I am about to give up!

The first time I decided to come off the road from OTR to do something local, I was still a relatively young man in my twenties. I lasted a week or two delivering appliances for Sears... Then I couldn't get up, couldn't move... pretty much thought for sure it was time to call the funeral home and reserve my casket.

Talk about a job that will make you an old man in short order.

 

Two full weeks backing practice. Five full weeks driving highways, in town and backing to empty buildings with docks. Three week coast to coast log book/trip planning/hours of service project(s). FMCSR chapters assignments. J.J. Kellers text assignments. Tours of local trucking companies. Front to rear inspections training. Under the truck "here's this and what it does, here's that, and this is what you do here" training. Hooking/unhooking practice many times a week. Cover to cover discussion of the state CMV manual. Tandem moving and 5th wheel moving (load distribution) practice and considerations. On the road instruction from 4 guys, each having over 30 years various driving experiences.

Here's the kicker -----> 8 wks of top notch (IMHO) edgookashun for $1275, and that includes TSA fingerprinting/background check for hazmat and also books.

Whoever it was in this thread to mentioned checking out a community college had it very, very right. ...if my oppinion as a student matters.

 

Good post! There are places out there that will give you your money's worth and not charge an outrageous fee ($3000 to $5000! WOW!!). It's too bad that most "schooled" drivers out there now are from the CDL mills. It shows in the behavior of rude, ignorant, sloppy, unsafe drivers out there now!

Sounds like you got some good training! Good for you and best of luck on finding the right place for you! You ought to consider posting your schools info on the other sections on this forum.

 

For the last two full years I have had quite an experience within the industry. I managed to get thru the school (was a puppy mill) fairly easily and did the best in my group on the driving and written items they had us going over. Put my time in pulling reefers and then switched over to flatbed so I could get home more than every 3 months, and enjoyed the work for the most part. After I got a call from my wife's employer about coming on board there, I pulled the brakes and never looked back. I work 36 hours a week now, make more than I did working 70, get to take showers and sleep in my own bed; and I don't miss waiting 5 days for a load going anywhere when I'm stuck 2000 miles from the house. The only real part that sucked was the expense to get going in the industry. The money I laid out for all the exams, physicals, schools and refreshers (while I waited for a job to line up) was in excess of $6000; not one penny of which was tax deductable! Man, I was steamed last april After I recovered some of my losses, I realized that going thru a college program where real job placement assistance WAS provided would have saved me thousands, and probably made me a more skilled driver. If I had it to do over again, I would do it just that way. If I hadn't got a call about the job I do now, I would still be driving, and still fairly happy. There are some real traps out there...eyes up and careful consideration is the way to go with any of it.

-M

 

I'm thinking about leasing a truck with them. What can you tell me about the company? Is it worth my time and effort? Do they want you to run illegal?