Stevens Transport Aviary . . cont'

Oh AND!!!!
Some woman came knocking on my door this morning.

I blushed. And declined.

 

Well, you could have said "hold on, let me ask my husband if he wants company".

Sometimes the load takes preference over getting on with training. Sad but true. You will get back, tho. Be patient.

 

LOL buzzarddriver, if I had thought of it, I certainly would have said it. She was a brazen one. It wasnt even dark. And she was missing some critical articles of clothing. I wanted to offer her a pair of pants. But that would have probably hindered her in her professional pursuit.

And I'm not all that bothered by the delay. If California is in such dire need of my vats of chicken fat and boxes of ham trimmings (ew. really.), then by golly, California is gonna get my vats of chicken fat and boxes of ham trimmings.

In other news, the trainer and I were having supper at the restaurant across the street (choke and puke is VERY apt here) when our server was rudely fired while serving us. How does one tip in that situation? I am unfamiliar with the etiquette involved.

And just exactly what are ham trimmings? How many chickens sacrifice their cellulite for the chicken fat vat cause? If you were to take a load of Skittles directly into Denver, would they really explode? What would happen if you microwave a Skittle? What sort of recipes call for beef hearts and eyeballs? And why does Japan and Seoul not share them? How does a tumbleweed know when its time to roll? These are the types of things that I wonder as I watch the stripes roll by.

 

two words to all those questions, Flue...Chinese Food.

 

Whats up guys, been lurking on you million mile thread here for awhile. Just thought I would try to get your opinions. Im going to be choosing a trucking company.. One with their own school as I can not afford to pay for one myself, In the next couple months as I plan to start early next year.. I have called Swift, Stevens, Schneider, and Warner...and honestly they all pretty much seem the same.. One thing about Stevens I like is the equipment and the APUs but that is probably just clever advertising and I will probably get screwed when I get there...lol. So anyways a little location info, I like in Southern California in a place called Temecula..its off the 15 and not overly far from Fontana which I assume Stevens has a yard there... I have 3 kids, a wife, Im prior Navy so i cant imagine I will have a hard time adjusting to living out of a truck.. I am expecting to be gone a month and back for 3 days or so...atleast for the first couple years driving.. And I have been a tow truck driver for about 8 years now so I hope I will slide into driving big rigs easily enough.. Now I am just trying to decide a #### company.... All of these #### recruiters are lying ######## and a complete PITA....So is there any advise or thoughts you guys can give regarding choosing a company to come and get my stripes with...I know I will only be there a year or two then it will be off to better things.... TY in advance, I appreciate your help greatly!!!!! Drive safe!

 

Well Dodger, I'll forgive you for the team...(former Padres fan here)
Any OTR company will keep you out longer than you're planning. They're all pretty much the same...one day home for each week out, and 5-6 weeks out each time. The trick is getting home at that 5-6 week interval.
You live in about the second best place in the Stevens lanes to get home...CA. (The first being Dallas) So getting home shouldn't be much of a problem for you. When I joined, I got home as much as I wanted (lived in San Diego).
Now the bad news...
It's hard work, thankless abuse and a lot of frustrations as you learn the ropes. No matter who you drive for.
It's the industry.
Once you gain some experience and 'prove' yourself, the loads improve, the money gets better and in the end you'll end up doing one of three things: Get into some dedicated lanes that have better dispatches, or you'll leave and go to another company or you'll quit the business altogether.
Likely you'll go to another company...that's the odds.
And that's why I pick Stevens over the other companies you mentioned.
They train you well so when you decide it's time to leave...one year..two years or whatever, you will have a better pick of potential companies.
Not to say you can't do well with some of the others, but you'll notice how much better you were trained AFTER you leave and go elsewhere.
Yes, Stevens has good equipment, APUs and the best worthless night and weekend support team out there (whoops!), but remember...when you start, you're at the bottom of the ladder and you will get an older truck (2-3 years) that has lost some (a lot?) of it's lustre.
So in summation, why choose Stevens?
Excellent training
Good Freight Lanes to get you home to SoCal
Good equipment
The best night and weekend crew out there to support you
But it is OTR and it's a whole different life
If I sound like a recruiter, I apologize. If you think hard you might figure out what department I work in

 

Hiya dodgerfan. Re:Stevens, you are lookin at a minimum 3 weeks no pay during CDL school, 350 per week thru training and .26 per mile once you enter grad fleet. There are pay raises during your first year. Look to be out 3-5 weeks at a time minimum. I10, I15 and I40 into LA are major routes and Stevens has a drop yard in Colton so home time will be less complicated than it is with some.
Stevens can be a PITA if you expect a lot, but once you understand their brand of logic, is pretty easy to work with and around.
As a tow truck driver, and former Navy, you probably won't have any issues there lol.
Good luck and dont be a stranger! But if you must be a stranger, dont be any stranger than most

 

Well that was fast.. Thanks for the responses guys I appreciate it. And yeah I have done enough research over the years that I am aware of the hell I am about to put myself through...in reply to our Padres fan up there I offer my condolences for the pain you have suffered all these years.. lol. Also being as you will be the first dispatcher I have ever had the pleasure of speaking to.. Do you offer any tips to a future driver from your perspective? i.e. how to be more then a truck number.. how not to get screwed over.. and how not to end up with one of these impossible DM specials I hear about so frequently?? Having been a tow truck driver for so long I am more then aware as to how the relationship you have between dispatchers and drivers can affect your bottom line.. People say dispatchers dont do the planning....but...Im pretty sure you guys have a little pull lol.. and Flue i appreciate your response also.. Out of curiosity how long does it take to start getting decent pay checks? I can accidentally make 500 a week here..so how long did it take you to start seeing 6-7-800 a week and more with Stevens? I know the training fleet is not the place to make money.. And im more then willing to go a few months not making much.. but eventually I will have to pay a bill or two. lol Again I appreciate the help..I still have time before I decide so I am sure you guys will get to know me pretty well. lol....GO DODGERS!!!!!!

 

I just recently chose Stevens as my first company. A good majority of people on this forum have at least "decent" reviews for Stevens as a starter company. I can truly say this forum is filled with great information for someone new to trucking. Learn everything you can before attending. Read about trip planning, taxes, per diem, double clutching, floating, good stations to stop at (TA, Petro, Pilot, Love's, etc.) and things like that. Make sure you are prepared for anything cause the headaches I have read about on this forum I am trying to avoid if at all possible. I know some you can't avoid, but I will try my best to be knowledgeable and patient. Hope this helps. Hope to see you at Stevens in the future.

 

So.Delivered of dadgum chicken and pig parts this morning. WNWD has a VERY twisted sense of humor.
Normally I would have piddled with joy at the Salinas to Connecticut load we got. 3K miles? YES!
Not home? Crap.
It got taken away and a load to Dallas has been provided. YES!
Except.... half the miles. Way to give a girl what she wants....show her what she coulda had first. The first tasty beverage I have will toast you guys!