Is 60 yrs old too old to start driving a truck ???

Odfl..old dominion freight line.. they are a nationwide ltl..less than load carrier. That means they will come and pick up and deliver a single pallet or package whereas truckload carriers picknup a full load at once. This would be a line haulposition where you would shuttle loads from one terminal to the next. A legal week is 70hrs in an 8 day period is all you can work.

 

Dennis, I recommend you steer clear and wide of Chinatown. There are lots of good companies in trucking but Chinatown seems to like to recommend the likes of CRST. Terrible CSA score. If you don't know what a CSA score is, you need to learn fast. The best thing to hit trucking in 50 years in my opinion.

You can look up ALL tickets a carrier has received in the last two years and a ranking, 0-100 (with lowest best) compared with other companies for Driver Safety, HOS (Hours of Service) and Maintenance. In many cases all you have to do is enter the company name.

In some cases, do a Google search, 'XYZ (company name) DOT #' and you'll probably get their DOT number to punch in. See 'Carrier Search': http://ai.fmcsa.dot.gov/SMS/Data/Search.aspx

CRST is one of the bad ones.

Chinatown will probably PM you to offer to "help you." Ten-foot pole time, Dennis. Get your ten-foot pole out.

 

I'm interested in what you did out there. I was offered the IT Manager position at the US Naval Base at Diego Garcia, chewed on it for a long, long time. Took some SQL training that they wanted me to take first, but just couldn't leave my dogs behind. No dogs. No girlfriends. No spouses. Tax free if you stayed out 11 months, I think. I was told the trip out from Singapore was 'special'. C-130 or some such and you had to have Naval orders to get on and Naval orders to get off. B-52s fly outta there. US base on British island.

No telling these folks, oh, ah, I think I wanna go home. Ha-ha. No-o-o way. Once you're there, you're there. Michael Baker corp had the contract.

 

Oh, sorry.. they seem to pay more.
Also tankers, oversized, specialized, etc.
I've been paying more attention to trucks since I got my cdl. You can pretty much tell which flatbedders really take pride in their work. I've seen some really nice tarping. And a few sloppy tarps. Not counting big oversize akwardly shaped loads.
Mary

 

if you and yo wife got all the activity of your limbs and in your right mind GO, GO, GO FOR IT. Im a new driver 2 you would be surprised what you see getting out of trucks at these truck stops. I just be like WOW WTF!!! are you serious. like your wife I was worried also. its really no different than driving a large SUV but the only thing instead of 4 wheels its 18 wheels. if you can hold a car on road you can hold a tractor truck on road. tell your wife its not the tractor truck she should be worried about its the 4 wheelers. they always think your in their way. they will run u over. I got ran over in Dallas, tx man jumped out. tried to get my door open cursing at me of course my door was locked. he said I ran him over even though he came across my truck from passenger side. the road was changing into a single lane because of accident. I was in correct lane I already merged. he tried to beat me and get in front of me with not enough room. long story short I MESSED HIS TRUCK UP!!! I laughed at him I was found to be in the right. my company said it was a non-preventable. I was cracking up because his truck still had drive out tags on it. I laughed all the way to New York. make sure either you or your wife have a smart phone or camera. because 1 picture will save you like it saved me from being charged with a accident.

 

Ooooo - my wife's gonna bash you . . . . I'm deleting your post before her 5 foot 2 frame starts a-jumping up and down and foaming at the mouth . . . .

 

Ummm, I don't think Chinatown is recommending CRST or Central, he does say " 2 companies that train . . .ARE Central and CRST" - and at least he's being helpful on here, rather than . . . . well I won't get started.

I'll agree with you on looking at those CSA scores - some make fascinating reading. And I've never been a fan of CRST. I've talked with a few of their drivers, and I see too many of them out on the road, and they just don't have a very good image.