Interested in trucking

The heart disease and gambling addiction are not nearly as big of a problem as being from California.

 

I'm not gonna' comment on the California thing....lol... However I am starting with Driver Solutions March 2. There are a few schools that may take ya' (dunno about the age thing though) look around this site and you'll find other schools mentioned. You'll read some good, ALOT bad but i'm just gonna stay positive and see what happens. Good luck to ya'.

 

Check into a local Community collage and see if they have a trucking class that is going to be your lowest cost. see if you can get finacial aid for the class. I'm not sure i9f you can get the state to pay for the class because you quit your job. I'm going through the trucking class at my community collage and the state is paying for it because I was laid off after 13 yrs. I hope this helps.

 

Just left Swift after 2 years and couldn't be happier! Except for the first day, I hated every day I was there, but I stuck with it because I knew that I could get to a better place if I got the experience. It has paid off! Starting with Interstate in a few days. Of course, these days ANY job is a good one to have. I'm sure Swift will take you. Got a pulse? Heck, you don't even need to speak English these days. CA? Guess you know that already.

 

I'm a bit more worried about the heart disease that you have than being in CA. Can you pass a physical? If not, stop there because you're not going to drive any truck for anyone.

As far as the gambling....you want to drive a truck that's pretty much a gamble that you're going to get to do that.

Hopefully your current license is as clean as a whistle because we are getting real picky who gets hired anymore.

My other concern is you just up and quit a job out of spite. Uh that's not going to work out in the working world of drivers. Leave under load and you'll never work again. That is called abandonment....I get called when someone leaves a load (reefer) and the price to get it somewhere just went up.

One more thing....can you work 7 days a week, long hours, in a job that isn't glamourous at all. Can you sit for longer periods of time herding a 80,000 lb bomb down the interstate and not taking any lives including your own. Make split decision and not second guess yourself? Can you be on time somewhere? Late is late and it is frown upon in the industry. Be gone from home anywhere from 6 weeks on?

As far as making good money.....you're looking at the wrong profession. We earn every dollar we make.

 

That's what the school was for. Get the CDL in 3 weeks. After that go out with a trainer for 4 to 6 weeks (6 weeks with Swift) and learn how to do the job correctly. I was very lucky and had a mentor that had been driving for 22 years and was teaching because he wanted to make sure there were a few good drivers out there, not because he liked the shirt or hat.