Potential Werner Drivers

Just be fore-warned: If you ever return to OTR after the "oil field" thing....trucking companies will not accept that as 'experience'.

The money SOUNDS inviting; but you better expect to make it a career, or be ready to start all over again if/when you return to the road.

 

How do you get hooked up with the oil fields up there ...I have considered that myself

 

I use Yahoo. But Google, AltaVista, Dogpile....they all work pretty good.

Ah yes; the power of a search engine. Pretty freak'n easy!

http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt...a+oil+fields&fr=my-myy&toggle=1&cop=&ei=UTF-8

 

that's just NOT true on it's face.....while that may be true of some companies, there are good companies out there that hire newbies you just have to put in the legwork and the research to find them. I found one, but it wasn't because they came knocking on MY door, the way the "big, crappy companies" do....I had to find them.

werner and the others will ALWAYS be able to fill seats because there are just too many out there who won't listen to good advice offered on forums like this and they feel that "it won't happen to me that way" or "I'll be the exception".......believe me, that fat used car salesman werner recruiter came to my class and he's a salesman from the word go.....there will always be people who will fall for his dog and pony show and bs about how good weiner is......even with a former werner driver in my class doing a refresher so he could go somewhere else, telling these starry eyed wannabes how it really was, some of them STILL fell for it and went there.

the other side of that coin is that some are just too hard up and desperate or too lazy to do any real work to find the good companies and just get stuck with the first bottom feeder that will put them in a seat......for the lazy ones, they deserve what they get....for those truly in a hard spot it is regretable that they end up like that but it seems that's always going to be the way it is.

 

I sure would not work for western express.. they are the scum ..

 

there better then werner or swift.

 

Thank's for the info, I was thinking about contacting them.

 

My advice would be to take the oilfield job IF you're cut out for it. You need to be ready to run. I just came from the oilfield in south Texas. It's 24/7. I was putting in around 120 hrs a week and getting paid for 130 to 140. It may not help you experience wise but it will give you a chance to make some great money and build yourself a cushion so you will be able to go out and get your OTR experience later. But keep in mind that the oilfield never stops and they don't know what the term "OUT OF HOURS" means. I locked horns with my supervisor because he tried to dictate when I was too tired to drive or not. I pulled cutting off of a rig for 50 something hours straight after I got the last load (this was at 1:00 a.m.) I called dispatch to tell them I got the last load and they would have another load that afternoon. Dispatch said ok, go ahead and get you a shower and some rest then go dump your load and by then they should have the other load. I called my supervisor to tell him this and he said no go dump that load and get back over here because we have work to do. I told him sorry but I've been up and running for over 50 hours straight and I was going to bed. Well after a short argument I said look here youre not gonna tell me when I'm too tired to drive or not because when I fall asleep at the wheel and kill somebody it'll be me going to prison, not you. I hung up, turned my phone off and went to sleep. When I got up I went and dumped my load and pointed the truck east and didnt stop until I hit my home terminal. I cleaned my truck out and went home. The oilfield is a chance to make some killer money (I made $45,000 from the 2nd week of June till Oct. 7th) but they will try to run you to death.

 

What is possible now and what was possible 17 yrs ago is two very different things.
Here in Maine for instance you need 2 yrs experience because of insurance issues. and the only way most of us noobs can get a foot in the door is with the so-called mega carriers.

 

Originally Posted by White Dog
You gotta be kidding me?!? You guys realize I started out at .26 cpm with my first company more than 17 years ago.

What the hell is going on? I'll tell you! Newbies are hard up enough to accept this just to get their foot in the door.
I wonder, if you go to a trucking school (like I did) is it STILL possible to find a small company (like I did) to take you under their wing as a first job?

I never relied on a "starter company" to get my experience with. So can it STILL be done that way....or are people just in such a hurry, and feel that a "training company" is their only hope.

I'm asking, because I honestly don't know. Did I get lucky and find someone right out of the gate.....or can ANYONE do it.

p.s.- The owner of a 26 truck operation himself gave me a road test....saw I could drive....took a chance on me, and cut me loose after a one day orientation. HOWEVER, that was over 17 years ago.....things may have changed, I don't know.

dweedle said: BAD advice!!! Western Express ###### me, and I didn't ever once drive for them......what can they do to someone that actually works for them?!?

No I said try Western Express .I went that route and now just waiting on a trainer.

White Dog said: BAD advice!!! Western Express ###### me, and I didn't ever once drive for them......what can they do to someone that actually works for them?!?