Jumping in head first ; Army Vet / New Driver

Morning all!

First and foremost, a quick introduction. This is my second thread, but I'll bore you anyways.

-23 years old
-Army veteran. Stationed in Ft. Lewis, 12 month tour in SE Helmand Province
-Lifelong automotive enthusiast and most importantly Chevy guy
-Born and bred in the Midwest, Chicagoland to be exact!
-Firm believer in the importance of blue collar/skilled trades worker in this country. Each and every one of you individuals have my respect, no matter what initially motivated you to pursue a career in this industry. As drivers, you are all truly lifeblood of this nations economy.

I retired from active duty and returned to regular civilian life in August of 2013. My time out thus far has been spent as a full time student in pursuit of my bachelors degree in business administration with a focus in marketing. This degree was, per my original intention, going to be utilized as a small business owner; Specifically, the food and alcohol service industry.

However, my life took an unexpected sharp turn roughly a week back. I've always played around with the idea of attaining my Class A CDL and finally making a reality of driving, a true passion of mine, becoming a career.

My my first questions is this ; Over the last six months in which I've been pursuing my degree and enjoying civilian life once more, Ive been a daily user of MMJ. I have several service related disabilities, a 70% rating from the VA, for those familiar with the system, and as a result deal with pain in a multitude of areas on a daily basis. Washington state, which is where I spent my active duty time while stateside, is one of the foremost states in the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. Due to this availability, and a recommendation from several psychians (both military and civilian) to consider MMJ, I decided to put all the negative presumptions aside and give it a shot. I've never cared for the way pain killers affect my state of mind, let alone the detrimental effect they can take on your organs. It has proved be a monumental help in dealing with my pain and has been the most effective option available to myself thus far. While I now consider myself a medicinal marijuana advocate and strive to educate individuals on the benefits of such that are ignorant to the facts, it isn't a viable option any longer (for obvious reasons).

**NO !I AM NOT ASKING IF I CAN CONTINUE TO CONSUME MARIJUANA AND STILL HAVE A CAREER AS A DRIVER!
I am well aware this is no longer a viable option for medication and that a replacement method for relief will need to be attained. If you do not agree with my use of this plant I ask that you please keep such opinions to yourself. I am not a "druggie", "addict", "pothead", or "hippie". I'm a hard working, intelligent, honest American and a patriot of this nation. While I understand the risks associated with operating such a heavy machine while under the influence of this drug, I would never even consider doing so. I have already halted MMJ use entirely, and expect to be able to ace a urinalysis with 100% certainty, within the next three weeks. At this point in time, and no sooner, will I even ponder the thought of climbing behind the wheel of a truck ; PERIOD. That being said, ANY INFO ON COMPANY SPECIFIC TESTING PROCEDURES WOULD BE AWESOME. Obviously, most would prefer to PM me this information, and I assure you any and all things discussed will be entirely between the two of us. A hair follicle test will render me unable to apply for organizations that utilize this method of testing, so a heads up could save me a hell of a lotta' headache!

MONEY - Driver salaries, while not poor, have always been the main factor holding me back. The older I become, though, the more I realize money isn't directly associated with happiness. While it certainly doesn't hurt, the idea of waking up to a job which I genuinely enjoy doing, even if only at certain times, is enough to make me plunge head first into this career path

Driving is, and always will be, something I love to do. I FREQUENTLY take cruises of varying distances without even a destination in mind. I strive to enter/exit turns flawlessly, hitting the apex and properly accelerating out of each turn despite the need to do so. This give me a sense of accomplishment, or maybe even a feeling of having perfected my technique. I suppose I would deem myself a perfectionist with everything I set my mind to, and it's certainly no different when I'm operating a vehicle. While driving I think that each and every other traveler within sight has their eyes directly on me, critiquing each movement I make. Everyday commuting, to me, is a direct reflection of not only my driving abilities/skills, but my values and personality as well.

NOW THAT YOU'RE ALL SHORTING OUT THOSE KEYBOARDS' from all the drool my life story has so generously supplied you with, I'll get to the "meat and potatoes" of this thread.

DRIVING HISTORY ; In the last 3 years, I have one at fault accident on my MVR. This was a collision in which I merged into traffic and was rear ended. No injuries, minimal damages, etc. I was sited for failure to signal a lane change. date of incident was early May, 2010.

Aside from the failure to signal ticket, I ALSO HAVE A SPEEDING VIOLATION OF RECORD and an IILLEGAL LEFT TURN. The speeding was for 78 MPH in a 60 MPH zone. It was not deemed reckless driving.

THE ILLEGAL LEFT TURN accounts for the only active points on my license, which is 2. I did a deferral on the Speeding violation and as a result, unless I am mistaken, it will not matter during my hiring process. CORRECT??

DO ANY OF YOU FORSEE ONE OR MORE OF THESE PREVIOUS ISSUES BEING A HURDLE WHEN I BEGIN APPLYING WITH COMPANIES? I have been told TMC is extremely strict in this regard, which I would venture to say is the sole factor in my current deliberation between them and Werner. Basically, is TMC will hire me with my record, it seems like they'd be the best fit..

Being a vet, I will be using the post 9/11 GI bill for funding. Yes, I have full eligibility. I have used roughly 5 months worth of my benefits already, however.

TRAINING : Either a community college program, which I'm yet to find within reasonable distance that fits my criteria, or DRIVECO training school located in Gary, Indiana. While they are a bit pricey at just under $4k, the price is somewhat irrelevant in my case. I have spoken at length with a representative of the program, and have a positive feeling of their program overall. Again, this is nothing more than an initial assumption based on the information I have gathered thus far and To say I'm open to suggestions would be the understatement of this century.

BEING LOCATED IN GARY IS QUITE CONVENIENT AND WILL MAKE FOR A MORE THAN REASONABLE DAILY COMMUTE TO CLASS.

They offers a 4 week, 160 hour program. This is the route I would opt for if they indeed are the venue I eventually utilize for my training.

Ive put a significant effort into searching for reviews on DRIVECO particularly, but have only been able to locate minimal threads containing relevant information.

ANY INPUT FROM PREVIOUS GRADUATES, CURRENT STUDENTS, OR ANY KNOWLEDGABLE INDIVIDUAL FOR THAT MATTER WOULD BE IMMENSELY APPRECIATED.

COMPANIES : Again, a significant amount of time has been spent researching, conversing with, and overall gather information on all possible carriers via this site, other such forums, and drivers that I personally know. Thus far, I'm leaning towards Werner Enterprises and TMC, respectively.

WERNER - I see this as my top option at the current time. Pay seems competitive, I haven't heard many bad opinions, and they seem to be more lenient with accepting a couple of incidents on your driving record. However, I'm aware they are a "super carrier", and with that may come some downfalls.


TMC - I'm yet to hear a single thing about this company that I don't love, to be frank. Veteran owned (a big plus), black trucks (poke fun if you'd like, appearance is paramount for myself when it comes to my vehicles), and my Name/Branch of service is put on my door as a symbol of recognition. I've been worrying quite a bit, however, about being accepted to the organization with my driving record. BY THE TIME I FINISH WITH MY CDL TRAINING, THE ONLY ACCIDENT I HAVE ON RECORD WILL BE OVER 3 YEARS OLD. This, obviously, means it would no longer be of relevance during my pre-employment screening. There will still be the speeding and illegal left turn violations, though, and that is what has me worried.

Any input from current, past, of new drivers from either of these companies would do me a huge favor by speaking up.... I'm a huge believer in the educational power of forums and boards, just like this one, when used properly. I also believe that, as with anything, the amount of information gained is limited only by the availability of content pertaining to the specific research being done.

I am quite confident Ill receive the guidance I'm seeking via your replies to this thread. I can only hope any others who find themselves in a situation similar to mine can also use this Thread as a solution to a couple of their questions, too.

thanks in advance for any and all comments, suggestions, and advice. He'll, even if you made it all the way through this record shattering post, I thank you for simply spending 5 minutes of your valuable time reading what I've wrote.

I really look forward to hearing everyone's thoughts. I've really got ants on my pants at the time being. I know patience is a virtue, but A google image search of Pete's and other company rigs will only hold me over for so long.


Until next time,

mwSAPPER

 

Harper,

No, I haven't given any consideration towards hot shot or expedited freight. I really appreciate the suggestion, though, and am looking into it as we speak!

 

My OP states "12 month TOUR", as in deployment.

Total time served under activity duty was 3 years, 36 weeks.

 

I suppose I should clarify.

By "retire" I'm simply referring to the end of my military service and not to a retirement with pension. I was released with an honorable discharge, no med board here.

I do, however, receive a generous monthly stipend from the VA for disability compensation.