Signed up for a 1-week 'school'

Because the Pre-trip inspections are so ridiculous now, I finally had to buy into a CDL training course. Let me tell ya, owner operators, you guys are in the wrong profession!

I try to explain to all my truck driving friends. They cannot comprehend it. The extent of the ridiculousness is literally inexplicable. Today, you will absolutely not pass your pre-trip inspection unless you memorize a 9 page script. And you can be failed for not checking items in the correct order or from the wrong side of the truck.
When you fail your pre-trip, all you are told is to study chapter 11 (here in Texas). But chapter 11 says only that you must name & point to each item, tell what it is and why you are checking it.
Here is a typical description of the emergency & service air lines from the cab to the trailer: "...not cut, pinched, tangled, spliced, worn or chafed. I see no steel braids showing and they are not dragging against the trailer while turning."
You can't call a mud flap a mud flap. It's a splash guard or you lost a point. Can't call a dipstick a dipstick. It's an "oil level". The new requirement of flares in addition to triangles is not even in the manual but you'd better have it or it will cost you a point.

So I found 2 choices as an alternative to truck driving school. One furnished you with a video on how to do the pre-trip, an instructor met with you for 4 hours the day before your test. Then on test day they meet you with a short truck and a long stick. That one was $1,000.

The trucks both companies use are day cabs coupled to one of those short trailers that are normally for doubles. The tractors have only one set of duals, as do the trailers. So, 10 wheels in all.

I went ahead & paid $1,750 for a 4-day class with pre-trip practice from 7:30 - 11:30, then backing in the truck from noon to 5. It's straight line, off set & obstacle course for 1 1/2 days then 1 1/2 days of parallel parking practice. No school on Fridays. No driving except between the cones. You can pay more to hang out as long as you want to. If you fail you must rent the truck again for $650. If you or the DPS changes your test appointment, even if they are closing for bad weather, you must pay a rescheduling fee of $350.

This is not a school but in our class of 5, 2 people didn't trade the fine print & thought it was. And including the people who still don't feel ready to test so they paid extra to hang out, we had 17 people. There are several trucks here but they only make 2 available for use, for pre-trip & for 'track'- 1 standard, 1 automatic.

 

I failed twice with no formal help. I drove a truck for 14 years. I am one of the few who can parallel park a truck of any size perfectly on the first try.
I studied the book. I watched videos. Its really all about having a script nowdays, and how well you stick to that script. At least its that way in Texas & judging by this video, Texas isn't the only place where its practically impossible to pass the pretest:

 

The first time I got mine, 30 years ago, I mostly just had to bang everything with a hammer.