Hope to Start with Superior Soon

Well after a week after submitting my app and waiting for my background to come back finally got word today that I am good to go. I go in tomorrow morning to do the usual road testing, physical and drug screen. Apparently Ken mentioned that there was a glitch in the system which is why it took so long for my background to get back.

 

Thanks! I'll update once things get underway tomorrow morning. Will be interesting to see how things will go.

 

Alrighty, got the road test done, took almost an hour from start to finish but went without a hitch, then the usual drug screen and physical. All good there. Now I am not sure if every terminal does it but this one does, where I've been scheduled to do the dexterity test next week, basically proving you can do the stuff that we do everyday anyway on the job. I'm not worried about that either.

Used an International for the road test....given the not-so-glamorous info on that truck I've read here, at least it looks nice on the inside and sleeper area!

 

Okay, took the dex test today which didn't take long....basically felt like being in PE class. Got my workout for the day at least!

Got the final OK from the TM and I am now an official SC employee! Avery's going to work on setting me up for training class within the next two weeks, sometime near the middle of May. That will be good, plus give me a little time to visit family and friends in OH and MI before beginning training.

Looking forward to the new journey!

 

Alrighty, today was my official first day! Walked in the door, was warmly greeted by Avery and introduced me to the dispatch staff and load planners. Too bad alot of companies don't do this! Plus met a few more drivers, including my trainer that I will meet up with tomorrow morning at 8am. Lots of happy drivers here!

Did alot of paperwork today and took some written tests. And then they prepped my PPE bag with everything that I need, though they are ordering my PPE stuff and should get my company uniforms soon. Finally I will no longer have to figure out what work shirts to wear each day though I may need to get a fresh set of work pants. The old ones i've had (Dickies) I had since the Schenider days back in '99, but they've served me very well to this point.

I meet up with my trainer in the morning will be doing a local pickup and delivery. I was told that I would only need to train for 2 or 3 days and then will be on my own. Sure is nice to come on as an experienced driver. Also need to bring my SS card tomorrow too since I forgot to bring it today for the I-9 form. I don't carry my SS on me anymore so I keep it safe at home until I need it.

 

First day of training went well today, all routine pretty much. Showed up at 8am this morning to turn in the remaining paperwork, met with the trainer and went over more stuff.

Did a hazmat pickup in Bay City TX in the early afternoon delivering to Channelview early in the evening. All while getting acquainted with the Qualcomm and learning the new paperwork system. Driving was pretty much the easy part lol. Drove in the International....wasn't too bad in how it handled. Trainer mentioned that by around the end of the year our yard will have done away with the remaining Internationals and have all Mack's and some Pete's.

I haven't seen the interior of the Mack's yet though I have heard that they kinda lack in interior space. Don't know about the Pete's since I dont think we have one on the yard yet. We've also got some brand new trailers on the yard...so nice to look at!

Dispatch doesn't have a load for us tomorrow, but I will be there where I can learn more stuff about the yard and checking out the Mack's (I've driven Mack's at a previous job in MI last year). My trainer pretty much told me that I am good to go since he sees I drive well and have solid control of the truck.

Interesting thing I learned from another trainer whom has an entry-level driver mentioned that corporate won't allow an EL driver to even back to or even touch a hazmat trailer (the EL guy is still waiting on his real license with the hazmat post background check). There were some trailers that dispatch wanted the trainer to pickup to bring back to the yard, but both were hazmat trailers so the EL driver couldn't go with him to do that.

Another poster mentioned something about the dedicated run to Little Rock....I asked about that and was told that they customer is in limbo trying to figure out what to do, but I am thinking that they will have those runs available at some point. I've signed on to do primarily local but I would be open to regional depending on what it is. I'll see if I can find out more about that as well.

I also need to learn more about the pay structure, as I am still a little confused on that. Other than that, good 12 hour workday today was pretty productive.

 

Well, new update for today.

Last week I only trained for two days with a trainer. On yesterday I had my first solo delivering a Hazmat load to Garland, TX. Interesting thing was that the facility was one I been to before, when I used to be with Bulk, so had no trouble finding it. Arrived for the 11am appt and was pretty much lunch time when I got there. Got offloaded after lunch and that was all she wrote.

Today I did local, hooked up to an empty trailer and went to get an empty weight at a local truckstop nearby, then came back to the yard to pick up the load (being transloaded) from an ISO truck that came to the yard. Didn't take long for the transload and took it to the facility where I used to go to before hand. This load, though not hazmat it was a pump-off....so was going to do a little work today. The trailer had 2 3" hoses and one 2" but I loaded some extra hoses from the washrack just in case, especially since the trailer was a rear loader so more hose would be needed to reach the pump. I also requested another 3"-2" reducer as well for one of those 'just in case' moments. Shop foreman says that he'll have to get one made and get approval for it. The last company I was with I had all the extra fittings I needed so I never worried about any pump job. But I've found with most of the drivers I talked to including my trainer, they rarely used the pumps on their trucks.

Arrived at customer facility, got to the spot and sure enough, I was glad I brought more hoses. It took three 3" hoses to reach from the external valve to the pump inlet, and three of the 2" hoses from the pump to the customer tank. The guys there were very helpful in getting the hoses and hooking them up. I like the fact that the pump on my truck doesn't have a valve lever on it like the ones my last company did. Either way the pump-off took about an hour. One of the guys commented that my pump was fast since it pumped so well. Well, that's what good Roper pumps are supposed to do!

Finished the pumpoff, guys blew the line to remove the remaining product and helped me load the hoses back in the trailer--especially the 3 inch ones.

Back at the yard, I needed to fuel my truck but didn't have my Comdata card yet. The operation supervisor had put in the request for one but won't arrive until Friday. I was given the number though and he put it in 'Lost' status until the card arrived. Basically he said I can still use the number, just have to go in the truck stop and give them the info. Avery being a really nice guy came out and activated the fuel pump at the yard for me where I was able to fuel up the truck. At 135 gallons, that truck was thirsty!

Tomorrow morning I head back to Bay City for another load (same place I went to last week in training) so should be an easy day.

I have to say, I really like the environment there at the yard so far. It takes me a little time to be comfortable around everyone given my quiet nature and being reserved. As I told Ken (op supervisor), driving the truck is the easy part, its getting adapted to a new system and making sure I have the paperwork down pat is what will take a little time.