Starting Katlaw School, Austell GA, 1/12

Well .. finally 'off the fence' and moving forward. My job gave me a month notice that they were closing shop ... and it was a long month Though by sticking it out I left with a great reference and enough severance pay to cover the school .. $2595 (good price).

I was initially looking at W/S but they just had too many apps onhand already, but they did say Katlaw was a good and acceptable school .. as did FFE/AE/Lisa. Hopefully by the time I finish the job market will be looking a little better ... especially at W/S as I ready like what I've read about them and their system. I'm looking at these companies to start at as I'd really like to keep the dog with me once I get through training/probation. Werner is on that list as well .. but .. In the end I'll go wherever I can to get some experience.

I've searched the web, numerous forums, and found little about Katlaw .. but visited twice and liked what I saw and the folks I met.

I appreciate all the info found on here, it really helped me understand the job, the life, the process ... and I'm STILL really excited about doing it. Must be nutz, huh?

Thanks,

Steve

 

Well .. I'm finally in school .. just finished day 1 and it was great. There are only 5 of us in the class, 4 class A and 1 class B. The instructor seems great .. I mean what do I know at this point. He's very open to questions and has lots of stories that adds some perspective to the somewhat boring material. As always I assume, there are some really dumb questions ..

Teacher: So the sky is blue...
Student: So what color is the sky?

Listening .. the lost art!

They schedule your 'truck time' after you get your permit, which I got in advance, and it's still a week off between my first (permit) week and the 2 driving weeks. I should be done mid Feb and ready to go. Not sure where yet but since I have the dog I'm looking at W/S, FFE and Werner initially .. and maybe Star (Nashville) though I've heard conflicting stories on their pet policy.

They have Freightshakers (3 I think) and a Volvo, all 10 speeds.

Well, DOT physicals tomorrow, and Permit tests on Fri .. though since I have my permit already I'm not sure what I'll get/have to do on Fri. Maybe I can get them to let me hang out with the class in the trucks right now ..

Thanks for all the insight and support ...

Steve

 

Well .. still havin' fun. More book learning in prep for our permits. Actually I already have mine already but still have to attend to get my 160 hours, just won't have to go take the test. A couple of the guys are really struggling with the material .. hopefully they get it together in time for the Permit test on Fri.

We had out DOT physicals and drug tests today .. piece of cake.

Can't wait to start driving so I can have some fun like ScooterDawg!

We have USA Trucking coming in tomorrow and Covenant on Thurs .. since I'm looking for a dog friendly company .. if possible .. these two aren't in my list ... maybe I'll just have some fun picking on the recruiter :smt096

Steve

 

I forgot to ask the other instructors names .. I have William now and will have Gene for my truck training. He seems great and real 'level' headed. Most everyone there seems really happy and excited .. the few that aren't are probably struggling with some aspect and getting frustrated.

Is you hubby still driving? where did he go after school?

Oh, and yes!, the building is a trip! when I first saw it I was a little 'concerned'. But Sandy at Watkins Shepard said they rated very well as a school, and so did the FFE recruiter. I'm real happy with my decision 'so far' and will get the most I can out of it no matter what.

Steve

 

Still going well .. more CDL Permit prep .. finished General Knowledge and moved into Airbrakes. William, our instructor, showing amazing diligence and patience helping the struggling students ... I really like their teaching methods.

Good News!
I have two more days of 'classroom', but got told today they could use another student to fill the truck starting tomorrow. He said I could finish my classroom time later. Originally I was going to have to wait until the 26th to get in a truck, so this is awesome. Of course it's only possible because I already had my permit when I started school. I'll still have to make up the class time to get my 160 hours .. but this will save me a week in the end. Also, I think there will be just 2 students on this truck, plus instructor, instead of 3 students .. and that should mean more wheel time.

So tomorrow morning I'll be pre-trippin' and hopefully drivin'. I am beyond stoked! It's supposed to be in the 20's in the morning with a high of 37 .. w/25 mph winds .. for GA that's nippy. It'll be good prep for the 'real world' though .. plus I have a ton of mountaineering gear/clothes I'll finally get to use, long johns and all .. Fri will have a low of 14 .. yikes!

Steve

 

Haven't met Dan yet but Gene seems great. Not sure who I'll have tomorrow but I'm sure it will be fine. Most of the students ahead of me are thrilled with their progress and really having fun with it.

After reading some comments in ScooterDawgs thread, I'm adding Conway to my list, as I see they appear to be dog friendly as well.

I have a border collie/lab mix. Smart as a BC but bigger .. and almost all black. A little goofy too .. LAB'ish .. and as sweet as can be.

So what's hubby's name (first) so I can name drop when I meet Dan?

Thanks .. and stay warm!

 

Wow .. what a great couple of days.

As planned, I got to jump on a truck early and that where I've been the last 2 days. Thurs started with learning pre-trip. They usually spend most of the first day doing that but the weather was so cold (20's & 30's) that we changed things up a bit. We spent a lot of time in the cab doing 7 way air tests (brake tests). Later in the day we got to drive forward and back up a few times .. not very far but it was a start. Pretty cool for someone who's never done it. We finished by each dropping and then hooking the trailer.

Fri we started with hooking the trailer .. it was left dropped last night .. and then took turns doing the in cab pre test and air brake tests .. twice each for 4 of us. Then after that we were going to do the walk around pre trip. The day started in the low teen and it was maybe in the 20's at this point. Our instructor cam out and said 'let's drive'. No one argued .. heheh

We drove around the complex a few times each. Four right turns, shift up about 4 times in each leg. They are standard 10 speeds and we start out in 4th, emt trailers, and get up to 8th. Some did great .. pick me! .. others struggled a bit, or a lot. It was really the first day so I think everyone did ok and should be able to 'get it' with practice. It's a little easier for me as I've driven a lot vehicles (none this big) and pulled lots of trailers before so I'm really quite comfortable with the concept. Just need to learn the specifics ... and practice ...

Then after lunch we headed for the cones at the other end of the complex. We did straight backs, offsets, and parallel parking ... what a blast. I did real well there too .. our instructor Gene was great. Due to a scheduling issue with State Testing days (were Tue, moving to Fri's), we have 4 days off and will return on Wed to finish and should test on the 30th. Upon return the 4 of us will be spit into 2 teams. So Michael and I will be with Dan, Lt Dan to some, and that should be great ... plenty of drive time on a small crew.

Mon and Tue I'll be there finishing up my classroom hours with William.

Can't say enough good stuff about Katlaw's program, staff, instructors and students ... really wonderful.

See ya next week!

Steve