A few Questions from a trucker to be wife

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He definitely needs to learn a manual. A majority of companies still use 9 or 10 speed trannys. Also paying for his own training can open doors without contract obligations. but that can run you $4,000 and anywhere from 4-8 weeks of time. Anything company specific just keep surfing the site.

 

Absolutely!!

I guess it wouldn't be required if he were going to a company like USXpress who only uses autos, but that really limits his choices in companies. I don't know if there's even any school out there that teaches on autos, but I wouldn't go to it.

Look around on the board. Swift, JB Hunt, CR England, Stevens and Werner Enterprises are the main worms.

As long as you steer clear of the above mentioned companies, you already have a leg up on most folks. Doesn't mean every other option is a good one. Read the "good companies" section to find info on companies that people like and for what reasons. Also, the search function at the top of the page works wonders. I like to click search, then choose "advanced search" and go in and type in the company I'm trying to find info on, then choose the "search titles only" option. It will find all threads with that company in the title. So you're more likely to find a thread about that company, rather than just a thread where something about that company is mentioned.

You'll find most of your info by just browsing around. There's so much information on this site that is imperative to realize before diving in. Too much to just write for you.

Good luck to you and your husband.

 

hello yes ----check out the p.t.d.i.(professional truck drivers institute, yes he should do both the classroom training as well as ''hands on driving a van, flatbed $ a tanker ! alll should be loaded and unloaded! yes go with a manual transmission. yes try amd go with ups, or old dominion! remember this if they recruite they could have a high driver turnover rate

 

Should he learn a manual tranny??????????????????UHHH hows about 4x,5x,6x,10,13,15,18 in super/over/double overs....These schools are turning out folks that aren't qualified to drive a roach coach much less class 8.If you were to learn autos only (which I've never even seen one and ain't sure they really exsist) then your relegated to low wage/miles crap companies.JB,US unimpress,prime and others like them count on high turn over and bleeding you dry.There are guys all over the place with one or two trucks setting because they can't find a driver thats willing to work and keep the truck halfway clean.If these "schools" turned out anyone that was even 25% trained within a short while there would be no driver shortage.Best training you could get is find you an old o/o that needs the help,get your cdl permit on your own.You stand a better chance of passing the first time out because you'll study the book whereas older hands figure they know how to drive and don't study and blow the test the first round by counting on exp.which counts for nothing in govt. tests and they are liable to tell a dmv man to piss up a rope the first time too
.Jump in there with that oldtimer and keep your mouth shut and watch at first .IF you pass HIS tests for a few months or so I'll guarantee he knows somebody with a nice ride sitting somewhere that you can crawl into when HE vouches for you.Plus you won't owe a bogus school loan and probably have a friend for life.Some bighead on here posted the other day that you have to pay your DUES to climb into a nice largecar...either he's a greenhorn or stupid...If I could have found a WELL trained driver last month I would've been glad to let them climb in my truck(in my pics) rather than sold it to keep it from sitting and costing me.I also know a guy that had to let 5- 379xhd ultra chicken cruisers go back to paccar a while back because he couldn't find drivers for 3x a week what those other companies pay rookie hands.You either get smart in this biz or get ate.It's a shame too because if you have a desire to do this job and a company craps on you you'll prob never try it again.

 

It used to be an option, but few will hire that way anymore. You almost have to have a school on account of insurance. It is very hard to get hired without a school. There are a few chances, but not many. Matter of fact most exp drivers that have a boatload of miles under their belt have a harder time finding a job if they have been off the road awhile compared to a newbie fresh out of school.

 

You definately want a CDL school that has a lot of behind the wheel training, the more the better. The classroom part is important too but behind the wheel is the most important part.
Also if you are paying $5000+ you might consider company sponsored training since it'll be cheaper, if not free with an obligation to work there.
As for companies, it depends on where you live. Just read this site and you'll know who to stay away from.

 

That may be the case for working for a major company Tarp , but, unless it's Yellow or a union shop outfit like that who would want to work for one of the majors?You see 95 % failure rate with those crap companies within the first year and drivers feeling that thats all there is to trucking companies (which couldn't be farther from the truth).I don't know what region you live in but I'll guarantee you can do everything I outlined in my previous post here within a short time if you wanted to.It probably would take longer than "school" but you would be a hand instead of the butt of jokes or worse,dead in a ditch with a families car under your wagon.

 

Muleskinner - that sounds like the best option to learn the most about trucking in the shortest amount of time. But how can you find those seasoned truckers who would hire on a beginner for training?