Got my cdl with Central/Swift but....

And I'm willing to bet 3 trainers is still short of a record.

 

I start orentation for swift monday. Hope I get better mentors than you have had.

 

stick it out. i hated training. but once you upgrade and never have to listen to that know it all or should i say know nothing at all no body they call a trainer you'll be sooooooo relieved.

 

I can believe your first trainer could have been hopped up on something. Just looking at Swift's CSA score for controlled substances/alcohol being 35.4% makes me wonder what the heck is the safety department doing about this!

TigerBait, do not give up now. Keep switching trainers if needed so that you get at least an acceptable level of training. Use the experience as a reminder of how not to train someone should you become a trainer in the future.

 

What got me through it was heavy prayer. I went through two trainers and my first was terrible. I asked God to give me the strength to survive the first trainer instead he gave me a better trainer. Its hard man, try the lord.... Or quit.

 

Start making a list of mistakes you make or want to work on and watch youtube videos/ask for help on this forum to help you become a better driver. I had a boss who did the same thing to me would hoot and holler if I didn't downshift fast enough before going up a hill, or if I grind a gear or something, anyway watched some youtube videos next time he was in the truck with me he didn't say one word, and wanted to put me to train other peoples lol.

 

I am so glad I didn't have to go through this crap when I started.

 

The mega carriers have students brainwashed that they need months of training. A couple of weeks is plenty. Watkins-Shepard has the right idea; 10 days training and more if you request it.

 

I remember, back in about 1990, I was running team, hauling nuke fuel from WA to NJ and I asked him how he got started.
His story: "I was working for a trucking outfit in Tracy, CA, in the early 60s, loading trucks, when the boss came out and told me one of the drivers was out sick and he needed me to run a load to LA. I said to him, 'I don't know how to drive that truck!' and the boss said, 'You will by the time you get to LA.'".

 

My brother-in-law was laid off and had couldn't find decent work. He had a CDL he had never used. Walked in to a trucking company and they hired him on the spot. His road test was, "See that truck over there hooked up to a trailer? Take it to Mobile, AL." He almost didn't get away from the terminal until he figured out you don't clutch like in a car.