Swift Mentor Program

Hi there,


I am new to this site and so far, I think I have gained some super beneficial information. I do have some questions though.


I have searched the posts about swifts mentor program and was wondering if anyone has done it out of the Sumner, WA terminal. I have read the previous posts and found that there are some pretty bad stories. Not too many good ones. I am starting the orientation this coming tuesday and was hoping i can get some input on this terminal. I do have a couple month otr experience and I read somewhere that swift does a drive test and that will decide how long training is, anywhere from 1-6 weeks?


I guess i am nervous because I usually want to know everything about a person before I commit to 6 weeks in a confined space. I am a neat freak and can't stomach smelly people or trucks. It literally makes me sick.

any advice,



Thanks guys

 

I hope you get Lucky ! you may be in for a long 6 weeks most mentors I have ever met over the years were not necessarily the neatest people and you wont have but about 10 minutes to get to know them. good luck and remember its not that long !

 

Not really 6 weeks anymore.......240hours now.....


I had a pretty good experience with my Mentor.This was about four years ago,I still talk to him every now and then.
I won't say there are a ton of good mentors, but they do have some better ones.
Most of the people who have had a good experience are not going to come here to post about it.

 

Best idea is to go ahead and figure you'll be with some nasty person and have some personality clashes. If it gets too bad you can always get off the truck at a terminal. If the mentor is doing something unsafe or really illegal like falsifying your logs report them. I had 6 mentors with swift and only 1 lady was really good. As a matter of fact we are still friends even though she no longer drives for swift as she got a better job with another company.

 

I believe that its a certain amount of hours you must complete with a trainer. I think it is the same for all newbies. I don't believe you get hours assigned as to how well you do on your driving test. This is mainly an insurance thing. Usually the insurance companies are the ones that dictate all these crazy rules and regs that they want the companies have their drivers do.

If you don't want to go with a trainer try Watkins Shepard. There are a few guys on this website that drive for them and really like it there. Just make sure your abilities are up to par if you aren't going to be going with a trainer.

Otherwise stick with Swift and enjoy your time with your trainer. It really isn't that bad and the time should go by rather quickly. During orientation you will see lots of drivers coming and going from the terminal. Take the time to hang out and talk to some of them. You may meet a trainer that you feel you will get along good with and maybe you can request them.

If for any reason if you don't get along with your trainer or feel as if they aren't training you properly the speak up. Call safety or your dispatcher and request another trainer. Be professional about it though. If your trainer is making you so something that is illegal or that you feel is unsafe then call safety immediately! Remember that your license is your bread and butter and you want to protect it as best you can. Also if you feel your trainer is just using you for a team driver then speak up. If you are running more than 4500-5000 miles during training then that is too much. That would be team driving not training.

Wish you the best man! Try not to be nervous, have a blast and pretend it is a vacation with a stranger instead of job training!

 

Check out the Swift section as there are a few mentors who post regularly in the "Goodnight" thread.
http://www.thetruckersreport.com/truckingindustryforum/swift/
Good luck,
Frank

 

Hey guys.....thanks for your input..this community is really helpful. I am gonna go in and just get it.done with. Only 240 hours. I will keep u guys posted.

 

if your going to orientation at the sumner terminal you will likely be put with a heavy haul mentor, and you will get some good experience out of that and a better chance of getting on the costco fleet if you are wanting a dedicated account to stay close to home...

 

The Costco.fleet? I am guessing that's a huge plus. Usually anything Costco is a plus. What do u mean heavy ha

 

the costco warehouse is next door to the sumner terminal... they have 4 axle tractors, 4 axle dry vans 3 axle reefers and rocky mountain doubles...

that they haul from the ware house to the stores... huge account for them..

they call it heavy haul... 105,500 lbs gross