I want to chat w a Prime company driver...

My original plan was to stay for 5 years and then look for another company that wanted 5yrs exp. But after 5 years or 7 of pay raises I wasn't really impressed with what was offered elsewhere, at least for what was needed to do for it. It was just an easy middle of the road job. I suppose it was because it wasn't about money, a personal preference.

I havnt moved on to another company yet. Im on extended vacation, might go back to work next year after winter. Even going back to Prime is an option not totally unrealistic.

Better off paying for school? IDK, some of them are expencive, propbably 2k more than company training. People don't want to get locked Into a contract for a year. A year isn't that long and you don't pay the full amount anyway. Whatever is left of the training cost is forgiven after a year. A separate school you will pay back the full amount, not sure who does that in a year. I think if you know of a better job that will pay more and offset the cost then maybe an independent scool or college would be better.

Yeah, all the sitting down is an issue, especially OTR. I like to lift my legs up and down with my toes to get some movement, it helps a lil. Not as good as getting out and walking around. It's a good idea to park at the far end of places so you can walk more to get there.

The truck and trailer is big. Quite intimidating from the start, that's normal. It won't be an issue for long, you'll get used to it. I think the biggest issue with that is when people try to avoid doing it, backing into tight spaces. They look for the easy spots, pull through spots too much and never try to back unless they have to. Not going to get a feel for backing doing that. Same thing when turning corners on small streets. Some people always turn as wide as they can but it doesn't show them how close or tight they can turn. They just avoid the situation always. Bieng new, that's ok, do whatever it takes to get through it without damaging equipment.

My biggest beef with Prime as a company driver was how they slpit the speed governer on the trucks. You can only do 58mph on the throttle and 62mph on the cruse. It's just a PITA to work with. Not that it really matters how fast you go, it's just easier to deal with rolling hills and passing slower people when you aren't limited to 58mph on the throttle.

I think the other companys like Jim Palmer or Will Trans that are in the Prime "family" don't do that. Might be worth looking into them if you are looking at more reginal , Eastern or Western, work depending on where you live. I was in the flatbed division so my choice of them was limited.

 

Working out will be a thing of the past. Everyone want to have time to go to the gym and it doesn’t work that way

 

Not that much. You pretty much drive as close to 11 hours as you can then take a 10hr break, and then be ready to do another 11 and so on. Untill the weekend and you get a 34hour reset. Usually a day and a half off per week that you can count on. Sometimes there is time available but you can't know when you will need to start moving again so it's hard to go do something.

Yes. This is where it's up to the driver to look at a load assignment and figure out of they can do it legally. Or even practically, even if th HOS says you can do it, there are certain curcumstances that come up that change things. If you know it isnt going to work or isn't going to be safe you can say something about it. Upper management knows it's not worth the risk. Middle management, well, they sometimes have thier own ideas and will try to sway you. Don't let them walk on you. I think this goes for any large company.

You can somewhat plan where to stop on long runs. Sometimes it's better to stop early than to run through a large city during rush hour near the end of the day. You get to see alot of places but you usually don't get the chance to stop. Usually you run as far as you can so you have more time to pickup the next load. You want to stay ahead, or keep up with, thier planning. If you deliver as late as you can frequently then you will have a harder time and end up sitting more. They just won't trust you to get the job done in a timely fashion. Customer service is a big deal.


Not to say you need to run hard all the time. Ive seen lots of people that drag thier feet and move in slow motion and not run into problems with job security. I think they can just make enough that thier fleet manager can pay for the truck fuel and wages and not loose money. The driver may not make much, but they can squeek by.

there is enough room on the back of reefer trucks to hang a bike from. But, they will get dirty. It would help to take out the passenger seat and put it in the cab. They do/did sell foldable bikes in the company store.

Worst case senerio and you get a "lightweight truck" you will have more room, and you can stand up from the drivers seat. I think you will have an advantage over many. We don't need to carry around so much stuff.

 

You will get plenty of rest. Like an earlier reply pointed out. You have 11 hours drive in a 14 hour limit and a mandatory 10 hour break. You planning on leasing? If so they will start you off averaging about 2k a week for a few weeks then it will go down to about $1500. If you go home more than 3 days you will make nothing. I wouldn't recommend it because they have forced dispatch. And if the recruiter tells you otherwise call him out on it!!!

 

Indeed is a minimum and recruiter is on the high end. I think it would be somewhere in between. 50-52k as an average. My first year was 57k probably would have been 60 if I didn't need to pay for flatbed equipment. Lol. But, I didn't take home time. I don't think 60k is realistic as an average, more of a possibility.

 

Get him to put everything he promises in writing, and then maybe you'll get it... MAYBE. If he gets mad about you askimg to have it in writing hes probably feeding you BS.