Heading For Little Rock! Maverick

I disagree. I actually think its one of the best training programs out there. The Congress actually debated making 30000 training miles mandatory for new cdl's. Too bad they didnt. The wishy washy drivers would wash out before getting their cdl and the new drivers would actually be better drivers. I understand the need for drivers but I fail to understand the lack of training requirements before a new cdl holder is turned loose on the highways. Granted some do just fine but many struggle to get thru their first year. Unless they've been on a trainers truck for 3mos and have got some experience in almost any driving situation. Yes you cant get every situation in training,I still encounter new things after 17+yrs,however you can see most normal situations in that time. Training has become a turnover game with most washing out in a year or less. Primes retention rate of new drivers is better than average due to their training program. Please note however I dont advocate Primes lease,however if you dont mind being gone 4wks at a time they are decent for company drivers.

 

I disagree. Compared to older reefers the ones Mav has are very quiet. I dont mind them parking next to me,they arent any louder than an idling truck or one of those diesel fired apus (especially the apus that arent serviced properly and sound like an old lawn mower).

 

Do Experience Flatbed Drivers with verifiable experience have to go out with a trainer?

 

If your experience is recent,meaning no long breaks off the road like a year or two then you shouldnt.

 

Do you just not like Prime Jim or their training requirements? I liken their training to that of airline pilots who even though they may have a license to fly that big jet,the faa and pilots association have rules about how much flight time you must have before you can take the left seat. I think this is where we fail ourself as an industry.

 

It just makes me mad that all of their trucks are different colors LOL!

-JK really... Haha

 

As far as training I would like to see a six-month course. Just like a apprenticeship a instructor would have to have five years experience. The instructors would have to pass a test to make sure they know all the DOT regulations and have a clean driving record.

That way in six months a new driver has been in and out of enough situations be able to handle it on his own. Trucking needs to be looked at more of a professional status then a migrant farm worker. But as long as you have newbies teaching newbies things will not change.

A lot of the drivers that are new don't even like driving. But they got a state grant to go to truck driving school. And decided well let's go give it a try they have no idea what trucking is all about. And you see them out there driving like they were in their cars hammer down, tailgating, speeding, with the mentality of got to go as fast as I can. It seems to me that all they have on their mind is I am paid by the mile and the faster I go the more money I make. Other people's safety and their own is the last thing on their mind.

Nothing offends me more then when I see a truck tailgating a car. I like the old saying per 10 the vehicle in front of you has your family in it.

Well enough on this rant just my two cents worth.

 

Primes program from getting a cdl to going solo can take 4-6mos. If you have a cdl from a school it will take 3-5mos. A friend of mine is a cdl instructor/trainer. Meaning he trains students to obtain a cdl then after getting their cdl he acts like a normal trainer. Primes program is pretty intense. Im not really a Prime fan but I believe their training to be top notch and a model for where we should be going with training. Can you name the entire pretrip checklist? My friend can and so can the students before getting a cdl AND they know what they are lookin for when inspecting those items. I was trained by an old school driver at a van line but I struggled once on my own. Id never been to a big city like Chicago or LA and Id never dealt with rush hour traffic. I almost crashed coming off a 8%grade in Colorado because Id never been over an actual mountain while in training. I almost needed a prybar to get the seat outta my bum after that one.

 

It is good to see someone looking at the situation objectively. It is too easy to jump on the bash Prime bandwagon and assume nothing the do is right.