Team training fears

There's some companies that only require you to be with a trainer for 10 days. You'll have to attend cdl school first though. Schneider and also Watkins-Shepard will reimburse the tuition back to you. Not sure if TransAm will though.
Watkins-Shepard
Schneider
TransAm

 

hope chinatown's and mine replies give you an alternative solution to your concern. good luck. dont let a minor thing like that to has an effect on your choice of career

 

It's not the ###### as you put it.

When something comes up and 40 tons get loose fixing to smash 3 kids in the back of a stalled vehicle in a high walled construction with absolutely no place to put it and no room to stop with death and severe injury plural imminent within about oh... 200 feet, 70 mph and less than 4 seconds to smash. What are you gonna do huh?

That came for me one day in Akron OH in a interstate construction. Three kids trapped in a small jimmy and two parents up front. 4 cars next to me and Im loaded. Here we are. . . I was only 24. I went ahead and slammed the service brake knocked her to about 30 ish (I did not look too close as the 4 cars next to me popped clear, slammed the 18 wheeler into the left lane missing or even maybe rubbing that vehicle a touch who knows... I lost two wheel nut covers maybe it was that that tapped it. Smokey bear behind me was fixing to get his head cut off by my trailer's ICC Bumper (Decapitation bar under the doors) if he did not STOP FASTER THAN I DID.

If I stop can you?

Anyway, I wrestled the rig for about half a mile down the road and I did not know for sure if I hit them. My last visual was the police man stopped 10 feet behind the kids in that back window and the parents big eyes looking at me go by.

Yea I did what I had to do and frankly it worked out all around. What I wont say is that I shook so bad I had to have three drivers light me a smoke at the next truckstop and pour my coffee from the pitcher. Went out and checked the rig and found that the two little wheel nut covers missing from steer right wheel. Carefully examined the entire right side for any damage (New damage that is...) and did not find anything. Other truckers were teasing me Hey Child! You wanna buy that old rig? Lookit them there tires... ugh... It's their way of laughing off life and death moments.

Shake it off until the next time. But you think about that particular situation and you know now what your rig is capable of.

It was a different time then. I wont say life is cheap but people are killed everyday for nothing other than being flat stupid.

Ive said enough. I'll die a trucker and am glad to think I aint killed a human that I know of yet doing this for a living as long as I was able to get away with it.

This is not a attack post or any kind of heavy duty leaning on you. It's just that when something comes up you better have a solution and really fast. Taking time to think it through will get you or someone, or someones killed. There is no time for that.

It's a good day when you replace the tires times a few and the boss man asks questions a little bit about them. Oh it's that crappy pavement in that construction zone. The boss knows enough not to press the matter too hard. He will get ahold of his shop boss and hook into that Computer to examine any logged electronic stored data on severe braking, speed etc. That will tell it's own story.

At the end of the day, America runs on trucks. Without it we are not America and we do need a few badasses when the going gets tough. No nambypamby whiny sniffling crybabies allowed. That freight goes through, get going yer late.

 

Where is your location?
Consider tanker driving. Usually the training period on the road is relatively short. If you complete a private cdl school, then hire on with a tanker company the main focus there will be learning tanker work, not driving because you will already know how to drive.

 

Anticipation of Death is much worse than Death itself.

 

No nothing indicated any issues, he was in the military - not deployed overseas - and had no issues with the drive from Detroit to Atlanta with my manager. He didn't have any issues with driving alone back home and went to see professional right after he got there.

 

OP I felt like u did. But I made the leap anyway. Then it wasn’t that bad. My trainer was a lot like me. We cracked jokes all day and listened to funny music for ####s and giggles. I learned how to chill out, complain about the company, other drivers, etc..which was helpful.