Need A Little Advice

So I'm new here and looking to get started in the trucking world. My current financial situation is a little messed up so I'm gonna have to go through one of the paid CDL training academies. I really need one that pays me while I train because I have child support to pay every week and my ex is quite vindictive and will drag me into court if I miss more than a week. I honestly want to get out on the road and not worry about anything. I don't really have to come home at all. I don't mind staying out for months at a time if that's acceptable. Mainly my kids' birthdays and Christmas are all I'd need to be home for. So with that being said, which company should I look into? I have looked at Swift, Prime, Roehl (my choice at the moment), and a few others. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Also wondering if I should go the company driver route or Owner/Operator? Again any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

Company driver !!! All 3 companies you listed will yield similar results

 

Any of those companies will be happy to keep you out for 'months at a time', but you DO NOT want that! Sure, birthdays and xmas are important but what about the other 40-odd weeks out of the year? I'm sure you want your ex telling your kids how little you love them, since you never come around for your weekends. I'm sure the kids will understand that daddy has to work and blah-blah/yadda-yadda. Once you get off the trainer truck, you should MAKE SURE you're 'at home' every two weeks. You'll regret it if you don't.

 

She's already poisoned their minds against me and they're growing old enough now to make up their own minds about everything. I'm 3 states away (11 hours) from them at the moment, barely staying afloat financially, and I already only get to see them 3 or 4 times a year, so nothing really would change. I'm wanting to do this so I can make as much money as possible to get my own place, and then a lawyer to try to get custody of them. There aren't any +50k jobs around here available with little to no experience.

 

Where approximately do you live? How old are your kiddos? For paid training I highly recommend Western Dairy Transport, though I never trained through them myself.

 

I live close to Nashville, TN. My kids are 13, 14, and 16. I will definitely look into WDT to see if they're comparable to Roehl. Thanks for the info.

 

The two of them are the only ones I know of that actually pay you while you are in school. WDT pays you $10/ hour while you are in class. They train in Springfield MO and the Dallas area. I just wanted to make sure if you got custody of your kids that they were old enough to stay alone while you work. They definitely are and you’re welcome

 

Dont try to go the OO route... At least not until you have experience and know more about the industry and how it really works.

 

Be a company driver the first year or two. Dry van freight requires the least attention from the driver. Companies advertise that Owner-Ops make more money, but many only have higher revenue. Their much, much, much higher expenses easily eat up that extra revenue.

 

Look at the contract and what your obligated to after training is completed. Roehl has a mileage obligation and the other two are time I think. Then find out what you owe if you don't complete the contract terms. You could quit or be fired with one day to go and owe the whole cost of the training.