Questions for the EXPERIENCED DRIVERS

Before i ask, here is a little back ground on me. I am CURRENTLY in the military, however, i am looking to change careers(near future). I have always loved the open road, ive been deployed away from my family SEVERAL times, so being away weeks(months) at a time isnt a big deal for us(as a family). My driving record is clean, and i can ace the physical! Im a pretty fast learner, from my research on the internet(and i have done ALOT) i have a pretty good understanding of what i am getting myself into, and so far...im still wanting to go forth with it! I love working with my hands, i dont mind physical labor(flatbedding sounds right up my alley) I'm used to odd schedules....or the lack their of. I dont mind a challenge, i've been told im a "peoples person".....(i guess). So....anything i missed? Oh, i dont want to be an O/O...L/P...at least not for the first 2/3 yrs...make sure that this IS really what i want to do!

Now for my questions......for you experienced drivers out there....
If you were in my shoes and had to do it all over again....what training company would you go too? Even i wont go to WERNER or SWIFT...so cancel them out...........who would you choose?

Once through the training and out on the road with the trainer, what are some of the rookie mistakes that....rookies....make?

How often do you get lost, trying to find a new shipper/reciever?

Taking the breakdowns out of the equation....how often are you late for pick ups/deliveries? How hard is it really to make on time pick up and deliveries?

Are paper logs easier/harder than the new elogs? Are elogs more efficent for day to day duties?

What is considered a "decent weeks" pay. CPM/average paid mileage/take home pay. .22cpm/3kmiles=660....what does it look like after taxes/insurance/etc etc....

I live in the Montgomery, AL area......if i drove for a company and they had a terminal say, out of atlanta, thats about 4 hr drive...do you take your truck/trailer home with you for H/T? How does that work when your home time is over and you get dispatched? Do you just take that 4 hr drive in to account with the scheduled pick up time of that load is?

Sorry for so many questions, but i like to know as much as possible from the people who do it day in day out.....i know recruiters lie....im in the military for *&^%$^ sake!

Thanks in advance!
TJ

 

....one more thing,well, a couple actually..... when you get loaded at a shipper and leave, do you automatically start looking for a weigh station to find out what the weight is? What happens if your over weight, do you go back and tell them to off load a little bit? What happens if you leave the shipper, heading to get weighed and get stopped by mr. dot and they find out your over weight before you can do anything about it?

How often do you get bothered "while sleeping" by outside things...ie, qualcomm, lot lizards, trucks coming and going, reefers kicking on and off?

For your 34hr reset....you cant do anything other than sit around waiting on time to reset for you, what do you do? sleep? read? watch tv? laundry? Are you ever at home for your reset?

 

Thank you for the input!

"if i were you, you would probably have great luck with an ltl freight carrier, because they want someone to look sharp in a uniform, and be a "people person" as you say you are. and peddling freight from the back of a trailer is a LOT of physical labor. Con-way Freight and ABF Freight both train people, from what I have heard"....this kinda discourages me wanting to go ltl.....

I know most of the big training mills require you to run with them for at least 6mos/1yr (for them to recoup their funding in you) before moving on, which usually means OTR, which is alright with me, kinda like throwing you to the wolves! Sink or Swim buddy!

Which route would be more beneifical down the road?.....
Do van/reefer for a yr with them......then go flat bed or, try and get on flat bed as soon as possible while in training? If i went flatbed first,OTR, then after that year was up and i was able to find a better....paying/more home time/etc etc etc job afterwards, would that hurt my chances of getting that job b/c i dont have van/reefer exp, or would going to a better/smaller flatbedding company not even look at what i hauled as long as i have 1yr otr exp.....

"if you drive for an over the road company, you would take the tractor trailer home with you, or i should say, as close to home as possible, because any company is going to be pissed if someone gets their truck stuck, or damaged, trying to wiggle it down a two track driveway off of a dirt road."

.....i have plenty of room for a tractor w/trailer to keep at the house.

"its always awkward when you get dispatched off of hometime, unless they give you a load that you know about in advance. I ended up getting dropped off at my truck, then punching in a waiting for load message, and camping out until i was dispatched. that always sucked, i remember one time sitting in my truck for another 4 hours before i got a load! i could have been doing stuff on that time!"
....so if i brought the tractor w/or w/o trailer home w/ me, i could have the advantage! So on the last day of home time....say....morning/noonish...i could punch in a waiting for load message, and hang out till i get a reply? That way, if 4hrs pass by and no word i enjoy 4 hrs at home longer than sitting in some parking lot in town/ or across town waiting for a load assignment....

 

I am in the USAF, stationed in Minot, North Dakota but currently/presently deployed to Anderson AFB, GUAM.

the military will pay 100% of your tuition if you enroll in an accredited CDL school--i will have to look into that!