Where do I/can I go from here

Discussion in 'Questions From New Drivers' started by drdoc, Apr 7, 2010.

  1. drdoc

    drdoc Bobtail Member

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    May 13, 2009
    0
    About a year ago, I was on the verge of losing my driving job (regular 4 wheeler) when I came up with the decision to become a full fledged trucker, so I rolled the dice, took out two loans (a student one, and a personal one to cover my living expenses), and went to what I thought was one of the better Commercial driving schools in the province. Two months later I had obtained my class 1 CDL and was actively looking for an entry level driving position, which of course turned out to be a lot harder to find than I thought. Months went by with absolutely no luck in even a face to face interview until a month ago when I found a company willing to hire new drivers like me, provided I pass a driving test for them, (you can probably see where this is heading).

    I got to the interview and blew them away with my professionalism and eagerness to learn, but when I got to the road test things went downhill (excuse the pun). In the six months since I last went behind the wheel, I forgot EVERYTHING. I didn't cause an accident of course, but there were a couple of times in which I stalled the truck on an uphill slope and I was so nervous I neglected to check my mirrors more often than I should. I could still shift but in some cases the shift box sounded more like a metal grinder. Thankfully, I still remembered how to hook/unhook a trailer and that I could still back up.

    Anyways, sorry for the rambling. Im just stumped as to what I should do now, should I keep plugging away at the companies, or maybe look into retraining? Or is there another option that I haven't looked at yet that might be possible?

    P.S. Mods, if there are a million other threads like this one, feel free to delete it or refer me to a similar thread.
     
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  3. Freebird135

    Freebird135 Road Train Member

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    May 7, 2009
    In the air conditioning
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    i would look into either a short refresher course...or even cheaper, call some of the local schools and ask if they train by the hour....C1 in indianapolis does this.....its 1 on 1 training, $60 an hour they supply the truck
     
  4. GasHauler

    GasHauler Master FMCSA Interpreter

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    Oct 23, 2005
    Vegas/Jersey
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    A good company will know that you will be nervous and miss a few gears and so forth. I would expect the test to match the experience. What really counts is safety, knowledge, appearance, and how clean all your paperwork is. Sure you can't go out and run over something and expect to be hired but there should be a little slack when it comes to the road test. Just take the road test like when you got your CDL and relax. You'll make it sooner or later.
     
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