I have been a Director of IT Systems for the last 10 years, and before that I owned restaurants. It is time to change fields of employment. I live in Tulsa, Oklahoma and am thinking about attending a driving school here and trying to find a job driving. I figure I might want to own a few trucks one day and I like to know all aspects of what I want to do. I have a few questions:

1. I have been reading boards until I am blue in the face and have come to one conclusion, there are many people out there than know a ton of stuff and have formed their own opinions on posted subjects. With this in mind, I would like your opinions on some good beginner choices.

2. I adore my family and have always been around for them, I have two boys and a wonderful wife. I don’t mind being gone for 2 to 4 days at a time or even gone and back every weekend. Is this a dream or is this a possibility?

3. What is the best form of trucking to get into?

4. How do I know if the company is just feeding me a line?

5. Is a private school here better than a company paid school? Will I have more options if I do the private schooling?

6. What kind of truck should I want to drive in? I see many posts on crappy equipment and what not what are the main differences?

7. What are some basic questions I should ask before I leap?


Thank you all in advance for any and all answers to my questions.

 

1. Here's my opinion; You need to get your head checked. Seriously.

2. It's possible. But this is not and should not be your first concern.

3.

 

You'll be away from your family much more then you may want to be. Maybe try to get something local such as a union. Conway sometimes trains.

 

To put it in a nice way:
The family time will suffer, this does not make you a bad father or husband. I raised 2 family's ( not at the same time...lol ) on the road. Sometimes a man has to do what he has to do to support a family. From the sound of it, you are an educated man, and have money saved, so you can support your family without driving a truck. Some of us don't have an education, and the money made in trucking allows us to give the family more of the better things in life but less time for the family. Its really a trade off and some will say money isn't everything, but for me it was a way to improve the quality of life for my family, and also give my kids a chance of a higher education.
I have always made a very good living on the road, owned my own homes, new cars and family vacations etc. An average good income for a driver with experience is in the neighborhood of 50k to 70k. Some on this forum will talk of very high wages into the 100k but most will never see this type of wage no matter what anyone says!
Remember this: believe none of what you hear, and half of what you SEE!...lol
If I were you, I would wait until the kids are out of school then live your dream. I don't know if I have answered all your questions, but maybe given you some direction as far as your family life is concerned.
Best of luck in what ever you decide...

 

CONTINUED (had a rough day yesterday):

3)i would say financially, autohauling, truckhauling or boathauling. Delivering anything with a motor in it pays good.

Hazmat tanker (i.e., gasoline) pays really good and you'll be at home everyday, but it's very dangerous. I wouldn't want to do it.

HHG (household goods----the movers) pay good too.

NOw as far as good overall for other reasons:
Van is pretty easy---lots of drop and hook and for most larger companies, theres no unloading involved.

Reefer has the advantage of usually the most amount of freight (because a reefer can take both reefrigeratorated and regular freight) so there less sitting around time waiting for your next load.
But reefer may have disadvantages such as the reefer unit in a lot of cases is noisy---how are you going to sleep. Although they are getting better. And lots of the places you deliver to are 24 hour places meaning that your sleep schedule may be messed up.

I can't comment fully on flatbedding as i have only done that locally. I can say that personally, i don't like it.

4. ASSUME that the company is "always feeding you a line." unless otherwise directed. The best thing to do is talk to recruiters and/or read the magazines. Then come back here and state exactly what they said. We will then "translate" for you.
This does not connote that all companies are inherently bad. It merely states that you should ASSUME initially that the company is "always feeding you a line" at all times.
That's just the way the trucking game is played.

5. In my opinion, private school is better than company sposored, because exactly as you say-----you have more options.
The only exception to this rule is if you are having a difficult time passing the test. In this case company sponsored training is good because you never "fail" the test especially if the company if a third party tester.

6. Well, basically anything EXCEPT freightliner and you'll be ok. Now frieghtklunker is improving, but we can't take any chances right now. The problem with frieghtklunker is the noise and loose steering. Remember, you are going to be driving 10-11 hours a day. High noise is unacceptable. Loose steering means you're going to get tired fast.


7. Let me think about this one as far as what questions to ask a company.

But the main question you need to ask yourself is where, when and how am i going to sleep?

--Have you even been inside a truck?

---truckstops are some of the noisiest places on earth. On par with a rock concert or an airport tarmac.

That is the question you need to be asking, kiddo.

 

Lewis Friend thank you for your in-depth answers to my questions I posed to the forums. I have a couple pieces of news I will share with you, I have been on the phone with recruiters all morning long and a couple of them mentioned TMC. Does anyone here know anything about TMC? I have been told that one can be pre-accepted into their program after graduating driving school. I am going into this basically only believing what I see, I find that to be a good motto to live by in most cases.

This is what is on their website, which matches what the recruiter told me:

TMC Linehaul Driver
Drivers in this TMC division can be home 46 out of 52 weekends a year. You will haul freight of all kinds with an average length of haul around 600 miles. You are paid weekly on a percentage or mileage scale (your choice). Pay for performance allows new drivers to earn top pay in as little as 1 month after being assigned your own truck. Drivers in this division must live in a defined region. Call for details on this. 1-800-247-2862 ext 1

The recruiter and the company both say they run no more than 2 year old trucks. I figure just through logic that this is a good thing. Here is what is on their website about their equipment:

TMC knows that great drivers want to drive great, well-maintained and safe equipment. That’s why we have ordered 1,000 new Peterbilt trucks for delivery in 2006. Not only are these the best looking trucks on the road, the interiors are designed to provide superior driver comfort. Here are just a few of the features offered on our trucks:

• Leather seats and top-of-the-line interior package
• Power heated mirrors
• CB radios
• Power steering & power windows
• Eaton Vorad Collision Warning System
• Jake Brake
• 13-speed transmission
• Cat C-15 475 horsepower engine
• Qualcomm Satellite System

Drivers who take pride in what they do want clean equipment. TMC pays to have all of its trucks washed weekly. We also support you with round the clock road repair service as well as exceptional operational support.
At TMC, we really do treat our drivers like family.
Annett Holdings owns and operates the Baymont Inn & Suites near the Des Moines International Airport. This upscale hotel—which includes a swimming pool, fitness spa, game rooms, and a barbershop—serves as TMC’s Employee Hospitality Center. Drivers stay at the hotel, which is open to the public, while their tractors are being serviced in TMC’s nearby maintenance facility.

I want to end up in Fedex owning a few trucks while contracted to them. From all my reading and talking to people I think I am on the right track. Would any of your agree?

Thank you again for your time and effort to answer my questions.

 

I was in IT for 27 years when the lack of local jobs in IT and unable to afford relocation to the places that did I was forced into making a career change.

There are many things that make IT and truck driving the same, but just as many that don't. Be careful not to be caught into the allure, the romance (if there is any) of this industry.

You need to be talking to your wife and kids about this, and I don't mean like a manager. I mean like have several discussions with them, heart to heart kind.

You want to hear a fairly good simulation of what its like. You check into a cheap hotel. Your only form of communication with your family will be the telephone. You cannot see them until the end and then for only 2 days. Tell them that you will be gone for 2 weeks but be gone for 4. The second time 'you go out' tell them you will be gone for 2 weeks but be gone for 3.

 

Thank you for your comments. I have talked to my wife and kids, they would miss me, but being home on weekends isn't that bad of a deal for me. I worked 16 hour days in my IT job and never saw them. There was ton's of weekends I never saw them either. I am looking at this as the first step in a business solution. I would like to be like a friend of mine who has 6 trucks in contract with Fedex. Nothing is set in stone, I am just on my scouting trips so to say and I really love all this feedback I am getting.

 

Like you I thought the same way. Oh in 27 years how many times did I get to see my family, how many 24,72,96 hour days have i had, etc etc etc.

When your working and something really bad DOES happen you could be home in a very short period of time. When you are on a truck you might be able to come home some time.

 

Hey Edosta, your ahead of most of those on the road as you took the time to get on the internet and do some research, knowledge is king!

You can make an awesome living driving a truck, talk to your friend over a few drinks and ask him to open up on the financial aspects of his operation. If he lies like a rug and says he is not making any money but drives a Ferrari look elsewhere for info as he is hide mode, as many are on this board.

Although I give SSouthlaw some credit, he now states that most will not make a 100K a year, that in itself is a major breakthrough in therapy that perhaps he has not been there and done all that, as no one has. You never stop learning in this industry, moreso than others, not only in skill and proficiency but in profitability (for O/O like your friend and your goals).

Find out how hard he runs his trucks, 500 miles a day might make a few bucks and a 1000 miles a day will make good bucks (multiple drivers). Times that by a few units and you will be back to the business of managing equipment and people, and the financial rewards as well. Sound business principles apply here as much as anywhere else.

Go for it, if you went to this much trouble learning the proverbial ropes, it will gnaw at you if you do not give it a shot!