Help??sounds Like All Are Bad

I have never heard of a school (private or carrier) that will not let you take the test several times........ in their truck........ at their expense..... I know at my school (private mill) it is in the contract, 3 chances and then you pay a fee for the truck and trainer to be at the DMV with you.....

Most states have 3 parts to the test:
1. Pre-trip/Brakes/In-Cab
2. Skills (Backing up, parallel parking, docking)
3. Driving (town, freeways etc...)

You have to pass them in order....... fail the pre-trip you are done for the day........ pass the pre-trip, fail the skills and you are done for the day..... pass the pre-trip, pass the skills, fail the driving (my personal experience) you are done for the day.....

Now.... the good part is that once you pass a section your are done with it...... so, if you are like me and aced the pre-trip and skills...... and then got DQ'd on the driving....... I only have to go back and do the driving....

I don't know if you asked but I (and many posters) would recommend paying for your own school and then going with a carrier that will pay you back what you paid........ that way you are not obligated to stay with them...... much more "control over your destiny...."

Schneider has a payback program........ I gave some info on it yesterday so I will link it below....

Disclaimer..... all information above is from a wannabe/newbie/student.... so take it for what it is worth.......

A ranting on why I chose private:
http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...s-newbie-chose-private-school.html#post433217

ADTC with Schneider: (go up to #22.... #23 is a "story")
http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...9689-can-i-get-a-free-trial-3.html#post458185

 

I see you're from Phx, how about sharing some insight with a fellow Valley of the Sun wannabe?

I’m changing careers, headed toward trucking. I’ve had my own business for some time and want to simply let someone else do the thinking for awhile! I’ve been researching a lot of trucking companies and have narrowed it down to four. I do not have a CDL, so I’m needing advice on selecting a trucking company that will provide the necessary CDL training. I’m single, the kids are long gone, so I’ll be running solo, a company driver, running long-haul, all 48-states. I have several places around the country where I can take down time.

The four trucking companies I’m leaning towards are Prime, Central Refrigeration, Swift, and CR England. I’ve read some of the posts and several of these choices are probably not the best companies out there. I know there is good and bad apples in every bag. Any other suggestions along with experiences would be appreciated.

What are your experiences with any of these companies? The training, pay, equipment, etc. What other company should I be looking at.

Thanks ahead of time for your input!

 

I'll let the old timers answer most of your questions.......

But why are you aiming so low? The companies you propose are considered "bottom feeders" by posters in every forum I know of..........

Does your background require you to start at the bottom?

 

We're in a similar boat as Dbooks. We're retired (the wife of 40 years and I), the kids are married off, and we're free as birds. We're tired of barely making ends meet on my pension and her SSI disability, and are thinking of getting into OTR as a team, so we've been doing a lot of research. I've a little 14 wheel experience with a private company hauling stacks of boats part time in the 60's on a Chauffeurs license. Overnight and back, so I have some small idea of what we're getting into. The local community college offers complete 8-week class A CDL courses for a little over $2 K per student, while the local CDL mills are at least 3 times that amount, and company training is out of town and can be even higher priced. We're not signing any contracts with any trucking companies or CDL mills for their training, no matter how great it is. I'm not worried about reimbursement too much, as they pay it out in such small amounts over time anyway. When and if we decide to leave or quit driving, we won't owe anybody a thing.

That being said, we are more than a little apprehensive. Our biggest concern is that after the new wears off, we might hate it (that's one of the reasons for having no company strings attached). The wife has a part poodle mut she'll want to bring along, so the pet policy is important to her. We don't care that much about a new truck, but it must be reliable and a sleeper cab for two. Company support and rapid road repairs is important to us, and we haven't seen too many posts on that. We both have worked for bad companies and good in other fields, and don't expect trucking to be any different. What works for others might not work for us, and vice versa.

We don't need a huge income, but expect to be paid our worth, same as anybody else. Relatively hastle free and timely direct deposits are important, though. We're approaching our 60's, and we've both had some problems, so hand's off loading/unloading is also important. Drop and hook dry vans are much prefered in our situation, I think.

Some companies make runs into Canada. I assume a passport is now required for both of us? We can do that, no problem. We'd prefer to stay out of Mexico (I can handle a little "cool" French, but not "hot" Spanish).

We both have our ham licenses, and wonder if there's a common 2M calling frequency that truckers use, or do you just use any local open repeater? How about 6M or 10M? We got tired of CB garbage mouths after CW McCall's hit ruined it for us all in the 70's! "Convoy", indeed! (I miss being able to shoot skip on 5w am all the way across country).

Sorry for rambling! It's as much to help other newbies compare their thinking to ours, as much as it is asking for advice. It's my first post here, so consider this an introduction, too!

I'm Carl. She's Sue. (Barnstormer and Co-Pilot in the CB days!)

 

I would recommend that you copy and paste this into a "New Thread" and post it in the "Questions from New Drivers" section..........

You will get a much better response (more readers in there)........

Btw.......... Welcome........

 

Thanks!

I'll post something a lot less rambling and more to the point in the appropriate threads. This thread is very interesting to me, and I identified with some of the other comments. I was simply moved to post and say "Hi!"

 

Okie Dokie.......

Hello and Welcome........ happy reading!

My advice?

DO YOUR RESEARCH / HOMEWORK

Use the "Search" feature on this site......

I have read numerous responses to every one of your questions...... the opinions/facts/suggestions are there...... you just have to take the time to find them.....

 

It's hard to determine whether the companies are at the bottom or not. Some drivers swear by them, others swear at them! I don't think I 'have to start at the bottom'. Clear MDV, no drugs, clean medical report. BUt I don't have any experience and no CDL. If I went to a private school then looked for a job, I may not find one. By going to a trucking company school, I'll all but have a job waiting for me [I hope!] Sure, the 'dues' may be higher but less risk. Which at this stage of life is a good thing. So, the real question is, how much of what we read and or write is worth the air space it floats through? Sometimes, we have to just take the best look we can, get the best facts we can and jump! And hope the chute opens.

any other company suggestions?

 

Without a doubt........ if you want a large carrier and the training....... I would say Schneider......... absolutely without hesitation...... I have spent too many hours to even think about researching and SNI would be my choice..........

Now, I have different issues and needs....... so I am looking at them for a different reason........ but for you and your situation I think they would be perfect.......

Do your own research....... if you can qualify with them I am willing to bet they will end up being your first choice..........

 

Remember, a "guaranteed" job is never, ever, the best job out there.