Should I believe what this company is telling me?

Why???? After your first year you can get a much mich better job paying 60k to 100k. Why stay for 43k?

 

Swift flatbed will be ok.
Schneider Bulk would be better; probably $65K your first year. Schneider Bulk is tanker division.
CFI - www.cfidrive.com - is good for dry van. CDL school will be in Missouri; all expenses paid. @Ultratowel can fill you in on CFI pay and current info. on the school.
Jim Palmer Trucking is a good refrigerated outfit with their own cdl school. Coast to coast refrigerated trucking and really good pay structure.

 

Nyseto, Yes you can make 60K plus per year after you have a year of experience, providing you keep your driving record spotless, and no that doesn't require team driving. Try not to get too wrapped up in the future and concentrate on getting a solid year behind you. I'm not going to bust on Swift, but I do believe there are better opportunities out there. You need to put forth the same or better effort researching companies than you do getting excited on this forum. You will get a ton of varying opinions here, and most are at least somewhat helpful. Do your research...call the companies...get any agreements in writing...get some experience...keep your record clean...then you can make some good money if you're still interested in being a driver. Good Luck to you!

 

What You should do is get your cdl through the Swift school and go right over to Tmc. They have a terminal close to you, and they’ll do tuition reimbursement. If you want to flatbed.. Swift is a dry van company, I’m guessing you’ll be thrown to the wolves doing flatbed there.
I’d suggest going out with a trainer with swift for as long as you can , but Tmc would make you go out with a trainer for probably 6 weeks also.
Tmc won’t be less than 50k a year, potentially 70k. That’s already a nice raise. Tons of other threads on here about them.

 

$75 is deducted from your check every week for 13 months, BUT $ 37.50 is re-imbursed to you (every week) for the first 26 months.

If you quit before 13 months, you will owe them $75 for each week short of the 13 months. After the 13 months, they continue paying you $37.50 each week....and at 26 months, you have been paid back for your schooling.

So, you owe nothing after 13 months, having paid half of the $3900....and after 26 months, your CDL school was free.

 

It sounds corny but every stranger is just a friend waiting to be found,especially if he or she has the same goals in mind. I like my friends but I wouldn't want to spend a day in a truck with some of them. As far as that 2yrs.goes, that's a long time to be an indentured servant, if I was new, which is actually what I am to the mega companies I would sign up for a year and then try to do better.It seems that 42 CPM is the industry standard for a beginning skateboarder, plus accessory pay like Chinatown posted. Before you sign any contract look it over with someone you trust before you sign it,that way if you drop out you don't end up owing them money.Like that hand said there'll be weeks when the frieght doesn't click and you wind up with a lesser mileage.

 

I was in your shoes 6 years ago. I ended up going to Prime to get my cdl. I'd suggest checking them out. Keep in mind I have no idea whats changed in the last 5 1/2 years so do your own due diligence (the prime forum on here would be a start) They have a heck of a set up in Springfield, Mo. There terminal has bunk rooms, pool tables, movie theater, a darn good restaurant and a full size basketball court all under the same roof. They put me up in there private motel and fed me 3 meals a day in there own cafeteria during orientation. (really good food and alot of it) After orientation and some training on their pad I left out with an instructor and did 3 weeks driving on my cdl permit with him in the passenger seat. They will loan you 200 a week during this time. (paid back at 25 a week once you go solo) Came back to springfield and passed my cdl test and ended up keeping my instructor as a trainer because we got along so well. Trained/teamed with him for a few months making 600 a week. (website says 700 now I believe) Came back to springfield and was given my own new truck and paid .43 a mile (top pay for a newbie 6 years ago) They kept me busy and I averaged around 2500 miles a week. (keep in mind that's the equivalent of 3500 in recruiter talk LOL) and treated me good for the rest of the time I was there. I grew up with family members that drove and knew I wanted to get away from the mega carriers first chance I got so I skipped out for a local comapany after 6 months. I turned the truck in and they kept my last check and sent me a bill for the remaining 2000 or so but luckily never pursued it further. I don't miss driving for a mega and would never go back but I would pick them again in a heartbeat if I had to start all over. I pulled a reefer there but I became good friends with a guy in orientation who went to the flatbed side and he had a good experience there as well. He stayed about 6 months longer than I did before moving to a local company in his hometown.

 

Am I loosing my mind? Is this the hardest post ever written to comprehend? I don't know, maybe I should get off the road and go back to an office. Just Wow!

 

You mean his buddy that’s alread flaking out? Horrible idea. Horrible.

@Nyseto, you’re probably more confused now than what you were when you started this post. Simplify things. You say you want to run team, but I don’t think you should. You can’t trust your buddy and you’re hesitant about a stranger. So plan for a start to run solo.

Next, they talked you out of your plan rather easy. But how do you know the members here are telling the truth or blowing smoke? Time to your research.

One more thing, as a company schmuck, you want $200/day minimum. Figure that in your equation and tell me what you have to do to do it.

Luck in battle.