Thanks for the info jxu417 Hopefully I will be there next week to start training....I was looking on your page and saw some of your loads that u take pics of..how many loads do u get that are tall the one in your profile...Just seems that would be tough to tarp..how do you do it?? with a ladder??
I was actually hired in for glass, and three days of glass training was enough to convince me that TCD was the better route for me. They thought I had a severe fear of heights, but that's not accurate - my fear is the sudden stop at the bottom after falling. I'm one of those guys that can psychologically make myself fall if the possibility exists, and although I have very good eye hand coordination I'm shaky on my feet when it comes to walking on any type of uneven surface, such as the top of a load. After trying it for awhile I knew I was very likely to hurt myself doing flatbedding and I decided I just needed to stick to TCD, which I knew I could do because I drove a van for another company for about 2 months before I switched to Mav. So I just stuck with what I knew.
Sure. Flatbedding and glass isn't perfect for everyone, and they don't want to lose a potentially good driver when they can put him in a division that he can operate safely in. I happened to live within the TCD hiring area so they let me switch.
I just got a call from my recruiter this morning. I will be there this weekend. If I wanted to change should I tell my recruiter now or wait to see how it goes?? So if I wanted to change they wouldn't look down on that?? What do they need more of flatbed or TCD? It really doesn't matter I just want to work for Maverick. I've been wanting this opportunity for awhile..
Congrats on the invite to NLR for orientation! I do not get loads like that anymore thank God. I only was unfortunate enough to get that vinyl siding load one time, shortly after I started. It was huge, took three tarps- 2 lumber and one steel tarp. I had no ladder. Used my climbing skills. With the load, my trailer was virtually the same size as a van. Yeah, tough to tarp is an understatement Dude.....
If you want to change you should let them know ASAP because there is a severe shortage of TCD trainers (we have less than 10) so they have to kinda get you scheduled in for that. Be aware that if you do switch, you might be delayed in going to orientation, I have seen TCD guys wait a month or more for an open spot, so if you're interested in that I would ask. However, if you don't mind the extra work, are in good physical shape, and don't mind moving a lot, the money potential is higher in flatbed. They don't wait around nearly as much as we do and tend to get more miles. And, you can always switch to TCD later if you find that flatbed is not for you.
