Is 51 too old to be a newbie (and to get hired?)

Hello everyone. This is my first post and I would like to thank everyone for all of the information that I have absorbed from this site. I would also like to thank the moderators. Since I know a little bit about websites, I try to click on the advertising links from time to time so you can get paid, even if just a few cents.

I drove for about ten months back in the nineties. I liked the profession, and I liked driving, but I did not like the lack of home time (freight was good back then, and back then the companies were begging for drivers). So I quit driving and went back to my office job.

Now all of my family matters are done and over for good and I am totally single and wanting to get out on the road and drive until my body is worn out and hope I then have something to retire on.

I have not yet started to apply to any companies yet, but have concluded that I will have to go with one of the big boys and start all over as a virgin driver (still have my CDL, but have not touched a truck in a very long time). I hate that, but it is what it is.

Here is my concern and my question. I am 51 years old. I am healthy, but I am 51 years old. That means I have a lot of miles on my body. Since my age is on any application I fill out, I'm wondering if companies will see my birth date and then just put my application into the reject pile?

Especially to those of you who have been through a training class this year (2009 - when things are about as slim as they can be), did any of you see any trainees that were about my age? If so, could you tell me which company it was? And, if any of you know of companies that you figure I should not waste my time with because of my age, I'd appreciate knowing that, too.

I welcome any stories you have to tell.

Thanks much!!!

 

Thanks folks! And I do welcome more input and responses.

And Kingsson, thanks for the laugh and thanks for defending my little space here.

Lastly, I could not agree more with your slogan. I've spent a lot of my life in a cubicle. I'll take a bad day in the cab any day. In a cab, it is all over when you wake up tomorrow. In a cubicle, you go in the next day wondering what time it will be when you will encounter all the people who are dancing and maneuvering to make sure they won't be the ones deemed at fault for yesterday when all the poop hit the fan.

That is why I hope to get back into trucking. I just don't do well with finger pointing and office politics.

Thanks again, and thanks in advance to anyone else who can chime in. So far I am hearing just what I hoped to hear.

 

You guys are all great!! You helped me wipe the age thing off of my list of things to be worried about. I know that back before the economy went south, I would be have been welcomed with opened arms to most any company that hires newbies.

But nowadays while the tables are turned and it is the companies holding the cards instead of the drivers, and especially having noticed on this forum that there are a lot of strong young bulls entering this field, I was pretty worried that my application would be tossed into the trash without the benefit of anyone taking a closer look. And it still might.

The next thing I have to worry about is that I have been self employed for the past four (or so?) years. I can document that for sure, and it was legitimate in every way, but to the clerk screening applications, I figure I will have an uphill battle in getting them to take a closer look. Fortunately, I can be pretty resourceful in finding ways to get their attention and have them see me as a face instead of a document. But as we all know, big companies are like big, slow moving, dumb dinosaurs when it comes to stuff like that.

I wish all of you the best of luck during these tough times, and since most of you in this thread seem to have fallen from the same tree, I hope we do find an opportunity to "take some tea" and share some old "war stories".

I've become addicted to this forum and have a feeling I'll be posting quite often here. It is a fabulous resource.