Californian looking for paid CDL training

Here is a consideration..... they train you get you cdl a and you agree to work the 3-4 month season

 

Almost every CDL school I've ever heard of has a partner company that loans money for CDL school. Ask the CDL school about a loan. That's how most people pay for CDL school. You take out the school loan & you must repay it according to the terms of the original loan & then trucking company gives you Tuition Reimbursement TR amount according to trucking company policy. That's to say your loan payment is one amount & the company TR is a different amount. That TR amount may be more, less, or same amount as the school loan monthly payment.

 

Go with Swift Refrigerated.
That reefer experience is good to have and also plenty of freight during recessions. Even during recessions, people need food and medicine which is refrigerated.

 

Swift is ok.

Again -- start off in dry van.

For reefer duty: be sure to learn how to use the "split sleeper" DOT clock feature (& also, "personal conveyance"...aka, "PC")....& then after 6 - 8 months of dry van...if you still want to try reefer....go ahead.

With Swift -- if you try reefer & later decide you don't like it -- you can still go back to dry van with Swift.

-- L

 

Stay away from dry van. You'll make more money pulling reefers because most runs are longer and the accessorial pays are better.

 

I started my career with dry van and it sucked. Switched to reefers and found a career home and stuck with refrigerated OTR for 18 years. Money was important, with a family to support, so dry van just couldn't cut it financially.

 

Another issue to consider, you can haul refrigerated and dry van freight in a reefer trailer. You can only haul dry freight in a dry van trailer.
An example of many: hauled a load of produce from Florida Everglades to Ohio. Unloaded in Ohio, and dispatcher said, you can get moving right now with a dry load. I said OK and took a load of paint from Ohio to Los Angeles.
Load of produce from Los Angeles to El Paso, Texas.
Load of ceramic tiles (dry van load) from El Paso, Texas to Jacksonville, Florida.
Then, a load of tomatoes from the Florida Everglades to Los Angeles, CA.
On and on that way. Kept the wheels turning.
All pays were refrigerated pays, no matter what my reefer trailer was loaded with. As a company driver they all paid the same.