Questions for the swift ladies

Okay. I will answer what I can and skip the rest.

1. Yes, there are female trainers. However, not very many. I trained with a man and had absolutely no trouble at all. We each respected the other's privacy and sense of propriety.

2. It depends on availability of female trainers. Since they don't make up a very large ratio of our trainers, the wait will be longer for one. The more qualifiers you apply to your trainer demands, the longer your wait will be. There just aren't a lot of solo women out here willing to train.

3. I am not a trainer. Let me direct you here to answer any questions about that:
http://www.thetruckersreport.com/truckingindustryforum/swift/132419-injun-a-mentor-trainer.html

4. I like sharing any help I can offer others, but not through living with them for a month and more.

5. Not applicable to my arrangement with Swift.

6. I am OTR.

7. Obstacles. My biggest was being taken seriously. Much of this is due to some of the "girly-girls" who preceeded me. I am comfortable and familiar with what's under my hood. When I go to a shop, I expect the mechanic to listen to me and look into what I say is going on, not to deliberately find another reason for my problem and then send me down the road with a malfunctioning truck...simply because he felt like I stepped on his d*** by diagnosing my own problem. Shops are service facilities and it's about time they remember the "service" portion of that equation.

8. I idle for air conditioning. I haven't heard of anyone getting in trouble for idling when it is necessary. Like in the desert for your safety and health. Although I have run an entire summer in a black truck with no air conditioning.


There are some things I like to tell new female drivers, especially those who want to run solo, as I do.

Never disrespect yourself, either on the radio or in your day-to-day conduct. You will be treated in the manner you behave. If you behave like you want everything in a pair of jeans, you will be treated that way. If you behave like you have some self respect, you will be treated with respect. Walk with your head up, shoulders back and look people in the eye. If you act scared of your own shadow and hide in your truck 24/7 because you don't want the big-bad truckerwolf to eat you, people you should be afraid of will sniff this out. Weakness or the portrayal of weakness is not an option. Neither is false bravado. Just be yourself and be smart about where you park and who is around you. 95% of the men out here are decent guys. That's the thing to remember.

Do your own work. If you don't know how to do something, ask. Most likely, there will be someone willing to help. But do it yourself with that help so you can learn it. Never let a man back your truck. Throw your own chains. Check your own oil and tire pressure. Secure your own load. Set your own weight distribution.

Drivers watch things like this. Drivers notice little things, like how your chains are arranged on your rack. They will pass judgment on whether your chains are neatly arranged and ready for use or just a tangled-up mess thrown onto the storage racks willy-nilly. I'm using this as an example of the things that set a pro apart and garner respect.

What you wear can make a difference on your treatment out here. This is work. It is not office work and sometimes we have to do things that will get us dirty. Like crawling around under a trailer to secure a low-hanging air line, or banging on stubborn tandem pins with a 4-pound hammer. Dress like you're ready to go to work. Keep your flip-flops in your shower bag. You don't want your feet sliding off the sides of them and ending up in someone else's urine puddle anyway. If you feel like wearing makeup, go on ahead. It's your face. I don't, but that's because I'm far too busy to mess with it. Be careful how low-cut you wear your shirts. Not saying you can't be pretty and feel attractive, just saying it may be taken as sexual harassment by some of our male peers. Most men love looking. But there are some who are just as offended by revealing clothing on women as I am by Spandex on men who don't believe in skivvies. Be yourself, but be sensible.

Guys talk differently when they don't know we're listening. Don't be offended by it. They are who they are. If it gets over the top, simply make your presence known or remove yourself. On the radio, it can be done by asking sweetly for a radio check ....or turning the radio off.

I could go on and on about this. Bottom line is do your own stuff and be respectful.


And go find a quality BS-o-meter.

 

There are female trainers, but just like female drivers, there are not as many female as male. We are still a minority in this biz. So, you would probably have a longer wait. I don't know of any Swift ladies here on the forum who train. Me personally, I'm not a good teacher. I tend to get frustrated and impatient and make the person I'm training feel stupid.

You should be able to take the truck home. Swift does have a policy requiring drivers to turn in the truck if hometime exceeds a certain time frame. That time frame varies from terminal to terminal. I've gome home for 3 days without a hassle, but when I'm gone for a week or more, like now (I'm off for 8 days), I drop the truck off at one of the yards. This covers my own rear end, because Swift has been known to come after trucks and clean them out for the driver, and things come up missing when this is done. So I play by the rules, clean it out myself, and all valuables come with me.

I am OTR. It takes the entire country to hold me

I don't think there are big obstacles for ladies. A few little annoyances, but no big stuff. Sometimes there might not be a restroom available for you. A few of the old truckstops don't have showers for the ladies (very rare). Pulling the trailer tandem release handle can be tough on us, since we don't have the upper body strength of a man. And, yes, there are a few jerks out here. But that's true in any job.

Idling is allowed within reason at Swift. I don't like to idle in the summer- I think it's counterproductive for one thing (idling creates heat) and I spend so much time outside that it's better for my body to adjust to the heat than to hide in a refridgerated cab all day. Window screens and a 12v fan work fine for me in the summer. A little sweat never killed anyone. But if you must have A/C, you will get hassled a little, but I don't know of anyone fired for idling.

 

If you go online and lookup 12 volt truck accessories or 12 volt truck supplies online you will find a ton of sites. Be careful some of them are not much cheaper than some stuff I have seen at the local truckstops.

 

Swift will allow inverters as long as they are not hard-wired to the truck electrical system. With an exception. If you are on CPAP for sleep apnea, you are allowed a larger inverter...and if I remember correctly, will install an APU to support it. But I could be way off base, too. Things change fairly often.

 

How often I go home varies dramatically. Sometimes I work a few weeks, then take a long weekend, other times I work 2 months and take a week off. It all depends on my plans, and what works best for me at that time. The minimum time out is 14 days, there is no maximum. You earn one day off for every week you work.

When I've cleaned the truck out and turned it in, I have never gotten the same one back. The one I turned in will be assigned to another driver, and then I get whatever's available when I come back.

You can go home to sleep, as long as you do not have a high value load. You will be required to purchase a kingpin lock and padlock from Swift- use them anytime you drop a trailer. High value loads are not common, but when you get one, they will be watching you, so play by the rules and stay with the load.

As for inverters, 400 is generally the max for a cig. lighter style, but don't expect to actually get 400w out of it. The number the manufacturer puts on there is maximum output under ideal conditions- not realistic under normal circumstances. A smaller inverter will work fine for charging phones and laptops. When it comes to larger stuff, buy with a 12v cord and plug it in directly. You will not have a microwave in a company truck. Get a lunch box oven instead. They work fine for cooking and heating.