Been taking a full year to find the right place to get some class time before taking "the test" but pretty much all my information comes from being on the road, spending time watching rigs at truck stops, weigh scales, rest stops and now this place...pretty much anywhere rigs are running the roads. Needless to say it tends to get some pretty strange looks from drivers - not so much those that have a decade or more under their belt but the newer ones. That seems a bit odd considering my body size ain't much of a threat or my age (yea, don't go there) and if a driver seems friendly enough and not in a hurry, I'll ask a few questions and soak in what they have to say with critical thinking gears grinding in my head at the same time. You can't believe everything you hear. Stop. Look. Listen. Its what Grandpa used to tell me all the time growing up and he wasn't dumb by any means so I go by that rule whenever possible. What does seem odd is how drivers stare me down or shy out like I'm there to steal their lunch money or something (that would be a youtube of dumbest criminal - ever) but to me, it gives me a good sense of just a minute of this business, the best way to back in/pull out, can't find em' grind em'!, beat up rigs and who has the most out there with the same company name, everything really. Kind of makes me wonder if these classes should have time to just sit somewhere with an instructor and ask questions when students see something instead of trying to explain something like colors to a blind person (no offense to those that do not have full sight)...anyone else ever think like that? When having to fill in the class application my brain came to a screeching halt on the question "why do you want to get your CDL?". I finally had to ask what they meant or wanted (money, a job, money, were top answers) the only thing I could write down was: I LOVE TRUCKS Always have, always will. To be fair I did a bit of driving in the 80's before endorsements were needed aside from hazmat, have operated just about everything that has wheels at least once, know what I can and can't handle and where my own shift points are. If it can be taken apart to see how it works you can bet I'll be elbow deep doing just that and hoping I get it right putting it back together. 2ยข to everyone out there and stay safe this winter
What wrong with I love trucks. Also motorcycles, buses, jeep, cars, atv's... whatever! Take care and drive safe! mary
I think your answer as to why you wanted a CDL was PERFECT! "I LOVE TRUCKS!" No BS....no embellishment....no "it's a great job in a tough economy"....blah, blah, blah. You distilled it down to the core, and I salute you for it!
me, I like to be going somewhere, I guess. always was moving around. got bored living one place a while moved to someplace else. lol. Fla,Wyo, upstate NY,NC.
I love trucks is a great answer. I think if you put money everyone is quick to tell you how bad ANYTHING is but the truth is that getting my CDL was the greatest financial decision I ever made and from the looks of it its still getting better. An old timer told me the other day "this business will be good to you, if your willing to work". On a sidenote the classes just want you to enroll they dont really care why you want to. Good luck
You are right about the class being able to witness first hand what is going on and then ask questions. It's kind of like when your just a little kid, sitting at the dinner table and asking how you milk the cows, no amount of dinner time chat can help you any. You have got to experience first hand pulling the milking stool up under your hind end and sitting down to get to work, and midway through the process the ole gal has a horse fly taking a bite out of her side, so, her first instinct is to swat the fly with her tail, you get your ear polished with what feels like something from outerspace and off the stool you go. There is no substitute for seeing things with your own eyes and hands on instruction.
Kinda laughing at this analogy since I grew up on a farm and Rosy never gave me a problem when milking her but again, Grandpa taught me how not to spook her first and let her know why I was there including swatting off the horse flies before they got to her. The class thing has holes in it and why I'll be going to two different schools back to back: one offers great study of all laws with good road time in the city and highway with some nasty hills (only want to do this in winter months when it is usually snowy or hard rains) - the other is a lot of yard time backing, breaking and cornering with time in the mechanic's lair. Both will let me ask a lot of questions and tell me if this isn't a fit for me, anything less than the flat out truth would piss me off to no end. I guess I just don't get why schools from coast to coast don't go out just for observation, there is a lot going on at one time which you can see how individual drivers handle it. You can also hear a lot of sounds and sort them out as to what is normal and what isn't - what gears are being used - the way you would and wouldn't want to enter and exit a busy area...that list is endless. I dunno, I guess I've never grown up when it comes to wanting to know about stuff especially stuff that is fun, like big trucks and maybe I should have used a name here like Gypsy Blood but pretty sure it was taken.
What would be nice for you is if you knew a lady in your area that you could just head out with in the truck and learn one on one, on occasion you can run in to something like this, but where to connect with someone would be the thing to figure out. I'm like you, I like to know the nuts and bolts of something before I get to carried away and get to deep in, I hate eatin crow. I have read ads on craigslist where people ran an ad looking for someone to take them out in the truck so that they could learn the trade, it's not that uncommon a thought.
Appreciate it TD but I'm lucky in the sense there are no fewer than 7 truckers I can go with right after the test (insurance issue, I respect that). They have been driving since we got out of school and of all the kids we know have been encouraging to me - they "remember when" so they know its a good fit. Most told me to skip the school and take the test but since it is paid for...might as well use it and get most of the basic information in one place in a shorter time then use it like untangling a string when OTR. At least I can ride along and get hours with someone I have known for a long time and they know to yell at me if I'm being/have done something stupid. Wouldn't expect anything less of them, at the end of the day there is the friendship.
