It’s Not as big as you think it is

Your trailer doors might be defective. Know anything about those?

As far as a 16 year old, I was not allowed to drive. But I managed to catch a woman to go date at that age. Nervous taking a test does not make half of what I was having problems with in the way of hormones and everything else you cannot even think. And make a hash of it.

The state made sure I got my license at 18 and the first thing I did when I got away from school was to go to trucking school on my own dime that summer for 4 months after April. Parents could not be bothered with it. (They still arent...) at 20 I was offered work with the one blacktop outfit locally driving their dump and running a tool when not. For those of you getting ready to give me a hard time, it's farm work part time. They needed a drivah of no particular skill in one of thier vehicles that was running that day whatever it might be. Anything from the 1940's through to the 80's if it's not running, grab the tool box find the bad part and replace it until it's running whatever it is. In those days mechanic work had no license no nothing. You don't even need that frilly paperwork. Just get that old bad part out and bolt a new one on.

Eventually a few years later I would work for them as a road driver running equiptment and blacktop but not at that early age prior to 21. Not on the public road. When you have land thats a thousand acres you have your own roads.

Trucking school is a necessary annoyance in a journey of a long haul American Trucker. Particularity now that we seem to be evolving to just Long Haul Trucking. Flip Flop style. /snarky

 

At Millis we as trainers are told and taught to tell the student to GOAL as many times as needed. Hes being taught to GOAL. Its the states testing regulations that limit the GOAL. Its not from the training he's recieving.

 

I can attest to even an in house examiner being tough. When I got my CDL through Roehl, there were two examiners there that regularly did the testing. The first one is pretty laid back, I had this examiner for my test. The second one was notoriously strict about the test, he failed just about every student that he tested. (As an example, the class ahead of mine had 12 students in it. 7 out of 12 of those students tested with the 2nd examiner and failed. The 7 students however, got to retake the test a week later with the 1st examiner and passed.)

I took my test at Roehl's Marshfield, Wisconsin terminal. The test consisted of three parts;
Part 1 is the pretrip inspection. I think the requirements are universal across most states in this test.
Part 2 is the maneuvering skills test. In Roehl's case, they chose to test on; 90 degree alley, straight line back, and offset back. You got 2 free pull-ups and 2 GOAL's for each maneuver. Each extra pull-up would start adding points, but GOALing for the 3rd time was an automatic failure. I agree that this rule is nonsense, but that's the way the test is ran.
Part 3 is the Road Test itself. Again, I think the standards are similar across most states.
I forgot what my score was on the pretrip.. but I got 2 points on the backing (Because I did two extra pull ups on the offset back.), and 13 points on the drive (Most of it was for failing to turn my head at intersections).

 

That's what she said

 

Lol yeah that's so true... In Idaho if you encroach or hit a cone you fail. But extra pull ups and GOALs are just deductions.

 

WA also restricts you to 1 GOAL on the 90° back, with a second being a fail. I thought that was a bit bogus at the time, and experience where 20 minutes and 15 GOALs saved my bacon while snagging the last available spot has only served to reinforce that belief. The GOAL is the hitting tee of our industry, to make an Uncle Lee comparison. Overlooked, underused, and poorly implemented by an unfortunate number of folks in our line of work, yet immensely powerful in the hands of those who use it liberally and correctly. It honestly shocks me how drivers I've watched back into parking spaces without GOALing even once...

 

Where's @ Southern Dad?!! I really wanted an update on how his experience is going. Hope we hear from ya!