I'm going with Swift!!!

time to begin your own thread Openroadguy.

 

I am on so many threads!!! I see it is your thread!


Move along now children.......nothing to see here!

 

ORG, thanks again for the very descriptive and truthful posts. These are very helpful for those who are looking for what it is really like out there. Hang in there, you can make it to the end. Look for the light at the end of the tunnel. Your own truck. Good luck to you throughout the rest of your time with the mentor. Remember we are behind you and rooting for you.

 

I don't care who you are, you are going to have your little tifts no matter how great you get along. Two people tired, stuck in a truck for a month is going to wear on you. You just have to realize it and blow it off. Sometimes a good fast sprint back and forth at a rest stop or truck stop will help get it out. Anyway, about the whole trainer thing, it really sucks riding with someone else but it is so beneficial to you and your career. I think Chralb might have a solid background and he seems to know the gist of things so he will probably make it through it. I had originally gone the same route and had really missed out on a lot of pertinent info. I am glad to see you were paired with someone knowledgeable. With the exception of being late all the time he seems to know what he's doing. However at most companies I think you get three lates and your canned! Make sure he's showing you how to properly pre-plan. You should have your hours available and schedule before talking to your DM about your next load. Just telling them "yes" will get you by a couple of times but will usually bite you in the butt! You don't any tickets right off the bat either. Be very careful driving at night you are not used to those hours yet and running tired can cause big mistakes. I used to tell my wife and myself all the time "slow down and pay attention". Say it out loud and you tend to heed to it better. Don't make any hasty manuevers you are going to regret, like a u-turn or cutting through a Mcdonalds parking lot. If you need to stop in the middle of the road, take a breath and give yourself a second or two for judgement.

 

I occasionally get that feeling of being defeated by the road, by the job, by the weather, by the (odd) hours too. I'm preaching to the choir here, just fall back on all that you have been taught, use your superior skills out there; go for what you know just like in a fight lol.

 

ORG, I have followed your posts from the beginning. As this in my first post I would like to say Congrats. I have a questions for you in regards to orientation. Since you had already taken a physical during school training, did Swift make you take another one?

 

I don't care who you are, or how much experience you have, there are just going to be those days, (or nights) that are "rough." Those are the times when you really may need to just pull over and sleep. Even if it is only for a few minutes, or an hour. It can mean the difference between life and death!

As far as standing up to your mentor, which you mentioned in an earlier post. . .

Yeah, sometimes you have to. But if he and you are both reasonable, you should be able to "talk out" problems, without it escalating to the point where you feel you have to "stand up" to the mentor. Remember, it is HIS truck, and he is supposed to be training you.

 

ORG, How many training hours BTW do you have so far?