Starting out at 19?

i'm not sure how far away you are from Winter Gardens but i know there's a juice plant up there, and it's pretty big. you could check with them about being a "ramp driver" all you'll do is hook up to the loads of fruit the drivers bring in, hook your air lines, and raise your fifth wheel (dont have to put up landing gear) and then you're gone.. the only bad thing is that you're always top heavy cause the load is so high in the air. the WORST part and i mean by far the WORST is backing up the ramp when it first starts raining. i sat at the scale house at Alcoma in Lake Wales and watch three ramp trucks slide into each other trying to back up the ramp, but you will get alot of experience backing into tight spaces.. i give them drivers that much credit. good luck to ya.. i didn't want to wait for 21 so i joined the military...LOL, if i could go back in TIME!!!

 

theres two people at the local nuclear power plant where i work that work 7 days a week, 12 hours a day, who are guards for the reactor containment building. all they do is sit around and check in/out PPE and keys. And if something happens they'll be the first to die, so they dont have to suffer long.

 

Im sorry man but thats bs dont shoot it down just yet, im filling in a yardhorse position for 2 months and i make 15.23/hr at 50-55 hrs a week

 

Good point. There is a UPS Freight driver on this forum that started as a dock worker that just recently moved into a city driver position and I believe he's only 21.

If you're gonna drive a truck, you might as well start as young as possible. You might be able to find a keeper job at a young age which will allow you to work up the pay scale and build a decent amount of seniority before you're 30.

I started driving the day I turned 21 and found my current job at 22. Just wish I had found my current job the day I started driving but I suppose it usually doesn't work that way. It's nice to see some younger guys expressing real interest in driving. You'll hear all the negative stuff which is definitely true, but there are good jobs out there and if you can land one at a young age it can be a rewarding career.

 

howd you get in at conway so young?

speaking of i ought to renew my application at our local conway terminal. sure would love to work for them..

 

Guess I just applied - I also new a few of the city drivers there from my job previous to OTR driving. I often worked in the shipping department so I got to know all the LTL drivers that came in. CCX always took the most so I knew those guys pretty well and they put in the good word for me with the TM when I applied.