Why I am nervous about trucking

I generally don't even try to park at truck stops unless I finish a load early in the day / morning and I know there's some spaces to work with . I saw pretty quickly that around 4PM to 4AM is a bad time to park at most truck stops .

There's only one place I've been to in VA that has such a gargantuan parking lot you can roll up 7 8 9 pm and still have decent number of spaces left.

 

If you haven't yet buy thebtruckstop guide, and make notes in it about the quality/size of lots. Those notes can be more valuable than the actual listing in the book.

 

I thought the same thing. All that responsibility and how to handle/drive a machine like that. I just acquired my Class A Combination CDL without schooling and it's the same as everything else you eventually get used to the machine and understand how it turns and operates. Backing up is easier than you would think though it still takes a little to figure out and as far as the operation itself once you get the pattern and the rpms down its not too bad. Air brakes are fairly simple to learn as well. The tough part for me was I had zero trucking or mechanic experience before and so it took a lot of studying and youtube videos to really understand the machine in order for me to pass my walk around.

 

Most do, or I should say all the ones I am familiar with, do.

 

Hopeful Eyes,

Stay away from what are known as “Mega Carriers.” These are Companies that have around 4,000 trucks. They make money on volume, or the amount of loads that they run annually. They get contracts by bidding the lowest, and undercutting smaller carriers. In the Transportation industry, the profit margins are very thin, so the way these large carriers make money is by cutting into driver pay. You will end up working 80+ hours a week, and only gross about 30k for an entire year. Of the mega carriers, I’ve heard Schneider and Prime are the best for training, and in terms of quality.

Stay away from C.R. England and Swift. If you research them you will find nothing but bad reviews.

Here is a list of ways to get a cdl from best to worst:

1. Community College.
2. Stand Alone Driving School.
3. Mega Carrier CDL Factory.

That order also reflects the amount of time you will be given to learn.

Community College: Months of training/studying.
Stand Alone Driving School: 4 Weeks.
Bad Mega Carrier: 2 Weeks.

Also, there are people who get a kick out of giving misinformation to new people: Be careful.

 

Trucker Path app is free and does same thing...if one is smartphone enabled.

 

That would be the Petro in Raphine. First time I went there I saw the parking lot shuttle van and thought "people are so lazy" then I realized how far back that lot stretches.

 

Yea but it's a data hog that likes to freeze up. You also have to have data for it to operate which isn't always a given even today.

 

Just look at half the idiots climbing out of their trucks at a truckstop. Doesn't take much skill to drive a modern truck lol. Hell even I can do it lol.

 

If you can qualify for Swift, be careful of NASA bombarding you with all sorts of phone calls and mail. You will be that good. Astronaut training would be a walk in the park.