Experienced driver vs new grad question.

yeah the wolves have sharp teeth

 

Jb made me go out for a week with an account trainer before they would give me a truck I have more recent experience than some of their trainers but the reason for it was to learn the account not how to drive a truck if you have not done flatbed before those three weeks will be usefull to you .

 

jxu is right... if you were just going to do TCD, you'd qualify as an experienced driver (6 months OTR in the last 2 years I believe is the requirement), but Maverick has a very specific way on how they run their flatbeds. And I promise you, it's a different driving experience... I only pulled a flatbed trailer for about 15 minutes during my initial road test, and after turning each corner I found myself thinking "Hmm, I coulda sworn that trailer should've ended up over there, not over here...."

Also, Maverick is very specific on how they want loads secured. It is absolutely vital that you know how to do this, and that you could do it blindfolded if you needed to. An improperly secured load could kill you and a lot of other people. This is an area of training that you don't want to skimp on... I promise you, it'll be worth every minute of those 3 weeks. I know of several drivers who asked to stay with their trainers for an extra week, just because they wanted to make sure they had it down. The trainers here at Maverick are really good guys and will treat you with respect and patience. Not to mention that if you end up with a trainer in one of the regional divisions, and he's close to where you live, you'll be home every weekend when he goes home. If he's not close to where you live, you get to relax in a nice hotel. That 3 weeks will speed right by, and you'l be very thankful that you did it.

 

You won't have to be worried about being in the trainer truck longer than necessary.

Trainers get paid differently at Maverick. For every student they graduate, they get paid .01 per mile that the student drives solo for their first year. This allows the trainers to get the student trained properly but avoids the issue where they would be giving up extra pay. Plus, with so many incoming students, there aren't a lot of trainers waiting around to get one after they graduate one. You can expect to be in the trainer truck right about 4 weeks.

 

Yeah, I know that you did. My advice was not only for you, but also the many others that may be in a similar situation that come across this thread in the future and have the same questions on their mind. And, yeah, if you can get Sarge as your driving instructor, you will be squared-away.