Conway: From a Rookies Point of View

Let me pre-face my thread with this: This is a thread about my experience with Conway truckload. I will answer questions as I go along about Orientation, Crowder College, Training, to being on my own....that is if there are any questions. My ultimate goal is to give a no BS look into this company. Some things about myself, I am an honest hardworking person and always tell it like it is (Its a blessing and a curse). I rarely complain, or whine. I give everyone a fair shake. All comments and questions are welcome. I hope you enjoy it.

Day one:

Day one was a tediousness experience. I got into Joplin around 4:30 local time and took a cab to the Holiday Inn (All on Conways dime) Once I got settled into the room I grabbed a bite to eat at the bar in the lobby and hit the sack around 11. I was supposed to have a room mate, but he never showed. The bus arrives (Im guessing) at 6. They tell you to be in the Lobby at 6:15. The bus was leaving the Hotel at 6:14. If you live by the philosiphy "Early is on time, and on time is late." You're fine.

 

My point is to be early. We arrived at the terminal around 6:30. We were all greeted with multiple handshakes and "Welcome to Conway."s. They then took roll call, filled out some paperwork, and the room split into , students, veteran drivers, and students returning from Crowder. We had our own... Ill call him a guide. He was from safety and he was really down to earth and seemed to tell it like it is. We went downstairs to do a DOT physical and a physical agility test. The physical agility test isnt as bad as it sounds, they have you do a step test, lifting 50lbs in various ways, making sure you can lift 50 lbs above your head and a pull and push test, all the while monitoring your heart rate. The DOT physical is a standard physical. you dont have to show your bean bag so dont worry. We then went upstairs to meet with recruiting and went over the application. From there we did our integrity interview. We broke for lunch around 1, again on Conways dime (6$ spending limit.) We then spent the rest of the day filling out a bunch of paperwork,taking our I.D pictures and watched an ethics video. The bus left and brought us to The Boonslick Lodge (Its as nice as it sounds) Its about a 25 min ride from Joplin. You will definitely have a room mate unless you want to pay for a single room (I dont know how much it costs). Tomorrow we go to Crowder College and we will be there until Sunday. I'm not sure what is going to happen at Crowder but my guess is Road time, and working on maneuvers. followed by some tests. That's where we stand as of right now. More to come tomorrow. Thanks for reading.

 

Thanks driver! I'll definitely keep a lookout. Out of respect I'll use my other nickname "Highside". That way there wont be any confusion. I'll definitely check out your thread. Thanks again for reading. Stay safe brother.

 

We will probably be on the same bus on Monday. We will be in Joplin Sunday night back at the Holiday Inn. Maybe we will run into each other. You'll enjoy the week. Its long but The guys at Conway and Crowder are good. the drivers here seem pretty upbeat, so thats promising. Good luck.

 

Alright, Day 2 started at 7am. Keith from Crowder picked us up and headed around the corner to Crowder College. We began by filling out some more paperwork and we watched a couple of videos. We got some temp logs and he made sure everyone knew how to fill them out properly. If you haven't done it in a while its helpful, If you have... Its still helpful. A combination of the above and chewing the fat brought us to lunch. Luch was pretty #### good. Its in the cafe at Crowder and everything is free to Conway drivers, besides bottled drinks. You can eat as much as you want. After lunch, our group split in half. 5 in 1 truck and 4 in another. Both KW T2000 with a 13 spd. If you don't know how to drive a 13, DON'T WORRY, its easier than a 10. If you drove a 9spd ur definitely fine. I must say the equipment at Crowder is really nice.(for used trucks) they are very clean and well maintained. They have a few Pete 579's a few KW T2000's, 600's and a couple of Freightshakers in the mix. We drove a road track they have for a while, until about 2:30. We went back and went over how Conway wants us to do a pre trip. We are being tested on friday by Crowder. Keith then brought us back too Boonslick. There is a KFC right next door and that's where our free dinner is for the rest of the week. If you're like me I wouldn't eat KFC for an entire week. So there are some options. You have a fridge and a microwave in your room and a Walmart Super Center about a Half mile across the parking lot. There are only a few places to eat around so the pickings are slim. I want to weigh in on the instructors at Crowder. They are pretty cool. Very easy to get along with and the ice will be broken relatively soon. Keith seems like a great guy, honest and very helpful. So if you have had problems with instructors before, I don't see you having and at Crowder. But its only day 1 and there plenty of days left, but I don't see my opinion changing about the quality of personnel. So thats bout it for day 2. If you have any questions please ask. The only stupid questions are the ones not asked so feel free. Oh, one more thing. Respect your environment. I come from an area where cussing is used in everyday conversation. It is not used in everyday conversation here. Mind your tongue. you are representing Conway and you are their guest. Keep that in mind while at Crowder and while you have that ID around your neck. Every once in a while is fine but don't drop f bombs 20 x in 2 minutes like I do. And they don't like GD. Its DagGum. Good luck drivers.

 

You need to wear boots and long pants i.e jeans etc. T shirts are fine I would recommend a polo or a casual nice looking shirt for your first day, but it doesn't really matter. Its kinda like an unwritten rule in the industry that shorts are kinda sketchy but that's just hearsay anyway. But for orientation just wear work clothes. As far as bringing gear, I brought every under the sun including a winter Jacket. As it turns out I shoulda left the jacket at home, along with allot of schit. But I couldn't really say what not to bring. I'm going to stay out after I am done training for a little while so I brought stuff that I was going to need for my own truck, you wont have to. They try to get you your first load home after you're done training. Bring the recommended gear that they send you in that letter. Bring toiletries, and shower shoes. Gloves and a small bag of tools. I brought some wrenches and screwdrivers, nothing big. You can pick up hammers and etc at truck stops. I also have a bag for my electronics, laptop, GPS, and various chargers. that's the basic stuff I brought. But its really up to you. I was carrying a 50 lb bag with me through 3 airport terminals and to and from hotel rooms along with 2 carry ons......so. The weather is decent. It gets hot during the day but being from FL you would be fine. Its the tornado season and it is what it is. be prepared for some rain. just keep an eye on the weather before you head out. I watch it everyday because frankly tornado's scare the bejeasus outta me.