Maverick's specialized division Diary

[rontwo]

I have posted a few times but not many. But I have been lurking here for quite some time. Trans am Diary gave me the idea to do one on Maverick. Now I know most of you are probably thinking *oh geesh another Maverick post * but the difference between mine and the rest is that I have decided to go with Mavericks specialized division and well to be honest I haven't been able to find any information about that anywhere. So I figured I would add what Im learning along the way.

I recently graduated the Truck Driver Training Course at Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington NC. A rather long feeling 10 week course which I drove an hour and a half for each way every day for the past 10 long weeks. I didn't think getting started would ever happen but I must say that the folks in charge of the Truck Driver Training Course at this school are GREAT! They told me where I needed to go, where was the cheapest place to go etc to get everything that I needed done completed before I started school. It was a mad dash and at times I wasn't so sure I was going to make it but believe it or not, I got everything done in 3 days.

The school itself was great as well. The school has a lot of different tractors and they rotated us out every day driving different types. I have driven a 9 speed, 10 speed, super 10, super 13, cab overs, doubles, tankers,.. you name it I pretty much drove it.

During this time, my great wife started doing a lot of research by going threw tons of trucking companies, when she found the ones that she liked she than passed those on to me and we went threw them together. It was at this time that I found Maverick and started doing my research on this company.

I than decided that out of the companies I was looking at after all my research that I would give Maverick a call. I called and spoke to a recruiter and was very pleased with everything he had to tell me. Now one of the big things with me is that I tend not to believe a recruiter, 9 times out of 10 they are making their money by convincing me to go with their company however Maverick is not like that, my recruiter told me the first time I spoke to him that none of the recruiters with maverick get paid any type of commission for getting a new driver for the company. Sure he could have been blowing smoke but he seemed more interested in what I was interested in and what I was looking for than what the company was looking for (another bonus in my book). I decided after that first phone call that I was making the best choice for me.

So once we got off the phone, I went on-line and filled out my application, called my recruiter back and let him know I had applied. Within 30 minutes of me hitting the *submit* button, my phone was ringing and it was my recruiter again, calling to go over my application with me. Once that was done, the ball was in his court to do what he needed to do on his end. A few days later I got the call that I was pre-hired. Now where most people would get excited, I learned not to count my chickens before they hatch. I still had a bit of schooling to get done and than after that I have to complete all that Maverick requires before I am out on my own.

My wife has been celebrating along the way and although I keep telling her not to get to excited I haven't gotten a job yet, she keeps telling me to let her *woo whoo* along the way!

I had been keeping in contact with my recruiter while I was in school just to touch base from time to time and let him know how things were going. I received my CDL about a week and a half ago and knew that the end of my schooling was coming soon so again I contacted my recruiter and we started the ball rolling on when I would head out for Orientation. I had my options on 2 different dates either the 25th of March or the 19th of March and of course, I decided to take the closer one.

Today was my actual graduation day and I started the morning out with a phone call to my recruiter again to make sure everything was in place for me to be there for Orientation on the 19th. Now where Mavericks flat bed drivers head to AR, Maverick Specialized Division is all handled in the Great State of NC about a four and a half hour drive from where I live. Everything is set up and I will be heading out on the 18th to head up to Laurinburg NC for my Orientation Monday morning.

I want to say a special thanks to Arky who has given me tons of information on what to expect when it comes to Maverick, as well as redsfan, Stevedb28 and whoever else posted about their experience with Maverick.

and *thanks again* to madii's wife for giving me the idea to do a diary on the specialized division.

I will keep you all updated along the way as I am going threw things, well, I will be having my wife update you as I let her know how things are going.

Stay safe out there!

[GTR SILVER]

all the best to you!!!!
does "specialized" mean anymore hometime................or dedicated, or heavy haul????

[arky]

Congratulations rontwo!! Your on your way to making some pretty decent money.

I really like the idea of you starting a diary. I would also suggest that maybe you do it a blog format and link the blog to your profile like others do. I have a lot of people (yourself included) that have asked me questions about the specialized division that I just couldn't give an honest, knowledgeable answer. You should be able to fill that gap in time. That would be a great help to anyone considering specialized.

Keep up the good work!

Arky

[arky]

The specialized division's main freight base is glass hauling, as I understand it. They also haul alot of other stuff, such as heavy machinery and I've even seen airplane hulls on those trucks. They also haul some of the general flatbed freight at times.

Give rontwo a couple of months and he'll be able to tell ya!

Arky

[tinbender8700]

I look forward to reading this. I'm in Thomasville right now working on my CDL for Maverick Specialized, and should be in Laurinburg for securement training in 3 or 4 weeks.
BOL

[rontwo]

all the best to you!!!!
does "specialized" mean anymore hometime................or dedicated, or heavy haul????

The difference between the specialized division and their flatbed division from what I know so far is..

specialized you are gone 12 to 14 days at a time, pay wise is a bit higher cpm (ends up being about a penny more per mile after the first year), and their is a 70 something percent no touch when it comes to specialized.

flatbed they guarantee you home every weekend although you have to keep in mind that as with any company, there might be some weeks where they cant get you home that weekend (according to my recruiter he said their drivers average about 3 weekends per year that they don't get home), pay like I said is about 1 cpm lower than specialized after the first year, and from what I understand its alot of tarping (no big deal really but its one of the differences).

I'm not sure what all they haul but arky answered that with what he knows or has seen. I will find out more once I head out there this coming weekend and will let you know what I find out along the way.

you can check out their web site and compare the differences by clicking on both flatbed and specialized. maverick's website

[rontwo]

I look forward to reading this. I'm in Thomasville right now working on my CDL for Maverick Specialized, and should be in Laurinburg for securement training in 3 or 4 weeks.
BOL

Congratulations on getting hired on with Maverick! Good Luck in school, hopefully we will run into each other along the way.

Is Thomasville the school that Maverick uses? If it is and if you don't mind, can you post about the schooling.. just to give other people information on what to expect if they are looking into going threw that schooling. There is alot of information on here about the school in AR. that Maverick uses but I haven't seen much on the school in Thomasville.

BOL

[GTR SILVER]

thanks rontwo..................be well............ be safe...........& god bless!!!!!!!

[tinbender8700]

Ronto.
The school that Maverick Specialized uses is in Thomasville, NC. This school not only services Maverick Specialized, but most of the students there are folks wanting to get a CDL for any number of reasons. I have seen more recruiters there in the past 3 weeks than I can shake a stick at!...lol
The schooling itself I can find no fault in. They teach a pretty intense course, but they do give plenty of classroom time for you to study, work on tests etc. etc. The teachers are top notch in my book. They know what they're talking about, and I have yet to see an instructor either in the classroom, or on the yard who does not have at least 10 years experience in trucking.
This one school I wouldn't even begin to consider to be a "CDL Mill". It's explained to you on day one, "we will work with you and help you, but if you're going be here, then put in an honest effort. If you miss a class then you'll be held back until the course you missed is taught again. (usually about 2 weeks) Now don't anyone get me wrong, this isn't a boot camp type of schooling, but the way they see it, if you're going to spend the money to get a CDL, then you need to apply yourself.
They'll even work with you if your test score fall below their minimum requirement.
All in all, I like the school, and have learned alot in my few weeks there.

BTW...this is a privately owned school, not company owned.

BOL...Tinbender

[BobMack]

I understand the flatbed division has a pretty vigorous fitness test. Does the specialized division have the same test?

[tinbender8700]

BobMack
The test is the same for both flatbed and specialized. As long as you're in fairly good shape, then you should have no problem passing it, but they are VERY thorough. Range of movement, lifting weight, etc. etc....the test took me and one other person almost 2 hours to complete.
Tinbender

[rontwo]

GTR Silver... No problem if there is anything else we can help you with just let me know.

Tinbender8700... Thanks for the information on the schooling and the fitness test.


I will be heading up to Laurinburg tomorrow to start my orientation on Monday. Since its not to long of a drive, we have decided to drive up vs taking the bus. My wife and kids are going to see me off on monday morning and than head back home. I will have her update this as time goes on and I get the chance to call her.

BOL and stay safe everyone!

[Colin]

The specialized division's main freight base is glass hauling, as I understand it. They also haul alot of other stuff, such as heavy machinery and I've even seen airplane hulls on those trucks. They also haul some of the general flatbed freight at times.

Give rontwo a couple of months and he'll be able to tell ya!

Arky

Better known as a 'fuselage'.

[arky]

Thx Colin, I couldn't think of the correct term to save my neck!

Arky

[redsfan]

Good deal rontwo!! You've definitely got the right attitude, I'm sure you'll do just fine.

I understand that Specialized doesn't offer the hometime that the flatbed side does, but you may still get your weekends at home. My buddy that runs specialized for them has yet to spend a weekend away from home. He does live right off of I-95 just across the border from NC in SC, that probably has a lot to with it. He says that he spends most of his time running from NC to Miami and back, so you never know, you might be home more often than you think.

Keep us posted on how it goes.

[lomali]

I just found this website and saw your inquiry about Maverick. My husband also graduated from Cape Fear Truck Driving School six years ago and has been driving for Swift for the past 5 years. He is looking for a different company and has some interest in Maverick so I was just looking at their website but it didn't look like we qualify since we live in the Wilmington area. I was just wondering if you also lived in this area.
It sounds like a good company and it sure would be nice if he could be home more often. He is usually out for 3 to 4 weeks at a time with Swift.
Thanks for any info you can give me.

I have posted a few times but not many. But I have been lurking here for quite some time. Trans am Diary gave me the idea to do one on Maverick. Now I know most of you are probably thinking *oh geesh another Maverick post * but the difference between mine and the rest is that I have decided to go with Mavericks specialized division and well to be honest I haven't been able to find any information about that anywhere. So I figured I would add what Im learning along the way.

I recently graduated the Truck Driver Training Course at Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington NC. A rather long feeling 10 week course which I drove an hour and a half for each way every day for the past 10 long weeks. I didn't think getting started would ever happen but I must say that the folks in charge of the Truck Driver Training Course at this school are GREAT! They told me where I needed to go, where was the cheapest place to go etc to get everything that I needed done completed before I started school. It was a mad dash and at times I wasn't so sure I was going to make it but believe it or not, I got everything done in 3 days.

The school itself was great as well. The school has a lot of different tractors and they rotated us out every day driving different types. I have driven a 9 speed, 10 speed, super 10, super 13, cab overs, doubles, tankers,.. you name it I pretty much drove it.

During this time, my great wife started doing a lot of research by going threw tons of trucking companies, when she found the ones that she liked she than passed those on to me and we went threw them together. It was at this time that I found Maverick and started doing my research on this company.

I than decided that out of the companies I was looking at after all my research that I would give Maverick a call. I called and spoke to a recruiter and was very pleased with everything he had to tell me. Now one of the big things with me is that I tend not to believe a recruiter, 9 times out of 10 they are making their money by convincing me to go with their company however Maverick is not like that, my recruiter told me the first time I spoke to him that none of the recruiters with maverick get paid any type of commission for getting a new driver for the company. Sure he could have been blowing smoke but he seemed more interested in what I was interested in and what I was looking for than what the company was looking for (another bonus in my book). I decided after that first phone call that I was making the best choice for me.

So once we got off the phone, I went on-line and filled out my application, called my recruiter back and let him know I had applied. Within 30 minutes of me hitting the *submit* button, my phone was ringing and it was my recruiter again, calling to go over my application with me. Once that was done, the ball was in his court to do what he needed to do on his end. A few days later I got the call that I was pre-hired. Now where most people would get excited, I learned not to count my chickens before they hatch. I still had a bit of schooling to get done and than after that I have to complete all that Maverick requires before I am out on my own.

My wife has been celebrating along the way and although I keep telling her not to get to excited I haven't gotten a job yet, she keeps telling me to let her *woo whoo* along the way!

I had been keeping in contact with my recruiter while I was in school just to touch base from time to time and let him know how things were going. I received my CDL about a week and a half ago and knew that the end of my schooling was coming soon so again I contacted my recruiter and we started the ball rolling on when I would head out for Orientation. I had my options on 2 different dates either the 25th of March or the 19th of March and of course, I decided to take the closer one.

Today was my actual graduation day and I started the morning out with a phone call to my recruiter again to make sure everything was in place for me to be there for Orientation on the 19th. Now where Mavericks flat bed drivers head to AR, Maverick Specialized Division is all handled in the Great State of NC about a four and a half hour drive from where I live. Everything is set up and I will be heading out on the 18th to head up to Laurinburg NC for my Orientation Monday morning.

I want to say a special thanks to Arky who has given me tons of information on what to expect when it comes to Maverick, as well as redsfan, Stevedb28 and whoever else posted about their experience with Maverick.

and *thanks again* to madii's wife for giving me the idea to do a diary on the specialized division.

I will keep you all updated along the way as I am going threw things, well, I will be having my wife update you as I let her know how things are going.

Stay safe out there!

[rontwo]

(rons wife)

well ron made it to maverick we drove up and it wasnt bad, not to long of a drive at all. the hotel was easy to find and a very nice hotel i might add. btw if you ever look into doing it this way a little tip *call the hotel to make your reservations* ~ they have a maverick cost which i didnt know about when i made the reservations online. we were told this by the hotel staff. could have saved us about 1/2 the cost of the hotel but thats alright. unfortunately we were all sick when we got there (thanks kids *lol*). Ron has been calling me when he can and i promise i will update this as soon as we get everything he has been going threw straight. hes had some long late nights the past few days, not getting back to the hotel until around 7:30-8:30 at night. so far things have been going really good for him
i just wanted to touch base and let yall know why we havent updated it yet, i promise we will get to it ASAP.

edited to add: about the hotel cost, we went up on sunday and paid for the night sunday - monday because we (myself and the kids) didnt return back home until monday. Maverick pays for the hotel cost for the folks going threw their orientation. I just wanted to clear that up.

[redsfan]

Don't worry about it, he'll have a lot more free time to update once he gets officially hired tomorrow. Those long days really shorten up then. It'll be more like 8-5 with very little homework, at least compared to the first few days.

If he's made it this far, the most likely have every intention of keeping him around now.

Good luck!

[rontwo]

Finally I have had a bit of time to sit down and go over things with Ron that he has been doing over the past 6 days while at maverick. Between us both being sick and him being so busy we just haven’t had the chance to get this updated. Thanks for being so patient with us…

Sunday we made it to Laurinburg and stayed over night, something about being in the car with the kids for about 7 hours (round trip) just wasn’t doing it for me so we opted to make it an over night trip for us. I had made the reservations online before we went but when we got there we were told by the hotel staff had we called the reservations in we could have gotten a maverick special cost deal. Not a big deal but something I thought I would point out.

The hotel is really nice, it has a seasonal pool, a weight room back by the pool, as well as 2 picnic tables and a grill. The rooms are very nice and have lots of pillows, are nicely decorated with nice fixtures. They also offer a very nice continental breakfast which includes muffins, sausage biscuits and waffles (breakfast is served from 5:30am to 8:30am every morning, so if your catching that maverick van at 6:30am you have plenty of time to eat before you leave) the coffee is great as well.

Monday

Monday morning Ron had to be outside by 6:30am to catch the Maverick van to the yard.

When you first arrive to the maverick yard the first thing you notice is a a lot of old Schneider trucks still there, they aren’t bad looking, well either that or the pumpkin color is growing on him, I will let you decide on that one *lol*. Ron has been taking photos the entire time to post once he gets home.

Once everyone got out of the van, they went upstairs into the classroom for orientation. As we entered into the classroom the first thing you noticed was that everything was laid out for us, books and a bag full of various safety equipment items (hard hats, gloves, etc).

We were introduced to our instructors that morning and than they discussed what we would be doing that day. After the introductions were over with, we were told to go downstairs and wait for our instructor to come down. When he came down we were all taken over to the hospital for our DOT physicals.
Once we were all done with our physicals we were picked back up and taken back to the yard. Once there we went over a few different things… some policies and we filled out some paperwork as well. We also watched a video and took a test.
Also in the morning we got to meet the previous class that went into orientation the week before along with some regular maverick flatbed drivers that came to learn how to secure glass etc ~ they are on their way to becoming maverick ace drivers (ace drivers do both divisions).
And than it was lunch time which Maverick paid for.
After lunch, we went back and we had to take another physical. After we got done with that, we did more classroom time. Went into the computer room, where we filled out our personal information etc into the computer. All in all by the end of the day we finally got out of there around 8:00pm and headed back to the hotel.

Tuesday

We again had to be downstairs by 6:30am to catch the van over to the yard.

We went into the classroom and went over a few more things than we were told we would be given our driving test that day. Which is when the class went downstairs and waited until our instructor was ready to go.

We went out one at a time doing the driving test… which took all morning. After all of our driving tests were done, maverick treated us to lunch again.

After lunch we went back to the classroom where we did some more classroom time, watched videos and took more tests.

We also talked about different types of trailers, there were a lot more different types of trailers than you would expect. (Ron didn’t give me the exact number but said he would at a later date.)

We walked the yard and the instructor showed us all the different types of trailers there are. In the back of the yard there are 50 or more maverick maroon trucks that are getting equipped and ready to replace the older Schneider trucks… there is a rumor that there are another 100+ more on order.

After that we went back into the classroom and did more classroom time… took more tests and had our photos taken for our ID badges.

We finally got finished around 8:30pm that night and headed back to the hotel. We had log book homework to do after we got to the hotel.

Wednesday

Was pretty much the same as the first few… a lot more classroom time and tests. During one of the breaks this day I was outside talking with a few of the maverick ace drivers and they all had positive things to say. Turns out that one of the ace drivers also comes to the message board (as a lurker) and knew my diary. Gave me a lot of incite on the company and it was all positive. BOL to you ace driver and hope to run into you again in the future.
We were issued our ID badges and got out of there around 7:00pm and headed back to the hotel.

Maverick also treated us all to lunch again on wed.


Thursday

We went in the morning and the head instructor talked to us about the company and we were all told we had made it this far and everything looked good. We were told that we would be offered the job and we had to make up our minds if we wanted to work with maverick or not. He answered any questions we had to ask and than went down threw the pay scale etc.
Than our regular instructor took over and we went over securement training etc. around 10am we went downstairs and were introduced to all the fleet managers (another great group of people) and we were showed the offices etc. we were than told to go take a break and once we were done to go up to the computer room. All of the instructors were there and talked to us for a few minutes, we than logged onto the computer and at that time we had the opportunity to either accept or decline the job offer.
We became official maverick employees as soon as we accepted the offer (there go the free lunches *lol*). At this time all of the instructors congratulated us on being hired on, shook our hands and talked to us a bit more about the company.
At this time we officially ended our orientation.

We left the yard around 6:30pm and headed back to the hotel with another homework assignment ~ more log book stuff.

Friday

This is when the fun really begins *lol*

We started our flatbed load securement training… we did a bunch of different types of load securement on flatbeds.

After lunch we had to break down glass holding flatbeds ~ we had 4 trailers total, all A frame trailers (glass hauling trailers). First we had to break down the A frames by unbolting them. Once the A frames were completely broken down we had to secure the pieces to the flatbed and than stacked the flatbeds on top of each other. So in the end we only had 2 trailers. This is not something that all classes get to do, but something that needed to be done so we were given the opportunity to do it.

We finally got out of the yard around 6pm and headed back to the hotel.

Saturday

We finished securing down all the flatbeds we stacked the day before. And than we went back over to the other area and did more securement training.

We spent until around 2pm which is when we were released for the day. I was finally able to get some laundry done. There is a laundry at the yard so myself and another guy stayed and got our laundry done before heading back to the hotel.

the guys that I have been going threw all of this with and will continue for another week are great. We have all became really close and its almost like a family away from home. We have a good time just sitting around and relaxing at the hotel and are making plans to have a cook out at the hotel one night, just to enjoy ourselves and relax. Really a great bunch of guys! We all work as a team and really great together.

My person experience with maverick so far is all positive, I am very happy with this company and I know I made the best decision for me. Everything I was told by my recruiter is exactly as he told me it would be and than some. Next week our hours are supposed to be shorter so hopefully we will be able to update this more.


BOL ron and ron's wife

[Redeemed]

rontwo (or rontwo's wife)

On Monday I noticed that you were taken to the hospital for DOT physicals in the morning and then you said you had another physical in the afternoon? Can you give a little more detail? Is the afternoon physical for DOT or is it part of the agility test?