Where is a decent place to start?

I am not new to the trucking scene, but I am new to OTR trucking. I have been working locally INTRA-STATE for 7 months now hauling cow hides from Amarillo area to Dallas rail yards in Intermodal containers. Unfortunately this doesnt pay squat, and it is becoming an O/OP scene. I turn 21 January 1st and am looking intently at FFE, werner, wse, prime, central ref, and swift as my possible choices. Running with some of FFE's, and Prime's employees up and down 287 has been disheartening, as they are all VERY negative about the company, miles, pay, etc. Now that I have heard the negative (ALOT) I was hoping to hear the honest side of it. I dont mind running, a 4k mile week is typical for me (and yes I am in a 64 mph Pro Star), home time isnt really an issue either, the wifes got us covered on benefits, so really i am just looking for a good place to get some much needed OTR experience, as lots of local BETTER jobs wont accept my INTRA-STATE driving experience as "REAL DRIVING EXPERIENCE", they all want AT LEAST 3 months OTR. So pretty much what I am asking is, 1. Are the big ones as bad as their road reputation, 2. can you get more than 3k/wk being a company driver, 3. Do you really not see home until you have been out 6-8 weeks??, 4. should I really expect to sit 4-5 days at a warehouse EVERY time I get dispatched? That's all I got now, if you could be of any assistance in answering this please do, as my current company is cutting out company trucks on the 3rd of January.

 

Take a look at these companies:

Melton Truck Lines
Miller Transporters

A New Melton ad says they recognize & accept local/intrastate experience. Their trucks are top of the line with APU's. If I can find the ad again, I will post it for you. Meanwhile, if you like their website, apply online. Best wishes.

As far as sitting/waiting, I didn't run into that with flatbed, except at union steel mills in the Northeast, and never ran into it with tankers. Saw it a lot with dry van & 2 or 3 times a month with reefer, but fortunately, the reefer companies I worked for paid good detention pay. Navajo hires at 21, but don't know about your hometime with them. Bekins also hires at 21; I've never been a bedbugger, just know they hammer down when they're rolling.

 

Here's a link to Meltons new ad.

Melton Truck Lines hiring all over......

 

All the big OTR companies suck. Some will offer you a little bit more hometime than the dreadful 1 day home for every 7 on the road (Schneider and Roehl) but that will come at the expense of a laughable paycheck. They all govern their trucks at 65 or under (except USX), they all start at around 30 cpm or under (except the big flatbed carriers, but they won't hire you or me until we turn 23). There are a few decent places to start at but they have limited hiring areas, Tyson Foods comes to mind, they start at 36 cpm and you get a 70 mph with APUs, but they don't hire out of Texas though.

I don't know if BTC would hire in your area, heard they are pretty decent and they do hire students, they pay percentage.

Anyway, your questions:

1. Yes they are as bad as their reputation, some are worse.
2. Yes, you can get 3000 miles on some weeks, I got 4000 once. But it's not a regular thing. All in all you usually average 10000 miles a month, roughly 2500 a week.
3. You get 1 day off for every 7 on the road. I usually stayed out for 3 weeks and went home for 3-4 days.
4. Longest I ever sat at a warehouse was less than 24 hours. The sitting BS came when I delivered on a friday night and didnt get a load until monday morning, way to spend a goddamm weekend, for free by the way...

I was in your situation two years ago and I chose Con-Way because their training did not pay minimum wage (it paid 26 cpm, which today sounds like a joke, but that's higher than the starting pay at many big OTR companies) and their training didn't last for months (it's only 10000 miles) and because they didn't force teaming or leasing or any other shady practice. Also their equipment is pretty decent. Their pay scale sucks just like their hometime policy, but it's an ok place to start. Just gtfo of there once you pay your dues.

 

You may want to give Tyson Foods, out of Springdale Arkansas, a call at 1-800-933-6442.

 

I checked out Tyson online, saw first off that the minimum age was 23, and that they are one of the 7 days out for 1 day home companies. That doesnt bother me, but some older "VETERAN" drivers I work with said to stay away from those kinds of companies as I will rarely see home.

 

For a starter outfit I'd go with Swift or Schnieder. Whatever you do don't go to CR England.

 

You will rarely see home because taking time off cuts into your paycheck. You won't be able to afford 3 and 4 days off. Unless of course you are rich like that and if that was so. You wouldn't be complaining about the gig you already have. Seems to me you want to be close to home so stay at your current gig. You are probably making more then you would be if you went out with a trainer for 6 weeks. 300 or 400 a week before taxes are taken out. The cost of living out on the road is from 50 to 100 dollars a week. Until you can get a fridge or if you can live on crackers and cheese.

Most of those starter companies don't go over 65mph and they have E Logs so no creative writing. Good luck with seeing over 3,000 miles. You are just meat in the seat. I'd look for companies who run across 40 a lot. You probably will be able to get through the house for a 10 hour break or a 34. Being 21 you are limited in your selection. So flip a coin if you do want to run out here and try to finish a year. Then go with one of the bottom feeding companies out of Amarillo. Happy trails

 

You don't know what you're talking about.

 

there are many horror stories about each of the larger companies, and im sure many of them are valid. when i worked for 2 of them...usa truck and conway truckload, i had issues. days where they couldnt tick me off more it seemed. but overall, the miles were always there for me. 3000 might be a bit high to expect as an average, but my average with each was well over 2800. some weeks were crappy, but a crappy week was 25-2600 miles. some weeks were great at 4000 or a tad over. average with each i think was around 2850-2900.

i was always on time. was late once for conway (by 5 minutes...and it was my fault) and late 3 times with usa truck (i was a noob, but again my fault). was late once each more that were not my fault, due to weather. sat for 5 days (usa truck) due to interstate being closed (avalanche danger) and sat for 1 day due to horrible ice storm with conway.

but heres the thing... if you are looking for experience, and dont plan to stay with them for any serious length of time...theyre all about the same. id look for the one thats gonna pay you the most cpm...and if its not england or crst (team driving is for the birds unless you know your codriver...and england has just WAY too much bad stories) and stick it out for 6 months to a year.

as far as miles with these guys go...

ALWAYS be on time for pickups and deliveries.
always be professional with your fleet manager. (he/she has quite a bit of input toward your success)
if the week ends saturday at 1159pm, and its wednesday afternoon, and youre looking at a bad week for miles, let your fm know...professionally. he can sometimes turn a bad week into a semi-good week, fighting to get you a decent load. or maybe itll be next week that he'll "make up for it". if thats the case, remind him. your fm at one of these companies has a LOT of drivers to work with. but if hes worth a darn, he will try to help you succeed. ESPECIALLY if you are...always on time and always professional. dont swear at him when youre upset...wait 5 minutes, scream at the empty passenger seat, calm down, and call when you can be reasonable. dont send wise or rude messages on the qualcomm. and...DONT BE LATE. trucking is all about customer service. if you are late a few times, your fm will be much less likely to want to help you when you ask. your company will be much less likely to want to keep you happy. and eventually they will be less likely to want to keep you employed.