Truck Driving Jobs

TnCj · #1 12-01-2015, 03:29 PM

Hey all
We are strongly considering,well actually hoping that Celadon will hire us on as a team. The wife is planning on going through their training school, I have a couple of questions for the people that have actually worked for or know about Celadon. Any help is appreciated. I have been driving still just not OTR for the last few years, I have heard the drive test for celadon was pretty tough. I have been mostly driving cabovers pulling ~ 44 ft trailers. I am worried that I won't be able to pass the driving test in a conventional pulling a 53 ft trailer. I can do the refresher training that celadon offers but if I do that, then the wife will need to go through the month of school and then drive for 10,000 miles with a trainer and it will also cut our team CPM by .06 per mile. That's a pretty big pay difference for anyone much less a team. I feel that I can probably pass the test, I would just rather be safe and take the refresher course and lose the pay per mile than fail or even worse pass and get on the road and have an accident. I guess my question is how difficult is the driving and backing test, do they time you on it or not care how long it takes you as long as you don't hit anything,and does any one have any advice for us starting out on this journey?

repete · #2 12-01-2015, 06:40 PM

No knowledge about Celadon, but I switched from cabover to a conventional without a problem and I had a time lag in between. I's good to be concerned but try not to worry to much about it, if your like me you are your worst enemy! Just remember to swing a little wider than you usually do. I've heard little about Celadon but most has been good, Good luck

TnCj · #3 12-14-2015, 12:03 PM

Well we were both brought to Lareado to do our "schooling" for Celadon. I am doing the 2 day refresher course just to make myself feel better ( because I am,in fact as Repete said my own worst enemy lol)and the wife is doing the full school and then 10k miles with a trainer, I will be running solo (hopefully) while she is completing school, and we will switch to team afterwards. We are starting classes today, will see how it goes from here...

TnCj · #4 12-18-2015, 04:44 PM

Not sure any one cares or wants to know,but I will post our experiences so far. I T have completed the 2 day refresher I wanted to attend, completed and passed the road and backing test, and the 2.5 day orientation for Celadon. My wife C is doing the full 5-6 week driving school. We both started on Monday 12/14/2015 the first couple of days for her were on a pad doing parallel and straight backing, the school put the trainees on the side roads yesterday to get their first drive time, from here on out hey will spend 4 hours per day backing and 4 hours on the road. There are 3-4 people per truck so each is only getting 1-1.5 HR drive time per day. After the school C will have to go with a trainer for 10k miles. The first 5k C has to drive like a solo the last 5 will be driven as team with C and the trainer. After her 10k miles she will then come back to Laredo and do the same road test I had to do and then attend the 2.5 day orientation then we will be put together as a team. I will be running solo until she is ready. I have to go out with a local trainer for 1 day to see the system in action. I am currently waiting for my DM to contact me and let me know when I will be set up for the training day,then after that I will be told where I need to go to get my truck. If any one has any question let me know and I will try and answer or just tell me no one cares lol

freebirdrfd · #5 12-18-2015, 07:51 PM

Keep us updated

golfhobo · #6 12-23-2015, 06:14 PM

I think you made the right decision. If you meant that the other option was for your "unschooled/trained" wife to join you immediately as a team and YOU would be her trainer... I think you would have been taking a big risk. Good luck. I hope it all works out good for you. Money isn't everything. Safety is more important.

TnCj · #7 12-25-2015, 06:33 PM

Golfhobo kinda my thinking also lol. I figure the next couple of months while she is schooling and training will give me time to get back in the swing of things, give her a real trainer after school and since she will have to do 10k miles with that trainer it will teach her some about teaming, which is something I have never done so when she gets done she can get me all leaned up on that lol

TnCj · #8 12-25-2015, 06:51 PM

Well second week is in the bag. I completed my 1 day with a trainer to see how I drove and handled the "real world" lol, meaning making on time deliveries, swapping trailers, using the Qualcomm,performed route planning that sort of stuff. I Have waited all week for me to get moved up the list to get a truck, Tuesday they decided it would be after Christmas break before I got one, no big deal just hung around with the wife at the hotel,after she got out of school and went to the school with her some days and went out on their backing range and worked some more on my backing.
C has just completed her 2nd week of school. She has been moved up to the 2nd driving course they have.From the service roads to some on off ramps and driving in light traffic. The courses get progressively harder with more lights, stops, traffic, turns that sort of thing. Her DOT driving test is on the 14th of Jan I believe. I have to say I am proud of her,she is doing awesome and like me,is her own worst enemy, but that's always not a bad thing when driving.
I do have to say I am impressed with most of the instructors at the school. They will not pass someone on or up to the next level if they aren't ready. Some students have been there longer than C and she has already moved past them. I know these other students will get it down they just have to figure out what makes everything "click" in their heads for them. We have seen some people come in as 2 day refreshers that have been moved to 5 day refresher courses and some that were moved to attending the full school program, so I have to say that I really think the school is about putting quality and ready student drivers out onto the road with their trainers, I don't think they are a CDL mill like some of the others we have heard/read about.
We have had some issues but these have been with the hotel were being put up in, but the school has been pretty fast to get on top of issues. So far so good we will wait and see what the next week holds...

TnCj · #9 12-28-2015, 01:11 PM

Does any one know if there is a way to change the name of this thread and possibly move it to whatever category it should be in? We will probably just continue to post here about our experiences with Celadon instead of starting a new thread.

Mr. Ford95 · #10 01-07-2016, 03:19 AM

TnCj, you can't go up to your original post and do an edit on the thread name? Just asking cuz I dunno if we regular posters can do it. If not, see if you can PM GMAN who posted to your other thread about what to get on the truck. He has some admin powers. I'd leave the thread here for now in the New Driver section but he may say to send it to the Jobs section. 2nd board down under this New Driver one.

Things still rolling along good for you?