Stevens Transport aviary

Holy cow! talk about winds!
About 40 miles east of Flagstaff and the wind was strong enough to blow a buffalo over!
It actually ripped the farring off the right side of my truck.
Of course no one will believe that. They'll figure I ran over a blown over Buffalo.
But finally have dropped down the mountain on the west side and only 20mph winds.
My poor clean truck...isn't any more.

 

You're very lucky to have a pre-plan!! We deliver in Landover, MD @ 0015 Monday morning and then head to NC for a load. We were told that we were lucky to get a load cause at least 30 trucks would have to layover til Tues. Only reason we got a pre-plan is because it is a 'team' or 'trainer' load, too many miles in too short a 'window' for a solo. Where do you pick-up at???

 

Well, never could get the truck started. Batteries were to dead. The TA here tried charging them for an hour to no avail. So I went ahead and bought batteries

Stevens thinks the batteries are still under warranty. So I kept them. I wonder if I can sdtill get them replaced and turn them in for a credit?

 

Well guys... I was reading what Emu was saying about local trucking jobs. I am a CDL class A holder with Hazmat and tanker endorsement over a year now. I live in NYC (Astoria) and believe me it's not easy for someone to find a local trucking job if you don't have minimum 160 hour of driving or 5years of experience, and believe me I am looking for a trucking job every day since I got my license. Every one says that you need a minimum of 5 years of experience or 160 hours of driving, and if I go back to a certified trucking school for the hours that this most of jobs asked, you know how much it will cost me just to have 2 hours of driving with a instructor??? 160.00 dollars an hour, so how I can afford paying this??? Right now I make decent money, but I am not rich to spend 160.00 dollars per hour x 160 hours. I already spend a lot of money just to achieve this license, so what should I do??? Can someone give me an advise please!!!! I also have a wife and a 3 year old kid. Believe if I find a local job I wouldn't go to Stevens, I'll stay home. I want to drive trucks for a living.... But it's so friking hard to find a local trucking job here in NYC... And guys you got to be joking if you say that you will make more money as a pizza delivery boy than been a truck driver, specially OTR... I don't really think so, I know at the beginning is going to be hard, but making less than a pizza boy, I don't think it's true.....

 

A good pizza delivery person can make $100 in tips a night. And that is on top of the wages. Not bad for a 4 to 6 hour shift. There are many days of OTR when I don't make a dime and I am away from home.

I used to deliver pizza in a college town, then managed the place. If a driver was not making $25 per hour in tips they did not last long. I replaced them.

OTR is a hard life style for a young family man. I don't recommend it.

Load was ready at 4pm. 44,200 in the box and the first stop gets 32,000 of that. I almost took it back to get it reloaded. To get the trailer under 34,000 I am 2 ft from the dot bumper. Running the toll roads again to harrisburg PA. No scales to cross.

I watched the wind tear the cab extender off a volvo last week in WY

 

I opted to take 99/58/40/us69/44 then up to Illinois, to miss most of the weather/tolls. Have had a nice tailwind most of the way at 79940 with 1/2 tank..... 7.8 MPG don't suck.

 

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Hi TLeah... If you are saying that you sometimes don't make a dime as a truck driver and a pizza delivery person makes 100 dollars in tips in a day, why are you still driving OTR??? Why don't you find something local??? Why don't you go back to the pizza place??? It sounds better than driving OTR.... And why are so many people changing they're careers to become truck drivers??? Sorry if I bomb you with so many questions, but I really want to drive a truck for a living and after reading all this my dreams of becoming a truck driver just vanish and don't have a plan B jet. It's been really hard for me to find a local trucking job here in NYC and after I couldn't find a job here for almost a year my plan was/is to go to Stevens for about a year o so, just to get some experience and then Come back home and find something local

 

Dieselten, OTR is not just a job or a career. It's a lifestyle. Those who stay in the business for a long time do so because of the lifestyle, not the money.

You might look into refresher courses at your local CDL school or community college. Besides getting back into it, they'll also have contacts that might help you get into a seat. But like TLH, I would not recommend an OTR life for a young family with a 3 year old. You will miss too many "firsts" and will regret every one of them later. Trust me. I know. Stevens is a great place to start, but it is not a replacement for early childhood development.

 

Dieselten77 ...
Trucking with a young child at home is very hard on a family. I thought about getting into this several years ago but with my daughter being so young I just couldnt do it. Now that she thinks she is an adult (she is 16 lol) it was alot easier but still its tough. Its hard on my daughter, my wife and myself.

Theres so much I miss from not being there. But ultimately its working out, and I love being out here on the road. Stevens is a fine company to get the training you need and I have few issues with them as a company. Of course they are not perfect, and there are things about this job that will frustrate.

In the end though, the decision has to be yours on what you do. Whatever you decide you and your family will have to live with the consequences of that choice. All I can say is good luck and I pray you can make the right decision for you and your family.

 

I left the food service industry due to lack of people willing to work. All they wanted was a paycheck for no effort. Second the rude customers who want everything to be free.

I sat at a lousy truck stop in bolington IL for 30 hours due to the snow storm. Did not make a dime.

I enjoy being OTR, but I am single and kids are grown. And the money is not why I do this job. Trucking is not a high paying job.

A few quick facts for stevens. Out of every 100 people brought to dallas for school/training 30 will will not finish training. Another 30 will not make it six months. That is 60 people who now have a $5000 debt to pay off. At the end of one year they expect only 10 left with the company. Most quit because of the long hours and time away from home.