Starting out for rookies

I'm one of those "40 something" new drivers (49 actually). After just getting my CDL with Hazmat, Dbl Trpls and Tanker I'm hoping to find a "Regional" job. This has been a great site for information and advice. Looks like only a handfull of companies will hire students so for the first year I'll have to take what I can get. The most confusing thing is the difference of opinions for trucking companies, one driver will say a certain company is great then the next post is from someone saying to never work for that company. And being new at this I'm getting so many company names thrown at me it's hard to keep them all straight. Like Covenant and Conway, One of those two doesn't have a good reputation with the instructors from the school I went to, I just can't recall which one.

Although the "Doubles, Triples and Tanker" endorsements are a non-issue in the first year (with good reason), no company is going to put a new driver in front of a tanker full of fuel.

 

Plenty of companies will hire new drivers to pull tankers...maybe not with fuel in them but still tankers.


Anyway Look at Watkins Shepard, we have a Terminal In Sayreville, NJ. We Have OTR, Regional, Local (regional being anything EAST of the Mississippi)


Oh and Covenant is the one that sucks, Conway is a good company





American Trucker

 

American-Trucker, Thanks. I'll look into Watkins Shepard. I guess when I think of tankers I assume they're carrying fuel, my mistake.

Being completely new to this, when you get "home-time" do you have to drop the truck off at the "terminal" when going home and pick-it up when you report back? The instructor I had (and reps that visited the school) briefly talked about parking trucks. They had mentioned to just look for a nearby truck-stop or a Walmart parking lot to leave it at. Does that sound right???

 

At some companies they will let you take the truck home if you have a safe place to park it. Usually here at W/S they have us park them at the terminals but since our NJ terminal is VERY small if you have a safe place for it they might have you bobtail home.

I wouldnt leave a truck at a walmart unless you want to have it towed away lol




American Trucker

 

I did drive around the Walmart parking lot and didn't really see anywhere you could safely leave a truck and trailer, That's why I was wondering. Sayreville is (I think) about two hours from South Jersey so I would hate to spend 4 hours of extra driving time if I'm only getting 34 hours off time. Pennsauken is right around the corner from me and there seems to be A LOT of companies there. On our road excursions they would have us drive around there. I would like to eventually move back to Florida (I used to live there). Sunny and hot sounds more appealing to me than snow and tire chains, Lol.

 

I would say that Stevens, Werner, Swift, and CRST are to be avoided like bubonic plague!!! The Stevens rep came to our school, and I felt compelled to count my fingers after he shook my hand!! You ever meet someone, and you're mad the rest of the day, but you don't know why?? THAT'S how I felt about the Stevens rep... The guy was as slick as a Chicago pimp, and I didn't believe anything he said...

I DID, however, believe what A-T said about Watkins & Shepard; that's why I'm going to Conover, NC on April 11th!!! (Thanks again, A-T!!)

 

We had Shneider and Trans-Am come to our school. The Scheider rep was really abrasive. He started out by asking how many of us were looking for local jobs, A few guys raised their hands. Then he yells at us saying "WELL GOOD LUCK!!!! BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT GOING TO FIND ANY!!!!" Of course he went on to make it sound like we're never going to find a company as good as Schneider to work for (I guess they all say that). I did like their 6 days on 3 off schedule but have yet to hear anything positive about them. And I'm not liking the idea of Shaving off my beard and mustache to drive hazmat.

Trans-Am sounded like they never want to send you home. The rep told us "If you need home-time just put in a *request to go home* 8 days prior to when you want to go home".

A guy on another forum (not trucker related) went with Werner. It lasted less than a week. He got a bus ticket back home from the midwest. The trainer assigned to him would not stop anywhere to let the guy eat or at least buy a decent sandwich. He got tired of eating vending machine food for 4 days straight. No bathroom stops either, the guy kept a 5 gallon pail in the truck for that.

It would be great to have a trainer who you can deal with for that first month on the road. I'll be expecting the worst and hoping for the best as far as trainers go. It's only one month out of my life.

 

I'm one of those 40 something also. 41 to be exact. I went to school and got my CDL A. I was convinced I'd have to go OTR. I was told there was a snow flakes chance in hell I'd get a local job. I got offers for all the "BIG" companies. System looked the best to me. It had good starting cpm and is flatbed. While I was in school and I saw a daycab I'd write down the name and call them. Some flat out said no way. We want a year or two OTR. A few said turn in an application. Well I did and landed a local job pending graduation. Now I'm making $20 an hour and home every day. Don't be discouraged. I must have put in a dozen apps before I got a call.

 

Congratulations on landing a local job. I'd love to find one. I think I'll take your advice and start writing down some names of companies I see (with the day cab on the truck). I put out about a dozen apps so far but have yet to hear anything back. No felonies, no DUI's, no marks on my record. Plus I got all the endorsements with the exception of Passenger. All the companies I've applied with were recomendations from the CDL school. They were companies that supposedly needed drivers immediately. It has me kind of scratching my head wondering.

 

I have checked several companys and the pay after school sucks. Have things really gotten that bad?