Possible New Driver

If you can't afford to miss a paycheck, some cdl schools have night and/or weekend classes for those that can't afford to quit their current job. Google : CDL schools Dallas/Ft. Worth.
Most trucking company schools provide meals and lodging while attending their school, but no paycheck.

 

Jim Palmer Trucking has their own cdl school in Missoula,Montana. They provide transportation to Missoula plus meals & lodging while in the school.
Schneider Bulk might pick up the tab for school in Dallas/Ft. Worth. You could stay at home this way and just attend classes at the school.
Millis Transfer has their own cdl school in Burleson,TX
FFE (Frozen Food Express) has their own school in Lancaster, TX

 

It's $500.00 a week but they hold back 2 or 3 weeks when you first start.

 

If you want to hate your best friend go team driving.
If you want your children to forget who you are go trucking.
Your life on the road is not "traveling and seeing new places". It's ####ty truck stops with bad food and no parking, dirty showers and clogged toilets. Everywhere you go you will be disrespected and mistrusted. When the 4 wheelers aren't accidentally trying to kill you they trying to kill you on purposes.
If you want to drive some plastic hunk of gutless crap that rattles and squeaks and leaks and smells like ####, go trucking.
OTR pay is garbage. Don't believe noob hype or recruiter bs. If it was so great they wouldn't have a 97%turnover rate.
If you still want to go ruin your life call Watkins and Shepard.

 

I'd still look close at Schneider Bulk for OTR. This way you can get the $1100 extra monthly pay for your VA benefits in addition to good tanker pay. Hair follicle drug test required for tankers.

 

@fsi1212 Your story and mine are highly similar. I was burnt out BAD as a deputy sheriff and ended up resigning from that. I too, dreaded going to work, probably 10 of my 15 years. Makes for a tough life indeed. I also have two children, but when I started this gig as a driver they were 12 and 8 yrs old. I had a very hard time with being gone.....very hard!!!! As mentioned above, if you don't mind not being involved in their lives, try trucking. I won't tell you what to do, but will say, it was a culture shock for sure. Add in the lifestyle change, the way this industry is run and the being away from home so much,,,it was rough.
I totally get how you feel about your current gig. Money is good, but you aren't happy anymore. It's a heck of a commitment to give up something good and throw 'caution to the wind' per say, but only you can make that decision. I won't tell you what to do one way or another, but with your babies being so young,,,,,it makes me reflect on my situation and wish I would have done things a bit differently. I wish ya the best in whatever you decide.

 

Just me, but I'm trying to go Otr for a year then go home to get a local gig and use my gibill for diesel repair school at night. That gibill is very powerful and can pay some hefty tuition bills so I wouldn't use it on apprentice training because you're losing anywhere from I think 10-15k a year in tuition while you're just collecting the BAH in the apprenticeship. I'd use it to pay for trucking school and that's it or pay for trucking school and get a gig with tuition reimbursement.