It's a tough choice balancing all of the variables in trucking. But you seem to be many miles ahead of 90% of newbies entering the field. The most common message posted on this board by newbies is "I just signed a year contract with CR England and leave on the bus for orientation in an hour, are they a good company to work for?". There are lots of guy willing to help you land at a good place and you seem shrewd enough to not step on the common landmines. It can take a week for every regular to read and respond but there is help out here. Just stay away from CR England if there is ANY other choice.
Beginning to get desperate, could use help/advice.
Discussion in 'Trucking Schools and CDL Training Forum' started by buddha_, Aug 16, 2022.
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Tuition-free CDL Driving Academy - Dock Worker Jobs …
xlsdraw, Another Canadian driver and buddha_ Thank this. -
I’m pretty dead set on sticking with one company until I find the “dream” company for myself. CR England is a no go from everything I’ve read and everyone I’ve talked to, no worries there - not a mine I’d step on lol. I’ve pretty much gathered there’s a good chance I’ll only be home once a month or so. I’m really thinking maybe it’s been hard because I don’t have my CLP just yet. The few companies I’ve narrowed down state they require it, so when I do call, I mention I’m in the middle of obtaining it but now thinking back, I can almost remember hearing disappointment I. Recruiters voices when I say I don’t have it yet.
Grateful for that link, I’m gonna run all my chosen companies and see what’s what with them - a lot of people on Reddit just are so angry at all of the carriers it seems haha.
also, I didn’t know that I could request a driver to call meD that is WONDERFUL adviceAnother Canadian driver Thanks this. -
Another Canadian driver and tscottme Thank this.
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Another Canadian driver and buddha_ Thank this.
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Wilson Logistics has cdl school in Springfield, Missouri and Missoula, Montana.
Another Canadian driver, tscottme and austinmike Thank this. -
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@tscottme @Chinatown so far it’s looking like Prime has jumped to the top of my list to get all of my requirements and training/wheel time under the belt. OTR is gonna have its ups and downs but nothing I can’t handle. I work so much that I keep reminding my old lady the only difference is I won’t be in bed at the end of the night as often, I think she’s understanding of it. I let her know constantly to communicate and it’s helped a ton in that department.
Once I get the time in behind the wheel and am not in debt to any one company, the search begins for a forever company. At the moment, that seems to be YRC/Yellow for me, but who knows where I’ll be at in a year plus. We may want to move somewhere a bit more comfortable!
You guys have absolutely helped me feel more at ease… there’s been too much stress waiting to actually have a CLP to really get some strength in finding a job. I keep pushing forward even though I’m limited until I have that in hand.
Glad I made this thread, I’ve learned a lot today that I didn’t know even after a couple of months researching!Another Canadian driver, tscottme, austinmike and 1 other person Thank this. -
As for the Reddit anger. The truth is there IS a lot of anger in trucking. There is a lot of anger on this forum. Trucking is best suited for people that like to be alone or work alone. Many of us that work alone don't have the best social skills and express our frustration is bad ways. Many trucking companies, since they are run by people who don't drive trucks, leave a lot of important details about customers from the drivers. The dispatcher is NEVER going to be looking for the driveway for a customer 8 states away, so the fact every driver that goes to that customer for the first time ALWAYS runs past the driveway and into a dead-end, or a narrow residential neighborhood, etc is not going to be passed along. She has 30 drivers and 70 customers on her plate today. You and I don't spend more of our time thinking about how to make a cashier or clerk's job easier than the dispatcher thinks about the driver's job. There are tools to use so drivers can help drivers inside and outside of the company. Customers treat drivers like rabid skunks. Many implemented "keep out" policies during covid and drivers were locked away from bathrooms, offices, etc. For me the biggest stress EVERY day is the stupid, dangerous, and reckless drivers of 4-wheelers. 99% of them are staring at their smartphone 99% of the day. 90% of them drive in the farthest left lane at all times even if they have to make a right turn in 3 feet. EVERY driving situation for a 4-wheeler seems to be solved by finding a truck, swerving in front of it and slamming on the brakes. It will happen to you multiple times per day, every day you drive. Luckily, or not, being near Boston you will see the worst drivers often so maybe you will adjust to it. It's not something you cannot learn to handle, but it sure does wear on me and many drivers agree it may be the most difficult part of the job. I was so tired of it after 28 years I picked up and worked for a company in Idaho for 14 months and never went home. It was great except that job just traded the names of the cities from Chicago to Seattle, from Atlanta to Portland, etc. That job had a lot more empty miles between the big cities and the scenery is spectacular. But not going home eventually was too much.
There are more trucks on the road than ever before and there is NOT ENOUGH truck parking in any city in America, especially East Coast. There are lots of challenges, no shortage of people willing to put my CDL at risk to make their life a little easier, etc. Trucking is a rescue job for many, many people. It was for me. I don't like it, much. There are great jobs out there, I highly recommend Tanker work. The customers don't treat you like a rat with rabies, they treat you like the man that brought the stuff they really want. There is a solution for many of the difficulties, even if that solution is changing the way you think about things. It is so much easier to stay in contact with others than the old days, there are so many tools you can use to make somethings easier for the driver, and if you can get through the change in your life at the start, and the living in a truck with another man for the 4-8 weeks it takes to get your own truck it is a decent option. I would have sold my pet to the Taliban if I could have stayed with airplanes, but trucking rescued me from permanent low-pay and sweating through my clothes every day in FL before 7am and staying soggy until after dark.
If your lady can be independent and you both understand it might be 6 weeks between home-time and OTR is for a year it can be good for you.Another Canadian driver and buddha_ Thank this.
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