Training at Crete

Another lesson learned...just because other drivers have said that the receiver will work you in when you arrive early doesn't mean they will. We didn't have enough time to ask to get unloaded on Sunday so we went in early on Monday, but then we sat for four hours and got into a dock at our original appointment time.
Our next load took us up to Washington for the pickup. I'm sitting in front of the loading dock as I type this. Preplan said live load appointment on Tuesday at 11:00. The guy in the office here said it was supposed to be picked up yesterday. Ha! Makes more sense now of why we have two days to get the load over 1100 miles to Aurora, CO. We should be fine...especially if we get loaded earlier than the 11:00 we thought we had. But we are losing an hour with the change in time zones. Well, hurry up and wait and hurry up some more.
Stay safe out there, drivers!

 

Man....had a few long days. Let's see...took the load to Aurora and stayed at a little Podunk truckstop outside Denver. Picked up a load just north in Greeley. Brought that one over to Salina KS. We actually got unloaded and were leaving about 15 min before our appointment. Way to go, Schwans! That's about it. Just racking up miles and learning as much as I can about the day-to-day, company procedures, Qualcomm, etc...
Got a preplan to pickup a t-called load from our Kansas City terminal tomorrow. Got a stop with it in Springfield MO and then dropping the rest in OKC. Had enough time to make it here to KC tonight. Looking forward to free laundry and shower in the morning. For now it's bedtime.
Stay safe out there, drivers!

 

Good luck to you sir! Have any prior experience, ghost?

I am currently sitting at Tyson receiving in Chicago. It's been a few days since my last post so I wanted to let you know what's been going on. Sorry...this one got a little longer than I thought.
The last few days have been a little exhausting. My last post was when we stopped at the KC terminal for the night. Got my laundry and shower done that morning. Thank god! We hit Springfield and OKC without a hitch. By then it was time for my trainer to start routing home. They tried to give us a couple loads that didn't work for him so he turned them down. One was to California thy would have got him home a few days late. Another got him there on time but wasted a couple days because it was multiple stops only a few miles from each other for a total of about 500 miles in three days. We ended up sitting in OKC for most of the day and ended up getting another load plan in the morning. Picked up in southern OK and came up to Chicago.
Good news is that OKC is about an hour and a half from home. So my wife drove the kids down and we got to eat together at Texas Roadhouse. Spent a few hours with them before heading back to the truck. Got really lucky that worked out.
Another thing I wanted to mention is about the truck stop we stayed at last night. It was called Road Ranger. Never seen one before. They have been taken over by Pilot. So your rewards card and shower credits will work there. However, you can't use your free coffee credit. Thought that was a little amiss, but whatever. Although, prices are high for coffee in Illinois. One small place charged something like $2.20.
Anyway, this load we grabbed in OK...we were very early for the evening appointment. Decided we would try to get some sleep at a nearby truckstop. That didn't work out so well. Finally they call and we go pickup the load and head out. By the way, state roads in that area of AR suck! Stopped around 02:30 at a rest area. Only got a few hours of sleep. Thankfully we were in at the Road Ranger early afternoon. Got a shower, full shave, and about 10 hours of sleep. Feeling great today! Next I get to look forward to getting paid while I sit at a hotel for four nights.
Stay safe out there, drivers!

 

Yea...I've heard some horror stories about trainers too. Think I got really lucky. My trainer, Peter, is awesome. Really smart guy (he holds a couple of degrees including a masters in psychology - not sure why he's driving, lol), he's down-to-earth, respectful, honest, and funny. Couldn't ask for a better trainer. He keeps calm and relaxed even when I miss or grind a gear in Chicago traffic. Like you said...really wants me to learn and succeed.
I've only been out here for two weeks now out of my eight. He is scheduled for home time. By the looks of it, we will be there early tomorrow. Then we will head back out for about a week and a half before we get routed to my home. I get four days there, then head out and repeat the schedule. He'll get another round of home time about a week after my home time. Then, it's possible if I do well enough that I go back to Lincoln for the last two days of orientation after my sixth week. It doesn't happen often with guys right out of school, but Peter says I have a good chance.
Good luck out there! With some previous driving experience you should be just fine. You'll get some mountain experience...believe me. Just choose the right gear and use your jake brakes. PS...Utah is beautiful! My favorite state so far.
Stay safe out there, drivers!

 

Yes! No uniforms! I've been in t-shirt and shorts since I left my last job in May! I've always had some type of customer service or office job where I had to where a suit and tie. So this is nice!
So today is Sunday, and I'm still sitting around St Louis. I haven't done much sitting though. My favorite hobby is a good pool game so I've been to a couple of pool halls. Also hit the blackjack tables at the Argosy...it's a riverboat casino just north of here (although it is stationary). Went to tour the Gateway Arch yesterday. That was interesting. Just wish my family could've been here with me.
Today it's laundry and getting my things ready to head back out tomorrow. The first day we were here we got a preplan for the next week. We will grab a load from Hershey in this area tomorrow morning and head to NE. Then Iowa, back to Nebraska, and then to California. By then we should start routing back to Oklahoma for my home time.
Currently sitting at Denny's for breakfast and it is here!
Stay safe out there, drivers!