I'm I Nuts or?

[Old Dirt]

I can retire from my present job of 28 plus years. I want to do another 10 years or so of driving a Semi. I know that some guys do this, does this seem nuts to you or is this something somewhat down to earth. I make a nice living doing what I am doing now, 40 hours a week Mon-Fri.
26 days of vacation a year and many paid holidays. Just the same I hate it. Tell me what you think?

[Drew10]

A little "history" of yourself would be helpful. Married/Single/Kids etc. What does family think? Are you financial stable? What career are you retiring from? Would it be worth a financial change?
Yes, alot retire from a previous career and go into trucking. Dont know if its right for you or not. This is something you and your family must decide on.

[Old Dirt]

Kids all grown and moved on. Many grandkids. Mrs says okay. I worked in a job no way related to trucking. does that help.

[possessed]

I'm in a similar situation. All I have ever wanted to do is drive a truck. My dad was a multiple o/o and so are my brothers.

I want to start OTR to gain the experience, the good, the bad, and the ugly.

[Mackman]

Stay at the job you have now.

[murray]

If it's something you want to do and you have your wifes support ,go for it. I worked at a job --A really good job with all the perks including job security ( unless the place closed ) but the last couple of years I was there the challenge wasn't there and started to really hate going . I always wanted to drive otr but it was not an option when the kids were still young, but a year ago I got a decent otr job and I'm still at it . There are days though I wonder what the #%! did I do but over all I like what i'm doing ,almost every day a new challenge. what is good is that my wife can come with me whenever she wants when she can get 5 days in a row off .I could repeat all the ugly and bad things along with the good but only you can decide what's right for you. If you do go for it and find it's for you, great , if not , you can always try something else. we're never to old to move on to something else.Good luck on whatever you decide, read what the na sayers say but don't base your overall descion on them

[Drew10]

Stay at the job you have now.

Mackman....Do you like truckin'??? From what Ive read you seem to. Also if I remember you are very young and only know truckin' and its your only perpective. Reference: "Mackman needs advise" Dont presume to tell another to stay in their current job, if they are ready to retire from it capable of a "second" career doing something they may actually enjoy.
Youve been drinking to much of CFM's "cool aid".

[repete]

If your ready to semi retire (sorry, couldn't help it) truckin may be the way to go, BUT be prepared, start looking around this site and make a list of questions and you'll find most have allready been asked and ansewered.
Hows the family REALLY going to take you being away for 2 weeks or more? Thats a big one (it's easy to say we can handle it) Also how are you going to feel when you miss the grandkids birthday and the 4 of July picnic ect?? It can get real lonely out there
Your pay will not be what your used to and alot of co. don't pay for holidays either.
If you can handle that for at least a year then you stand a much better chance of a local or even a part time gig. Jobs are like women you just have to keep looking till you find the right one

[Mackman]

Stay at the job you have now.

Mackman....Do you like truckin'??? From what Ive read you seem to. Also if I remember you are very young and only know truckin' and its your only perpective. Reference: "Mackman needs advise" Dont presume to tell another to stay in their current job, if they are ready to retire from it capable of a "second" career doing something they may actually enjoy.
Youve been drinking to much of CFM's "cool aid".

You are right i do like truckin and it is all i know. 4th gen. driver in my family of all O/O. But it sounds like he has a nice job. 40hrs a week. all that vac. time. He wont get that in truckin. If he can live with the job he has now i think he should stick it out. But if he really really hates it then i guess he has to do something.

[Flashmann]

I did the same thing......Kind of.....After 31 years in the Painters Union,earning $30 per hour plus the last few years,I made the switch...

My main motivation was $$$ and my pension,though...My wifes job offered her the opportunity to head up a new office in Colorado,where we'd wanted to return after a 25 year absence,the last 2 in Las Vegas,which we both hated....

Once moved,I contacted the Union Hall in Denver to "clear in" and learned the scale here is $17.10 per hour,little more than half what I'd been making,and all the work was in or near Denver,over 150 miles from where we lived,near Aspen..

The kicker was the pension....I'd been putting in $5.25 an hour and here was (is) $1.45.....The rate you contribute the last year worked carries all the way back for you,affecting the amount I'd recieve each month.....I couldn't take that hit...

I got the CDL and went OTR long enough to know I didn't like it,actually longer,and long enough to get a local run that has me home every night and weekends....

It worked out good for me...I run from Grand Junction to Denver and back 3 days a week,40k a year,and will start my pension in November,at 55..

No more painting....No more trucking....

I hope your circumstances work out for you as well as mine did......Good luck......

[kips41]

I can retire from my present job of 28 plus years. I want to do another 10 years or so of driving a Semi. I know that some guys do this, does this seem nuts to you or is this something somewhat down to earth. I make a nice living doing what I am doing now, 40 hours a week Mon-Fri.
26 days of vacation a year and many paid holidays. Just the same I hate it. Tell me what you think?

Depends on what you want to accomplish, where you live, how much you still need to make.

Typically starting out you need to have at least one year of driving to get a local driving job. Most put in their time with an OTR outfit, this means that you will be gone alot. Driving whether you are local or otr is hard demanding work. Time spent alone, odd hours, weather, always in public facilities for nature calls and showers. Until you have spent a winter in the cold, driving in the ice and snow, living in a truck, you don't know how miserable it can be.

You will never have the kind of benefits of vacation, holidays that you have now. If you cherish these bennies don't quit.

As a trainer for many years I have had several guys on the truck just like you, less than half make it. Despite what everyone belives trucking is more than just riding around all day and having a girlfriend in every town. I can't stress it enough how hard and demanding the job of a truck driver is.

Personally, from what you have said I WOULD NOT make the change. If you want to see the country some. Buy you a travel trailer and take the wife and grandkids along and use some of that vacation and holiday time off that you have, I promise you will be better off. Everyday that you spend on the road away from your loved ones is a day that you can never get back.

Yes I think that you are nuts, certified. But this is only my opinion, I am sure there are others that will tell you to follow your dreams. Just remember that your familiy will pay the cost of you being gone all of the time following your dream.

[wimpy]

I think you should try retirement when the time comes and if you get bored with retirement like a lot of people do then try out trucking!!!

[Snowman7]

You're not nuts for thinking it but if you actually did it then you might be, and you might wish you hadn't.

Jobs in trucking are just that, jobs. Its not glamorous. Most of them are low paying and involve very long hours. The washout rate is over 100%. Thousands of people before you thought it was their dream job and didnt make it a year.

There are some good jobs but it may take you years to not only qualify, but to fgure out what you like and then find it.

But if you will get a pension big enough to live on from your old job, then I guess you will have nothing to lose. If you dont like it you can just quit and enjoy your retirement.

Read as much as you can on these boards.

If you still have to do it then maybe look into Roehl's 7 on 7 off program. Less money but you still "get your fix".

I agree with Kips 100%. However, there are exceptions to every rule. How do you like your odds? Good luck with your desicion.

[Snowman7]

I'll give you some more things to think about.

Driving is a job that can suck at times just like any other job. You will still have to do things you dont want to do. You still have a boss. Your requests for hometime will be denied or you will get home 12 hours later than you were supposed to. This will piss off your wife cause you didnt make it back in time. Nothing ever goes the way its supposed to. Its definately NOT freedom of the road.

Someone still has to mow the grass, shovel the snow, fix the car, take care of the house etc. Your wife may get resentful of your being gone.

I did it and it was fun for a while but it wears off fast. I now have a good local job (which is very hard to find) that I tolerate. My cousin has been at it a year and has come to the same conclusion. He will be looking for a local job.

I would suggest you wait till the very end of your working years. That way if you hate it you can quit after a year. If you like it you can keep driving not because you have to but because you want to.

well he said he is retiring from his current job, so he must not need that job or the income that goes with it. he wants to try trucking because he has that itch to try it, it would appear that pay, and paid holidays are not an issue. i would think that if he does not like it he will be out nothing, he can quit driving and still be retired from his current job. but he need to realize that we can not tell him if he will like it or not, no matter what is said in this thread there is only one person that will tell him if he likes it or not, well maybe two if you count his wifes opinion. there actually are people out there that are perfectly happy driving otr, contrary to CFM and his prized pupil mackman.

[MadFox]

I can retire from my present job of 28 plus years. I want to do another 10 years or so of driving a Semi. ...

Here is a thought - if you are talking about retiring from your company (assuming they have a retirement system) - you might consider retiring and then work out an agreement that they pay you as a contractor? Maybe your current company also includes health insurance as part of their retirement plan? If you retired and turned around and and became a contractor (with your company) - the total may exceed your current salary? You can then invest in a 401, etc. - just a thought.

[Old Dirt]

Thanks for all of the thoughts, keep them coming, I will read all!