ABF vs. SEFL...pros and cons for a new driver? Training, benefits, equipment, etc.

SEFL is a go. My road test went well. As for the truck thing...they had a whole other side of the lot that I didn't see (on the opposite side of the building) where they park the trucks. So having an adequate amount of trucks shouldn't be an issue.

I liked the truck I drove for my road test. It was a 10 speed Freightliner with a day cab (obviously). I wasn't sure what I'd think of it (I didn't have a good impression of Freightliners trucks based on the ones at my CDL school), but I was pleasantly surprised by that truck. Very crisp/smooth shifting and MUCH nicer to drive than the trucks I was accustomed to.

The safety guy was impressed with my shifting, based on my limited experience. A few minutes into the drive, he commented that he would have expected to hear some grinding by that point. The main thing to takeaway from today is that I need to work on my backing. 90* backing is something that was not adequately covered at my school. 45* backing between cones does not prepare you for 90* backing between two tightly spaced trailers. I got the job done, but it was one of those "I have a lot to learn" moments.

Anyways...I'm excited to get going and get my sponge/learn on. I should start on Monday.

 

I got a couple days in this week before Christmas. My first two shifts working on/around the yard began at 0400. I was a fly on the wall and absorbed what I could. The most important part of this was keeping my head on a swivel, while several forklifts zoomed around unloading inbound trailers...and shifting freight to the outbound/P&D trailers. It was a cool process to watch.

My new co-workers are a good bunch to deal with. They're good about explaining things and don't seem to mind having a new guy around. I had a bit of a hiccup at one point and one of the guys wasn't shy about calling me on it. Not in a bad way, but definitely a prodding/encouraging "you won't make that mistake again" way.

I'm pretty sure that I got in more backing practice during those first two shifts than I did during my entire CDL course. I got the keys to an extra truck and just went at it for as long as I could. They started me out backing between two cones out on the lot. Once I was comfortable with that...I picked a quiet part of the dock and started backing in there.

The second shift...one of the guys explained breaking down "sets" and I spent the last hour or so of my shift helping with that (i.e. disconnecting and pushing the trolley into its spot). That second day...I was moving along pretty well until about 0800. At that point, I have to admit that I was hopping in and out of the cab a bit slower. Once you get damp (I sweat through my thermals and they weren't wicking the moisture away very well) and it's cold out...the day tends to go downhill from that point, lol.

I wasn't expecting for a company to start me out just before Christmas (I get to take advantage of two paid holidays right off the bat....Christmas Eve...and Christmas day). SEFL didn't have to do that (I expected for them to just say "we'll start you off after the first of January") and I definitely appreciate it. I would say that's a great way to start off the employer/employee relationship...an employer doing something positive for me that: 1. They didn't have to do. and 2. I wasn't expecting.

 

I'll have to give it a try without the thermal top (the thermal bottom isn't bad). I've got a good Carhartt coat, good warm hat, and RedWing insulated boots (nice and warm with a basic pair of wool socks).

 

Yup. Thermal bottom and no thermal top is the way to go. With my coat...as long as I keep moving when on the dock (it's 25* out)...it's fairly comfortable.