A change

Hi all:

I've been a bit of a lurker the past few months, reading old and new postings, and figured it was about time I posted something.

I'm an Army vet, last deployed in Desert Shield/Storm where I drove the M915 with 40ft flatbed hauling various munitions from small arms to MLRS pods. Upon returning I finished college and began a career in technology. That worked well until things started to change a couple of years ago. My tolerance for office BS, know-it-all ######## and what have you pushed my BP and stress to a point that I now no longer give a crap. This past May I resigned from what was my very last position as a technology professional, and it felt GREAT! The money and benefits were awesome, but that stuff only gets you so.

I had been planning my escape a bit beforehand, so I did a few things in preparation. I love making stuff, so I started a small handcraft business and upgraded my basement shop a bit. I then designed a bunch of cool stuff and got to work. I designed my own ecommerce site, studied the crap out of marketing online, all to find out that although I got a lot of compliments I had few sales. I'm encouraged by many who feel that I've got a great product line, but I ran out of money before I could get through the growing pains.

So here we are - two months ago I reassessed my current skill set and decided I want nothing to do with any of it, which led me to thinking about those big trucks that the Army taught me to drive. I think I was good at it, but it was like a lifetime ago. I enjoyed the open road, I still love road trips, so I did some soul searching and now fully believe that trucking is the right place for me, right now. I recently went and got a DOT physical card and got my learner's permit (class A, combination, air-brake) and started putting out applications. Problem was, I did not perform my due diligence and a nice recruiter pointed out that I was basically applying to #### companies. So I'm here to ask you guys, where does a 51 year old with no criminal history go for training? I'm tapped on funds, so a private school is kind out of the question. I live in upstate NY, and I just want to make as much money as possible with home time every 2-3 weeks if possible. I like the idea of teams initially, but I might eventually want my own rider after a bit. The company I had applied to was CRST, but I put the brakes on it once I was warned about them. I've started watching a guy on YouTube who does a "crap company of the week" show, but I think according to him they all suck. Maybe they do, that's why I'm here hoping you good people can steer me in the right direction.

 

Hi Chinatown - I was hoping you'd respond, you definitely have your finger on the pulse of the industry from what I've read. I am closest to Syracuse. I've noticed a lot of ads from Maverick to haul glass from a nearby major glass plant, but they're looking for experienced people.

 

Thank you Chinatown, I'll check them out.

 

Hi Chinatown - on your recommendation I went through the process and I begin my training in Ohio with CFI on Monday (10/1). The recruiter ( Cortney) and others from the school who've been in contact with me have been very helpful and always answered my questions in a very positive, timely manner.

I'm really looking forward to this experience and the next chapter in my life - thanks again.

 

I considered them but I could never seem to get in touch - they left a message or two on the pulse app but nothing really helpful. Same was true of Maverick - we played a bit of phone tag but none of my emails were answered. I guess it wasn't meant to be right now.

 

I considered CR England as well, but early into a phone conversation they hung up. Again it was difficult to get them to communicate via email. After reading a few reviews I'm kind of glad it didn't go any further, but then maybe I was just reading the wrong reviews.