Second Thoughts

I tend to do my homework and have my eyes wide open when attempting anything new and unfamiliar. The TTR forum has been invaluable in this regard.

I have checked into training at the local community college, but is has been discontinued. There is only one CC in the general area -which is rural and remote. Anywhere else would require housing cost or staying with a friend, if they happened to live near, which is fine.

I have read on his forum, for example, about minimal facilities/accommodations at CRST training sites and had a phone conversation with a recruiter at IITR in Oregon - both gave me pause about this whole idea . . . the former regarding dirty facilities, less than savory types coming for training, theft of personal items; the latter 'a fixed up RV you can rent for $400 while you are in school'. I don't think so. I am not expecting five-star accommodations, just basic, clean and safe.

And then the possibility of unsavory trainers once you get your CDL-A . . . I am female and can go w/o a shower for a day or two, am not a prude nor a pansy. But I am not going to spend days/weeks/months with some low-life to learn how to do this.

Plus needing weapons for personal safety while on the road. I realize common sense and street smarts go a long way - not putting yourself in unwise situations, but sometimes that isn't entirely possible . . .

I am sure there are a good percentage of decent, hardworking folks out there on the road, but the danger and crap I've read about here gives me pause. I know life can be dangerous, but I've managed to get along without even a close call for over 50 years - and that isn't sitting at home, twiddling my thumbs. Why would I want to place myself in situations where the odds are so much higher?

Then there's the posts about lost receipts, no reimbursements, fighing for that and pay owed . . . I am getting too old for that kind of crap. My needs are simple: a fair wage for a job well done. Do your best, respect yourself and others, help where you can, use your head, ask for help when you need to - you get my drift.

I plan to call a few OTR companies and see if they'll talk to me about their take on the best route for training, a job for the first year for experience and then getting with a decent company. What got me thinking about this in the first place is the great guys I worked with while doing data entry (weights, bills of lading, fruit quality stats) at a fruit-processing center who drove truck to get the fruit from the scales/cleaning facility to the fruit processing plant. The trucking company is local/regional; I talked to them and found out I would need two years driving experience to apply with them. That led me to find out that about the only place to do that is with the big coast-to-coast trucking companies . . .

 

I said nothing about 'clean at the White House' or 'the Hyatt'. The term I used was REASONABLE.

I wrote our CC no longer provides truck driver training . . .

 

Any major city in the state where I live is 3 hours distant; the trucking schools are crap. Nearest city with voc-tech training is minimum 4 to 5 hours distant.

Haven't found any school or company that offers more than 160 hours . . .

 

I have no problem, with dirty, sweaty, dusty, and tired. Don't have a problem with older rigs - my car is 12. I do have a problem with lying, stealing and cheating.

You're right: it's what you make of it. But life isn't a vacuum and things are not all up to me. I certainly appreciate the benefit of your experience, Lilbit.