Class A Truck Driving Questions

[DOC]

Are the schools a rip off? And if not which ones would you suggest?
I'm looking to get a CDL and I was going to study for one while on unemployment. But my former employer is a cheap jerk and managed to screw me out of it. So now I can't wait for a 10 week schooling.
Any ideas of how I can get into Class A trucking easily?
Thanks for your time.
DOC.

[DFBrews]

Usually big companies offer training that will get your cdl. I got mine with a permit and than practiced driving at work. Got lucky with the fact that I work for a semi dealership so there was no shortage of driving chances

[DOC]

They are talking about OTR for the first year after 6 months training with no pay. My question is, if over the road as boring as it sounds?

[DFBrews]

They are talking about OTR for the first year after 6 months training with no pay. My question is, if over the road as boring as it sounds?
Yes! Think about it 600 miles plus a day back and forth through the suck that's the bread basket of the us. Living in a tiny sleeper Home every month for a couple days if you are lucky. If the truck breaks down you could be stuck in bfe until it is fixed 2 weeks at least for something major. Not trying to discourage but trucking is not easy the saying in our shop is there is alot of sadness in trucking.


Look into doing around town stuff. Hauling fuel glass mixer driver stuff like that. It is hourly instead of by the mile

[JohnTRourke]

try united states truck driving school in wheat ridge (i have no idea how close that is to chuck norris training camp). you need 160 hours (IIRC) which is basically 3.5 weeks to get it (per law). I paid cash for mine so it wasn't as expensive, but plenty of other people had straight up gigs with truck companies to drive for that your training was paid for (if you stayed with them driving, only fair). http://www.ustruck.com/

Truck drivers work 60 hour weeks for 40 hours of pay, just realize that.

You need to not be a felon, have a clean MVR, pass a drug and alcohol test and a physical, but they'll tell you this BEFORE you start.

[DOC]

Chuck Norris training camp is West Denverish. Its the only place I can shoot a gang member and pay a $18 fine and it can be mailed in.
I was checking out AIT school and its 10k and 18 weeks training. 10 in the classroom and 8 on the road. It seems like a long time. However, I think I would know trucking inside and out like an AR.
ETA: I wouldn't mind getting a job with the place I trained with. Werner is going to pre-hire me but pay .26 a mile for a year. However, only kick it up .01 after a year. It doesn't seem like its worth the trouble to them to keep me. IDK I just want to hear some feedback.

[trlcavscout]

I am the only male in my family that doesnt drive. My Dad has owned 2 trucking companies over the years, my brother, step dad, uncle, great uncle all drive, LB white out of Kansas is my cousins. I had my CDL but didnt care for it. Most of the over the rode drivers like it, its what you make of the job. Their are lots of options as a driver if its a career choice. You used to be able to go take the test and get hired somewhere but most companies wont hire you without experience any more. Most schools are a joke. I second going through an emloyers training program, do a couple years then get a good paying local job where your home everynight. Some employers have good paid training available, but you will be team driving with some stinky fat ass hole for a year or what ever.

Get in where you can, then after a couple years buy a truck and lease to the highest paying bidder hauling meat to TX and produce back every week, good money.

[trlcavscout]

Chuck Norris training camp is West Denverish. Its the only place I can shoot a gang member and pay a $18 fine and it can be mailed in.
I was checking out AIT school and its 10k and 18 weeks training. 10 in the classroom and 8 on the road. It seems like a long time. However, I think I would know trucking inside and out like an AR.
ETA: I wouldn't mind getting a job with the place I trained with. Werner is going to pre-hire me but pay .26 a mile for a year. However, only kick it up .01 after a year. It doesn't seem like its worth the trouble to them to keep me. IDK I just want to hear some feedback.

Take their shit for a year then bail. It will get you the CDL, experience and knowledge of the regions you do and dont like. My step dad lives in WY and doesnt like to go east of MO, my dad will not go west of UT after 30+ years of putting up with CA BS. Different regions generally pay different and have different ups and downs if your a company driver, and big differences in taxes etc as an owner.

[Troublco]

Tricavscout has good advice. If Werner will hire and train you, then you can get some experience and then move elsewhere and you won't have to pay for the training. I drove for a little while (almost all OTR) and it's the only time I was away from home more than I am now. However, once you have some experience you can look for local gigs. I liked the driving part, but I hated dealing with the various state DOT's.

My F-I-L and B-I-L are/were both drivers, both owned their own companies at one time. The F-I-L is now retired and the B-I-L sold and went to work for Safeway, driving. But he stays in-state.

[husky390]

you need 160 hours (IIRC) which is basically 3.5 weeks to get it (per law).

Is that new? Damn, I shoulda kept mine even though I wasn't using it.
I drove locally and it was okay. Traffic is a flat out bitch in a big rig and this was in Phoenix which IMHO is a helluva lot easier to get around in than Denver. I made a couple OTR trips to Texas a few to California, plus I delivered some fire trucks from South Dakota to Az.
OTR was not as cool as I thought it would be. Scale house operators are flat out asshole's, especially in Raton N.M., Cops can be a PIA, and I freaking HATE truck stops now. Just the smell of them makes me want to vomit and now, even when on vacation I try to avoid them.
Also, there's nothing worse than driving on I-10 east of El Paso with no rest stop in sight and having to piss so damn bad your eye's are going to explode out of your head! Breakdown's are a consideration too like others have mentioned. Our step deck trailers ate tires like no other. I blew one out in El Paso and was stuck at a truck stop for 4 hours waiting for a new one. That cuts into your day.
Anyway's, I started out with a small towing company and we worked our way up into buying flatbed rollbacks and step deck dove tail rigs. We hauled construction equipment for the local rental companies. It's up to you, but you may want to look at towing companies and construction rental companies. It's possible you could work your way up through them and get a CDL and the best part is you're local.

Good luck to you.

[Great-Kazoo]

If you're a vet check out coloradowrokforce. backslash whatever. The VA reps for work force e-m me daily if not 2x a day with jobs, training etc. As a vet (if you are one) there are numerous CDL courses you can take for next to nothing. If not a vet and not signed up with the COWF do it.

[JohnTRourke]

I liked the driving part, but I hated dealing with the various state DOT's.

.

this!!!!!!!!!!!!!
me too
fucking diesel cops are just frustrating as hell.
Ask 3 different diesel cops the same question and get 3 different answers.

[JohnTRourke]

Is that new? Damn, I shoulda kept mine even though I wasn't using it. .

no, that's just for the school.
if you can pass the test and the drive test, you just pay for the drive test and get it.
but actual school has to be at least 160 hours (It's right there at 150/160 hours)

[DFBrews]

And do not lease a truck from stevens swift transam and the like right out of school. 3000 a week just to drive cuts it real close

[DSB OUTDOORS]

I took mine through a 3rd party tester if you can find someone to hook you up with a truck. They came out to me. But that was 20 years ago. [blaster] [Coffee]

[Metalhed]

DFBrew beat me to it, dont Lease.

Driving has its moments. people in cars suck.

[husky390]

this!!!!!!!!!!!!!
me too
fucking diesel cops are just frustrating as hell.
Ask 3 different diesel cops the same question and get 3 different answers.

Aint that the truth. I do miss the driving part. I really enjoyed hauling equipment up and down grades. It was a lot of fun.

[husky390]

Driving has its moments. people in cars suck.

Unless they're hot and wearing a mini skirt. :) Summertime in Phoenix had its perks.

[RJLou]

Have you checked with workforce in your county? I don't know if they have an adult program but I got my cdl schooling paid for by the youth to work program when I was 20. They may have some kind of adult re-education / re-schooling program. Boulder county workforce (or you, the tax-payer) paid for my GED + $50 to get it, paid for 100% of the schooling and $50/week in gas vouchers to get me back and forth to school. I could have chose any school on their list up to 2years. I chose Sage technical, it was the only truck driving option.

[Bailey Guns]

I got my CDL a little over 2 years ago through the US Truck Driving School in Wheat Ridge, mostly for something to do. It took less than a month and they were pretty thorough. I did negotiate about a 30% discount for paying cash. Also, like others have said, try signing up for the Colorado Work Force thing. At least one guy in the class did that and they paid most, if not all, of his tuition. The schools are a pretty good route because they give you a lot of theory you may not otherwise have and recruiters from various companies will come and pass out info and have a Q & A session. Plus you take the test, medical and all that through the school and it's included in the tuition cost. You just go to the DMV to pick up your license.

When I went to pick up my CDL I also (on a whim) took the Doubles/Triples, Tanker and HazMat tests. Passed them all pretty easily. I started with an OTR truck company and lasted all of a month. I HATED OTR. But, if you want a good local gig (that's where most of the good money is) you pretty much have to do OTR for at least a year. Most local companies won't hire you without at least 1 year OTR experience because they can't insure you. Most OTR trucking companies are experiencing a 100%+ turnover rate right now...the job isn't for everyone. Demand is VERY high for drivers but the pay doesn't seem to match the demand.

I got lucky and got a local driving job in Conifer driving a propane truck. Decent pay, great benefits. It's a Class B driving job but I don't care about that. It's close to home and I don't have to live out of a truck at truck stops.

If you choose to pre-hire with an OTR company, from what I heard from some of the other guys I talked to, Watkins/Shepard is a great place to start. They send you to a driver "boot camp" in MT. You learn everything you need to learn and you don't have to drive for 6 weeks in a trainer's truck. Living out of a truck is bad...living out of a truck with another guy is REALLY BAD.

[DOC]

A trash company will hire me on if I get a permit. Then let me train a while until I can get my license. The down side is its only B. I want to get my A license though.
I need to get a DOT card and permit. Any cheap places to get the medical exam done?
Thanks.

[soldier-of-the-apocalypse]

for all the truckers that might be in between jobs. My dad was in between jobs and went to pro divers to get some work and it actually worked pretty good. He worked there for about 2 months and pulled down close to 10 grand. They are a temp driver service the thing that sucks about it though is if you wanted to get a job with any of the trucking companies you temped for they have to pay like $2500 to hire you. Also its alot of postal driving so the hours are really early but if you are willing to work hard you can make money there untill you find a job. My dad just found a job and starts on monday just FYI. also DOC you might call them and see if they have any options

[DOC]

Im looking at all options right now. What is their number or website?

[soldier-of-the-apocalypse]

http://prodrivers.com/

[DOC]

Thank you. So far it doesn't look like they hire rookies. :(

[husky390]

A trash company will hire me on if I get a permit. Then let me train a while until I can get my license. The down side is its only B. I want to get my A license though.
I need to get a DOT card and permit. Any cheap places to get the medical exam done?
Thanks.

Nothing wrong with getting a B first. That's what I did. The plus side is, you'll get a CDL, and it will give you experience driving the bigger rigs. Plus, once you have a Class B, you can always look for other jobs that may help you move up into getting a Class A license. Don't forget to check with crane and rigging companies. Some of the guy's I knew in Az made bank doing that stuff as long as they were willing to work their ass off.