Whats it like being a trucker?

[JNB]

Sorry to bump this, but I'm thinking of becoming a trucker. I applied to MTC and I talked to a guy on the phone, and he said I'd have to fly out to St. Louis to attend.

Even so, I'm seriously considering this. I applied to MTC because of the company sponsorship, i.e. they'll pay for most, if not all of my tuition as long as I stay with them for a year or so. Does anyone have any first-hand experience, pointers, things I should know?

PM LumbermanSVO. He's our resident long-hauler.

 

[LumbermanSVO]

There are several trucking forums, read everything you can on them. Ignore the general negative attitude most drivers seem to have, most of the drivers who aren't grumpy tend not to spend much time in the truck stops/forums. This career really is what you make of it. I personally love what I do and doubt I could ever go back to a 9-5 type job. I could go back to being a company drier if I needed, but it would be hard.

Learn everything you can from your instructors, ask questions if you aren't sure about things. You will impress an instructor a lot faster by wanting to learn instead of trying to show how much you already know. If you go out on the road with a trainer just bring the bare essentials, no hard sided luggage. There isn't much room on a truck for one person, two is a tight squeeze.

Never forget what you are driving. Take your time with things, think before you do anything questionable. You've driven around trucks since you've been driving, but I guarantee you've never noticed them like you will after your first couple days of school. That first week of school will change how you drive a car for the rest of your life, for the better.

Click the link in my sig, It starts at day one of my OTR career(orientation) and goes up to a couple months ago when I quit writing. I'm not the greatest writer but it should give you an idea of what to expect. your first year.

Also, Watkins Shepard(Missoula, MT) is a fantastic company for new drivers. They just do the west but they treat their drivers great and have a very good school.

If you have any questions feel free to ask either here or by PM.

 

[zephead]

Thanks for the pointers! I've also been thinking about going with CR England because they have a training facility only 20 miles from home as opposed to ~2,000 with MTC. What have you heard about CR England? The thing with them is that they won't sponsor your schooling, but they do have a financing option where they take money out of your paycheck every week for tuition after you start working. Is that a good idea?

 

[LumbermanSVO]

When it comes to going through a company school vs. a private then having your tuition reimbursed, I'd go private every time, with the one exception mentioned above, Watkins Shepard.

The biggest problem with the company schools is that if you don't stay on with them for your first year you then owe them the whole amount of the school, typically $3-4k, even if you stayed on for 360 days. Read the fine print VERY carefully and make sure you understand the contract completely before signing. Another reason I mention Watkins is because they don't do this. The help repay the cost of school(even their own school) and if you quit before it is paid for you just owe the remainder of the balance, not the whole amount.

The other problem with company schools is that they just teach you about driving for them, private school are more inclined to teach you how to survive in the industry as a whole and not just one company. If you have been laid off look to see if the state has any re-training programs, the private schools use these a lot and can point you in the right direction. Washington State paid for my private school($4k) through one of these programs because I had been laid off due to NAFTA.

Pre-hires don't mean anything. If you meet the minimum requirements any company will give you a pre-hire status. When you get to orientation you will have to re-submit the application all over again. All you references and time off MUST check out(5 year history for the fed rules) or you will be sent home and they will NOT pay for the ride back home. This is standard practice in the industry, very few companies will do all the legwork to make sure you are hire-able before you get on the bus for orientation. It is a good idea for you to go ahead and call to make sure all your references check out before getting on the bus.

Pull a 5-year copy of your driving record too and keep it on file. Ask for the complete record for employment, it will have the most info on it.

I personally haven't worked at CR and don't know anybody who has. A good place to check for company specific info is The Truckers Report. There is a TON of info there for most major companies, most is first hand experiences. Again, I'd look into Watkins Shepard while you are digging around on that site.

FYI, I am NOT affiliated with Watkins in any way. I haven't worked for them, I haven't applied or anything. I have talked to a LOT of their drivers and they all love the company and say the training was fantastic and they felt fully prepared to go out on the road by themselves at the end of the training.

I'll have more later, got a deliver to make...