Newbie looking at solo CDL

RedSonja61 · Dec 3, 2019

tscottme said: ↑

You are not too old. I think the average age of truck drivers is 56. Concentrate on finding the company to work for. There is a huge difference between some companies and others. You wouldn't pick a wife based on which reception hall had the cheaper price when that is only one day of the rest of your life. Think of finding the right shoes for you. An expensive pair that doesn't fit is worse than another pair that does fit. The fit on YOU is the difference between a tough year and an interesting year.

Once you know the company that best fits you, then decide how to get the license, what school to attend. If you want the least hassle for the driver because of the freight look for a dry van company. The trailer is just a shell with freight inside. It's not refrigerated. It's just a box on wheels. All you have to do with those is open and close doors and slide the rear wheels for weight distribution. Refrigerated freight has the most hassles, IMO. The customers get many, many trucks per day. So they treat you like the DMV treats everyone.They also have the most problem with their freight and reject some or all of it if the condition is not exactly what they want. Once it's rejected you and your company have to deal with disposing of the freight. You are paid per mile, not often by the hour. If you do get hourly pay, it's usually after you donate a couple of hours first.

Obviously you are right in the neighborhood of Prime, Inc. Almost no trucking company will care about your age as long as you can pass the DOT medical exam. While Prime probably has the most organized and well-planned training for new drivers, the period you ride with a trainer is among the longest in the industry. For some of us riding with the trainer, 2 dudes living in the space the size of an apartment bathroom, is difficult. With Prime you stay out at least one month at a time before you get home time. As a trainee you will go to a hotel/home if/when your trainer gets home time. IMO almost every newbie vastly underestimates the value of getting home and doesn't quite understand it's not like that one long car trip you took that was so much fun. In 20 plus years I've never worked for a company that routinely kept me away from home for more than a week. You don't have to stay away from home for months unless you really want to. When picking a company think along the lines of "can I stay with this company and these conditions for a full year?" A lot of younger newbies seem to think they can get their 1 year of initial experience by working a 4-6 companies. Doing anything like that severely restricts which companyies will hire you and none of those companies are paying high cents per mile CPM and handing out easy trips. That's a recipe for a downward spiral in pay and conditions.

DO NOT WORK FOR CR ENGLAND, no matter what. I think they paid Google so EVERY newbie gets that company on every search. If you don't like sharing a truck with one person, imagine sharing with 2 other people for weeks, besides the low pay.

The YouTube videos and the ads make it seem like mostly what you do every day is look at beautiful scenery and see America. It's more like you visit America's industrial parks and fight traffic and hunt for truck parking over and over and over. After a short while the location where you are doing that is just a name on your paperwork except for the exceptionally beautiful places.

Find THE company for you, then decide about paying for school, letting the company provide "free training" or paying for school and letting your employer re-pay your school through their Tuition Reimbursement. Some companies only do TR if you have a loan. Sometimes they will pay TR even if you have paid cash out of pocket. Get the details from the company before you assume anything about TR. EVERY CDL school will find someone to loan you money for their school.
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Newbie here as you can tell, I am still learning how to do postsLOL. My question is I like this phrase of find THE company!!! I am a mature lady looking at truck driving as a means of income. I will need training etc. BUT from what I understand the companies are looking for women too? as drivers. So any advice or suggestions, I don't need to be home, don't have one anymore. Looking forward to hearing all input.

Just passing by · Dec 3, 2019

RedSonja61 said: ↑

Newbie here as you can tell, I am still learning how to do postsLOL. My question is I like this phrase of find THE company!!! I am a mature lady looking at truck driving as a means of income. I will need training etc. BUT from what I understand the companies are looking for women too? as drivers. So any advice or suggestions, I don't need to be home, don't have one anymore. Looking forward to hearing all input.
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Paging @Chinatown

Chinatown · Dec 3, 2019

RedSonja61 said: ↑

Newbie here as you can tell, I am still learning how to do postsLOL. My question is I like this phrase of find THE company!!! I am a mature lady looking at truck driving as a means of income. I will need training etc. BUT from what I understand the companies are looking for women too? as drivers. So any advice or suggestions, I don't need to be home, don't have one anymore. Looking forward to hearing all input.
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Where is your location?
Plenty of companies will hire you and train you.
Here's 3 companies that actively recruit women and have their own cdl training.
Fill out the "short apps" on the websites and you'll get training & job offers within a day or two.
Wilson Logistics
https://www.wilsonlogistics.com
*
Student Drivers – CFI
https://cfidrive.com/careers/drive-for-cfi/student-drivers
*
Swift Refrigerated - Get CDL Trained & Hired
Swift Refrigerated – Sign On for the Trucking Career of a Lifetime with Swift Refrigerated

RedSonja61 · Dec 3, 2019

Thanks, I am in Knoxville

Chinatown · Dec 3, 2019

RedSonja61 said: ↑

Thanks, I am in Knoxville
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R. E. West Transportation
https://www.rewest.com
No Experience? No Problem
*
Try all 4 companies I listed: Swift/RE West/CFI/Wilson Logistics

Atlaw4u · Dec 3, 2019

Good luck to you both.

exACT driver · Dec 3, 2019

Darracq said: ↑

Look at transland or RBX. in straford mo.
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RBX is a great place to start, a real down to earth company. The down side is they are really cheap when it comes to wages. I was there 3 1/2 years and would probably never looked elsewhere if they would have given the raises they promised. Home often and never go to the Northeast or California. Good Luck on your new career

Darracq · Dec 4, 2019

exACT driver said: ↑

RBX is a great place to start, a real down to earth company. The down side is they are really cheap when it comes to wages. I was there 3 1/2 years and would probably never looked elsewhere if they would have given the raises they promised. Home often and never go to the Northeast or California. Good Luck on your new career
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They start at .44 cpm now.

MonsterOR · Dec 17, 2019

Swift is NOT a bad company to start off with. Get a year under your belt and you can almost go anywhere you want.

RedSonja61 · Dec 23, 2019

quatto said: ↑

Though Ive driven large trucks previously, I got my CDL at the tender age of 61. I'm 68 now and still going strong. I haul jet fuel for firefighting helicopters in the summer and fuel tankers in the winter. I get about 5 job offers a month from various sources that I don't solicit for.

The main thing us "seasoned" guys need to do is to stay healthy. Everything you can do along those lines will serve to insure a long life as a driver (and a long life!). If you, as you say, have a good driving record that's great. Add to that the available endorsements for doubles, tanker, hazmat and a TWIC card and you become a valuable commodity.

Depending on the company, you may need to undergo a training period. However you don't need to do OTR, work for a "mega", or take a bad job with a bad company to "pay your dues". Those days are over and I'm living proof of it.

Bottom line: Go for it, dude !!
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What do you mean?? However you don't need to do OTR, work for a "mega", or take a bad job with a bad company to "pay your dues".
No OTR over the road long hauling? I thought we had to start there!! If I didn't have to do those long "12 hour" days driving?? Please explain?? Thanks

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