50 yrs old and wanting to start driving, recommendations?

I assume you can examine the Long Form DOT medical and say no to everything to things like high blood pressure (140/90 cutoff) If so then you are generally healthy enough to try this industry.

Trucking school is just enough to learn to take the DMV test. If you are lucky, you will have a instructor of the old school who taught God how to build mountains for us to run. Get all the stories and knowledge you can from him.

Your early weeks and months into your first year on the road will be with a trainer first. For weeks. You have much to learn. And again not so much. It depends.

There is always something of a challenge in trucking, either it's mountain heights, shifting, backing or whatever it is everyone has something of a flaw that needs extra work and attention. Even me.

You will be working to build stamina. You probably will be penned up in a sort of a regional area of the USA first before turned loose to run coast to coast if at all possible. upwards of 3000 miles in 6 days or so, rest 34 hours to get your 70 back and back across you go, no matter how much you ache. You need to roll.

There is always something for everyone in trucking be it tanker, van, flat, specialized, wide, and so on. Local, LTL, Regional, Line Haul and OTR and long haul. As well as JIT, Dedicated and so on so forth etc.

Things have changed quite a bit since 9-11. You will need certain checks, documents and so on with TSA, Homeland security and so on to be permitted access to say a Seaport near ships for container work. Or after 2020 real ID act, if you DO NOT have that upgraded Real ID License with the Gold star in your home state you WILL NOT be granted domestic flights, federal buildings and installations and so on.

You will learn how to plan a trip across the USA in all weather day or night any time. Most people cannot get to the doctor across town within 10 minutes of appt. You will be traveling across the dead of winter storms and heat of summer and so on in all terrain to reach somewhere 10 minutes prior to your appt.

I can go on. But if you really want this life, go get it. It's not for everyone. Good luck.

One parting thought.

you will see the good, bad and ugly. You will NEVER be bored out here. I guarantee it.

 

Where is your location, so we know the hiring area you live in for various companies?
Do you plan to attend a private cdl school or do you want a trucking company cdl school?

 

Right; those "yes" answers can derail a trucking career before it gets started.
"Have you ever smoked weed in your entire lifetime?"
"Of course not!"

 

160 Driving Academy in St. Louis is good if you want a private cdl school. 160 hr. school.
CFI - www.cfidrive.com in Joplin is good if you want a trucking company cdl school.
Milk tanker school in Cabool - Western Dairy Transport - www.wdtmilk.com
Do you have a preference as to type of trucking; tankers, flatbed, dry van, refrigerated?
Do you want to run the roads and see the country?

 

Either way is ok. With a trucking company school you must agree to work there 12 months after graduation for the school to be free.
With 160 Driving academy, you can choose from a couple dozen companies at graduation. In fact, you can contact company recruiters now and ask if they hire from 160 and most companies do.
Couple of good coast to coast refrigerated outfits are Freymiller and Schuster; pretty sure both hire from 160.
For flatbed, look at Melton Truck Lines and Transport National.
I've seen Shuster and Freymiller trucks here in Las Vegas, so I know they come through here sometimes, probably on their way to California.
Freymiller is www.drive4freymiller.com and click on "Recent Graduates."
Schuster is www.schusterco.com
Melton Truck Lines - www.meltontruck.com
Transport National - www.tntrans.com

 

W.W. Transport - hires new cdl school graduates for dry bulk tanker division. For long haul trucking, probably haul flour in dry bulk tankers.
Class A CDL Required
No Experience required for Dry Bulk division. We will train you.
Tanker Endorsement preferred for dry bulk drivers.
Local, Regional, and OTR Positions Available

 

St. Louis Community College - has a 200 hr. cdl school that is 5 weeks long.