Central Refrigeration Service, Inc. - West Valley, Ut.

sorry the ebay id is mcbridejess.

 

Seems we have a lot in common! ~S~ Check your EBay e-mail

 

Hello, Everybody,
We are all doing well here in Colorado, I just haven't had time to check in around here in a bit.

It seems like we have a good group here on this thread. I really enjoy stopping in and seeing how you are doing. I'll get to meet some of you when you are at the Henderson (Denver) drop yard because I stop by there once in a while to see if there is anybody I know.

Sixpack, I just sent you a PM.

 

The school I went to before I came to Central told a couple weeks ago that Central no longer accepts students from outside their school. You might want to verify that before you go to a private school, and make sure they'll take you before you go. Would really suck to go to a private school, get your CDL, and find out they don't want you.

 

that would be real good news if it's really true!

 

I believe they will still take students from any accredited school, just not other mills. And yes, I consider there school a mill. Any driving school that you can get your CDL in under a month, with less than 80 hours behind the wheel, is a mill. Theres is one of the better ones out there, but it is what it is.
I did not pay allot more for an accredited school back in 1992 than they charge at Central now. But an Accredited school will take GI Bill, it has federal loan programs available, and pell grants.
They also include several weeks classroom time, where you learn proper routing, map reading, and many other useful skills. Then Weeks working on backing and driving, both day and night. You will be able to back into almost any dock or in most truck stops after this training.
Central and all the other training companys rely on trainers to do most of this. They are not paid as a trainer though, they are paid by the extra miles you drive there truck. So giving you really good training is not in there best interest. There are some good ones. But most are owner operators that cannot make enough money solo.

Anyway...
I had a full week set up, but my hours just would not do it. 3600 miles between Mon and Friday lol. Now I have all legal loads, but short miles.
I had a bad time last week with bad trailers. So you on the road know, if the landing gear will not go up on the drivers side, the new bar is only a 17.00 part, but TA for some reason is not stocking it.
You can still pick up the trailer if a yard dog is around though. Have him raise it up, you shorten the landing gear by about 4". When he drops it you dump your air bags, hook and re inflate. It will be enough to get on the road lol.

Also, I don't care if a tire is holding air. If steel is showing get it changed. If OTRM does not want to replace get safety involved.

I had both of these issues this week. I had to run about 300 extra unpaid miles to get them fixed, but I cannot drop a bad trailer. It is not fair to others.

I will be going from Johnstown NY, to Avon NY, to Aurora IL, to Atlanta GA this week.
Short miles, but it will get me to Atlanta for my flight to Florida.

On another tangent. I am thinking about buying a truck and leasing it on with Central.
I know they have the miles, but I cannot see paying there truck payment for them. I am searching for the truck now. It has to be set up the right way for MPG. Kevin Rutherford has some on his site that are interesting, also it helps with the specs. He only puts trucks on there that should get 7+ mpg most of the time.

I have money for a good down payment. So my monthly payments on a fairly low mileage 2005 Freight shaker should not be over 1000 a month. I am still playing with the idea and numbers though.

 

I couldn't get Russ to return phone calls. I emailed Karen and in 10 mins, Russ called me! I guess she's in charge.

 

hey chromedome, My wife and I leased with central for 4 years. If you are thinking about taking the leap, do it at their expense. If for any reason you dont make it and want out just walk away. It will go on your dac but not your credit. if you finance your own truck you will be risking you and your family(if you have one) financial status. yes it doesnt look good on your dac but it is easily overlooked if you are a clean(mvr) responsible driver. However I know central has a lot of brand new shiny trucks, so choose wisely. I would highly recommend you do not lease a 2008 anything. They have all been redesigned for new fuel emmissions and have lots of bugs and recalls. I know, I have tested several brands at central. We had three 08's(2-780s and 1 t2) they remained at the shop for 8months. Do lease some of the other short lease trucks. If you are a serious driver and dont spend a lot of time at home you will make good money with central. They have the miles, even during slow times they keep you busy. DO NOT REFUSE ANY LOADS!!! I REPEAT... This is a hidden policy that will sink your ship. My wife and I really enjoyed central and there are a lot of good people that are still working there. Good luck. I'll check back every once and while and try to answer any questions.

 

You say you leased from Central for 4years...what are you doing now? L/O or O/O or something else?

 

We have a farm down if Fla, and after spending almost a year at the slc terminal we decided to take a break. We are going back on the road at the end of july