Need opinions and information

It's pretty infrequent that I hear of flatbed teams. Usually, I hear of teams doing reefer loads coast to coast. I started with Western in 2010 as a solo rookie. I actually did well in their flatbed division. I ran wherever they sent me, and wasn't much of a pain in the ###. They are a good fit if you want to live on the road because it can be difficult to get home with Western. Cpm was low, but they made up for it with lots of miles so that could suit you well.

 

While you say that you want to stay in the truck, where are you licensed out of?

 

Shave all your hair and go for another 3 months then. The time it stays in your body and hair, is dependent on how long you "indulged in weed", and that's a variable determined by usage, more than a rule of thumb of 90 days.. That's the price you'll have to pay to get and stay clean to maintain a clean CDL. If you're rushing it, you're still trying to take a short cut. Concentrate on staying clean, and let the time be your friend.

That's not a problem that concerns me. What should concern you, is whether you can trust yourself not to "indulge", once you're out and about running hard. Not everyone can handle that kind of committment, and if you're already predisposed to hedonistic ways to handle "stress", running hard will only make you more susceptible to temptation. Get and stay in a program, NA, for instance, for a year, and then get back to this. You'll kill two birds with one stone. Your body will be clean and you won't have to worry, and you'll also have some time of sobriety under your belt, more than the 90 days that you seem to be concerned about to just get past the test. As a warning, I seemed to always be the "random" test where ever I went, so once in, you'll still be possibly on the hook for many tests. Better to be fully ready, rather than trying to just get by. Take it however you want, but that's my advice for you, and my opinion.

 

Here we go again, and not to admonish this person, but with the legality of weed, we hear this a LOT. I'll tell you straight up, once a burnout, always a burnout. I say that because, like the above post, if times get rough, you already know of an "escape", something a straight person can't count on. 1st, hair testing is incredibly expensive and unreliable and many companies simply go on urine test, and yes, you can quit for a spell, but temptation will get the best of you, and sure as $#i+, that's when they'll call you. It's an anxiety few potheads want to put up with, sweat bullets everytime the phone rings. Many companies are beginning to relax their position on former users, but you, and many others, want to "tailor" the job to your needs, and it doesn't work that way. Don't get me( us) wrong, it can be done, but generally from people that haven't smoked in a long time, and again, you aren't the 1st to ask this, and later we hear of a failed drug test, what to do?
Now, with the removal of pot from a schedule 3 to a 1, it may take some time, but they will have to relax the rules, but I wouldn't hold your hit,,

 

Go to Quest Diagnostics, Labcorp or some other private lab and get the hair follicle test done on your own dime. The results will tell you if it's safe to proceed.

 

Ive seen quite a few that fall off the wagon. When they get stressed out for whatever reason, they figure the old habits are the way to go. They might get away with for awhile, but eventually it will came back to haunt them.

 

I know you gave my suggestion, short shrift, but here's a little more information from Drugs.com. I told you stay clean for a year, so notice the bold underlined text below from Drugs.com about the duration depending on the area the hair comes from. You don't get to choose, the employer does.
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Most hair drug tests can detect heavy or regular use of certain illicit substances over the past three months.

Your hair grows at a rate of about one-half inch per month from the scalp. The standard 1.5-inch sample taken near the root provides a snapshot of drug use over the past 90 days.

When the hair sample is taken from slower-growing body hair (such as from the armpit) instead of the scalp, the detection window widens to up to one year.

Traces of illicit drug use may be seen in a hair sample within one week of drug use.

Hair follicle drug tests
This type of drug testing can be used to identify:

• Cocaine
• Phencyclidine (PCP)
• Amphetamines
• Opioids
• Benzodiazepines
• Marijuana
• 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine or MDMA (Ecstasy or Molly)

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Even though hair testing yourself,may give you peace of mind, for the time being, the fact that it currently is not entered into the Clearinghouse Database, it's irrelevant, since if your employer tests you and you're positive, you can be refused employment or fired. Worse, for you would be that even though it's not entered into the Clearinghouse, unless you refuse, your status of hiring inelligibility is still on record, and the reasons for it. I suggest you take your time and follow my suggestion.

As for money, whatever the rate is, you're getting paid half, roughly, between two drivers for miles driven. From their sites, COTC apparently offers the higher possible solo cpm pay (take that with a grain of salt), (60 - 64 cpm solo +/- incentives, no team rate), over Western Express(56 CPM solo and 73 CPM teams, ie you get 36.5 cpm). Any mega company, and COTC is a TFI (micromanage) company, is going to run the dog crap out of you. I didn't see any mention on their sites about hourly pay for the work to load/unload, secure and there is a small accessorial amount for tarping, so all that time will be spent on your dime, doing it. That cuts into miles and driving time. COTC does apparently offer a $100 dollar benefit if you're not dispatched within an hour of unload to another load, but I wouldn't count on ever getting that.

Others have said it, take your time, talk to drivers from the companies first hand while you're waiting. Truckstops everywhere, so you can find one near you to hang and talk. They get a bonus if they convince you to join with them as reference, so, I wouldn't count on complete pictures.