Wannabe to Watkins Shepard Driver

Week 3, Day 4

More driving through the "course" as they call it. What it consists of is a route that takes you down an interstate, through two lane 35 mph roads, 4 lane 50 mph roads, across RR tracks, 90 degree downtown turns, and lots of stop lights both up hill and down hill (not at the same time. It's 11 miles long and throws a lot of situations at you. They have land marks throughout the course that you have to make sure you are in a certain gear at that point. All in all it's a lot of fun. Shifting is getting much better it just takes practice. My brain has finally taken over the double clutch and it's becoming automatic.

Had recruiters from U.S. express and CT Transportation come in and talk to us at lunch time. If you were interested in team driving U.S. Xpress might be one to look at, they have a 5K sign on, .48 mile and a guarantee that you will never be home. CT is a small company (350 tractors) out of Savannah GA that pulls flat beds in the South East, home every weekend, just bought 100 new Macks. A couple of guys in my class seemed very interested, probably the best presentation I've seen.

I have all my driving hours for the week so I get Friday off. Kind of glad but really wish I could drive some more. Well it will give me a chance to work on the Jeepster.

 

4th and Final Week, Day 1

Final week! Hard to believe I'll be testing out on Friday, time has flown by very quickly. The driving schedule is changed up this week to accommodate night driving. Monday through Wednesday 4:00 pm to 12:30 am. I did my "night drive" last night. We had three students in the truck, the other two drove during daylight and I took over at dusk. No big deal, you just need to be familiar with the shift pattern because you can't use the decal on the dash in the dark.

I received a pre-hire letter from TMC today. I don't want to work for them but the school makes you send in three applications to driver mills. This way they can boast that every student gets a job offer. They don't care if its a good offer or meets any of your goals they just want the stat. Not once has the school tried to explain what to look for in a company, difference in flat bed vs tanker vs van. Regional vs OTR or any other aspect of the trucking industry. I don't know if this is really their job and I didn't expect them to find me a job, just surprised by their attitude of " all the companies are about same". I guess what could be learned from this is do your research before you start school. Once you find the company that you would like to work for talk to them and make sure the school you will be attending is approved by that company. You can even get a pre-hire letter before you start school. Remember no one has your best interests in mind more so than you do, be proactive in your job search.

 

The sign on bonus is for teams and .48 / mile is split between the team. Thats how it works for teams. They might run 5K to 6K a week so it's still good money but who in the world would you be able to spend that much time with? And sleeping in a moving truck? I think it would be pretty much like being cell mates (not that I have any experience with that) with a view. No thanks

Yes, I'm going to Start with Watkins and Shepard on 05/02/11 in Conover, NC. Sounds to me like a great company to start with or maybe even stay with for a few years. We'll see....

I did the WIA thing also. Went pretty smoothly for the most part. Only took about a month to get everything in place. They pay for everything, books, medical, learners permit, CDL licensing fee and even mileage from your house to the school every day you attend class.

 

Aftershock, great post.

"Outstanding advice.
If more folks realized that I think there'd be far fewer wash-outs before they even get started." A.S.

Heres what I find amazing. A guy (or gal) decide they want to become a Professional Truck Driver and sign up with a school. That's as far ahead as they think. In week one I ask my fellow classmates "who do you want to drive for" blank stair, sigh, I don't know. Trying to continue the conversation beyond this point I ask "what type of job are you looking for, local, regional or over the road" blank stair, sigh, I don't know. Going for the third strike I ask "well I'm sure you've decided between van, tanker or flatbed haven't you" blank stair, sigh, what's for lunch.

Fast forward to a couple of days before graduation (that's where I'm at now) Who you going to drive for? "well I guess ----- or ----- or ---- just waiting for one of them to call me back. Ask them any details about companies and you get the standard response, blank stair, sigh, attempt to change conversation.

Now admittedly I'm greener than a grasshopper and my sampling pool is limited to one small school here in NC. But come on guys, WTF over, you want to be a professional. Take charge of your carrier, this isn't the NFL draft where you just go with whoever picks you. Do some research, make some calls shake some hands. Or suffer the consequences of a driver mill that prays on guys like you. Most likely you'll be looking for that next "new carrier" in less than 90 days.

OK, I'll jump down off my stump now. Just needed to vent a bit, thanks for listening. SW

 

Week 4 day 2

Did the night drive again last night 4:00 pm to 12:30 am. Running the "course" mainly. Good exercise as it has a mixture of Interstate, country and city driving. Doing pretty well except for the occasional brain fart. Sometimes I forget to double clutch and I'm quickly reminded by the growling transmission.
I have one more night drive tonight and then a day off, and test on Friday at 10:00 am. Should be interesting.

 

Stevo, that's a great connection, use it. Build your network. The more "real" drivers you can talk to the better informed you will be. Don't take a bunch advice from some guys typing away in his underwear sitting on the couch. ah.. wait, I think I just described myself. Any how, good connection work it! Good luck.