Where to go and what to do???

I agree with jon again. Certainly I am a novice by every definition of the word. However, I experienced Wyoming this winter, with the gates down. Sobering, quick fast and in a hurry! My backside turned to chocolate quickly. Learned something though.

Judgement is CRITICAL in this job. I'm older so maybe more cautious, but good judgement will keep you in the game.

 

I forgot a good one. An empty trailer in Wyoming with 70 MPH crosswinds. As I gained skills this is the one that I never gained enough skill to tackle. I saw the ones who did on their side the next day as I drove by.

I spent three years running the Northwest. IMHO, you aren't seasoned until you spend a winter running out there.

 

Time is the only thing that makes a Pro-Driver.
Out there every second equals a different situation and things can go very wrong in the blink of an eye.
That said, it is a great way to earn a living if being Home is not important.
Take time to talk to other Drivers. Take it with a grain of salt. Remember the difference between Cowboy boots and Trucker boots is that on Cowboy boots the BS is on the outside.
Remember to use time off wisely, visit landmarks, tour museums, even the local Harley Shop is a good place to waste a weekend layover.
Did I miss something in Math class?
3 weeks of school + 3 x 2 week (6) training sessions = 8 weeks of training?
3+6=9 when counted on my fingers

 

Big John

I have no problem at all with your answer at all. This is what I asked for. I would never think that just because I went to a good school that I am good all the way around at all. It will be a learning thing for a long time.

I would like to hear more on what you mean by what you mean about judgment too.

I know that it is not the same, but I have drove in some of the nastiest weather snow wise over the years with when I was an avide snowmobilier. More then once I have come down Interstate 81 in upstate NY in over a foot os snow in the dark and all you could see was the road markers on the side of the highway. This was just with a PU in 4 wheel drive and a 10 x 101 enclosed trailer. Again not that same, but does call for good judgment to make it home safely.

thank you

 

. I forgot to put "about" a few places. I was waiting for someone to jump on that LOL

 

Thanks HD Renegade. I misinterpreted your thoughts. Imagine that, I thought I knew what you were thinking - shame on me! I apologize.

You are one up on many. I really feel for those that have spent all their time in the Southern US and have to tackle winter driving for the first time in a truck. No disrespect to any drivers, but go to Texas immediately following a snow accumulation around Dallas or further south. The biggest challenge, if you have winter driving experience, is missing the vehicles crashing all around you.

I believe I have avoided many accidents on both dry and slick pavement, in different vehicle types, just because when I was young we would go slide around in parking lots in bad weather. You learn vehicle control, steering into skids and the price for over-correction quickly. You learn to use small steering inputs to get big results. You learn that you never crash the first direction you slide; it’s the second direction after over correcting. With this information I have developed less correction and a slight turn back the other way to stop the usual results.

Honestly you have really nailed me on trying to define good judgment. I Googled it and there are a number of good definitions on the first page of the search. I guess I would say, to me, it is the ability to make sound decisions under pressure that result in a successful outcome to a bad situation. Successful doesn’t always mean unscathed. Sometimes successful can mean nobody lost their life. It all depends on the severity of the situation. I have found myself on a few occasions not exercising sound judgment. By the grace of God I have never been in an accident that killed or seriously injured anyone. I have never been in an accident in a commercial vehicle that involved anyone else. And while coming close, I have never been in any kind of aviation accident.

One of the listing in the search suggests what I hinted at earlier. It comes from experience and often from bad judgment learning experiences. I have a habit of playing what if scenarios in my mind. I believe this gives you an advantage in a high-pressure situation. I believe the person who spends more time thinking probably has an advantage.

I am a Commercial Pilot too. Many things are similar to trucking. However, a mistake can be much more serious in aviation. As such, several of the habits taught are different. So much could be gained by applying some of the lessons from aviation to trucking. The two biggest things that would be beneficial are “Situational Awareness” and “Stay at least two steps ahead of the airplane”. I believe that all successful veteran drivers develop some form of these habits.

In trucking this would mean you know that 1984 Camaro with the cute girl has been with you for the last 100 miles and you know that right now her right door is even with your front trailer axel. You know this not because you just looked in your mirror but because you have constantly kept up with the situation. You also know there are no vehicles behind you. What this means is in 2 miles when that parked car on the shoulder pulls out in front of you, when you are 300’ from it, you know your only option is jam on the brakes and use the shoulder or ditch as a backup plan. So you go for the brakes while verifying the facts you already know. What this does is give you that extra second you need to slow down and avoid an accident.

A driver not aware might think about the brakes, then swerve slightly left until he saw the car in his mirror then try to stop with not enough time left to do it. In this situation he has to decide between rear-ending the car now doing 35 mph or running the car off the road, which hasn’t seen the problem, and is now beside his fifth wheel. He probably doesn’t have time to consider the shoulder or ditch. Clueless people in a truck are just marking time until the big one.

In aviation there are many good sayings and they all apply in varying degrees to trucking.

1) There are old pilots and there are bold pilots but there are no old bold pilots.
2) Remember the pilot is always the first one to the accident scene.
3) No situation for which you have a thought out, planned response is an emergency.

Number three is my favorite. While not exactly true, it is true in spirit. In aviation we have written procedures for dealing with almost every emergency situation. This has saved many lives. It has also driven me to apply this reasoning to most aspects of my life. I urge anyone who drives for a living to think what you will do in different situations and be aware of what is going on around you at all times. This way when you are under pressure with a split second to make a decision it will be a planned response not a knee-jerk reaction.

So I guess I have to admit sound or good judgment comes from the wisdom one gains through experience. Both the good and bad decisions we make lead us to develop a more sound judgment. Good judgment can only be evaluated and proven after the fact by considering all the options and comparing them to the choices made under pressure. Good common sense and planned responses beforehand are strong contributing factors to good judgment.

Wow, you have certainly made me think through something that I took for granted and thought I understood.

 

Good Post BigJohn

 

Here is how I use my mirrors vrs the look at them every 3 to 5 seconds.

With little or lite traffic on the highway I tend to just use the left hand drivers mirror to check the trailer and the stripes on the road.

If someone is coming up behind me, or if I am exiting, I use left and right mirror to keep an eye on them, and look for shadows if I can if they are tucked behind me.

Heavy traffic and if people are in the hammer lane, I use all 6 mirrors. Left/right, left/right blind spot mirrors, and both front fender mirrors.

A lot of how I look at the safety behind the wheel comes from riding motorcycles for 30 years. Riding my HD, I treat everyone on the road like they are trying to kill me, so I tend to know what is going on all around me. I see that car on the corner in front of me. I see the kids playing with a ball in a yard.

On the highway, I see the idot speeding and coming up from behind. I also see the break lights in both lanes in front of me at the top of the hill.

I have very limitied miles behind the wheel of a tractor on the road as you folks do, but I feel that I have a good safe start at trying to do what I can to be safe out there.

Also as BigJohn said too, I have thought about "what if" situations out there and what would I do too.

We all have to think about what we are doing out there on the road.

One last thing, BigJohn I was not trying to catch you off guard at all either. Good Post !!!

 

Thank you! I can tell from your posts that you are an experienced driver and your situational awareness is exceptional. I'll bet you will make an excellent new driver and a fine veteran driver one day. I still hope to reach that veteran status before I'm too old to cut the mustard.

I know you didn't mean to catch me off guard. I was just floored by the fact that I was preaching about something that I couldn't even define or explain without much soul-searching. I appreciate being forced to think about what I say or do.

One thing that I want to share with everyone. In 1982 I moved to Montana for a few years. While studying to take the written and trade my license I read something profound in their Driver's Guide. I had never seen it before and haven't seen it since. They said to make eye contact or watch the eyes of other drivers to determine what they were going to do. This was one of the best things I ever learned. When you try to look into the eyes of a driver about to pull out and he isn't looking at you and is rolling onto the roadway you know he probably hasn't seen you. While practicing this I have become very good at predicting the actions of the traffic around me.