Do you plan to drive... forever?

I wasn't. I was trying to advise to invest in your self. That was my intent. Sorry it did come across that way to you.
Happy life to you.

 

And an error on my part. It was 1.5 times, not 15. I only wish.

 

well, I've made it just over 32 years, so..

As long as there are large cars, I'm physically able, I'll continue to drive them.

Now I will say the mega fleeters and clueless foreigners have taken the joy out of driving most days.

 

been there done that...

 

When you you spoke of your financial accomplishment, I don’t see that as a bad thing. Not everyone listens to the financial community regarding time is your best option for financial success. I am very proud that I had an excellent trucking career. Fortunately I made what I considered great money most of the time. I am however more proud of the fact that I listened to financial experts and invested heavily from an early age.

 

I encourage new driver to set up retirement accounts, money you dont miss, also a additional 10% imto a liquid savings account, that gives yoou the money to handle life as it happens.

 

I plan to drive until the day I retire, but 2-3 years ago I had actually considered pursuing my #1 dream job.

I've always wanted to be an airline pilot, but over my years of on-and-off research, it wasn't feasible. $100+k tuition, 9-12 months of full time instruction, 3+ years as a flight instructor making peanuts until I earn the minimum 1500 flight hours, then get hired as a first officer at a regional airline making $45k a year. Not a career reset I was willing to make with a wife and daughter.

But then I stumbled across Allegiant's in-house cadet program. I inquired through email and I had an admissions guy run me through the whole program. It'd be $90k, 9 months of instruction, 12-15 months as a flight instructor, and after earning 1500 hours in 2 years, it would lead to a guaranteed job at Allegiant. Not a regional airline earning next to nothing, but a real airline making real money. And in half the time it would take compared to other schools I researched.

I genuinely considered it, talked to my wife about it countless times, and she was onboard with the idea. She was ready to pack her and the baby's stuff, move back to her mom's in Utah while I'd be renting a room at my old meet driver's house in Denver. I almost pulled the trigger, but I ultimately didn't.

We just bought a house in California and just started a family. Pulling the trigger would have meant putting the house up for sale, moving all our furniture into storage, living separate from my family for 2 years with occasional visits from across the Rockies, and I'd HAVE to make this work. Old Dominion likely wouldn't have hired me back unless they were desperate, and they aren't. Plus, I don't hate my job. It's one thing to start a new career because the old one sucks, but it's another thing entirely to leave a job you love to try something new, and you're not sure you'd even be good at it.

Looking back, I guess I'd be flying planes right now if it all worked out, but I can't know that it actually would have. I had a good thing with OD back then, I still have a good thing with them now, so there was no good reason to leave. And I'm happy I chose to stay.

Somewhere in the multiverse, there's a version of me who's flying for the airlines. That's good enough for me. I'll stay down here, tires to the pavement, working towards my first 1 million mile safety award.

 

@plynnjr92 You could always work towards getting your private pilot's license. I'm sure it's not the same thing, but it's a very attainable consolation prize.

 

Somewhere else in the multiverse there's a version of you that's a divorced pilot. And another one where you failed becoming a pilot and ended up back in the truck for a lessor company. And another where you failed becoming a pilot and got divorced. Bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. With young kids, the odds of everything working out weren't great. You made the right choice.

 

That's what I mean when I said I can't know if it would all work out. Staying happily married with a good fatherly relationship with my daughters was always the best case scenario, but not the most likely one.