C-1 Truck Driver Training, Driver Solutions (PAM)

I just want to let you all know it can be tough out here, be prepared for it that's all. I wish you all the best of luck though.

 

i would recommend any C-1 Truck Driver Training school to any rookie or veteran. They have some trainers who have been around the trucking business for at least 2 decades or longer.

 

I am glad to hear this positive feed back! I was getting really woried that I got myself into a mess. I am ready and looking forward to my new carreer as a truck driver. I have got some great advice from some great people out here. However, I have a few questions about C1 Training in Little Rock. You said if your going with USA there is a abostacle course, will they go over this with you and how to manuever it in class? Also, after graduation, how long is it before you actually get into a truck with a trainer and on your first haul with him or her? Thanks again for all of your input on this class.
Be Safe,
ringo43

 

Hello Ringo,

I'm glad to be some help to you. There's a lot of incomplete and negative information out there concerning our new career. Not to say there isn't some negatives about truck driving. But, there are negatives about any job or career and no more so about trucking than any other, I dare say. I'm not any expert, for goodness sake. Been only in this line of work for a month, and that as a trainee. But I've got a good deal of life experience across several fields of endeavor and I can say with confidence this career will be like any other -- what you make of it will be the controlling factor.

Ok, concerning C1 in North Little Rock. If you are going with USA you will need to pass a pad test (obstacle course, if you will) at your orientation in Van Buren, AR at the USA headquarters. C1 prepares you for that. They have a replica of that pad set up on their lot and run you through it until you can pass it with an 80%. This is a higher standard, I understand, than USA requires. Please do note that I'm PAM so what I've learned on this issue has been by talking with and observing those at C1 who were going with USA. However, I'm confident this info is good.

As to how long it takes to get into a truck with a trainer, that does vary. Going with PAM it took about a week after getting home to get with a trainer. Some wait longer, some shorter. It mostly depends on what trainers are available at the time you are free and where they may be. The company will route them to your location as soon as possible but under a paying load or loads. Therefore, if freight is slow moving toward your area it might take a little time to get it all coordinated. Just part of the system.

I just came back from 4 weeks with my trainer. Started orientation at PAM in Tontitown, AR on Friday and return on Monday to finish up. Took some written tests and exercises on Friday as well as my road test. Passed the road test and will know about the written stuff on Monday. If I have a problem on the written stuff they will work with me on getting it fixed. I expect to upgrade Monday. If a truck is available on the yard there (should be) then I'll get dispatched out after my home time. I'll probably ask for about 5 days home time.

Expect to run hard with your trainers. Companies make money from you and the trainer running like a team. That means many miles and not much sleep. It's just part of the gig. No use complaining about it. You have to pay your dues. Also, it's good experience. But do remember, if you are asked to do something unsafe, you can say 'no'. My trainer was very good. His attitude was that he was a trainer first and a driver second. He was very concerned that when he was through with me I'd be a safe and knowledgeable driver (to the extent possible given the limited time). There was one time that we were under a load and there was some discussion about me driving all night (3rd in a row) with very little sleep. The reason for the little sleep was simply because of the way the shifts were working out and my sleep patterns couldn't adjust. I didn't feel safe on the 3rd night and told him I couldn't do it that way. He didn't pressure and made adjustments and it all worked out fine. Point is, had I agreed we would have proceeded but he respected my judgment call on what I could do.

You do need to know that there is much you will not learn about being a professional driver at C1. This isn't because it's a bad school. It's because they only have 3 weeks and the main thrust is to get you a CDL. USA and PAM and others will train you the way they want. You can't possibly be a full-fledged professional driver coming out of a school no matter what. You have to have the varying situations and experiences of true OTR driving to learn what you need to learn. That won't happen until you are pulling real loads for real customers to real locations under real circumstances. No school can provide that.

Hope I answered some questions. Ask me anything. Always willing to try to help.

 

started e-gears bout a couple weeks ago.looking to go to c-1 in indy sometime in october,retire from my other job on the 18th.i definitly want otr,just to get away and see the country.sounds like c-1 is the place to go.thanks for the feed back.btw iam looking forward to working with pam.any feed back on them and and what to expect after i graduate?
and hope to meet everybody next year on the road.........

 

Hi all,

I got laid off from my local factory job in March where I loaded trucks for almost 4 years. I have been trying to find work but there just isn't anything out there whether you're well-educated or not. I've got a high school diploma but it doesn't really mean anything to any employers right now. My uncle is a truck driver and reccomended that I get my CDL's. It is something I have been considering for a while but just a little nervous since the only thing I've ever pulled is my camper. Since I live in Georgia, my uncle reccomended going to a local technical college and going through the Commercial Driver Training course. However, I ran across the Drivers Solution website and submitted my application - thinking I could get my license quicker there than at the state tech school. When I submitted my app, I didn't know I would have to get myself to Arkansas for training. I am a little nervous about leaving my expecting wife at home alone for the duration of the training (Yes, I know once I get my CDL's this will be a regular thing). My only question is - based on the experiences of others - should I attend the local tech school for CDL training (which is free to me BTW thanks to the HOPE grant) or should I go to C1 in North Little Rock? I was told that P.A.M. will take me once I complete the training and get my CDL. Sorry for such a long post. I'm just trying to make the right decisions for me and my family. After all, I can't draw unemployment forever! And advice/info would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

-Brandon S.

 

I love the hope grant went to truck driving school on it down here in beautiful Savannah, had $400 out of pocket expense and got $100 of it back which I used to get my HAZMAT endorsement. Not having a school loan to repay is real beneficial these trucking companys will promise you the world but once you actually get in there they give you nothing. They will leave you sitting in a truck stop hundreds of miles from home not making any money. If you don't have a school loan hanging over you, you can tell them to go pound sand when they try that crap.
This is the best time of year to go to a 10 week VO-Tech program because it is starting to slow down. You can go to your school. By the time that is over with it will be the first of the year, You go on to Company training for 6-8 weeks then it is March and boom it is March and things are picking back up.
If you are bound and determined to do the company sponsored training look into Millis
transfer

 

Thanks for the input SmokeMac. In the long run, I believe going to the tech school and using the hope grant will be more beneficial. I just felt like I could break into the business a little sooner by going thru Driver Solutions. Thanks again!

 

Jasper, you can do the Tech School thing and it would be beneficial to you. However, since you are in Georgia, you should check TDI in Forsyth, Ga. Truck Driving Institute there off I-75 exit 185. You want great Instructors? Some of the best are there. went thru there myself after doing C1 and that was a waste of time for me and I did not like the fact of going to USA. Read up on them and was not happy with what I saw. So, I left before the CDL test so I didn't have to be "tied up" with a inferior company. Now, I am with Werner and by no means am I here to cheer on Werner. Its just a better job than USA would have been for me. Closer to home and I took my Dad's advice on Werner angle. Dad is a 50 yr. career driver last 27 years with WalMart, so I listen to him...PLUS!! With TDI you have more choices for Pre-hires and they are all, IMO, better than USA Truck as far as equipment used, trainers, routes and the paperless log system. Just trying to give you an alternative. Check them out tho. They drive Volvos and Freightliners and very well maintained also. C-1 has a dirt pad you work on....TDI has a paved pad. The driving is much better thru Macon and sometimes thru McDonough than driving thru Little Rock and North Little Rock. Been there done that. Trust me. Leaving in a little while to get my trainer. So, I will check in when I can.
Good Luck!!

 

C 1 is a very good training school to start out with. Also PAM is a good starting company to work for.