50,000 miles in an orange governed machine...

rpad139 · Feb 22, 2015

Vilhiem said: ↑

I had planned to make a post on my sixth month in, but I think I'll have too much to say if I wait too long. In a nutshell, this is my experience with Schneider, the good, the bad and the downright what the ####?

Like I usually do when I make long posts, I'll summarize at the BOTTOM of each portion. I'll even mark it with asterisks like *this.* I would encourage anyone interested in working for Schneider to read the whole post, but I will leave that up to each person.

Quick background: (This is not relevant to my experience, but it may help some realize where I'm coming from. I'll keep this quick.)

I started off in retail prior to becoming a trucker, paid my way through school and got hired over the Labor Day weekend. (Interview process and initial hiring process prior to orientation took place the week after Labor day.) I'm in my mid-twenties and aim to either become a safe million-mile driver or go back into healthcare into what may be my dream job. Either way, full goal is to become a Canadian citizen.

*From here on out, it's all about my experience.*

You may be required to go and get another exam by a Schneider approved doctor for your DOT card, just as a warning and heads up.

First month:

Starting off with the orientation process, Schneider makes the first week about as painless as a bandaid coming off. It's really not that bad, but there is lots of paperwork to be filled out and very little driving done the first couple days. You'll be asked to fill out the usual paperwork associated with the workplace, tax forms and so on. The 3rd day we are put behind the wheel of one of their old, beat-up training semi-trucks, 53 foot trailer included.

I liked the trainer I got, younger guy about my age with a family. He was easy-going and held his dream-career prior to being a driver; I'd learned that many people who work for Schneider started off in what they felt was their dream career and became disillusioned with what the reality was. I am curious if that is applicable to others, but I digress. The guy who I was paired with to be trained, well that's an ordeal. Our trainer's job, for sake of ease we will call him Steve, was to take us out and evaluate our ability to drive safely out on the road. Steve drove for about 20 minutes to a local truckstop and then proceeded to ask who wanted to go first. I originally volunteered to try first, I was antsy and eager to get behind the wheel of a "real" truck.

Unfortunately I would have to wait. On our ride over, we will call the other student I was paired with Anthony, began asking strange questions. I don't mean questions that would raise the eyebrow of the CIA, FBI, or otherwise. It was more like, "How did you get from that gear to the other?" "So, you're in neutral now?" "Why did you swing so far out?" No, I'm not joking. I wished I was. Steve decided that it would be wiser to have Anthony drive first.

Now, my mother is a middle school teacher, and my father is a preacher. I worked in a pharmacy and in food service prior. ...what I mean to say is, there's not much that scares me. That day, I wished I had brought at least two changes of underwear. The fact that Anthony didn't hit anything with the trailer was a marvel in and of itself. Every curb he passed was clean from the scrubbing he gave them. Starbucks would've hired this guy because he was grinding so much. I'm white-knuckling in sleeper hanging on for dear life and re-commiting my life to Christ for the 4th time that day. 3 miles down the road, after failing to shift from 5 to 6 (Never flipped the switch up.) repeatedly; Steve reached over, popped the hazards and the knobs.

"Get the #### out of the driver's seat." Steve drove back the rest of the way. All the while Anthony was trying to get another chance. When we were safely back at the terminal, Steve asked me to hang on a bit and sent Anthony back inside. Steve wanted to make sure he wasn't dreaming and that I had seen Anthony's cdl in class. I repeated what I said earlier about needing spare underwear to him.

Turns out, Anthony did get his class A. In Texas. With an automatic ton-truck pulling a flatbed hot-shot trailer; this after the school Anthony went to (Which I might add, is one of the worst in the state.) flat-out refused to let him take the CDL exam in Georgia. For reference, Georgia requires you to use the same type of truck during the exam that you'll use on the job. Thankfully, he was kicked out of the program.

From that point on, it was okay. The next student I was paired with was a hold-over from Schneider Bulk; he happened to be going on the same account I'd applied for and a ####-good driver from what I could tell. During the course of the training, we helped each other out on the areas we needed. Overall, from that point on, the training became a mix of a comedy club filled with crass, sarcastic jokes and enjoyable banter about anything and everything. We enjoyed ourselves and by the end of the week we knew what we needed to work on for the week out with our T.E.; even at that point our skills had improved greatly.

It gets faster from here, I promise.

The second week I was out with my Training Engineer. We will call him Mike. The first day Mike had full control over the truck, gave me some background on himself and explained how the week was going to go. Please note that your experience with your T.E. will very likely be different, but if it isn't similar to mine then your T.E. isn't doing his job right.

Mike told me the following: "Today, this truck is mine. Today, this load is mine. Today, you're my student. That, is today. Tomorrow, you're in my seat. Tomorrow, my job is to make sure you're not going to kill someone and that you'll do this job safely. Tomorrow, whatever you need help with will be worked on. Tomorrow, this truck is yours and I'm just a passenger."

He followed that to the letter. I made the calls and choices and I learned from his experiences. When I sat in the driver's seat, he reminded me of my job. "Your job is to get the cargo, yourself, and everyone around you safely to their destination. Being on-time comes second." It made sense to me, and I use a similar logic when I'm driving. Though I shortened it to, "In what order would I rather piss someone off? The law, the company, or the shipper?" Admittedly, I was scared. So I was slower than I should've been behind the wheel, but Mike was patient with me despite most our loads being late that week. It sucked, but there was a great deal to cover. When I left his rig, I felt confident that I could do this job effectively and Mike assured me that as I gained confidence and skill I would feel more comfortable going faster and my loads wouldn't be late without an uncontrollable reason. (Traffic, breakdown, ect.) The very last thing he told me was that the GPS doesn't have a brain, you do. If it doesn't seem right, don't do it.

Mike and I got along pretty well; in typical trucker fashion we're both busy doing our jobs but we do get the occasional chance to say hello to the other and ask how things are going. However, that's not to say I didn't hear horror stories about other T.E.'s. Schneider is very serious about their T.E.'s. If you get a bad one, or if yours doesn't allow you the chance to learn the skills you need, report them as soon as you've the chance.

Third week was about as boring as you can get. Yep. It wasn't anything but soft skills where we learned how to use our electronic nann...I mean, Qualcomm, properly and how to utilize all of it's features. That, and trip-planning. Schneider's method of trip-planning isn't what you'll use in the real world, but it's a great start until you learn how you run. (Miles * 1.1)/50= time needed for travel. The third week was also our testing week, it's nothing like what the DDS/DMV puts you through. Schneider's version is a great deal easier, plus you get to use their cards provided from the start for your pre-trips, hook-up procedures, and brake tests. So it's difficult to miss anything. The driving test is similar to what you'll see from the DDS, but admittedly that wasn't hard. Drive around, be safe, don't scrub curbs and park in the lot without hitting anything. That's the basics.

Fourth week was my first week. Alone. In the truck. Nobody looking over my shoulder in the passenger seat watching what I was doing. Nobody coaching me on load tabs, pre-trips, and trip-planning... I was alone at the wheel of a 20 ton hunk of metal... My first thought? "...oh god. Schneider trusts me. I'm new. Never done this. And they expect me to..." But the load had to be done. And it got done.

My first stop was in Rome, Ga. Not that far from home. Not even 100 miles. I got there on-time, and even got past the hiccup I had when I was out with my T.E. and missed a turn. I was relieved! Maybe I could do this! So I unloaded the truck, did my paperwork and set back out. This time my nose was aimed for Hiram, Ga. Less than 60 miles away from my first stop. All was going well until the on-board GPS threw me a curve ball. "Turn right onto Georgia highway..."

I panicked. There was no road on the right. Nothing! It was a car lot! I can't turn in there! ...but wait, at the next light I can turn right. Maybe that's what it meant? (Now, give me a break. It's dark out and I can't read the road signs. Not to mention my GPS wants me to do something stupid.) So I turn there at the light thinking I was going down the right road once more. Looking over at the GPS, I feel satisfied since it's moved onto the next set of instructions. A silent cheer starts in my mind that's interrupted by, "Out of route."

Nooooo! It can't be! I did what you said! I followed what you said! How can I be out of route?!

Immediately I began looking for a place to turn around, unfortunately all the places that had lots large enough were gated off. Anything else just didn't have the space. My option was simply to keep going forward. And then comes the dreaded sign. That sign that says, "Heh. Thought you could go this way eh? Nope! You screwed up. Have fun turning around!" The no trucks sign.

I pulled my 4-ways and my knobs immediately and got out to look around for anything that was a viable area to turn around. My only other option was to do a blind-side 90-degree back into the driveway of a shipper. A gate was at the end with just enough room for my trailer to fit on the driveway and on either side was a two foot ravine for a drainage pipe. I gave the driveway a shot, but couldn't get the right angle I needed. So I pressed on. Down a road barely large enough to allow 4-wheelers to pass each other. An hour and a half later, too many tight turns, 0 mailboxes killed, no 4-wheelers hurt, almost getting stuck going up a wet and leafy hill, and so many experience stories going through my head from other truckers, I arrived at my destination in Hiram.

*Schneider isn't going to put anyone on the road they know is unsafe, but their program isn't difficult to pass either. Don't expect your hand to be held, because there won't be anyone holding your hand when you're on your own. One of the first things you may learn on the road is that we are all a good friend of "Murphy." As in Murphy's Law. The second thing you may learn is that your gps is a tool, one you can use and should use; but DON'T rely upon it. 4-wheelers call it a, "Global Positioning System." We call it a, "Good Place to Start." I've encountered primarily friendly and helpful Schneider drivers, none of them haven't offered to help me somehow and all of their advice has been useful.*

Check back in a while for Month Two:
Click to expand...

Use Google maps with satellite view! Saved my ### many times. I always like to study the area on Google maps just to give myself an idea. I'll admit us new generation truckers have it very easy with all This new technology...use it to your advantage

Vilhiem · Feb 22, 2015

rpad139 said: ↑

Use Google maps with satellite view! Saved my ### many times. I always like to study the area on Google maps just to give myself an idea. I'll admit us new generation truckers have it very easy with all This new technology...use it to your advantage
Click to expand...

I'll use it to check out shipping docks mostly. However... Google maps isn't great while driving. Was going to try and find the road, but I'll be ###### if I can't find where it was...

allniter · Feb 22, 2015

Vilhiem said: ↑

Thanks. I'm tired and about to fall over conveniently into my bed, but I'll keep that in mind. Luckily, I'm past month 4, come March 18 I'll be in month 6.

I can be long-winded...so hopefully it's interesting enough and has good info so it's worthwhile.
Click to expand...

I'm enjoying your post Vilhiem, reminds of what I went thru 20+ yrs ago. I'm impressed with you not panicking and doing something stupid when you discovered you made a wrong turn. I've done the 90 degree back in to turn around a few times sometimes at a 4 way intersection (on a quiet country road without much traffic). I've also stopped & checked the map to see which hwys might take me back to my original route.
After I've made a wrong turn I always thought I wasnt in too much trouble until people start coming out on their porch & shake their heads as I drive by.
I'm looking forward to your next post, I enjoy your humorous writing style. Time for bed. Stay safe.

Vilhiem · Feb 22, 2015

By the way... The title may or may not allude to any of the following:
- A song written by the beatles
- A book written by Jules Verne
- A well known trucking company.

magoo68 · Feb 22, 2015

This industry needs more Steve's so there's less Anthony's on the road ... A piece of advice if something goes wrong with directions or gps I just stop throw on 4ways and figure things out before I move . I find it keeps me from getting into a worse predictament ... Btw stock up on long johns if you want to be a canadian lol minus 30 today

KW Cajun · Feb 22, 2015

From Villheim's (OP). His trainer "Mike" is quoted:

Mike told me the following: "Today, this truck is mine. Today, this load is mine. Today, you're my student. That, is today. Tomorrow, you're in my seat. Tomorrow, my job is to make sure you're not going to kill someone and that you'll do this job safely. Tomorrow, whatever you need help with will be worked on. Tomorrow, this truck is yours and I'm just a passenger."
Click to expand...

I really need to highlight this part of your training (the above bolded/quoted text).
IMO, your trainer Mike gave you the absolute best and most positive psychological preparation with using those exact words.
I'm very curious to know if Schneider instructs their trainers to say these words, or they were "Mike's" own choosing.

I discovered the huge benefit of this "psychology" purely by accident years ago.
The last time I used it (on myself) was during 2 portions of my CDL exam (Pre-Trip & Road Test) with state examiners 'hawking' over ya.

The day before my testing I was nervous as could be, for no good reason. Couldn't even sleep that night.
Next day, I started the morning tired/nervous, seeing 2 separate examiners, both lookin mean as old bulls, but when each examiner got in the truck with me for these 2 tests, I said to myself "Yesterday I was still training for this, but NOW you fella's are in MY truck and I'm gonna show you that *I* will perform flawlessly". I though of the examiners as merely passenger/witnesses in MY truck. The reality was... it wasn't my truck, it was an old "13-letter manure spreader" International training truck.

When I said this to myself (in my head, not spoken), my nervousness honestly went to absolute zero, and my confidence level was higher than I could have ever imagined. I ended up performing both the pre-trip rundown, air systems check, and the road test absolutely flawlessly, honest to God.

What Mike's words did was transmit this same positive psychological effect, to ease your nervousness and boost your confidence, whether he knew it or not.
Tell me, did those words have the same positive effect on you, as they had on me?
I'm curious to know. The funny part is I said them too, but to myself.

Chaps · Feb 22, 2015

That was a good read & I LMAO at the way you viewed things! Sounds like you are doing great and have common sense about you and we all know that will help go along way. Good luck & stay safe!

Puppage · Feb 22, 2015

Looking forward to your updates.

Jrdude5 · Feb 22, 2015

Great post keep Em coming

Vilhiem · Feb 22, 2015

Month two is up, I am a little tired and the second month was a blur... So I'm sorry if it gets a little scattered. I did try.

Let me know what you all think and if you have any improvements or words of wisdom.

KW Cajun, I don't recall feeling that way. The way it made me feel was to instill an absolute sense of responsibility and respect. However, it would be wrong of me to say that it didn't give me a tiny boost of confidence. ...though his trust and the fact that he seemed to feel at ease with me at the wheel was perhaps the most encouraging thing.

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