Wanna be truckdriver

Where is your location; we need this information so we know the hiring area you live in.
We don't need your address, just your state and nearest town.

 

I wanted to drive truck or my whole life. Went to school 30 years ago and got pregnant. Dream on hold. Finally driving and I am loving it!!! Rented our house to a friend who I knew would take care of it. Gave the pets to a family member. I've seen drivers with 5 dogs or cats on a truck too. Theres a flavor for every taste in this industry too, from local, line haul, regional, dedicated, to full on otr. Dedicated routes can be nice cuz yer home every week for a day or two. Just this morning my company sent out a message looking for two dedicated teams. Not my flavor tho, I love the otr. Get creative and take time to explore your options. And the beginning of winter is so a great time to start. We trained with a trainer last winter, and feel comfortable with the skills we learned from him. If we'd have started in summer, we would be facing winter storms with a lot more fear instead of respect and knowledge.
We got a grant from a govt program that paid for school. Look into trucking schools near you, and dont sign with a company for trucking school... you become an indentured servant if you dont like the company.

 

The Canadian drivers on here can give recommendations.

 

Go for it. You may later regret it if you don't give it a shot. Who knows, you may love it.

 

I drove OTR for a year (now driving dedicated) and before that I lived out of a backpack and traveled all around the US for several years.

The fact is that truck driving is not traveling in that you are going to shippers and receivers and most of your driving is on interstates and you spend breaks at truck stops or at the customers. So your time to explore is limited, as are the number of places you can even fit the rig into.

The idea of truck driving being a way to see the country is a bit of a myth in my opinion. There's a whole subculture of people who travel the US full time (which is what I did) and while I don't necessarily recommend it, its certainly a possibility. I like truck driving for the most part however it is first and foremost a job.

 

I would tell you what I think. However, my wife does not allow me to have opinions.

 

I would really recommend not doing it the trucking industry has really gone down hill and people will cut your legs out for a load even if they lose money on it and drivers are really treated bad if anything I would be looking at hauling propane locally or fuel delivery to farms in a bobtail you get to drive everyday but please dont give up your home for a job especially truck driving and giving up a pet is not a option for me if you have a pickup truck what about moving Rvs around I know of some people that get to sleep in the RV that they are moving

 

There are times to do touristy stuff on otr. You sometimes have to reset, which is 24 to 34 hours, depending on if you have a team mate. Walmart, laundry, shower, then a bit of time to go see a museum or whatever by uber if you want. I'm like you, we drive just to drive and over the last year, we've seen sunsets, sunrises, seasons, the differences in different parts of the country, cool sights, and awesome stuff. We are taking notes for "hometime" which we can take anywhere in the country. We earn one day off every week that we can use anywhere we want. For some of us, the romance of the road is enough. I'm even the night driver, and I can say this!