Retiring Early To become a Trucker... Should I Yes or No???

I would recommend staying until you are 60. You are guaranteed the retirement amount, and you deserve it for all your hard work and dedication as a teacher. Then you can start your trucking career. I wish you the best of luck!

 

@CoachGKJ ...I'd look around a little before I hung my hat on a trucking career. Try driving for somebody for awhile. You might not even like it. It's a whole lot different than a lot of people think.
As far as putting your property in hock to buy a truck...not only no but please no. A lot of well experienced people on TTR are looking for and industry wide slow down very soon.
The experienced owner/operators will know how to get through a bad time. A new one just starting out will inevitably make all the new guy mistakes that could very well sink him without a trace.
I'd advise caution. Lots of caution.

 

I don't know. I don't read the burning desire to go trucking in his words, and it obviously isn't strictly a mathematical equation. The OP does seem to have a burning desire to move to the Caribbean and live out his life scuba diving (and drinking Mojitos if it were me!), so that is where his focus seems to be to me. I wholeheartedly understand his attitude toward teaching in California, and commend him for his years in the school system. I just think he is trying to use trucking as a means to get to retirement, and without trucking becoming one's passion, I don't feel that it is likely to end well, especially starting out with record high fuel and equipment prices and heading into what possibly could be a recession of greater magnitude than what happened in 08. If he were of the opinion that he was going to give it all he had for 10 years I would look at it differently.

Back to the housing thing though, if he has real estate that he will likely be selling in 3 to 5 years anyway, I would at least capitalize on the value of that now and just rent in a less expensive state if he is going to quit teaching. Those that suggested the OP drive for a company for the years until visions of mermaids overcome him are probably offering the most sage advice.

 

One of the things I have seen (started trucking in the early 70s) is that a lot of folks that have had highly skilled jobs and education end up not being able to deal with the boredom associated with trucking. You need to be able to keep your situational awareness active every moment and for some people that is very difficult.
As for being an Owner Operator, I would say at your age, no way, and don't let any company talk you into leasing one of their trucks. It is almost a guaranteed was to go broke, there are exceptions, but very few.
Trucking isn't for sightseeing America or Canada unless all your interested in is seeing the interstate highways. My last job was a dedicated from Gilroy Ca. to Boston, MA, I was a driver trainer and that is another way to wreak havoc with your nervous system.

 

Hey you bloody Kiwi, I still feel young!

 

Anybody that can teach school in California for as long as the OP deserves all the blue sky, mojitas, and scuba he wants.
I tried it for one year when I got out of school. One year was enough. And that was 50 years ago.
Thought...all those smart mouthed little twerps that gave me a ration of crap are now middle aged adults...I hope some of them became teachers.

 

WHAT? You're feeling a young thing - ?! Hope your wife doesn't read this !!

 

If you're only planning to stay in trucking for five years or less, forget starting your own company. It will take longer than that to recover the startup costs from the difference between what you'd make as a company driver and what you'll make after actual expenses as an O/O.

Coming in with no commercial driving experience, your insurance cost will be sky high, especially if you're also getting your own new authority. The money you sink in equipment will NOT be an investment. Due to the wear and tear, by the time you're ready to sell it in five years it will be worth much less than what you paid for it, not to mention what you also spent on periodic maintenance and major repairs while you had it. And if the economy tanks before you get out there will be a glut of used trucks like there was in 2008-2012 and you'll have to practically give it away before you move to your tropical paradise. If the economy doesn't tank and keeps going like it has for the last couple of years, you'll have to absorb the loss of productivity every time your truck breaks down and you have to wait several weeks for a shop to get the part they need to fix what's wrong with your truck, all while still paying for insurance and other regular fixed expenses.

You'll be much further ahead coming out the other end of spending only five years in the industry as a company driver. You'll also have the ability to walk away any time you want during that five years.

(Do NOT sign a promissory note held by the company you drive for to finance driving school. That's their way of making you an indentured servant until they're ready to kick you to the curb - while still owing them money that they'll sue you to get - if you don't meet their expectations that only 10-15% of their new hires can do. They won't fire you. They'll just stop giving you loads until you can't afford to sit around in their truck for no money. Do not go to work for any company that insists you attend their own over priced school, either. There are plenty of good companies that will accept new drivers from good certified schools, such as those offered by public community colleges at a much lower cost than those companies which make more profit from their driving schools and lease-purchase scams than they make from hauling freight.)

(Do NOT enter the industry with a company who wants to offer you a lease-purchase "deal" on a truck after attending their over-priced driving school. See above, but you'll owe then ten times as much when they decide to stop giving you enough loads to stay above water. NEVER EVER let the same company/people who decide how much revenue you generate by controlling the loads you are offered also hold the lien on your truck, because if they do, it will never, EVER actually be your truck.)

Trucking, especially long-haul, isn't for everyone. In fact, it's not for the majority of people. It is also a lot different from what most folks who have not done it expect that it will be. It's better that you find out if you're a good fit or not before you sink much money into it. It's also better if you work for a company that knows how to make money in trucking the right way long enough (2-3 years at the very least) to learn much of what you need to know to survive as an O/O, but it will take a lot longer than five years to make that pay off.

 

We're probably almost to the point where she would say "Go for it" - almost.....................but I'm not quite ready to ask!

 

It's like the dog chasing the car thing - You're clueless what to do when you actually catch the car