Any Questions about Roehl??

Not a chance I'm taking the top bunk. We aren't allowed to team, so there's really no reason for anyone sleeping during the workday. Though both bunks are equipped with safety nets. In fact whenever we are rolling I'm supposed to be riding shotgun.

Occasionally I delay my work day 2 hours with my student and they drive first. It just gives us an extra 2 hours to escape for a late load. Also, at the end of it, I drive and we still take a full 10 from that point.

 

About the time I get engrossed in a book, that's when something will happen. Then I'll have to answer for it.

 

I have to say, I hear or have seen a few trainers that just don't follow the "Roehl" way for training.

Lyle, if you are in the pass seat, stay on duty, no matter what your trainer says. Per FMSCA you are "On Duty" when in that seat, (at least until the new rules change that if they ever will.) When you get out of it and in your bunk, then your 10 hour sleeper starts. If your trainer has a problem with it, call your FM immediately. If it's night time, then call in the morning FIRST thing.

I'm with the others, having you sit for 3 hours in the pass seat is not right and could be dangerous. Remember with Roehl, SAFETY is the cornerstone, PERIOD!

 

Flatbedders can read? I've seen the cargo securement book and it was mostly diagrams and pictures.

 

Hey now. When I was in 10th grade we had to log our daily reading for a 6 week period in English class. By the end of that period most people in class had read 500-700 pages. The person in class with the 2nd most pages had read just over 2,000. I read 13,000.

 

My husband just got accepted to Roehl's school. He goes for his DOT physical on Tuesday and is currently studying for his CDL Learner's Permit (geez there's a lot to study!) This is a change of career for him and will be a lifestyle change for our family (we have 5 kids - 3 still at home), so any/all input is appreciated!!

I have some questions (I am the one that wants to know EVERYTHING -- he just kind of goes with the flow). He was going to ask his recruiter, but I thought that we may get more honest answers on the forum ...

1./ I am assuming that with Roehl's Tax Advantage plan, there's no per diem for him --- so plan to eat on the road a lot. Are there any other expenses that we should be budgeting for, outside of the personal (showers, food, souveniers, etc) ones? Does he pay for truck washes? How does fueling up work?

2./ The Roehl website says they have a 14/7 or a 7/4-7/3 HomeTime option out of South St Paul. They also mentioned on the phone something about an 11-day-out option, although that isn't on there. What is your guys' recommendation of what he should choose? How often is that HomeTime REALLY met? I have read a lot of conflicting reports that there is a lot of "sitting" involved ... Also, if he starts with one option, how easy is it to switch to another? Does the 7/4-7/3 option mean that he would rarely take his mandatory 34-hour rest while he's gone?

3./ They also asked if he prefers vans or flatbeds. I think because he's just starting out, he'll go with vans because then he can just concentrate on the driving / logging parts, without worrying so much about whether the load is tied up and tarped securely. One worry at a time ... ... but if he does that, how hard is it then to switch to flatbeds or another type of truck. Does it require another orientation or training?

4./ Everything I read on Roehl's site said that you don't take your truck home (although I've read conflicting things here). If that's true and he has to report to South St Paul when it's time to "go to work", what time is that typically? Does it vary? Can we count on a certain time every trip? Just trying to figure out if we can go down to one car and reasonably assume that I could drive him out there every week / 2 weeks / etc.

5./ Finally (I know, a lot of questions) ... we are considering moving out closer to Marshfield, because I can take my job anywhere and that area is cheaper to live in than the Twin Cities. If we were to do that, would his home time change? Would it be easier for them to get him home because he's closer to headquarters?

Thanks!

 

well, you can now log up to two hours in the passenger seat of a moving truck as "offduty."

http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/topics/hos/qanda.aspx

the hours don't have to be consecutive, but they have to be contiguous with eight consecutive hours in the sleeper berth. you can't legally sit in the passenger seat of a moving truck and log it as more than two hours of off duty, and you can't legally log it as sleeper berth unless you are in the legally-defined sleeper berth.

you can sit in that passenger seat as long as you want, but after two hours there you either have to go onduty or climb into the sleeper.

 

I just saw the van cargo securement book. It had two pictures. One picture was an open door and the other was a closed door.

 

That's why I offset our start time by two hours. Just gives us a little extra time at the end of the day in case we might get stuck somewhere.

 

A trainer should be allowed to go into the sleeper for a short time when the student is near the end of his training. If the student can't be trusted to drive down an open stretch of interstate with the trainer in back then he can't be trusted to drive on his own. It is a good training tool to see what they do when you are not right next to them.