Have you considered trucking as a career?

[Droopy]

The main requirements are a good driving record; no DUI, reckless operation, or felonies; must be 21 or older; must be able to pass a drug test and a physical.

I'm not representing anybody here nor am I getting paid to do this. Trucking literally turned my life around and I think it's a profession that can help a lot of people kick start their lives if they are going nowhere.

If you can meet the above requirements, trucking is an easy profession to get into. Some companies will even foot the bill for your CDL schooling if you agree to drive for them for about a year. You're not going to get rich driving a truck, but it is steady income and the pay is not bad especially if you've been wasting away in minimum wage jobs or low paying manufacturing and retail jobs. Realistic first year earnings are $30,000-$35,000. With experience comes better wages. I have a desirable job that gets me home every day and I'm on pace to make $47,000 this year. I've been driving for about 10.5 years. However, over the road jobs are where most truckers start their careers and over the road drivers are in the highest demand. I could be making about $60,000 a year in one of those positions.

Turn-over rates in the trucking industry are high. People often have a romanticized version of what it means to be a trucker in their heads and when they get out there they find that it's not as easy as a lot of people think and a lot of recruiters would have you believe. It is a skilled trade and it requires experience and patience to do the job well. The reward for learning how to do your job well in trucking is that you will likely never be hurting for a job- the opportunities are that plentiful.

Send me a PM if you have any questions. Or you can just fire away here.

[billyskank]

1. I don't think I could eat that much fried food. ;)

I did a summer job once which had me out on the road in a van making deliveries. I don't know why, but whenever I stopped for lunch, it had to be the full english breakfast: sausages, bacon, egg, beans, fried bread. Nothing else would do.

I couldn't live on that though. :)

[Droopy]

2. Haha

Yeah it's hard to eat right when out on the road and I picked up a lot of bad habbits because of it. But it is possible. Many truck stops offer salad and fruit bars as a part of their otherwise artery clogging fair. A lot of truck stops here in the states also have a popular fast food chain called Subway- don't know if you have them where you are. It's possible to eat right there as well.

[supernova]

7. Breakfast always tastes better on the road

for some odd reason.

The only time I eat a breakfast like that is when I'm traveling, usually on vacation. :-)

[billyskank]

17. Travelling works up an appetite.

Might be a part of it. :hi:

[BluePatriot]

3. Agreed...

SO used to work retail...connection came up and he got a job as a intra-city courier for a customs broker. Time sensitive docs to run to the airport and import businesses, etc. He's actually paid pretty well for the job...more than me with my college degree keying in forms all day, lol. Plus he gets good free insurance and can pretty much do what he wants in between runs as long as he's fast and does things right (sleep, surf Internet, lift heavy boxes/kill bugs as he's the only man around, etc.) Since he can use that downtime for anything, even studying, I'd say he's set while he finishes college.

[Wcross]

4. My hat is off to you Droopy, I just couldn't do it safely.

I would speed too much. Over the road trucking might be a fun way to see the country for a while but I don't know if my five dogs would enjoy being in the cab all day!

[graywarrior]

5. I did until I found out they partner you up with a trainer for a month

so you get to be on the road with some psycho who probably smokes when you don't, never sleeps and is generally a nutcase. Those are my personal findings, of course. I have to consider that some normal, upstanding driver who follows all the rules and is a nice person would be stuck with me for a month.

Either way, I shitcanned that idea.

[billyskank]

16. I think you would make a totally awesome trucker.

[graywarrior]

28. OMG, the impression I must give.

Don't you think I'd make a better emo or goth?

[skygazer]

6. I have thought about it over the years, Droopy

I'm a wanderer and my favorite place to be is on the road. I've always thought it would be a handy thing to get paid for it and I can drive anything (back when I worked at a snowmobile shop, I used to routinely back the 18-wheel flatbeds that delivered down our road and into the narrow little turnaround we had - after unloading them with a bucket loader with a pair of forks clipped on the bucket). :)

But my life has taken a different turn these days. I do keep it in mind as a career, though. I had a sister that drove truck and my brother's been driving for several years. We're kind of a family of gypsies. :hi:

[Guava Jelly]

8. I could never be a Trucker..I fall asleep to easy behind the wheel

.

[supernova]

9. Interesting career choice

I'm not sure how I feel about it.

I've always had office jobs and been home every night. OTOH, I enjoy driving and spending loads of time alone. That aspect of it definitely appeals. It is also true that when I'm driving on the highway, I feel a lot safer whenever I've hapened to be next to an 18 wheeler than some careless jackass in an Excursion.

[Kali]

10. I have. Probably a victim of romantic version, but I love to drive

(although I HATE motor vehicles)

I have thought of it and have even tried to nudge the kids into looking into it at least as a fall-back trade. That or bartending. :rofl: figure either one of those is a guaranteed job almost anywhere in the world.

What would you recommend if one of them ever decided to listen to their mother? I see adds on the backs of trucks all the time - are those worth calling? Are the schools all scams or are they the way to go? My younger son is more interested in heavy equipment operating, but the schools all seem like scams, how to get started in that?

[Inchworm]

11. My Dad drove truck

He made a good amout of coin doing it too. At one time he had 3 trucks on the road. He kept getting screwed by the people he hired. I remember once a driver just abandoned his truck in Texas. What a mess.

Good money and a hec of a way to see the country

:yourock:

:hi:

[Bluzmann57]

12. Well, without truckers, the economy is dead

But as you say, trucking isn't for everyone. I deal with a lot of truckers on my job and they make pretty good money, but work anywhere from 60-90 hours a week. And the majority of truckers I deal with have dedicated routes. They all started out as over the road guys and to a man, say they will not return to that lifestyle.

[JTG of the PRB]

13. I HAVE considered it, and it's the exact reasons you listed that I don't want it.

I do have this romantic idea in my head about trucking, traveling all across the country, seeing our great nation, but there's so much to learn. That's no Subaru I'd be driving; it's a big-ass semi with at LEAST one trailer attached. There's so much work, so many dangers, and it can be a lonely life from what a friend of mine has told me.

It's the romanticized idea that appeals to me, and that's not a very good way to look for a job.

[fizzgig]

14. i have thought about it

but i think i'd be too scared. i had a hard enough time driving a little uhaul across town once

i have amazing respect for the work you do, droopy

[Wapsie B]

15. Yes I have, but the sleep-deprivation alone in some of those jobs would kill me.

Plus driving one of those big rigs through the Rockies any time of year, but especially winter. I would love to see more of the country and that's a good way for some people to do it.

I can see why a lot of people are attracted to the profession. But there needs to be a total ban industry-wide on paper log books. GPS-tracking, computerized everything is what needs to happen. No more fudging the work hours by companies or even independent truckers. That's just the Medical person in me talking here.

[supernova]

19. They aren't doing that now?

People are still keeping paper logs? :wow: I thought medical records systems were antiquated.

[Wapsie B]

20. I think companies like UPS and FedEx have GPS systems.

But the long-haul trucking companies and independent truckers with computerized logs? I don't think so. Obviously Droopy would know, but I don't believe they do.

[billyskank]

21. It's funny

truckers in Europe are so regulated. Trucks all have electronic tachographs installed, and big penalties if you get caught tampering with them. Truckers can only drive so many hours a day, and all trucks are limited to 55mph too.

[Wapsie B]

22. Yes, and somehow they make it all work.

I can hear the screams now if we'd try to do that here across the board.

[billyskank]

23. See, that's the thing. I'd have thought it makes it easier for the truckers

They can't work themselves to the bone trying to compete with each other, when the regulations dictate how far you can haul stuff in one day. But yeah, the trucks keep on motoring and all our shit gets delivered nonetheless. The world keeps turning.

[Wapsie B]

26. Yeah they can and do work themselves to the bone.

There are regs in place but computerizing things here would close the loopholes that have been allowed to exist for years. It really would make it easier for the truckers and much safer for everyone. But this entire mindset that we've gotta get this delivered tomorrow or else would have to change. The system itself would have to change. If something needs to be delivered on a certain date fine. Only now order it several days sooner to allow for the trucker to deliver it in a safe and sane manner.

[supernova]

49. Is part of it the "Just In Time"

manufacturing model? "Just In Time" says that you don't keep hugh inventories waiting around in the warehouse because you lose money on the storage costs for one thing. So, you manufacture and deliver just as much as your customers can take in at a time, to keep inventories low (and prices up. Heh. Heh. )

Now certain things have to be delivered on demand, fresh food for instance pretty much has to be delivered immediately.

But yeah, I agree w/ you the "gotta be done yesterday" mentality is rampant up and down the production chain. It's very annoying and here potentially dangerous.

[supernova]

24. I could live with that

I do find the sleep deprivation of some drivers to be problematic. A lot of people used to do speed, just like the docs to stay awake. I don't know how much of that is still true.

Heh, slightly off topic: There is an old underpass here in Durham where the road dives under a train track. Compared to more modern types of these constructs this one isn't very tall, a medium- sized moving van is about all it will take. We've had several instances lately of tractor trailors trying to drive under it only to get stuck. The last guy tried and peeled the top of his trailor back like a sardine can. :rofl:

[Droopy]

30. That's a misconception, bushwentawol

Any reputable company will tell you to pull the rig over and get some sleep when you are too tired to drive. Early in my career one of my employers tried to get me to drive illegally long hours. I just told him that I wouldn't do it. What was he going to do to me?

Likewise, all reputable companies audit their drivers' log books. They will not tolerate illegal logs, just like the DOT, because they in turn can get audited by the DOT and fined heavily if they are deemed not to be in compliance. There is only one company that I know of who has been cleared to use computerized log books- Werner Enterprises.

However, there is a way to keep all truckers legal without expensive computerized systems. Most truckers are paid by the mile so there is an incentive to cheat. Pay truckers a salary or pay them by the hour and you take away the incentive to cheat.

[ashling]

18. Like this?

or this?

[HEyHEY]

25. No, but I'd love to tag along with one for a week or something.

[SeattleGirl]

27. I did at one time.

Thought it would be cool to be a long haul driver, seeing different places, being by myself for long stretches.

But then, I had my daughter, so that took that job out of the equation.

Now, she's grown up, but the desire is not really there.

[Swede]

29. You can always tell a truckdriver.

But you can't tell him much.

[MrScorpio]

31. What can you tell me?

I'm really interested. How do I get into this biz without putting up money for schooling?


BTW, I can't drive a manual transmission. Never learned. What good are my chances?

[Droopy]

33. I've met drivers who could drive a manual transmission in a truck

But couldn't in a car. Starting and stopping works by the same prinicple, but other than that the car transmission and the big truck transmission are totally different animals. You could do it, man, but it would help if you had some friend or family member who could show you the basics in a car first. They aren't hard once you get the hang of it.

The way to get into trucking without putting up your own dough is to find a company that will sponsor your schooling. There are several companies that will do that. PAM, CRST, Schneider, US Xpress come to mind. Just do a search on the internet for 'trucking company paid CDL training' and I bet you'll run across a shitload of them. Keep in mind that they will want you to sign a contract for about a year. If you break the contract you become responsible for the schooling. It will cost about $3000-$5000, but you can arrange to make payments.

Like someone else mentioned above, you will be paired with a trainer for about a month after the school. If you can manage to deal with that, you should be on the road on your own about 2 months after you signed on with the school.

[CatWoman]

32. my dad was a trucker

:hi: Droopy

he worked for Armour Meat Company, and I did his log books for him :)

We ALWAYS had plenty of meat :)

[otherlander]

34. I want to do EVERYTHING as a career.

I'll add that to the wish list now.

-Journalist
-Maker of ceramic tiles in a factory run by anarchists
-Motorcycle builder
-Trucker
-Forest ranger
-Wandering storyteller
-Five-star resteraunt Chef
-Beat poet
-Beet farmer
-Revolutionary
-Eskimo (maybe)
-Person who rides a bike that's actually a taxi
-Sewer mutant

[MissMillie]

44. interesting... I want to do nothing as a career

hmmm... go figure

[otherlander]

48. Not even sewer mutant?

:wow:

[MissMillie]

50. I think the only job that truly interests me is

restaurant critic

[Nevernose]

35. That's what a teacher makes (where I live).

And both are good honest work.

[DarkTirade]

36. I helped a trucker friend of my parents install a new pool at his house a few years ago

so obviously he was making a decent enough amount of money to support his family (at the time a wife and one kid, but another one came along shortly after that), and have enough left over to buy a pool.
But not enough to hire people to do it professionally. :) That, or he was just being cheap/smart and not wasting money on something he knew he could do with a little help from friends.

Unfortunately my current job wouldn't allow me to drive a truck even if I wanted to. They have 'grooming standards'. Because apparently if you have an X and a Y chromosome, it is impossible to be well groomed when your hair is longer than a few inches.

[Wetzelbill]

37. I might not be able to see over the steering wheel.

Plus, I would honk the horn so often that it would just get old. Wait... that could never get old.

[rppper]

38. i am really, really considering it right now.....

i love my job councelling addicts, but the pay is low. i have been looking for a CDL school in the area. i am tired of being broke, and it is something i have always been fascinated by. i am not looking to be an owner/operator either.....to much hassle. my driving record, arrest record and my urine are all clean too:evilgrin: ......

i am also considering the military sealift command.....decent money if you are ex navy and can pass the same background checks(a passport and coast guard UA test, then about 150.00 for mariners documents). with the sea time and NEC i held in the navy, my starting salary there would be about the same. if you have navy service you should check out their web page.

[Common Sense Party]

39. No. I can't park anything bigger than a mini-van. nt

[edbermac]

40. I couldn't be a trucker; I'd get crazy like that guy in 'Duel'

Running assholes off the road that pissed me off. :grr:

[Droopy]

42. The urge to play crash up derby on the highway is tempting sometimes

[MissMillie]

41. too many idiots on the road

it's difficult enough putting in 2 hours a day on the road... I can't imagine 8 or 10.

[IndianaJones]

43. Do they frown on driving drunk..say over sort distances? nt.

[Dragonbreathp9d]

45. Not till I saw Ice Road Truckers!

[flvegan]

46. Only if I could do so without having to turn, back up or park.

Also, considering the way too many other motorists treat rigs on the road, I'd wind up in prison. "Sorry I crushed your Audi, pal."

[Droopy]

47. lol!

Yeah, the easiest part is just riding down the road in good weather and light traffic. The skill comes in with backing, maneuvering, traffic, and bad weather conditions.

[B3Nut]

51. Snow and mountains would scare me.

But I did consider it before I met Mrs. Nut. A friend of mine was an owner-operator, he had a really nice International tractor with a kickass sleeper...had TV and fridge and quite a comfy bunk. The concept of living out of one's truck as an OTR driver, with what would seem to offer long stretches of solitude, was rather appealing to me...but the thought of driving a semi down a mountain was a bit scary, I-77 going through West Virginia has its moments even in a small car. I'd hate to see the Rockies in the snow or have to negotiate that. Wow...

Todd in Cheesecurdistan