Passed my CDL skills / road test today AND learned something important . . .

Lol sounds like Schneider

 

As an old timer who made the transition to full time trucking late in life I can say that the one thing that helped me the most was practicing the Smith System in my four wheeler. You'd be surprised to find out how much more of the road and it's surroundings you see when you aim high.

Actually, I lied. Now that I've been driving a bit the one thing that has helped me the most has been the ability to call my trainer/ mentor. We still shoot the #### over the phone every week.

 

I missed this post but it was a schneider! Took him 5min to get enough balls to pull out into traffic leaving the TA in Baytown.

 

All I got to say is if you keep driving, you will still be learning 40 years from now, or at least I hope you are. lol

 

You need to concentrate on perfecting the daily use skills. When you recognize you are seeing sitiuation A, B, and C over & over and there's no obvious one way to handle them 5hen explore them.

Congratulations and for right now don't park at the fuel pumps, back the trailer EVERY chance you get, and make sure you don't hit ANYTHING. You strike me really paying attention and asking the right questions. My theory is don't surprise anyone, don't be lazy, any plan than only works if you hurry up isn't the right plan. Notice the things other lazy/selfish drivers are doing that makes everyone wait on them. Then, don't do those things. You will be fine. The bad drivers never even ask these questions and think WANTING to know the answers is suspicious.

 

My first driving job out of school was pulling smooth bore milk tankers...it was a great way to learn to be smooth on the throttle and brakes. Plus with an 18 speed,when splitting gears you had less surge when using the clutch rather than let off the throttle quick to upshift.

Everything was slow an easy, except for the time a car pulled out in front of me....had to steer around him.

 

I know you’ve already started your trucking lifestyle so this may not pertain to you anymore but
One thing I highly recomend to anyone before they drive a particuliar truck for the first time is get a paper pad and a pen and just go out and sit in the truck for a long while. As long as you can. Perferably hooked to the wagon you are gonna pull. Adjust the seat. Study the dash layout. Where all the gauges, switches and controls are. Touch them. Make them work. Get the feel for them. Shifter and Foot peddles too. This is so you can reach out and get what u need without having too look for it and the less u need to take your eyes off the road. Study the mirrors. Objects may appear closer or farther away depending on brand and type of mirrors. Study that. Get an understanding of how much u can really see and what the true distances of sight they give you. It will truely help u when u are backing.
The pad and pen is for u to write down notes or questions about parts or things about the truck that pop in ur head so you can ask those questions to the owner or the shop manager or trainer or who ever else that knows that truck.
Happy Truckin’

 

That is excellent.
I’ve seen so many times were new guys will just walk out to their truck and just go and than realize down the road they cant find the windshield wiper switch or the headlight switch or anything they may need at the moment. So they are swerving and jerking like a drunk on the road. While they are focusing on finding stuff at the wrong time. Than u see them pulling and tugging at their mirrors the first tight place they get too. Some cant find the fuel tanks or filler caps. Should know these things before u need to. I believe that those little things cause a lot of the accidents that should not even have a chance to happen.