is 350 a week normal?

Every poster that's saying stick it out is is saying it's ok. And that's why these companies do it. Because people think they HAVE to start at this point. Yes everyone needs experience, Yes everyone needs to get seat time and miles in to move to a better place, NO you don't have to starve to death and not be able to pay your bills.

But everyday like clock work people do it and so it will continue.

 

Well please enlighten me on all the opportunities for drivers with no experience to get good pay jobs, because I looked and there were #### few options, at least in my area. Indiana is in a major shipping lane, probably 70% of my loads pickup, deliver, or go through indiana. The pickins are a little slimmer in some other states like pa.

My bills are getting paid, I'm not starving to death. It's called good planning and creative budgeting. I knew what I was getting into and planned accordingly. I've lived on way less than what I'm making now.

 

Hey if you can make it work and are happy who's to say I'm right or your wrong. But I never in my life turned down working for more money.

Did the area I live in play a role in landing a good company? Possibly. You just have to look. Shoot you pass how many trucks a day? Right down the name of a company that looks appealing then start you research.

I'm not a recruiter. I'm not going to list off good starting companies. You gotta put your own effort forward on that one.

 

You remind of the guy who continuously calls me when his GPS routes him someplace wierd. EG: from Louisiana to Boston it routed him up I-95 through all the big cities and toll roads. I've offered several times to teach him how to read/trip plan the Atlas, but no.

We've got an Italian cruise ship run aground and sunk because the electronics didn't show a reef.

On my last trip, the "fuel at" progam had my first refuel 1000 miles away in Michigan even though I was going to Pennsylvania.

Computers and electronics "freeze up" all the time. Or are misprogrammed. Look at all the e-problems the new "hi-tech" trucks have.

Go ahead and use your chinese-made toys.... but if you don't have a back-up plan for when they go *poof* then yes, you are stupid.

 

Well yes and no. I'm not ok with the low pay and I don't want to endorse it as being ok. But in general, new drivers also need to keep their long term career in mind. And the fact remains that changing jobs several times in a year can negatively impact your job opportunities later. That doesn't mean it will, but it can.

I don't like the low pay any more than you. But I won't give someone advice which could prevent them from getting a good job later.

 

That cruise ship ran aground due to an incompetent captain at the helm plain and simple. Technology is not the holy grail and I don't think anyone is saying that it is. What is being said is that those who dismiss "technology" just because it's not like the old way of doing things are just as incompetent as those who rely too heavily on it. That guy who calls you about his GPS messing up probably shouldn't be behind the wheel of a truck- I know trucking ain't rocket science, but there should be at least some standards............then again if there were the pay would be higher.

 

I agree 100%. But if you ask questions and think long term you wont be in this type of situation to begin with.

It seems that people think "I gotta go here because I'm new and no one will take me" and that's not always true. Are there people who have to start this way? Yes. They gotta get there foot in the door.

A lot of companies will do this to drivers good and bad. They all have these short runs that they have to cover. And most the time they go to new drivers so that the company can 1) cover the run and 2) check a driver out. But if you don't say something about getting more miles than there gonna keep you on these short runs as long as they can.

 

BFI companies lock you into a 1 year contract. I have a collection of business cards from drivers I talked to and a list of companies to contact, once my year is up. The only companies I found local to me that would take drivers with less than a year experience were all tri axle dump or straight truck. Which is fine but will never get you the experience to drive combination otr.

 

Grave digger, I can tell you right now that Pennsylvania is also a good state to live in for truck drivers, plenty of cash to be made around here.

 

There are some serious solar flares predicted for this year, that may disable / destroy many gps satellites. You may want to buy some atlases and maps.