Going Over the Road with Knight

I am with my original trainer again. All is well and Knight has been running us pretty hard. I hope they can keep that up when I go solo. After driving the Prostar I strongly prefer the Volvo.

 

In a hotel tonight to take my CDL exam tomorrow. After that I am required to go out another 10-14 days with a trainer. I am ready but the terminal manager couldn't convince corporate safety to let me go solo. I still haven't had much experience on a manual so hopefully this next trainer will have a manual. I am so ready to go solo. I am tired of living out of a bag and sharing space with someone.

 

65 is the max. If your MPG is less than the goal you get 63. They have new Qualcomms in most trucks that have elogs, GPS (which works quite well), and performance info. Some trucks still have the old grey box Qualcomm, MCP200 I think is the name. You can download the Knight app, use the transflo app, or use traditional transflo to scan in paperwork. No APUs, you are allowed to idle up to a certain point based on the season, but you do have a Webasto heater and it works very well. It seems many new trucks they are buying will be autos but there are still plenty of manuals in operation throughout the fleet.
I drive in the refrigerated division and it has been pretty good so far.

 

Well...I didn't pass but will be retaking it in 3 weeks. I can do it all out on the road but just couldn't get it right today. I aced the PTI but the alley dock got me. I have done the maneuver multiple times in the real world but looked like a complete idiot today. That being said I now know what to expect for next time and what I am required to do and I think I will be fine next time. I go out with another trainer tomorrow. I normally don't have time to post anything while on the road. I am pretty disappointed in myself.

 

The long wait is an Arkansas thing. Not sure if they are that busy or what the deal is. I plan on calling every few days and hoping someone cancels. I don't want to wait a whole month.

 

For the month of October I got 13,000 miles and 7.5 MPG. They have been doing a good job keeping me moving. I hope that continues as I go solo. My test is on the 13th and I feel pretty good about it. This trainer I have now is a real trainer and has shown me alot. I have done more hairy situation driving since the last exam too. I have been in and out of Los Angeles three times now and got to experience some of those tight, high traffic areas. I feel much more confident behind the wheel than I did a couple weeks ago. My shifting has improved 100% too. I rarely grind or miss a gear now. Things have been coming along.
I have seen some of Knight's new equipment. While they are bringing in Cascadias and Volvo with autos I have been seeing a fair number of new Prostars with cummins engines and a mix of autos and manuals. They are also beginning to install a tablet or scanner you have to walk around with while doing your pretrip to insure you are checking all the correct components.