High-Seas to Highways

[devildice]

I am writing this “blog”, “journal”, ‘diary”, or whatever you wish to call it, for 2 reasons. 1) I know there are many out there like myself that enjoy reading about someone’s daily life on the road. It’s almost like we’re living vicariously through the writer.
2) Maybe it will provide some helpful information to those that are thinking about getting into the industry or at least lessen the anxiety about making the plunge.

Let me start off by explaining the title, “High Seas to Highways”. I titled it as such is because I just recently retired from the U.S Navy after spending the past 22 years navigating the high seas all over the world. Soon I will be navigating the highways of our beautiful country.

So how did I come about this new endeavor? Well simple put, it has been a childhood dream. I intended to become a driver right out of high school, but in for reason which I won’t bore you with, I ended up joining the Navy in 1985. Which, at the time I had no idea I would turn it into a career for this long. That is a story in its self for another time and place. So let me fast forward 19 years. In 2004 I re-enlisted for the last time and I had to figure out what I would do when this last 3 year contract was up.

No sooner than I started thinking about what I wanted to do, I already had the answer, ”Professional Truck Driver”….my childhood dream!

So the research began. What I thought would be an easy task turned out to be anything but. I ended up conducting research for almost 3 years!! I read countless articles; spoke with recruiter after recruiter, drivers upon drivers, read literally thousands of threads on various forums. Every time I thought I was making headway, I would find something else out that would only add to confuse what I thought I already knew.

I won’t bore you with all the little details but I will say this though; I truly believe that I am much more prepared to enter this industry than the “average Joe” whom may not have the luxury of having such ample time to conduct what I like to refer as “self-education”. In the end, I feel as I have learned just about everything there is to learn from this side of the fence so to speak. The REAL learning won’t begin until I have my CDL and am out there “where the rubber meets the road”

SIDE NOTE: I am NOT claiming to be an expert by any means what so ever on the industry. But, if I can offer any advice to my fellow “wanabee’s/newbee’s”, it would be to echo what all the pro’s out there have been saying…….. research, research, and then some more research. Ask all the questions. Make sure you fully understand what it is you’re getting into. Make sure you fully understand what to expect and what not to expect. Make sure you keep your family and or loved ones informed as well. Do what ever it takes to educate yourself BEFORE you make the plunge. Oh, and one last thing….attitude….keep a positive attitude at all times. You’ll be surprised how far a positive attitude will carry you.

Ok, enough with the babble and let’s start this journey……..First thing to do is to obtain a Class “A” CDL. I enrolled in Sage Truck Driving School located at St. Philip’s Community College in San Antonio, Texas. The school is 4 weeks long, with class running from Monday thru Saturday from 8am to 5pm (yep, 6 days a week!). CDL School will prepare me with the BASIC skills required to obtain my CDL and nothing more. The real training will happen on a daily basis when I am out on the road.

[devildice]

DOT Medical Exam/Drug Test 05/21/07
Went in today to get my required DOT (Department of Transportation) Physical. There are no appointments, just walk-ins. So it was anyone guess as to how long I would be there. Fortunately I was in and out in about 2 ½ hours. So anyways, I fill out the typical paper work and wait to be called.

Once I am called back the first thing they want is a urine sample. They tell me to empty my pockets into a locked drawer, give me a cup and tell me to fill it to a certain line. During my military career, I have had to provide numerous samples over the years. In the military though, there is a guy there actually watching you and ensuring that the urine is physically leaving your body and entering the cup. This one for the DOT was more or less the “Honor System” or at least that is how I perceived it.

Now the actual physical starts. The first thing they do is weigh me and measure my height. (By the way, I just had a complete “Separation Physical” 6 days earlier from the Navy) They have my height 1 inch shorter than I really am and my weight at 17 pounds heaver than I really am!!!! I laugh and tell the nurse that can not be correct as I just had a physical 6 days ago and I highly doubt that I shrank an inch and gained 17 pounds. So we do it again and although she got the height correct, she still has me 17 pounds too heavy. Then she takes my blood pressure, which she says is too high 130/92. Again I laugh and say that it can not be as once again, 6 days ago I had a physical and everything checked out fine. She takes it again and low and behold my blood pressure is normal at 118/76. By now I am like “WTF!!!” I am not very confident that their equipment is calibrated and true and beginning to wonder if the staff has a clue.

Anyways, after all was said and done, I passed and now have the standard 2 year medical card. Which, by the way, you MUST carry with you at all times while you hold a CDL. If you are asked for it by DOT authority and you do not have it, it can be a hefty fine.

[devildice]

Day 1 of CDL School 6/4/07:
We started off with an introduction of each student, instructors, staff, and school director. Everyone seems so friendly and helpful. After the intros, we had a few forms to read and sign. After that we received an orientation. Basically explaining the rules and regs of the school, what to expect to get from the training, etc. One thing that did surprise me is that the first 13 days will be straight through. What I mean by that is that class will run from 8am to approximately 5pm Monday thru Sunday.

Anyways, after the orientation, we went out to one of the tractor-trailers and went over some basic stuff. Nothing in depth, I believe it is designed to allow a student that has never been up close to a big rig to actually see one inside and out. Our instructor, Felix, also went over a few things on the truck and trailer all the while explaining that it will all come together and make more sense (if we didn’t understand at that moment) over time.

After all that we went into the classroom and jumped right into the course. We went over combinations, general knowledge, and air brakes. We took a test after each segment. Yours truly did extremely well scoring a 99%. All of this is to prepare us to go to the DPS office and pass the tests to obtain our CDL permits.

[devildice]

Day 2 of CDL School 6/5/07:
Tests, tests, and more tests. Today we went over Tankers, Doubles/Triples, Hazmat, and Special rigs and then tested on each subject. Of the 4 different tests, I missed a total of 2 questions because I did not fully read and understand the question. What a bonehead I can be sometimes. All of these tests are to prepare us to pass the CDL permit test, CDL “A” test, and any of the endorsements we wish to get. Tomorrow we will get out of class early so that we can head over to the DPS office to take our tests. Wish me luck.

Something I did not realize until the instructor explained it to use was, there is only one 20 question test that we have to take to get a CDL permit. This technically, is all we have to pass at this time. Then, at some point and time before we can take the actual driving test and get our CDL Class “A”, we have to pass four other tests on air brakes, general knowledge, combinations, and pre-trip inspections. I am not sure if this is a Texas “thing” or if all states do it this way. In either case, I intend to get all of mine done at the same time. This way I don’t have any more written tests looming over my head and I can concentrate on all the other aspects of the training.

We also had our first recruiter visit us today. I won’t mention the name of the company, but will tell you they have white trucks with blue and red stripes. Anyways, as I sat back listing to this guy, it made me sick to hear him play up how great this company was and how good the pay is, blah, blah, blah. It took everything I had to bite my tongue and keep my mouth shut. I say this because as I mentioned at the beginning of this journal, I have done my research. And when a recruiter comes in and starts bragging about how great .14cpm is to earn while in training, how training as a team on 2 log books for 5 weeks is the best way to earn money and get quality training at the same time, blah, blah, blah…I just wanted to yell out “BULL*****”. But as I mentioned, I kept my mouth shut out of respect for the others as well as the recruiter (who actually seemed like a very nice guy). However, I did let my opinion be known after he was gone and we were on a break. :wink:

[Cluggy619]

You mean you responded with 755 post and you didn't even have a CDL? They'll allow anyone to post! Just kidding.

Good luck with your new venture. :wink:

[devildice]

Originally Posted by Cluggy619

You mean you responded with 755 post and you didn't even have a CDL? They'll allow anyone to post! Just kidding.

Good luck with your new venture. :wink:

LOL....yeah it's amazing who'll they'll let on here huh?

[Cluggy619]

Originally Posted by devildice

LOL....yeah it's amazing who'll they'll let on here huh?

[geomon]

Yep...they'll let anyone on here...I'm about a decade older and approx 1 year away from following in your footsteps devildice. I'm still makin hay while the sun is shining... ...and doing the same thing: research-research-research.

Good luck and thanks for taking the time to post your experiences.

[devildice]

Originally Posted by geomon

Yep...they'll let anyone on here...I'm about a decade older and approx 1 year away from following in your footsteps devildice. I'm still makin hay while the sun is shining... ...and doing the same thing: research-research-research.

Good luck and thanks for taking the time to post your experiences.

Thanks geoman and good luck to you too!!!!! I hope my posts can help or at least entertain people.

[hitman]

Sounds like you're off to a great start devildice. Looking forward to reading your experiances with schooling, training, and then driving. That is so cool to hear that you are "following your dream" to drive a truck. I will be doing the same, in about a year from now. For now, i'm just soaking up all of the information that I possibly can. Have fun and be safe...Dave

[terrylamar]

What's up with all these rookie drivers posting on here?


You should listen to us old hands!

[Smokeeater]

What this Board needs is more ARMY Vets!!! 8)

[Trucker4Life]

Originally Posted by Smokeeater

What this Board needs is more ARMY Vets!!! 8)

Oh, they're here alright. It's just during the week they are keeping their left door shut and their nose into the wind...not sitting in the truckstops mooching off the free wifi!
22 years Army (Ret)

[fireman932003]

Forget ARMY............USMC RULES!!!!!

[devildice]

Day 3 of CDL School 6/6/07:
We didn’t do a whole lot today. We had one recruiter from a food company come in and although I have heard of them before, I never did any research on them and therefore could not tell if anything they were telling us was B.S. or not. I was very intrigued with the pay and benefits they offered (the pay is cpm and “x” amount per 100lbs of freight). If my desire was to be a local driver with some occasional OTR trips and to fingerprint every load, I might look further at them.

Anyways, we went over vehicle inspections today; pre-trip, enroute, and post-trip. As usual, we tested on it afterwards. When reading about the inspections, it seems very overwhelming. There is SO much to remember. I was worried that I was going to bomb the subject. Not sure how I pulled it off, but I only missed one question (again it was a dumb mistake as I misread the question). As I mentioned before, most of these tests are designed to prepare us for our actual written and driving tests with the DPS office. This one in particular is to prepare us for that as well as something that we will be using on a daily basis. Even though I passed the test at the school house, I just did not feel confident that I knew it well enough to pass the DPS test OR to perform these inspections in the real world. Only time will tell.

After the test, we went out to one of the tractor-trailers and the instructor walked us through a pre-trip inspection. Like a bolt of lighting hitting me, everything came together. The inspection is NOT nearly as confusing as it seems when you read about it. 99% of it is common sense. You are looking for ANYTHING that may be loose, broken, missing, worn, cracked, etc….in general, anything “unusual”.

Afterwards, they released us for the day to go to the DPS office and at a bare minimum, take and hopefully pass our CDL permit test. As I mentioned before, I intend to take all the tests at once so that I do not have to worry about them later. So I get the DPS and expect long lines and wait times as usual. Well I was pleasantly surprised to find that that was not the case today. I tell the lady at the counter that I need to take the CDL permit test and that while I am there, I would like to go ahead and take the air brakes, general knowledge, combinations, and pre-trip inspections (all required for a Class “A” CDL) as well as the hazmat endorsement. She says, “No problem, but you will not be able to take the Hazmat unless you have your birth certificate with you”, which of course I did not. So I will have to take that test at another time. I did add the taker test just because here in Texas, when you take the test the first time like I was, you can take all the endorsements at the same time for no additional charge. Any endorsement thereafter is an extra $10 (except the hazmat which I believe was $80 because of the finger printing and background check).

So I sit at the computer ready to take a total of 6 tests. I feel confident in what I know with the exception of the pre-trip. When all was said and done, I passed ALL the tests except for one…….yep, the most important on of all, the one for the permit, I bombed it!! I was, and still am as I type this, extremely livid with myself. What really pisses me off about the exam is that all the questions I missed were, in my mind, ridiculous. Questions about what the speed limit for a certain vehicle is for certain highways/roads during either daytime or nighttime. My thoughts are that I will drive NO MORE that the posted speed limit or what is a safe speed dependant on traffic, weather, etc. But that was not a choice. For those of you that will take the test in Texas, look at section 14, page 14-16 of the Texas CDL handbook and look at the “table’ listed on the right side and you’ll see what I mean. I now have to re-take that freaking little test again no sooner than tomorrow. Boy I am pissed at myself!!!!! :evil:

Oh, and by the way, the vehicle inspect test that I was so worried about……I scored a 100% (go figure).

[Smokeeater]

Originally Posted by fireman932003

Forget ARMY............USMC RULES!!!!!

Well I guess the sailors do need someone to dance with JK fireman932003.All branches of the service have my respect. I am former 82nd Airborne myself. "Give em hell boys !!!"

[devildice]

Day 4 of CDL School 6/7/07:
Today started off with a recruiter visit. I have not mentioned this before, but I already have a company that I will be signing on with. I will let everyone know later on down the road who they are. Anyways, even if I did not have a company in mind, this particular company would not even be on my list of prospects. So I sit there and half listen to what this recruiter has to say and I am absolutely amazed at how well they “sell” their company. I definitely can see how someone that did not do any research could be lured into the promises of cookies and cream and that big pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. This again echo’s what the pro’s out there have been saying all along…..”Do your research BEFORE you sign on the dotted line”.

After the recruiter left we jumped right into the curriculum. Today we went over HOS, Logbooks, and Trip Planning, testing as usual after each topic. These topics, especially the HOS, can get somewhat confusing. I managed to “ace” each exam and believe it or not, I think it was due to the fact that I had some exposure to them here on CAD. Although the exposure I had on the forum did not make much sense to me at the time, it all started to come together and “click” in class and ultimately helped me understand it easier and quicker. So for that, I want to thank “Rev, Dawn, and many others” for the endless pages of discussions on Logbooks and the HOS.

There was one question on our HOS test that sparked some debate. I can not remember the exact wording, but the gist of the question was…. “A driver can be on line 4 after his/her 70/8 was up”. The choices were “true or false”. Everyone answered “false” except one student. I won’t go into the logic that the student had, but we ended up debating what the correct answer was until the instructor decided that we beat the crap out of a dead horse. The unfortunate thing is that I think the one student still believes he is correct.

Well tomorrow I am off to the DPS office first thing in the morning to re-take that dang little permit test again and to knock out the hazmat endorsement. Got to hit the books and study so wish me luck!

[carlos64030]

Awesome thread! I normally don't like reading long threads such as this, but I'm actually enjoying it.

I finished my CDL training about 2 weeks ago, and I'm currently waiting for Swift to find me a friggin' mentor so I can't start my 2nd phase of training which is OTR driving for 6 weeks with a mentor before I'm sent out on solo runs.

I'm looking forward to reading your next entry!

Good luck!

[devildice]

Originally Posted by carlos64030

Awesome thread! I normally don't like reading long threads such as this, but I'm actually enjoying it.

I finished my CDL training about 2 weeks ago, and I'm currently waiting for Swift to find me a friggin' mentor so I can't start my 2nd phase of training which is OTR driving for 6 weeks with a mentor before I'm sent out on solo runs.

I'm looking forward to reading your next entry!

Good luck!

Thanks.....I am glad you are enjoying it. Best of luck to you with Swift, keep us posted on how things go.

[devildice]

Day 5 of CDL School 6/8/07:
Well I went to the DPS office to re-take my CDL permit test today. I attempted to study last night but it was to no avail. I just could not concentrate for the life of me. That alone was pissing me off to say the least. I think it was because I was still stewing over the failure of it the first time. I guess you could call me a “perfectionist” and therefore I tend to be really hard on myself when things are not right.

Anyways, the DPS office does not open until 8am so I decided I would show up early (7am) in the hopes that I could study and retain the information without any distractions. At 8am sharp (surprisingly) they open the doors. I go in and sit down at the computer with all my fingers and toes crossed. 15 or so minutes later, the screen shows that I passed with a score of 100%.....Whew!!!! I decided while I was there, I might at well knock out Doubles & Triples as well as the Hazmat endorsements. I aced the D/T but was unable to take the Hazmat test as I was missing one required document. Boy they want everything short of a DNA sample for that test. So to sum it up, I currently have all my CDL Class “A” written exams along with all the endorsements with the exception of the Hazmat and passenger complete.

While at the DPS office, a recruiter showed up at the school. Again, it was not a company that I have any interest in what so ever, so it was not a loss to me. One thing that is funny, every recruiter gives us some sort of “company paraphernalia” as I call it. Things like key chains, sticky pads, little rulers and pens. Needless to say, I should have enough of those to last my entire trucking career.

We used the rest of the morning to go over some more HOS & Logbook training as well as the Pre-Trip planning. After lunch we went out to one of the tractors and covered control systems/familiarity of the console. Then back to the classroom for a presentation and of course a test on the subject. They also covered some other miscellaneous things such as how to fill out an application, interviews, etc. The last thing we covered was the engine brake system. What it does and how it works. I already knew what it does, but really had no clue how it does what it does. I found the entire topic very interesting. Tomorrow we are scheduled to go over shifting and backing and I am actually looking forward to it.