Oh Boy, What did I get my self into

Yes, a very good video. However, all they cover are tankers without baffles. As we all know, food grade items and some other items cannot be hauled in tanks with baffles, and these tanks are the ones one most need be careful with. Water hauler tankers all have baffles and so you do not get the surge and slopping around you do with liquids in tankers without baffles. When i first started hauling water I was surprised at how stable the trucks are. Yet this does not mean one can be careless. You still need to slow down a little sooner, turn a little slower, and make all your maneuvers smoothly. If you want good tanker training start by hauling water. Then go to the tanks like for hauling milk. Also most water trucks are day cabs, especially if shift driving for a company. So you have a rear window to look out of, and the tanker is much easier to see around than a dry van. Further, the water haulers are about 13 feet shorter than a dry van. When backing they react to steering input sooner and faster. So if you are coming in from OTR to drive in the oil fields don't be too worried about tankers being dangerous. Yes, be careful, pay attention to your trainer. But don't fear the tankers.

 

Well First off driving a truck doesnt take 10 years of school training like a doctor !! And the day I think Driving a truck is like being a Dr. Im def. in wrong Field. Also thanks for calling us new guys a Crack Pot !!!! Guess you fell out your momma and became a truck driver!!! And the reason why insurance is the way it is... is because Guys take risks and so do companies with new drivers! And the insurance company has to pay for the guy who wasnt trained right!!!! Besides There isnt a man in the world if he is trained right and in his own time learning to be safe That cant do this job!! I myself just got my cdl But have been a contractor and business owner all my life pulled trailers from construction trailers to 36 foot campers .. I even used to drag race and had a 40 foot car hauler! I even had a game warden ask me how I got my camper (36) ft where i had it parked without a helicoptor. And no where in what I said I blamed him for why I and like I said I myself cant find a job I can go to orientation to thease big companies anyday!! But I dont wanna just go hang out with some company thats going to use me for gov. grants. and not look out for me! Plus Ill sit home before I run the road 7 days a week for some Big company thats going to start me out making what I made when I was 16 years old!ANd go ahead and respond And run your mouth more I see now Im going to enjoy meeting alot of you in truck stops .... Just remember Butter Bean lol

 

I think you need to relax a little bit, might even want to stay out of this thread if you can't keep your temper in check. And your last sentence here, anymore of that I will personally show you the door.

 

Dude (the OP not you 10speed), I am reading all of this and you are not getting it. Just because he was hired (I assumed lied too) that you may not have the same luck as he had.

I don't get you, your not in a bad situation, just turn down the job because a bad situation is what could happen if you don't secure the line and end up getting hit with a hose or having to deal with a clean up of dirty water which you may be more than just getting fired if they find out you lied - like ending up in litigation over the costs to the company.

Many of us are concerned with safety, we have to do dangerous jobs and look down on companies who just hire anyone breathing to do a job - there are many of them. We all have the same issues with regulations, stupid state laws and even stupider arrogant enforcers who think they are gods. Those companies who just hire anyone and the drivers who think they can handle things that actually does require experience puts all of us in the situation of being defensive about making sure that safety is put first.

 

Come clean with your new employer. Maybe they'll have some sort of training to give you. If they let you go, you'll know that no one was injured due to your ignorance. At least then you'll be able to sleep at night.

 

1. No I didn't fall out of my ma and become a truck driver, you sir are correct however I pretty much grew up in the cab of a truck, I was in one before I could walk. That is verifiable if you would care to check, the owner of that company has since passed on due to lung cancer however his son (current owner) is still alive and kicking and can testify to it. Truth be told I was actually almost born in the office there.

2.granted the crack pot comment may have come off a little harsh, however most of what comes out a cdl mill now days is nothing more than somebody who spent 4 weeks at a school (average) made a couple scribbles in a coloring book, and got a certificate and a cdl that says they're qualified to drive a truck. Then they turn around and go to a carrier spend some time with a trainer, start making YouTube videos and telling everybody else how to drive a truck because they are now an expert.

3.insurance is the way it is because of statistics. In 6 years (no I have not had a cdl that long) and countless miles I've had 1 accident (minus having a bumper darn near taken off my tractor in OK at a rock quarry) that accident wasn't my fault and it just so happens that the kid wasn't paying attention. Insurance companies use statistics to charge higher rates, they apply that over a blanket. If you want to start a rant I can start a rant over that showing that I'm against the odds and shouldn't be punished for other people but that is going to get me nowhere but out of breath.

4.congradulations on owning a business its not easy. Pulling trailers all your life, all I can say to that is there is A LOT of difference between dragging around a camper and a 40ft car trailer (yea I have one too its probably longer mines a gooseneck yours was probably enclosed so yours was 40ft total mine is 48 Total) and dragging around a 53ft box, reefer, flat, pot, etc. Your average wheel base on a pickup is about 156" maybe 175" if you have a mega cab long box. Unless you're running a cab over or a day can you'll be lucky to be under 230" and that's measured from the center of the front axle to the center between your tandems on your truck. You CANNOT com pair pulling a trailer behind a pickup, or even an international CXT to driving a tractor trailer.

5. See Oscars first quote says right in there. Also have fun with the job search if you want a company that's going to look out for your best interest. There are a few out there that treat you like family most of the time but every company atasome point in time is going to push and see $$$ before the interest of the driver that's trucking.

6. What you were making at 16? You just got a cdl you're inexperienced. Where do you expect to start? I'll explain something to you about trucking. In the past 40 years everything has gone up but freight rates and wages. We aren't making much more now than guys were back in the 70s and being exempt from most labor laws has hurt the industry as well. My dad was making what your average company driver makes now ORT back when he started. A whopping .28/mile! He quit that after 6 months and found a local job did that for years now he's back to running OTR as an O/O. Myself? I got thrown to the wolves, got 3 days and about 450 miles in the cab and went down to take my driving test. Passed didn't look back, ran with him bout killed each other in his truck and that tractor in my SIG s the result. I can say after taxes and everything I don't make much more probably make less than you're average company driver, and I'm almost positive I work more hours than they do.

7. The only time you'll find me at the truck stop is getting fuel, or showering so you don't have to worry about meeting me at a truck stop, the little sleep I do get comes at the sale barn before I load, after that the truck stops for fuel and to check my cattle.

You seem to have a misconception on trucking, many people do, that's why out of a class of 30 1 maybe 2 will become a truck driver and make a career out of it. Many start put in about 60 days and quit for various reasons. I hear all the time we shouldn't take this crap we need higher pay this that and the other. Reason that never changes is because there is another line of students every week that just got out of a school who need a job. The old timers have had enough and are getting out and that's what's replacing them. They'll take the low pay because bringing home $35-40k a year under normal circumstances isn't a bad living. The reason so many quit is because they actually figure out they're making below minimum wage.

The FMCSA has shoved rules up everybody's behinds (that's why the old timers have had enough) and are actually making roads more dangerous because we now are getting drivers with all of 2500 miles in a partially loaded truck getting thrown behind the wheel of an 80,000+lb battering ram being "trained" by some guy that's got a whopping 3-6 months behind the wheel who agreed to train because they offered him a bonus. Its contributing to the downfall of what keeps a country and in all reality the world moving. Drivers aren't really getting training all they're doing is teaming and not getting the actual training they need to fully do the job and thrive in this industry. I can sit here and discuss this all day long, it will do no good what so ever. Even in the last 10 years I've seen this industry change so much and it has made me sick.

I'm the 3rd generation to start grabbing gears for a living, my daddy hoped I didn't become a truck driver and wanted better for me, mama knew when I quit college what was going to happen, she's always said I was born with diesel in my veins. I've got a lot to learn out here from the veterans, I know that and realize that. Guys like Oscar, hammer, wore out, twin stick, olhand, etc. The people who've been out here pounding pavement since before I hit kinder garden. Difference is I don't know it all, don't claim too, and it might be stupid to settle for a little less pay, or drag around a trailer and make a little less than I could, but I'm happy with that, and I love what I do. I don't have a problem starting at the bottom working my way up and proving myself, kinda sounds like you do from your post that I quoted with the comment of what you were making at 16. That's fine if you feel that way, but if you actually want a career driving a truck you may want to rethink that a little bit. You have to start someplace and put in your time. You won't get experience on the phone complaining about pay, home time, or how many hours you'll put in.

 

curious how this pans out by the end of the week..

 

Same here,, but I don't put much faith in any honest updates by the OP.
If he can't be truthful and honorable in getting the job, he can't be that truthful and honorable in what he says to us afterward.

 

Considered there are so many sides to water hauling OP could claim he is not familiar with that particular device or procedure, that's the only way to get some onsite training

 

OK guys, save your energy for screwing willing females. The OP lied on his application and got his buddy to lie for him. He admitted it. He asked for advice.

Who knows, the guy might be desperate for a living-wage job. I sure was when I came up here broke, alone and unfamiliar with this God-forsaken wasteland where driving on ice is routine.

You guys who are perfect individuals who never lied about or on any job you ever worked can throw rocks at the guy. But save your energy for threads besides whining about something you cannot change.