Loggin on "Line 3" for TMC

Lunchbox oven works great! I took homecooked leftovers that were frozen in the pans for it (Get at Walmart or Dollar General). Just put the pan in and turn it on. Leftovers this week were BBQ Chicken and Rice and Chicken Parm and Spaghetti. I made a baked potato and chicken one night. About burnt my chicken even. Well worth it for homecooking!

 

Hey everyone it's been a while since I got to post. A lot has transpired over my first week. I had to fly home from Buffalo, NY last night. I spent the day in the ER. I will explain and hopefully those reading can really help me with some advice. If I still have a job with TMC. My first week started with a load out of Orangeburg. I had never hauled the spools and never been to this shipper. I received the load at like 1330 hours. It was a 2 stop load ending in New Hampshire. That's right, over 1300 miles. Stop 1 was in Imperial, PA by 1300 the very next day and NH Thursday by 1530. I was going to be late from the get go but didn't know it. Made it to PA on Wed at 1630 and had to wait at the Consignee till the next morning. No food around no shower. That meant NH would be late. The next day I spend a total of five hours in traffic in Pittsburgh and then in NY(I-95N). I started feeling the harder I tried the further behind I was getting. That day I ate twice and got lucky to park on the on ramp across from a pilot. My only shower was this day and I ate twice but not all of it because I felt like I was wasting time. delivered Friday in NH and bounced 174 miles back to CT to home depot. That load going to Buffalo. Again out of time and stuck at shipper with no food or facilities. Truck stops hard to find there also. All my loads so far had to be rescheduled. I believe that day 1 put me late from there on out and nothing I could do but I put a lot of pressure on myself to drive and get there as quick as I could. I started stressing and not eating. Getting stuck at places with no food when down for my 10 also. I really had no teaching in trip planning. Been very difficult to figure where I am going and where to stop and when. I got to Buffalo at 9am EST. Got the tarps off and rolled up and ready for them to unload me when it all caught up to me. I passed out had an ambulance called for me and spent the next several hours in a ER. I was severely dehydrated. It was a eye opening experience. I called the FM and told them I was going to the ER. They said let them know when I was back at truck. Never got a call to check on me and see if they could call my family. I was told I needed to get out of the truck for a few days and go home for rest. I was offered a bus ride. I bought my own flight home. I told the FM I wasn't quitting but did not want to spend days in a hotel in a place I didn't know. I finally got to eat something at the airport. I got home today at 1100. I have been in bed and taking in lots of fluids.

I know this is long but I hope that I still have a job and they don't look at it as abandoning the truck. I was in constant contact and was instructed that I needed to be out of the truck a few days. I can see now that I never really got any teaching of any kind on trip planning. Planning ahead to know where to stop at. I pushed myself hard and sacrificed my own health which was wrong. I spent more time at places without food and showers also because of the loads I was given right out the gate on my first solo trip. I still like TMC but this could of been avoided by both of us. I wasn't prepared and average length of haul can be thrown out the window lol....1300 miles my first trip. I wasn't ready for that and out a lot for stress and pressure on my self. I now feel a lot of disappointment in myself now too. I am going back to bed now guys....good nite

 

Jeff1971 your health is more important than any job in my opinion, wish you a speedy recovery and hope TMC will not terminate you or considering the truck being abandoned,

 

Ask ask ask.. If you are with as trainer for 5 weeks, you need to pick the trainer's brain.. If you have issues with trip planning, ask the trainer. When you are with the trainer and you get a mission to pick up and deliver, plan the route with all the fuel stops yourself as he is planning it too. 5 weeks is a long time in a truck. If you are offered to test out a week early and you feel you are not ready yet to be on your own, tell him you want to stay that extra week. Those comments are for all the new guys planning on going to a company fresh out of school. Not dogging anyone here because you guys have the experience and I am still planning on going to CDL school.

 

Thanks for the words. I will tell you that the GPS saved me a few times. We have to follow the routing. I do that. I know what highways I am looking for and before taking a turn on the GPS I make sure it matches the routing. Saved me around NJ and NY. Never been there before and can be confusing. I was overwhelmed with that long of a trip right off the jump and the fact that I was behind from the start didn't help. I put the pressure on myself. That will not happen again. If given the opportunity to get back in my truck I will slow down and think. One step at a time and "KISS" Keep It Simple Stupid.