Am I Wasting My Time?

RIN, I bet none of these companies took the time to explain this whole "worked in 5 yrs" thing. See Big Brother (feds) require trucking companies to gather info on you. And some of that info is where you have been and what you have been doing the last ten years. Did you tell them you where retired? If not next time tell them that. Also let them know that so and so can verify where you have been for those 5 yrs. Big Brother likes to know where all the little truckers are. It dosen't like it when we hide from him.

 

ROFL! The idealism lasts until about halfway through training.

But if you are not afraid to work long and hard, keep pressing on. You are NOT too old, by a long shot.

 

Thank you, Mr. Buzz kill!

 

For once, a helpful recruiter! Did you say HE could help you with a job?

 

I'm in the same boat as all of you trying to break into a new field. Altho, I was in trucking for as long as I can remember it wasnt as a driver. I couldnt get any type of grant since I wouldnt be a "displaced worker" I paid for my schooling with whats left of my savings. I knowingly started school when the trucking industry was in the toilet. Being optimistic I keep thinking that the economy will soon pick up and I'll be able to do what I've wanted to do for as long as I can remember---drive a truck. Dont give up. I retired two yrs ago and am older than dirt but I will get a job driving. Might not be right away because of the economy but I will and so will you if you dont give up.

 

reitred: Good to know that there is good news for you, tha is what I use to, self employed, I actually was, I just worke here and there doing home improvement stuff for a little extra spending money cause my wife had a bomb ##### job. Well, recently divorced, here I am. Hope it works out fdor ya.
luvtheroad:Im in Youngstown and going through the local one stop employment agency, ever hear of it? I think Im going to get funded, didnt anyone tell you about them?

 

Hi Retired in Nevada,
What trucking company were you talking to?
I'm 54, going through a divorce, have been a housewife for the last 8 years, clean driving record, no trouble with the law ever, and Swift has accepted me. Starting school Monday. I just needed to send a notarized statement saying that I've been unemployed, haven't claimed un-employment ect.
Also, Schneider in California keeps sending me emails to complete my app.
Go to their website, it seems they are looking for oldie goldies like us.
Good luck!

 

The idealism lasts until about halfway through training.

ROLMFAO....VERY TRUE STATEMENT...LOL

 

Howdy Retired In Nevada.
Welcome to the forums.

Man-0-Man!
After readin' your first post in this thread, with the exception of a few
things, what you wrote coulda been me.

I'm not married, have no DUI's, but I'm about the same age as you.
As I sit here with around a million mile markers in my back pocket,
I've been off the road --- sorta retired --- for several years and wanting to re-enter the truckin' industry,
and I'm hearin' the same things you are.

That being, go back to truckin' school
or
Come to OUR little truckin' school
WE'LL teach you ALL you need to know.

Well, ..... what I already know is to avoid those truckin' company schools ---
ESPECIALLY now-a-daze.
OH, sure, they'll have a drivin' job waitin' for me upon graduation,
and a bill for trainin' that they want to be repaid, usually by deductin'
an amount from each paycheck for a year or so.

Which, on the surface, doesn't sound all that bad.
And in the past, it probably wouldn't be. But today?
I'm not so sure.

Back in the day, freight would run a driver ragged and there'd be decent
paychecks. Today, the freight is down and so are the paychecks.
We're readin' of newBees makin' around $200 --> $250 a week,
after deductions for trainin'. And of that money, they're tryin' to
live on the road --- leavin' little to send home to pay bills with.
Livin' on the road can be VERY expensive for a newBee who hasn't learned
how to stretch a buck....... yet.

As others here have already mentioned, now-a-daze freight is slow and could
get slower, and there's a glut of applications on recruiter's desks submitted
by experienced Big truck truck drivers and desperate wannaBees all seeking the same few jobs available, ----
Making this time about the worst time in recent history to attempt to enter
the truckin' industry.

To make matters worse, there are training companies who are
taking advantage of newBees because they pay them less, thereby saving
money and increasing their profits through training costs and movin' their
freight for less. Such companies don't really expect their newBees to remain beyound one-year,
if that long. They have a revolving door of stary-eyed newBees chompin'
at the bit to fill a Big truck truck seat.

However, if you're able to weather the storm, financially, until the economy
heads north again, it could be a benefit for you.
Today, a lot of drivers are experiencing a lot of sittin' and waitin' for
a load and making fewer dollars as a result. Not good if they have bills mounting up
back at the home-20, and mouths to feed. But if that isn't the case, sittin' and waitin'
could be a blessing in disguise
because ----

Back in the day, when I wore the clothes of a newBee, I ran so hard that
I WISHED the company would sit me for a day or so, so I could catch my breath.
And even as an experienced driver I sometimes hoped the company wouldn't be
able to find me a load right away. In a 10-year span, I can count on one hand
the times I had to sit a day waitin'. And of those times, the longest was 2 1/2 days
in Three Forks, Montana. And I loved EVERY minute of it there.

Now-a-daze, drivers are often sittin' in the armpits of larger cities,
and/or the middle of NoWhere, miserable and angry because
they ain't makin' no money.

What to do?
Here's what I suggest and highly recommend ---
Read ALL you can right here at The Truckers' Report. And I mean EVERYthing, even if you don't think it pertains to you
at this time. You'll be amazed what you can learn without even realizing that you're learnin'.
Painlessly.
It's twue!
It's twue!

With the tid-bits of information you can garner here, you'll have a better understanding of
the Big truck truckin' industry, at LEAST.
And at most, you'll be ahead of many others who don't take the time to
RESEARCH before they take the leap.

There ARE truckin' companies to avoid, like
C.R. England. And some of the others are hit-N-miss, in that some folks succeed there while others don't.
When reading comments on the various companies, keep in mind ---
With an OPEN mind, what all they relate. SOME folks wouldn't be happy no matter WHERE they are, while others are more
factual.

I suggest reading:
Covenant From A Wife's Perspective
posted by the lovely Mrs. Redcoat about her husband's adventure with
that company. It's VERY educational and VERY well written.

Here at The Truckers' Report, there are hundreds of years combined experience
betwixt all the posters. The greater majority of which are eager to be of
assistence, and happy to do so. Personally, nothin' pleases me more than to
read a success story. Makes my day.

OH!
And you might want to follow ScooterDawg's accounts of his current training
as he goes through it. He's an up-beat poster with, what I consider,
a stellar attitude. And a good attitude, IMO, can take a wannaBee and/or newbee, and even an experienced driver, farther
down the road of success than those who prefer to
whine and complain.

For SOME, Big truck truckin' is a pain in the buttox. And for some others, like me, it is more like an adventure to be enjoyed.
Make no mistake though, truckin' is more of a lifestyle that you either love
or loath. SOMEtimes, ---- both, ..... at the same time.
Imagine that.

Good luck, sir ----
And best of success.