Thinking about starting a career in Trucking. Is it for me?

Find out more about your father in law's business and let us know. How long he's been doing it, what does he haul most of the time, how he will pay you and how much (per mile, salary) if he'll offer benefits, and where he hauls to and from. Starting and learning with a small company is definitely better than working for one of the mega carriers. Starting pay working for one of them would be somewhere around $30-$40,000 a year whereas working for your father in law who wants to see his daughter and grandchildren taken care of would hopefully pay much better.

 

I've heard it described as a prison on wheels that slowly consumes you with lonliness and depression. I'd say that's pretty accurate.

Local work not so much but even local is terrible for the kids.

It's a working class job not middle class. You can make as much or more than someone who is middle class and still be working class. The difference is quality of life.

 

What isn't stressful would be a shorter list lol, but you grow into it. Different people get beaten up by different things, but very quickly you'll learn about the battle you're constantly fight vs HOS rules vs your appointment schedule. What works on paper fails on the road. You'll get a flat tire. You'll blow a radiator hose. You'll get trapped behind a HAZMAT wreck. That bridge you want to take was just closed for repairs. There's a major ice storm. You're ####in lost. You're stuck in a neighborhood. You're out of time and you don't know where any parking places are. You just got a ticket for violating a law you didn't know existed. You hit a reindeer. Your shipper kept you for 5 hours. Your receiver made you wait 3 days to unload (ahem, walmart).

Anything can and will happen. Maybe to you, maybe to the guy you're stuck behind. The stressors are infinite, and there's a learning curve to dealing with them. Much of this depends on your mentality. Did it ruin your day, or teach you something useful (like how to fix a radiator hose)? There's an old saying in trucking, and it's true: the day you don't learn something new is the day you need to retire.
Positives tho, I love new routes. They're a challenge, and I like new scenery. Old gets boring for me, and boring is what will get me killed in this job. I like being trusted with 100k+ in cargo, and proving that I am worthy of that trust.
I even enjoy the solitude. I can go a full day or more without speaking a word. I like it. Not that my gf let's me do that, but whatever. I like being able to find a solution to whatever lemon I'm being given. Though not being able to is a major stressor.

 

Thank you, and you're welcome. Patience is more important in this industry than in any other that I've been exposed to. Impatience in an 80,000 lb truck gets people killed. We've all seen that happen. And we've all spent a long time learning to be more patient, and trust me, we're ALL still learning it. As for handling the stress... in this job you're mostly on your own. Sure, you can call for help. And you'll possibly have a dispatcher or safety team that's good help. But it'll be up to you to ensure your safety, and that the problem, whatever form that takes, is solved satisfactorily. Sure the shop changed your belts. Did they do it right? Or are the belts put on inside out? Okay you've got a flat tire. Are you going to get hit, or are you stopped safely? That kinda thing.

 

Practically anything is better than working in an office or factory.
With a family, you really need a company with decent pay and a good benefits package. Most 1099 companies require you to provide your own benefits.
Look at a few companies that probably hire in Idaho and call to see if they hire in your area and which cdl schools they hire from. Some are picky about the cdl school and some don't care as long as it's 160 hours.
Here's a few that hire new cdl graduates, even if the website has different.
Western Dairy Transport - www.wdtmilk.com
Dairy Farmers of America
Sysco - Idaho Falls
Jones Bros. Trucking - Missoula,Montana - has their own cdl school.
Jim Palmer Trucking - Missoula,Montana - has their own cdl school.
TWT Refrigerated Service - hires new cdl grads.
Shaffer Trucking - hires new cdl grads.
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FedEx Freight - Blackfoot,ID - apply online

• Must possess a class A Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) with double/triple, hazardous materials and tank endorsements
• Must possess one (1) year experience within most recent three (3) years or successful completion of FedEx Freight Driver Development Course

 

@Irishfan55 - I still love trucking after 15 years, but I am home everyday so I'm not exactly a "real trucker." I got out of OTR early on because the novelty and "adventure" wore off very quickly.

My only warning would be that the hours are a shock to most people, both in the total amount and the around-the-clock nature of the business. I'd be curious how "outlaw" he runs. If he does, your 14-hour days could become much longer than that. People focus on the earnings potential without considering what all is required to make it.

You said you lived "paycheck to paycheck." I'm curious what that means exactly. You have to consider the costs vs benefits. Depending on what you make now, it could be a no-brainer or totally unadvisable to go trucking. Always consider the price paid by your family when you do your cost-benefit analysis.