Husband and wife are empty nesters…what next we ask?

Hello to all and thanks for taking a little time to read this.

I've read all the threads on husband and wife teaming and it's looking like an alternative to "corporate" life for us since our kids are grown live on their own.

We are really weighing the risks go doing this right now, or perhaps by the time we are 53 (currently 50).

On the positive, it seems to me after reading threads started by husbands/wives interested in teaming that there are some good wage earning opportunities teaming with companies who cater to teams like CRST and Schneider as well as others. In our particular case, we wouldn't even be too picky where we were based. In fact we'd sell everything and live on the truck while working since we have options across the country (California, Texas, Ohio, North Carolina) to stay with family. I think we bring a lot to the table in this regard..including both having good driving and work records (although I must admit the thought of driving a large truck is a bit intimidating for both of us). The biggest positive for us is that it's possible to earn good money while keeping home expenses to a minimum which ultimately leads to some big savings for retirement. And the thought of seeing the country while earning does sound really good to us.

But...We are really weighing the risks go doing this right now, so I have to write what I think are some of the negatives. So here goes.

1. It also seems to me that whether it be teams or not, an initiation period exists of about 1 year, and it seems to be designed as a new driver weed out system, and perhaps a new driver profiteering system as well. Before entering, a driver should be a least somewhat financially stable and in a position where he/she doesn't have many other commitments.
2. Drivers are constantly under the microscope for even minor mishaps. Some of these minor incidents happening with drivers sleeping in properly parked trucks finding their way onto their driving records sounds almost too unfair to be true.
3. The whole living on a truck thing. We get that. Really we do.
4. Training etc.

It's the 1-2 risk and others I've not picked up on that we want to understand better. Can you all help us out with that? We'd really appreciate it!

 

Thanks so much for your response LadyK and I envy your office view. The information you provided on the minor mishaps is most useful and a little settling to know that you weren't tossed aside because of them. Reading one guy's post where he was tossed for just scraping a mirror followed by another post where a driver got a black mark on his driving record for being hit while sleeping and parked properly is almost a deal breaker for me as there are things we cannot control and to be disciplined for them seem totally unfair. I will say this so y'all can see I'm serious about doing this. I am an engineer and ear well into the 6 figures but honestly unless some things change I can't see myself able to continue with it as its wearing on my quality of life so much that I'm now looking into this lifestyle. And I know it is a lifestyle.

 

Freightlinerman I have read the comments on CRST and perhaps I misread them thinking they cater to team drivers but don't do solo drivers much good. Did I get that wrong?

 

Ok no CRST....learned that in a hurry here. Strange they are still in business cause their reputation sounds really bad. And the 12 year plan is exactly what we have in...continued on next page sorry for double post