TMC Drivers

Well I guess he's out on the road by now! Man I sure enjoyed this post, just wish I had found it while he was actually in the school. I am suppose to be in Des Moines on the 29th to start oreintation and am looking forward to it. Only thing that worries me is that math was mentioned. I have some college under my belt but man do I hate math! I made it as far as introduction to college algebra but thats it, and that almost drove me insane 20 years ago when I took it. I've spent the last 20+ years in the oil field here in East Texas as an industrial electrician and I'm ready for a change.

Anyone know what type of endurance test he might have been talking about? I'm 44 and to be honest I don't feel I can stick with some of the 19 and 20 year olds when it comes to endurance. Heck I know I can't! I've learned over the years to work smarter not harder. I really don't think I will have any problem with the endurance part but now I've got myself to wondering. I hope I made the right choice because I'm driving up the day before and it's almost an 800 mile drive. Plus i'm a warm weather person, could say almost tropical, and I have picked a fine time to head north. Just gonna have to pay a visit to Wally world and get me some thermals.

If anyone else is in the oreintation or just completed it lets hear from ya, it's sure helping me.

 

Hello Grumpy1, I too am going to Des Moines on the 29th to start orientation. I think the math test is only basic math and you can use a calculator that they ask you to bring with you. I'm like you I suck at math,lol. Check out the TMC section here its been a busy forum the past few months.

 

Looks like you will have an advantage over me Firnatine since your from Jersey and are probably used to the cold. Man when it gets down in the 60s here I'm freezing! I've delt with it most of my life though working in the oil field, just never got used to it. I love it when it's 90 deg or warmer outside, thats the main reason for me and the wife planning on retiring to the Cayman islands in about fifteen years or maybe a little less.

Are you driving to the school? I'm not sure if I made the right choice but I just wanted to have my own means of transportation incase I wanted to go to the store or something. Plus I can bring more stuff if I drove and I have a feeling I am gonna need lots of clothes, I mean lots! Well hey lets keep in contact I didn't notice how many post you have but I don't have enough right now to send pm's but maybe you can send them to me. Or we can just keep checking this thread to keep in touch.

Man I'm glad to meet someone that will be there also. A few months ago I was going to go to work for Swift but after the first day of oreintation in SanAntonio I changed my mind and drove back home. They offered to get my CDL and train me but it was going to cost something like $5000 for three weeks. I decided to come back home and attend a local school which only cost $3800 and in my opinion gave better training since there were only 4 of us in the class and they had two trucks for us to drive. The trucks were both '94 Internationals with over a million miles on them but they were fairly good shape. The instructor had a good point when he said if we could learn to drive them we would be able to handle learning any truck. Having just two of us in each truck really allowed us to spend more time driving. I hadn't been in a truck in over 20 years before that. Way, way back I drove an old Autocarr pulling a dropneck. I ran heavy equipment back then so I had to haul mid sized dozers, trackhoes, side booms, and backhoes but most of the time I just a 1to and a goose neck. I never even got my CDL until a few months ago.

Well enough rambling. Glad to hear from ya and I look forward to meeting you at the school.

 

Yes it is cold in Iowa so be prepared and yes I am use to cold, even goto Canada sometimes and have experienced 40 below zero. I think that load securing is done indoors though, but there will be lots of outdoor work too so be prepared.

I am not driving, I decided to fly since I couldn't bear 24+ hours on a bus, I rode Greyhound before for 4 hours and thats enough. I think they provide a ride to local stores if you need it, and I guess there some places within walking distance too. They really stress not to drive I think, mostly because if you get a trainer at the end of the 2 weeks then you have to leave your car there with no way of getting it back home. If theres not a trainer then they give you a rental car or another way home.

I don't have enough posts for PM either. Did you check out the TMC forum board here? Its been busy lately. I will post the link, not sure if I will get in trouble for it. Lots of good info and people.

http://www.thetruckersreport.com/truckingindustryforum/tmc/

A guy with the handle cplmac2 is also going there on the 29th, he said about 20-30 people total in the class.

 

I drove up there twice. Chances are remote that you will be assigned a trainer leaving from Des Moines. Usually, will will have just enough time to make it home and to go out with him Sunday around noon. It all depends on where his delivery is.

If you are prepared to leave from Des Moines, there is a possibility to start training immediatly, just be prepared to stay out for the entire 5 weeks with your trainer. Then go back to Des Moines for a couple of days to test and be assigned your truck. After that they will make an effort to get you through the house so you can pick up anything you need for your truck.

They will allow you to check out a van to do your running around. I forget how many students have to check it out together.

There, really, isn't anything with walking distance. There is the Chrome Cafe, the TMC Burger is good and filling. Other than that there are a few resturants that will deliver.

 

Here's a link to your PHOTO


Great photo
We dont allow links to company sites
I hosted it for you
Thanks Baack

 

From the looks of that team, Where do they all sleep?
Looks like our local walmart. A car pulls up and about that many hispanics get out. I reckon a truck could hold that many... LOL!

 

FirNaTine... Oh trust me I'll be prepared for the cold, probably over prepared. I've already put everything in the car that it may need for the cold weather, I don't think it likes cold either. We have a spare car, a Mercury Marquies, that I'm gonna drive so it will be a comfortable ride. Gas is a different story though, the car gets about 23 to 25 mpg depending on how fast I drive. Whats the gas prices like up there? It's running around $1.46 a gallon for regular around here. I look forward to meeting you.

DXER64.... Oh no it doesn't sound to easy to me. I took a test sort of like that once in the plant and it was tougher than it looked. We had to carry a box with 50 lbs in it about 100ft then turn around and go back to the starting point. We did this four times and each time the weight increased by 50lbs ending with 200lbs. We didn't have to climb anything but we did have to were heart monitors during the whole test and if our heart rate got to high we failed. Let me tell ya, that last trip my legs felt like rubber! I was trying to walk a straight line but kept going off to the side. I passed though. I used to climb 500ft towers to work on the lights so high places don't bother me, of course I had a harness and lanyard on to protect me so that helped a little. I might be huffing and puffing after the test but I'm sure I'll make it. I'll just wait till I get back to the hotel to have my heart attack. lol