Get Trucking Again - Getting a CDL ... again, and Rejoining the Gearjammers

I've been reading the threads on this site for a while now, but I've never found a thread detailing a journey quite like mine ... though I know my story is anything but unique.

In 2007 I was an Aircraft Mechanic for American Eagle Airlines living in Bangor, Maine. I had a nice house, a small parcel of land, and a great job working for an airline. The work was taxing at times, but for the most part it was fun.

In November of 2007 my company made the decision to uproot all the mechanics in Maine and relocate them to Arkansas. But, there was a small hitch for several of us. The housing market in Maine was the first to collapse when this economy went to pot, and there was no chance that I was going to be able to sell my home and move to Arkansas. Since, the decision was made for me, I had to leave aviation and find another way to pay the bills and keep things going around the ol' homestead.

With the collapse of the housing market, the job market in Maine soon followed and on November 7th, 2007 I was without a job, had a looming house payment, and a number of bills that had to be paid. And, thanks to a corporate decision, no way to pay them.

There are a few out there that will ask about savings ... an emergency plan ... and well, the thing is my wife had been (and still is) suffering from a long term version of Belle's Palsy. Unfortunately that type of Belle's is responsible for a very debilitating, and seemingly permanent, condition which includes serious fatigue, loss of muscular strength, and permanent disfiguring facial paralysis. Our savings was quickly depleted.

We had discussed leaving anyway and letting the chips fall where they may. Essentially abandoning the house and throwing ourselves on the mercy of the mortgage company (Wells Fargo). We ultimately decided to do what most Mainers would do, and buckle down, take what ever job comes along and do the best we can until they tell us to leave ... if it came to that.

The next decision was how to replace the income we lost when the airline pulled up stakes and skedaddled. There were several options, including going back to school to complete my bachelor's degree. Ultimately, and I believe rightly, we settled on me getting my CDL and working in trucking. It would be a cut in pay, and the growing pains would be immense, but we were sure that we could make a go of it.

In January of 2008 I got my Maine CDL and started driving for Stevens Transport that same month ... as is my habit, I had pretty well sewn up the job with Stevens before I actually had my CDL. I say pretty well because as we all know in trucking you DON'T have the job until you have a driver code.

Just over the line into February, I got my driver code with Stevens and began training with a great trainer. In late March or early April (I honestly can't remember at this point) I got my truck and was off and running ... and LOVING it. The pay was a little less than I had expected, but it was workable.

In the meantime, my wife was left behind in Maine to do the best she could with what I could send home. And to her credit she managed to hold it together for a good while. Eventually the house payments fell far behind, and a bank that we had a second with started making noises like they were going to foreclose (we had a $2500 loan through them and a $160,000 house). We scrambled to pay that loan off at the cost of catching up with our primary mortgage lender.

To speed things up a bit ... one thing lead to another and in late June of 2008 my wife had had all she could stand. All of our friends had left at this point (some to Arkansas and some to parts elsewhere) and she was completely alone with me on the road. Most of our family is either in Massachusetts or Virginia. In the interest of her sanity I elected to put trucking on hold and try to make something happen locally.

We struggled on until May of 2009 when we got a letter from our mortgage company telling us that they would be auctioning our home in July (they still have yet to actually follow through). The letter told us that we needed to make other arrangements and move out as soon as possible. We chose to move back to Cape Cod and stay with my mother. We loaded up the Uhaul (biggest we could afford ... we still left a ton of things behind) and left Maine forever.

Once on Cape Cod, I attempted to transfer my CDL in the event that I came across a local job that would take a chance on me. I was confronted with a baffling situation. I was told that in Massachusetts, if you want to transfer a CDL, the CDL has to be two years old AND you have to have two years of consecutive log books to prove it. Also, if the employer was outside Massachusetts you have to provide a notarized letter from your former employer confirming your claims.

I wrote letters, and fought this policy as hard as I could. A few months later I was stopped by a Massachusetts State Trooper who informed me that he had seen my car in the area for the last six months and was stopping me because I still had Maine tags and as he found out a Maine license.

He then informed me that if I failed to have a Massachusetts license by the end of the week I would be arrested for Failure to Comply with Massachusetts Licensure Laws. Well, that's the way he put it. Since I have a completely clean driving and criminal record I decided to let the CDL go for now and comply with his order. So, now I have a standard Class D license for the State of Massachusetts.

[In all fairness I should say that the powers that be in Massachusetts did relent a little stating that they would allow me to take the skills tests and transfer the CDL. But, having no one that I knew with a truck ... and no rental or training facility in the area willing to sponsor me ... it was really a useless offer.]

I spent the rest of 2009 working odd jobs on the Cape and trying to get hired on as a mechanic with a small airline called Cape Air. Unfortunately that didn't work out and I spent the first part of 2010 spinning my wheels as well. In April of 2010 I lucked out (jobs here are still really scarce) and was hired on with the Barnstable Harbormaster's Office (where I work currently) and have been there ever since.

The issue with the job is that it's seasonal. I begin working in May and stop working at the end of October. Last winter I thought I'd write, gather some unemployment and take some classes at the local community college. For a short time I flirted with going back to trucking, but my wife was afraid of me being gone again and the thought was abandoned (see my thread ... misguided as it is ... going with CRE).

During the winter of 2011 my unemployment ran out in February and we spent three months ... until this past May ... with next to nothing for income. My wife did have a job working for a local supermarket chain, and is now a head cashier there ... but it's only part time and does not provide enough to pay rent anywhere ... so we're still living with my mother ... at forty.

My classes at the college were successful for the most part, but I have discovered that I am not built for theoretical mathematics. The summer so far has been fun, and I like my job, but I can't have another winter like this past one.

After talking with my wife, and deciding that since she's around family and friends, trucking is once again a viable opportunity. The issue now is I have to get the CDL back which means going with a training company. I've been informed that I am unhireable with Stevens ... which is strange since I was never late, no service failures (at least non which I am aware of), no accidents and no citations. I am not crushed by this, just a little confused.

So, my choices from this area are Swift or Werner. And since Werner is a no go for me (my choice), I am going to go with Swift. And finally we get to the point of this thread. I am going to detail my journey with Swift from here ... my office at Hyannis Harbor ... through the hiring process ... through training ... and on. I have already been a driver in my life so the life is not going to be a shock. I love driving, and I have no issues with living in a closet (as some have described it).

Please follow along, I am going to try to provide you with detailed accounts ... likely week to week ... including training, miles, pay and anything else that might come up. I believe I have a good attitude, and believe that is the key [see my sig]. Thanks for reading so far ... any suggestions / opinions.

Also, I am going to keep this thread as honest as possible, but PLEASE DO KEEP THE NEGATIVITY TO YOURSELF. Honest opinions are welcome, but company bashing isn't something I'm ever going to participate in or condone. Thanks.

 

True, it's a long story ... longer than what I have written. But since I appreciate all the readers here on TTR I didn't want to bore too many too fast.

I did discover something sort of interesting about a drivers mind while off the road ... somehow we still end up accumulating things that would be useful on the road. When I left Stevens I had a CB, a Truckers Atlas, and a Truck Stop Guide. Since then I've added a Trucker's GPS (a very generous gift from a friend who is a former Airline Pilot), an Amazon Kindle, this wonderful HP Laptop, a magnetic mounted external WIFI antenna, and a good cell phone. Strange ... when I left trucking I had never really thought that driving would be in my future ... at least not my near future.

I think that, on a subconscious level, I was always planning on driving again. Or in the words of Red (Shawshank Redemption), "Maybe it's because I'm Irish."

 

I was just thinking, lots has changed in trucking since 2008. I am planning on getting my Passport before going to Swift ... is there anything else you experienced Swifties would recommend that I take care of before I start my retraining journey?

 

Thanks for the words of encouragement guys, it really means a lot to me.

Jarhed, at the moment there are a lot of trucking companies (training companies) that balk at hiring out of Massachusetts simply because of the license transfer laws here. The difference being Swift will have a trainer take me back to Massachusetts in one of their trucks (if I understand it right) to take the Massachusetts skills tests, or so I am told. Some states really make it difficult to be a Commercial anything and Massachusetts (or as it's become known here ... The Communist Republic of Massachusetts ... due to the mandatory health insurance law) is particularly nasty about it.

As I understand it, there are some states that just require you to pay the transfer fees and surrender your old license ... how I wish Massachusetts was one of these.

So, yeah, it's Swift for now. But I'm going in with an open mind and a work ethic that won't quit. Who knows, maybe Swift will be a permanent home for me.

I suppose, to be completely honest, there are several local trucking schools. But none of them are PTDI certified. The closest one of those, to me, is in Buffalo, NY ... and then we're back to the transfer issue. I have a few friends that drive for Crete, and this type of school is what they look for if your just coming out with the ink wet on your CDL. So a couple of years experience is needed to consider them eventually ... if I'm not happy at Swift.

I would go to a local school, but even though they're in state I'd have to arrange housing since none of them are within commute distance to Cape Cod. That would ad a lot the the final expense, and then coming up with the money for school is really unrealistic for me at the moment. The foreclosure that never ends has actually made my credit score fall below the "minimum." Cool how that works ...

But I have nothing but time in my situation. I can give Swift a couple of years and then move on if need be. But then I've never really been a "Greener". I tend to like to color of the grass on my side of the fence just fine. LOL

 

I gotta say that my current job provides nightly motivation to return to truckin'. Part of what I do includes cleaning a public restroom. I'd have to admit that before this job I would have GUARANTEED you that the men's room would have been dirtier by far.

THIS IS SOOOOOOOOOO NOT THE CASE!

My apologies to all the ladies out there, you know who you are, but when you think of the mess that we men leave on the floor at the urinal, take it from me ... lots of women refuse to sit and simply squat. Needless to say, but I will anyway, the lack of aim-able apparatus leads to some very nasty messes.

No, not a nice subject. But it does lend itself to my motivation to never do this particular job again after this season. UGH!

Please let November come quickly.