Getting Started

Well, ITDS called me today and let me know that my drug screen came back clean (like I didn't already know it would) and to let me know that the classes would actually be taking place at the college campus instead of the classroom at the driving range. Glad they told me this, I would have showed up at the range where we had our orientation.

I was also told that the class had gotten even smaller, there will only be two of us in the class. Talk about washout rate! Classes haven't even started and they lost four folks right off the bat. I do know one was due to high bloodpressure issues, I can only guess what the other reasons were for.

 

Well, the first day at school was just about what I expected I think.

Showed up at 6:45am for the 7:00am class and met our instructor. Steve seems like a pretty nice guy, been driving OTR for about 18 years and seems to know his stuff. Only time will tell you know.

We got our schedule for the next four weeks, it is pretty straight forward so at least we know exactly what we are supposed to be doing and when we are going to do it.

Today and tomorrow we are studying the books and taking pre-tests to check our knowledge. Luckily for me I've been studying the books for nearly a month now and have just about blown the pre-tests away. My buddy in class got started a bit late on the program but he's doing pretty good as well, he just needs to hit the books after hours to shore up what he's learning.

Today we covered the Texas specific laws (Class A & B test) as well as the General CDL, Air Brakes and Bulk/Tankers.

Tomorrow we are supposed to cover Combination, Doubles/Triples and Pre-Trip/Post-Trip inspections.

We won't cover Hazmat till the last week of class because you can't even take the Hazmat test in Texas till after you have your hardcopy CDL license. (I plan on getting mine will just have to do it on my own.)

Wednesday we are supposed to head down to the DPS CDL Testing station in Waxahachie and take all seven of our written tests.

Thursday and Friday we will be covering all the other classroom related stuff such as logging, mapping, trip planning and such.

Then for the next three weeks after that, we'll be doing parking in the mornings and road driving in the afternoons.

We are supposed to be ready and go down to Waxahachie and take our skills tests on March 12th. Then spend two days after we pass our test brushing up skills and dealing with recruiters and company offers. Luckly the recruting and offers stuff won't apply to me.

Which leads me to the "Good News" part of the post. Crete's HR department called today to let me know that they were offering me my pre-hire notice and that with my record and history that I only needed to graduate from class and retake the DOT physical and drug screen to start my orientation and training with them on March 18th.

I am so happy now it isn't even funny, Crete is my first choice (some may not agree) but it has everything I want and I never even talked to a recruiter to make my decision. I made my decision based on information I've found posted by others on trucker forums and actually speaking to Crete drivers at truckstops and at the Wilmer, Texas terminal which is about an hour from my house.

I still have my pre-hire from Schneider and Prime but I hope I do not have to fall back on it.

That's all for today ...

 

I agree with this in many respects, my only question is what exactly are you doing for ten weeks? Going weekends only or only like 6-8 hours a day?

The course I am attending is 200 hours. 50 Hours of Classroom and 150 Hours of drive time. And it is good drive time, as the classes are small, and only three students per instructor. (In my case only two per instructor, and we have more than one so our individual driving time will be much higher because we will get a ton on one-on-one time with driving).

I'm not knocking a longer school, but after checking around ITDS has a good reputation as a school who turns out well prepared drivers and doesn't just mill them out. They have a policy of no more than eight students in any class, period.

As as our instructor told us today, this school will prepare you for driving, get you your license and get you ready to go OTR with a company trainer to really get going and learn how to be a professional driver.

Now, I can't say that the last part will always be right because every company has a different OJT method. I do know how Crete's works because they've told me and I've had that confirmed by folks who are there at the company. I know I won't know everything once I have my CDL in my pocket, but at least I'll be ready to get behind the wheel and be semi-comfortable with driving once I get with the trainer.

150 hours behind the wheel in school is nothing to sneeze at, considering I've read from others that they were lucky to spend 10 total hours in the cab before "graduating".

 

Well, today was the last day of DMV testing preperation. We covered Combination, Doubles/Tripples and Pre-Trip inspection. We also took the FMCSA Safety Regulations test, talk about a joke.

I think the whole point of the FMCSA test is to get you to actually open the book and look at it, a good thing I guess for most folks. Personally, I didn't need a test to get me to open the book and look through it if I have questions on the regulations.

Tomorrow morning we have to be at the DMV at 7am to take all my tests, should be a fun day