Best route to go to get into tankers, hazmat?

Schneider takes students for tanker . He might do all right with them . The other tank carriers don't require tank experience if driver has 2 years OTR

 

I agree about Schneider. A rookie driver has to start somewhere. Since Schneider utillizes vans, tanks, and specialized glass-hauling flatbeds, your husband might could "float" around the different divisions within Schneider to see what he likes best - once his training weeks are over.

This industry is a lot different from what I THINK your prosepctive is. There is no such thing as "more advanced trucking". For instance, when I pull a hazmat load, I slap the placards (provided by the shipper) on the trailer, put the bills where they're handy (DOT requirement), and go down the highway as I would with any other kind of freight.

I've never pulled a tank, but I do know that a driver has to know how to handle the slosh when he/she stops. (I've experienced this myself with barrels/drums of liquid in a dry box.)

I've pulled doubles wherein I had to know that you can't hook the dolly up to the second pup first, but I can't remember why now. I've never pulled flatbed, but I know a driver has to make sure the freight is properly secured on the trailer. That's about as advanced as things get.

By the time your husband gets enough experience to haul nuclear waste, you'll know what I'm trying to say here.

Whatever our endorsements allow us to pull, drivers are reguarded as merely "grunts" in this business. We aren't recognized for the outstanding accomplishments we've made.

I am a 50 yo female driver with all the endorsements and a TWIC card. I have 12+ years experience pulling dry vans, reefers, doubles, and banana containers. I'm still just a grunt. If I drove the rig that moves the President around (if there were such a thing), I'd still be just a grunt - with a security clearance.

 

Prime has a tanker division and they take new drivers.

 

I wouldn't get into tanker right off the bat,if I was him I would start at van or refer and then after a year or two get into tankers.

 

Tanker is like hauling cattle, just more predictable. The sloshing of a heavy liquid can literally push a truck uphill. And just as livestock will tend to lean to the outside of a turn, so will liquid move to the outside shifting the center of gravity. Even erratic shifting can cause loss of traction or control on slick conditions. Certain braking style is needed to prevent liquid surge. A accident has a higher chance of death than normal loads. They used to call us "suicide jockeys". This is why companies want experienced drivers.



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And why is that ? Starting with Prime on Schneider on tank the training will be more tank specific . Drivers going to a tanker company with OTR experience get minimal training at orientation .

 

I thought suicide jockeys referred to explosives haulers . Don't get overdramatic here . I don't agree there is a higher fatality rate with tankers . I've seen plenty of drivers walk away from accidents . Do you have any data to back that up ?

 

I spend years as a driver trainer breaking in OTR guys. Taught them the 'ins and outs' of loading, driving slosh, and plumbing off the trailer to the customer, mostly w/ a product pump, until I was confident they could do it alone.

Tanker Yankers get more training, even if some of it is casual and on the job. Customers won't tolerate drivers that don't know what they are doing.