CRST orientation tomorrow

You will do good if you can stay away from home for a long time and have some extra money at hand B/4 you go out on a truck. The pay sucks at first,but if you do well the raise will be right on time. I had an accident just after the truck was fixed, so safety is letting me go,no big deal after 20 years of trucking i was due for one. Hope you get a good trainer and a good truck with all working amenities (A/C HEAT and CLEAN) The over head cost is low at CRST,so if a truck needs work the back up for the shops could take a long time. Keep in mind that comfort is the key to success in this business, your going to be living in a truck. GOOD LUCK !

 

Hello everyone, I hope this post is still being followed. I have a few questions about CRST. I’ve been ready all the blogs about this company…70% bad to 30% good…..not very encouraging…but you have to start some where, and I will be driving out of Florida so CRST is my only option. Any info on miles coming out of Florida? I know the training and the facility will be a pain in the ### (Cedar Rapids)…has anything improved there? I’ve been a contractor here in Florida for over 15 yrs…so I am used to BS, working hard….and getting screwed, lost almost everything after the slow down in construction….$75,000 in unpaid invoices…this is one trend that needs to stop. I know I will have to pay my dues for a year and kiss a lot of ###….make low wages, but I see potential down the road…..getting on with a better company…a lot of good companies down here, but I need the one year plus. I am also trying to keep my payback low…I will be paying my own way there and thinking of staying at a motel….(very bad stories about the rooms at the site). My brother will be training with me, so we have the team set….any info you can send this way would be greatly appreciated!

 

Welcome to TTR. IMHO, CRST van is not one of the better choices but you are right about starting somewhere. Florida cuts your options even further.

Do they allow new drivers to team together fresh out of training? With all due respect I feel sorry for you guys and the rest of us on the road. This alone would be a big red flag on the company.

Since you are new I'll offer my standard advice. Take it for what it's worth.

You need to research and find out what the important questions are. You can make an above average living but you will make sacrifices that other jobs don't require. Read the "good companies" and "bad companies" section on this forum and get an idea of what company you want to work for and what kind of trailer you want to pull. Don't just go to school and then try to figure out where to go.

I don't know your financial situation. Don't take training from a company if you can afford it or get it with financial aid. You will be their slave for up to year. If you leave they will trash you DAC and credit record. Check out your local community colleges and employment office.

Just know that most training and trucking company recruiters will do nothing but lie to you. They will let you talk about what you want and then tell you what you want to hear. Trucking is about moving freight to make money for the company. Your home time, family, paycheck and everything else comes second.

It is not like any other job. Local is usually backbreaking delivery work 10+ hours a day, 6 days a week. Often you unload dozens of times a day or you are a salesman. In my area most dump truck jobs pay less than a good factory job. Regional is lots of loading and unloading time, fewer miles than OTR and not as hard as local but will wear on you and push your HOS limits. OTR is out 3 - 5 weeks with 3 - 4 days home, less manual labor and more miles.

You'll probably have to pay your dues before you get the gravy job. Weekends off, if you are lucky enough to get something like that starting out, may be home Thursday afternoon and leave Saturday night or home Friday night and leave Sunday afternoon. Loads deliver on Monday early and you leave in time to get them there. Often your home time will be in the middle of the week.

Regardless of your driving choice, after school you will go through company training. For OTR this can be six weeks to three months with little or no home time. The first phase is usually $400 a week and the second phase is $500-550 a week. Some pay less. One company pays 12 CPM for training.

One last thing, you don't want to wait around too long after training or you'll have trouble finding a job. If you get out before you have a year in, when you try to come back a few months later you will find they want you to start over.