New Flatbedder got license today

I agree that there’s a better way to teach than the mills
But if anyone could teach the next guy then just imagine how much worse it could get

Maybe not a lot worse as the mills aren’t being taught but the first guy would get a CDL then all his family or friends would all be just as good as him

Maybe let a X year vet with a good driving record teach but the new 2 week trained guy. Not so much

 

I grew up in a family of water well drillers. A lot of the practice of putting a truck in a bad spot I carried over into the trucking industry, but I picked up a lot of do’s & don’ts from other drivers along the way. Over the years it became obvious that not everyone knows it all, but many know a lot.

I remember a lot of dry attitudes from veteran drivers as well, some didn’t care to take the time to explain or lend a hand to a greenhorn. But I was fortunate to have some great mentors to run with in the early part of my driving career. Sadly most of them could barely write their name and were taken out by the CDL mandate that proved to be a gimmick. Many just retired out of fear of the written test. Those men could put a truck in places that would amaze the general public, but a pencil was not their friend.....

 

The stuff I learned just riding shotgun in the bush with my dad would amaze a lot of folks. How to throw on chains, how and when to use the lockers, load securement, when its best to just hold a gear vs grabbing a gear, patience when coming down the mountain etc.

Sadly with all the safety regulations in place these days kids miss out on that experience. Learning how to interact with equipment operators, reading the jobsite for hazards, that sort of thing. They don't see that stuff until they're in their late teens or early 20s and it shows.

 

I agree, After 4.5 years on tankers, as a 25 year old I was self taught as a flatbedder and after 4 years I changed jobs and spent a year doing city work and teaching load security after the boss decided I knew what I was doing.
A year later I started learning the heavy haul trade from "Bunk", a 60 year old who could run circles around almost all 75 drivers on the fleet.
Somebody had to do his paperwork for him because he had a grade 4 education.
I still wish him good thoughts and have for 40 years, many of them posthumously.

 

Then one can say “then some clown with no school training can train?”

length of CDL school has no weight on the persons capability. Ya most CDL mills churn out unqualified drivers but but some of the drivers are as good as the self taught ones.

 

A great read. Thanks.