[grandpatim]

My wife and I applied to Schneider last week and were told today that they are not hiring from our area now. Does anyone have any recommendations for a training company that we could attend that wouldn't charge an arm and a leg for up front costs. We like CFI but can't afford the 1500 bucks a piece training costs. We have no kids at home anymore and we sold our house so hometime is not a problem. Thanks

[GMAN]

There are a number of training carriers. Most do not require any sort of up front money, to my knowledge. Swift, Millis, Roehl, CRST, Covenant and US Xpress are a few that come up on this forum. You can do a search on each and find out about them. You will need to check with them concerning where you live. What part of the country do you currently reside?

[Uturn2001]

Quite a few are requiring a down payment anymore. Usually around $500 with the remainder financed through the work agreement.

Check with your state employment office about the possibility of getting a grant to pay for your initial schooling.

[grandpatim]

GMAN, We live in Brownfield Texas. About 35 miles southwest of Lubbock. I have been researching companies for 2 years and I mainly don't want a company that is a CDL mill. I guess the best thing is to do a poll about companies we're interested in. I have been reading about different companies on the forums but still cannot figure out which ones to believe. I don't mind signing a contract for a year in return for training.

[dle]

The schools are the CDL mills.

The 'training' companies have contracts with various driving schools, Those schools are typically 2-3 weeks in length and only serve to get you your CDL.

Once you get done there, you will then spend time with a company trainer. BTW, what are your plans about that? Together, separately? Are you planning on going for your CDL at the same time or different times? What are you going to do if one of you doesn't make it?

In terms of what companies? Have you tried the link at the top of the page 'trucking companies"?

[grandpatim]

Like I said, we have been researching this for 2 years now. We have only waited this long until our last kid got out of school so we could do it together. I'll address some of your points.

The schools are the CDL mills.

I don't consider Schneider a cdl mill. But I do consider Swift and England the mills.

The 'training' companies have contracts with various driving schools, Those schools are typically 2-3 weeks in length and only serve to get you your CDL.

Yes I know some companies send you to a school to get training like CFI, TMC etc. And others like Rhoel, Schneider and Swift have their own schools.

Once you get done there, you will then spend time with a company trainer.

Yes some make you drive with a trainer for 2-3 weeks, others keep you out 8 weeks like Swift and Stevens, and others like CFI make you do so many miles.

BTW, what are your plans about that? Together, separately? Are you planning on going for your CDL at the same time or different times? What are you going to do if one of you doesn't make it?

We are wanting to go to school and OTR training together to learn the other one's strong and weak points and how to adjust and learn to work with each other. And if one doesn't make it then the one that does will drive while the other one gets into a school.

In terms of what companies? Have you tried the link at the top of the page 'trucking companies"?

I have been using the trucking company links for a while. Some are not accurate anymore. Some companies now offer some sort of training where others don't anymore. I haven't done the generic application because I don't want a bunch of companies calling me all the time.

Sorry to sound pissy. But we were set on Schneider but since they said no more hiring from here we have to start all over finding a company that fits us. We are in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy from medical bills when my wife had cancer. The court says we cannot finance and make payments for a school. So it pretty much has to be one that pays for the training when you sign a contract for a year. So thats pretty much where we stand right now. We are considering Central Refrigerated. I know that don't get a good rap here. But I have talked to a few of their drivers at our local truck stop and they have all said good things about the training and the company. Stevens is having an event in Lubbock on Monday that we plan to attend but .23 cpm sure isn't much. We are going to check it out anyway.

Hell I'm only 49 so I got a little while longer to figure it out.

Thanks dle. And sorry for sounding like a biatch.

[inmate1577]

Just to clairfy SNI doesnt recruit out of schools, Werner , Economy Express etc do.
I was at a school in California and watched a Werner rep in a spiffy brand new truck (which no newb will get)) crash into a telephone poll trying to exit the driveway.

The best part about SNI is that every spring and winter they have mandatory training for all drivers to check your skills and update everyone on current and changing federal laws and border crossing issues. This training is for ALL drivers whether they have been with the company for two weeks or 20 years.

If you have problems with backing while on the road you can request a remedial course in backing or whatever the problem you are having to get you back on course.

Be warned, SNI does not take to illegal log books very kindly. You log as you drive it, there is no room for discussion on th subject.

Yeah, they may pay less than most, but I'd say they treat their drivers better than most and safety is a No 1 priority.

Personally I'd rather work for less and enjoy the job and the company than make more and be miserable. But then again, looking at my checks the last few months, I'd say the slow freight issue is just a myth.

[grandpatim]

I am a member of pumpkindriver.com and have been for 2 years. They are where I wanted us to be. But they ARE NOT hiring from our area anymore. So I have to look elswhere.

[Uturn2001]

Just to clarify so everyone is on the same page:

A CDL Mill is a school that hopefully will give you just enough knowledge to pass the skills test.

Many of the schools/programs that companies use for their "paid' schooling are mills. You will have 1-2 weeks of range work, little or no class room, a large number of students, and they rely very heavily on the trainers to fill in the gaps which are considerable.

[dle]

The only company that I am aware of that will train husband/wifes together on the same truck is Covenant - unless they changed that. I personally don't recall any others.

No offense taken - were you intending to?

I don't know anything about them but this might also be a possibility
http://www.otrdrivers.com/

BTW, my wife and I were planning on doing the same thing -- but problems were ran into. Keep your options open and discuss all the possibilities that could happen.