How many make it through the 1st year

Well I doubt anyone would do it for free. I see what your saying though. It seems to be something people either love or hate. And if you love it, you will eventually figure out how to make money at it. If you hate it, you probably won't last long enough to pay your dues and make decent money.

 

Does anyone know who you can drive with once you have a permit? I am very confident that I'll be one to enjoy the job. But I just don't want to plunk down thousands of dollars for school if I'm going to freak when I try and drive the truck. I could study for and take the written portion of the CDL anytime. Then could I pay someone to give me a private lesson?

Suzi

 

i did but it was with a local company and i was there for a few years before they got bought out

 

Has anyone noticed that no one yet has finished 1st year OTR with Roehl yet? Interesting indeed.

I wonder if they just haven't heard about chemical porta pottie?

 

Just about to finish my 6th month driving..
Iwent and got my training on my own, So I would not have to be "locked into" employment by 1 company.
After school I looked around local and didn't find much for recent graduates, So i drove myself up to Green Bay to the "orange army boot camp". What a trip that place was..lol 3 classrooms full 50-60 each.
Out of my class there were 12 with previous experience and 3 that went to school elsewhere, so us 15 went to another room to await instructors to take us out for checkrides. out of 15 only 2 myself being1 went to ADTC the rest were told either go through Schnieder 2 week school or go home,(dunno their outcome). I passed their ADTC, and drove myself home to await a trainer. While waiting the wife expressed more concerns of my being gone weeks at a time, while there were little ones at home.So I called Schneider, and told them, that due to family issues I would not be needing a trainer at this time, and would be looking at them in the near future, when the kids are a little older, and that I just could not go OTR with anybody at this time.I thanked them for their time and asked to be put on their mail list for future opportunities.
1 day later I received a call from 1 of the local LTL's that I had applied to prior to going to boot camp. I was hired the nextday after yet another drug screen,(5 drug tests in 2 months .. gotta love it.)
True I don't drive brand new equipment, but
1.) I'm home every day w/weekends off
2.) I can work weekends if I want
3.) .28/mi to start - $14/hr. dock pay
4.) I'm compensated for every second of my day (except 1/2hr. lunch)
5.) average 2000-2400 mi/wk - 14-20hr.s dock time.
6.) .02/mi - $1/hr. raise after 6 months
7.) always asked how much time I have left to run,have never gone over.

 

Well, this may get kinda long, but it was a real eye opener. I will have been driving for 1 year in about 3 weeks but....

When I had been with my company for about 6 weeks they started sending me on some shorter runs. Basically loads that could be delivered and then return to the terminal in under 11 hours. After about two weeks of that I got my first load that I would have to spend the night out in the truck. During training I NEVER spent the night out in the truck and up until this point I had never been this far away from home.

I live in SW VA and I was to deliver to Havre De Grace, MD. I asked around some and was told to go 81N to 66E (through DC) and then to 95N.

When I left it was about 8 at night in November and pouring rain. I was scared to death but I was going to take it easy and be careful. Everything was going well and I made it to the 66E junction. I started out 66 and it was getting foggy along with everything else. I just set the cruise at 60 (65 MPH Speed Limit). I noticed that there was not another vehicle on the road, not my side or the other side. I came over a small hill and the road turned to the right. Here's where it got interesting...

I saw the blue lights of a police car and from where I was it looked like it was on the shoulder. I figured he had a customer so I just signaled and got into the left lane. About this time I realized that he is sitting sideways in the middle of the road. By this time the police car was maybe 1000 ft in front of me and I still had the cruise set at 60, loaded with 48K, wet roads and nighttime. I got on the brakes as hard as I felt I could without breaking the tires loose. That wasn't enough... Now I see the policeman standing in between me and his car waving a flashlight wearing his DARK uniform. I could NOT get that truck stopped before hitting either the policeman or his car so I went up the shoulder on the right. I only went about 10 feet past the police car and got stopped...right in the middle of about 10 power lines that were down...I had 3 power lines that had slid up the front of the truck and were caught between the cab and the trailer.

The policeman runs up to my window and starts cussing me..literally..."What the **** is wrong with you"... "Un******* believable" "Don't you get out of that *********** truck". He asks for the name of my supervisor and all that stuff. I had the numbers on a card so I got the card out and..I'm not even exaggerating...I was shaking so bad that I couldn't read it, and even if I could I couldn't speak. He calls my supervisor and all that stuff at 2 A.M.

The lines were being installed so they weren't live. Now I can see workers up on the left and right (the road was much lower than the surrounding terrain). There were no flares, no signs, no reflective vests and no other vehicles on the road.

He comes back up and tells me how much I don't deserve to have a CDL and all that, then tells me to get the **** out of there! What??????????!!

Yeah, he just tells me to go on. After about 5 minutes of trying to figure out how to release the parking brake I leave, go up to the next exit and puke for about 30 minutes. I talk to my terminal manager and he tells me he will send someone for the truck because he doesn't think I can drive. I said no, just give me a little while.

I didn't really want to, but I got back in that truck, made the delivery and brought it home. To this day I still say, if I hadn't brought that truck home I never would have gotten back into one.

But, going on 1 year here and so far so good,

Sorry it got so long....

Dave

P.S. 81N-70E-695-95 and I have made that load many times now

 

Great story Firebird!

but what does this mean 81N-70E-695-95

 

I81 north to
I70 east to
695 outer loop to
I95

 

lugnut got it...

It just means now I avoid 66E through DC if at all possible

 

Good for you!!! I'm so happy you got back on the road and continued on. That took a lot of courage! Kudos to you