Transport America?

[coldbrewzz]

Hello everyone, i was just curious as to what kind of information i could get from current or past trans. drivers.................i am a student grad who waited too long after my graduation date to get hired by roeh, schneider, crete..................so i ended up choosing trans.........over usexpress, werner, swift and usa truck............i know they are all what some of you call "coolie carriers" but i have to get me experiance somewhere. Questions i have about trans is..........will i get my miles? or at least the same as i would at other companies...........hometime will that be decent..........equipment? ............thank you for any information..........by the way i start orientation this sunday and i live in ohio.

[ohio joe]

Hey Cold brewzz im in ohio also i just did an appl. w/TA i will need a refresher i think, but 1st i want them 2 tell me yes or no on appl.. good luck!

[coldbrewzz]

ok i have read so many diaries on here and find them so helpfull and iteresting i am gonna give it a try myself and hopefully someone will benefit from it........day 1 sunday night i drove myself to orientation in indiana (scottsburg) checked into my room and roomate was not there yet. I have to say the motel is a nice and clean motel with an outdoor pool.........Roomate arrived at about 8 pm we introduced ourselves and started to talk. He told me he use to drive a greyhound bus and was gonna give trucking a truy. Much different story for me my company (norwalk furniture) is starting to move jobs south and mine was one. So as we kept talking we were discussing some of our fears when he .proceeded to pull out a few weapons he brought with him to protect himself.........tire thumper....knife sssss...and i was thinking hmmmmmmmmm. didnt give it a whole lot more thought... then about 12 midnight we had just went to sleep and he starts talking to himself and i dont mean just talking it was a nightmare he was having and his voice was very terrified now i am starting to think please dont do this all night. Then he wakes up and thinks i am sleeping and calls someone on his cell phone from his bed, and asks them what his dream was about telling them he didnt know if he was in a bad place or what ......so needless to say it was a very long night for me.....not a good begining.

[coldbrewzz]

We awake at 5:30 get a shower and before we leave roomate asks me if i heard him last night talking in his sleep i said yes but didnt make out what he was saying.... he told me he was dreaming he was trapped in his owne body and couldnt get out and his g/f was on top of him and he was reaching out for me ? i said what? me? he tried to explain but to be honest by now i am just aggrevated......so anyway bus letaves at a6:45 for the terminal we get there and start to fill out paperwork. LOTS.then next thing you know they split us up for the pee test and phys......well i got to the pee test and couldnt go so they gave me the physical and about 3 glasses of water so i could pee and it worked.....the physical was very general the main thing is blood pressure.......then they put you through a mild workout lift a crait with weight in it move a 2 wheel dolly about 10 feet and back and then step up and down on a set of steps for 3 minutes.........nothing bad at all and i am a big guy myself and had no problem and i know the women all did well with the weights nobody failed..then back to class for lunch and some more paper work.........get on the bus at 5:45 back to motel. get back and the best part no roomy........yes seems like he was sent packing because of some felony problems..........so hopefully tonight will be a better night sleep i feel much more comfortable already.

[coldbrewzz]

Day 2 of class........up and shower and load the bus at 6:45 i can tell you dont be late it wont wait.....Started day 1 with 12 in the class left yesterday with 10 my roomy and another guy who i think he had some past issues also were let go start day 2 with 8 2 guys left because they felt money wasnt gonna be there. I talked to the one and he honestly to me seemed like one of those guys who just didnt wanna work and will be on here bad mouthing TA.........anyway the 8 of us were split up into a morning and afternoon class morning class in the yard/road.......then we switch.........did some more paper work then got to go to the simulator first time in simulator all we did was go through the gears to 10 then back down.........next time we did a serpentine then a simulated skid on ice...............was realy neat i thought.........then we get back and lunch that is brought by a caterer and very good in my opinion.........after lunch my group hist the road 2 people in a truck we drove for about 2 and a half hours each..... i went first and started out a little rough mising gears not looking far enough ahead and mirror checks but i started to get much better by the end........then we switch. and other guy drives.........head back to school and leave at 5:45 i have to say so far everything is great with the school and trainers all very professional and very helpful........so head back to motel and call my wife and son who i am missing so much i cant explain..........i told my wife how nice it was and that it would be nice to go golfing for the first time she said well why dont you go and relax a little so i took her up on it.....and went, i have to say she is being extremely helpfull in this situation she is so supportive and that is NEEDED sooooooo much...........so i get back from golf at about 8 and now i am gonna head out grab dinner which the spring for in a meal ticket worth 7.50 the get back and hit the sack......i will update tomorrow all in all everything is good so far couldnt be happier

[coldbrewzz]

Ok day 3 which will bring my post up to date.......yes the marianne which i am at has wireless internet but its not so good and i couldnt get on line till today...........so anyway up and shower and out the door on the bus at 6:45.............get to class and go of logs and trip planning and qualcom which all isnt too bad you just gotta pay attention it dosent come the first time just ask questions they will help dont feel like its just you not getting it it is everyone, well almost everyone...........catch lunch then hit the yard yard work is 45 degree dock 90 degree dock and a couple other all stuff we went thru in school just not between two trailers......instructors all helpfull and friendly i cant say enough about them.........in the class and in the yard and on the road. kudos.....journal is gonna be kinda short tonight i am very tired long days and i havent been getting the rest i should so tonight i am gonna make sure i do and to be truthfull i have updated all entries just now so i am tired of typing...........will get a better detailed entry tomorrow..........

[hitman]

Keep up the journal coldbrewzz...looking forward to it since Transport America is one of the 3 companies on my short list. Thank God they got rid of that psycho roommate. I wouldn't had been able to sleep. The shower scene from the movie Psycho would had been stuck in my head :shock:

[coldbrewzz]

sorry so long since a post but like i had said the internet access at the motel TA puts you in isnt very good so i was unable to get back online. So anyway here is how the week ended......Friday morning watched some movies about safety and had a safety class.....then went over some more paper work it seems as it is never ending. Did some more trip planning which you will do every day and log books of course. We all found out who our trainers were going to be and i got to talk with mine for a few minutes to arrange when we could hook up to get out sunday for me was hoping for monday so i could get some things done but sunday will be fine. He seems like a nice guy so gonna have my fingers crossed because i have heard all the horror stories but mostly with other companies. Saturday morning we go in for our final day and fill out an evaluation form on the orientation process....... i have to say mine was nothing but compliments i thought everyone was freindly and helpfull and all the trainers very knowlegable. I know a couple people in the class had some complaints but in my opinion they were just being a little ticky tacky. Anyway to each their owne. I am learning in this business there are alot of people who just dont do enough research before they jump in and then it seems they have alot to complain about when expectations were not met. So anyway then we take our final test which is a 30 minute road ride nothing real serious just like any other ride and you get graded. Actualy i thought it was even more laid back today than anyother day. Then you are free to leave i was out of there by 8:30 a.m. Now after a 5.5 hour trip i back for a little home time to see the wife and son which i have missed and back out tomrrow to meet up with my trainner and on the road for my first day. I will try to update as often as possible i dont have an air card yet (money is tight you know) so will do what i can for now.

[Bengalman]

good luck I just quit after 10 days with my trainer the last run we did we left indiana fri morning at 8.00 drove to north jackson oh got there about 1.00 sat there for 3 hours gave us 2 runs had to be at first place at 9.00 fri night then had to be at 2nd stop 8.00 am sat morning we were up on duty for 27 hours they are not a safe company all crap in orintation about safety and logs is a joke . im going back to the factory

[YoungZ.W.]

[quote]good luck I just quit after 10 days with my trainer the last run we did we left indiana fri morning at 8.00 drove to north jackson oh got there about 1.00 sat there for 3 hours gave us 2 runs had to be at first place at 9.00 fri night then had to be at 2nd stop 8.00 am sat morning we were up on duty for 27 hours they are not a safe company all crap in orintation about safety and logs is a joke . im going back to the factory


Last I heard of you, you were going to sit at home and milk the disability system Talk about a joke.

[Bengalman]

the joke is on you fool

[coldbrewzz]

Ok...so finally get to update.....left sunday at about 2 going to my service center to meet up with my trainer and hit the road......finaly got on the road about 6:30 and left north jackson ohio to south bend
indiana.......i didnt drive my trainer likes to use that first day as a get to know each other type of thing which was fine with me........we got to talk and seems like he is a good guy.......dont smoke and is clean thats a huge plus.....so laid over in south ben indiana till monday and sat monday morning ready to go for 4 hours we werent very happy but finnaly got a load to pick up in holland mich and run down to indianapolis i finally got to drive and did so for about 4 hours did good at first but then got into town hit a bunch of stop lights and traffic and missed a couple gears and grinded doing my down shifting. so then we stayed in indianpolis monday night and go a run for tuesday going to cedar rapids iowa but we couldnt pick the load up until 6 pm and had to deliver by 2 am wed. made our drop and headed about 10 minutes to a TA service plaza. Oh and that is a point i missed is that when i got to my trainer and in the truck it is brand new wow what luck......has only 45 thousand on it and so now were sitting here waiting on an oil change and service then we have a load headed to chicago.........so far everything has gone well......trainer is a nice guy and does a good job..........he runs everything legal and hasnt pushed me at all so other than having to sit and wait for a few hours everything has been very good so far......................well for now gonna sign off take a hot shower and head for chicago.......will update when i can.

[hitman]

Good deal...glad to hear that you got a decent trainer. Must feel as good as winning the lottery :wink:

[wimpy]

Coldbrewzz, just wanted to say congratulations on your new job! Personally I love hearing about new drivers getting a long good at their new jobs and it sounds like you are. So BOL to you and hope to see you out there one day!!!

[coldbrewzz]

Hello everyone, first off i just want to thank everyone for their support it is greatly appreciated i am sure you all know how tough it is. And for the guy who said good luck they are not a safe driving company well i cant say i completely agree. I truly believe (just from what i have read) that most if not all companies do the things you were upset about. In fact that happend to me this week 2 nights in a row after being up all day waiting on a load finaly getting one and having to drive till 3 in the morning .........not fun at all but i did manage to make it through it and i am sure as time goes on i will adapt to it but i hope it dosent happen on a regular basis......... anyway to update things are still going well trainer and i are still getting along and yes that is like hitting the jackpot......so when i last left off it was a load going to chicago..........WOW what an experiance...........i drove to just outside of downtown (far enough for this rookie) and that was extremely busy with lots of crazy 4 wheelers....then my trainner took over and we got downtown to streets and underpasses made for cars i think.....lol.............anyway dropped off without a hitch then deadheaded about 15 miles to pick up a home depot load that we ended up having to relay.............thurday we woke up to another day of waiting for a load and finaly getting one heading us back home to ohio........made it home safe and sound a little tired and in need of a hot shower and and some family time......man i cant tell you how much i miss them...........i did get alot better this week still have some issues at times with my downshifting mostly because i get too impatient and want to go too fast and keep up with the big boys but all in all did well.............hopefully with a week under my belt i will do better next week...............i have to say i truly did feel much more comfortable with the truck today than i have all week so things are looking up........so i am off until early monday morning then back out for 2 weeks so gonna enjoy the time while i can...........once again thanks to everyone who has shared there kind words of support and i hope you all enjoy this as much as i have enjoyed reading other peoples experiances and hopefully i can help someone out as much as i have been helped by others.........until next time take care and drive safe........

[coldbrewzz]

Hi again, ok so when i last stopped by it was the weekend and i was enjoying my home time..........left out monday morning early to drive an hour and a half to my service center..........got there and left just after 6 a.m headed just down the road about an hour to drop a load left from the weekend........then picked up another (my first hazmat load) 16 thousand pounds of acid headed to KC........monday i drove about 6.5 hours and we stopped in brazil indiana...........then headed out this morning about 6 and i got another 6 hours of driving today and we arrived in KC.........at a TA service center that is only a few miles from our drop early in the morning........we got here early so we headed down to the casino that is only a few miles from our service center.......had lunch and played some nickel slot and now back relaxing and watching some tv.........no preplan yet so not sure what tomorrow holds for us other than our delivery i did get to do some practice backing this afternoon at the service center which i am happy about i need as much as i can get so when i am out at the truck stops or at the drops bumping docks i am ready.........i have been alot more comfortable these past couple days and done much better than i did last week allthough i still from time to time miss a gear or get some grinds but i am working hard on correcting that and i feel by the end of this two week stretch i should be alot better at that with the increased driving time..........i think it is nerves that gets me the most seems like i will do fine for along time and then get in some heavy traffic and do something wrong and then it just seems to magnify itself..............but thats what the trainer is for and thats what this 4 weeks are for to work on all that stuff...........good thing is i am getting pretty comfortable with the truck and the nerves are not nearly what they were last week........................well wish me luck and i will post as soon as i get another chance..........drive safe.

[Pony Express]

Sounds like you are right on the money with your possitive attitude man!
Take your time, go at your own pace and nothing will bother you soon.
Best of luck to ya!

[coldbrewzz]

well just for an update.....by the way thanks pony you comment is greatly appreciated..........its saturday evening and were setting at a petro in in joplin mo..........after a nice long trip from kansas to laredo texas.................and now on our way to normal ill............got to do some bad weather driving yesterday going through some pretty bad storms with tornado warnings in the area about an hour south of dallas...........i handled it well maintaining my following distance and staying pretty comfortable with the truck.............we have until mon. to deliver so we are taking it easy stopping early and relaxing.......things are still going very well and as i said from the begining i still cant be happier with my trainer. hope to get some more good runs next week and get home by friday to spend time with my family..............will update as soon as i get a chance wi fi is free here at the petro so thats a huge help considering i just spent another 10 for a shower and it was well worth it.........until next time take care and drive safe..............

[coldbrewzz]

hello again everyone............just thought i would drop in and update....things are still going well, training is coming along well and i have an appointment to test out not this monday but the following.......so 1 more week to brush up on things.......i guess transport gives you a driving test and a written test with over 100 questions on it so i have some studying to do.............after i left you last i was going to normal ill. well after that trip we headed back down to texas to dallas then over to witchita falls to pick up a load going to dyersburg tenn. and once we arrived there we went down to memphis to pick up a load taking us home to north jackson ohio.................all in all it was a very long week we ran just over 3000 miles...............but it was good experiance for me..........got home friday and now enjoying the weekend........dont have to head back out until monday night........yes next week it seems as if we will be running mostly nights. a guy on a dedicated ppg account got hurt and the freight manager called my trainer and asked if he would fill in for him for a while and he said yes and most of the running on this account is nights............i am not realy excited about this but oh well it will give me some good night driving experiance. and it will also get me home to test out next week which is the best part and a big reason my trainer agreed to it.................i think that is realy cool of him and told him so........well for now i am gonna run hope you all have a good weekend. will update again soon..................drive safe.

[Karnajj]

Glad to see the miles are picking up. After reading your description of your first week I was left thinking I'm glad I don't work for TA! Short runs and a lot of waiting. Maybe they do that on purpose during a trainee's first week. Hope it all works out for you.