understood will make more sense.
• Be on time. If you think you're going to be late, text your trainer.
• Always get in on the driver's side - assume you're going to be the one driving/doing 'driver stuff'. It always pissed me off when I got to the truck in the morning or after lunch and found the trainee in the passenger seat.
• When touching anything outside the truck, wear gloves. Take the gloves off before touching anything inside the truck.
• Have a notebook. Write down your load information (customer info, location, appointment times), your trip plan (etas, planned stopping points, etc.), and your actual arrivals, departures, and overnight locations. Once the trip is done, compare your original plan to what actually happened. Were you ahead, behind, or just about on plan? The more critical thinking you do, the better your trip plans will get. The better your trip planning, the easier your life is and the happier Ops will be with you - which results in getting more/better miles.
• A lot of the loads won't make any sense to you. Part of that is you know NOTHING, part of it is the nature of the industry. Sometimes we do the dumb things because it is the best dumb choice available. Sometimes we do the dumb thing to make the numbers look pretty for lower upper management.
  
• If you want to talk on the phone, get out of the truck. No need for your trainer to have to listen to you.
• Go to bed. When you stop, you're going to be exhausted. Part of it is physical, most of it is mental. After you eat dinner, read, watch tv, etc. you'll feel a lot better. Then you'll binge a season of the Sopranos before realizing you need to be up in 2 hours.
• Watch what you're eating - not just about making healthy choices, but also about what's going to 'run right through you'. I don't eat apples in the morning because I know I'm going to need a restroom in a hour or so.
• Don't trauma dump on your instructors/trainers. I don't want to know about your life struggles.
• Don't let your wife/girl/mother call your trainer.
• Do be proactive. If you know you're doing a drop and hook, - don't wait for your trainer to ask 'whats next?'. Post trip, uncouple, couple, pretrip, do the paperwork.
  
• Don't get upset when your trainer answers a question with a question. He's trying to make you think by showing you the way to find the answer.

Good luck.

 

Werner Trainer Craps Himself

 

Yes can never forget this. Brings a tear to my eye. Should win a pooplitzer prize for writing. Toot toot.

 

New way of teaching, give advice so new person doesn’t embarrass themselves. Or the trainer. It could possibly work. But one question, why? Are you having to much fun in life? Lots of sarcasm here.

 

If the trainer keeps filled p bottles in the truck ask for another trainer. If the trainer doesn't shower at least every other day, or it smells bad and truck has trash on the floor, ask for another trainer. MANY trainers just have 90 days more accident-free CDL driving than the students.