New To Truck Driving
 

I would like to introduce myself.

My name is Jack, I live in Southern California and I am very interested in becoming a truck driver. I am 21 years of age and I would say that I'm a decent driver that utilizes a manual transmission. I have been driving for 5 years with no accidents or points on my record for reckless driving. (*knock on wood*)

I have a passion for driving. At times when my budget isn't an issue, I take my car to the race tracks. My last event was at Laguna Seca in November of last year. I leave my testosterone at the track and not on the roads.

Please forgive my ignorance if this is the wrong forum or the questions I am about to ask should be moved to a different forum for better responses. Or that I should get slapped with the search button but I have a few inquires that I hope to learn from you guys.

1. As my current location, what do you guys recommend for classes to obtain Class A driver's license?

2. UPS is one of the companies I'm interested in working for. What companies would you guys recommend for a kid like me to start off working for?

3. I understand that this job is different from other jobs and require alot of work to put into, but do you think it's right for me?

Thanks for reading my thread and I hope to learn from your guys' responses. :D

Just one thing that I can help with is that most companies won't even look at you until you are 23.

Good luck!

If you can find a community college that has driver training, that would be the least expensive way to get your CDL. I would go for the class A rather than the class b. It is very difficult to find a professional driving job over the road until you are at least 23. Some companies require you to be 25. I don't know what UPS requires, but you may want to contact them directly and ask. They have some drivers who work locally. Others work over the road. Finding a carrier who can get you through their insurance company will be your first hurtle. Most have age restrictions. You may also check with some distribution or manufacturing companies near you. They may be able to help you get started. If you check under the company listings, you can find requirements of many of the larger carriers. Good luck.

You can get on with some companies at just 21. There was a discussion in the forum awhile ago about someone wanting to get on at UPS. One of the UPS drivers here said that you have to join the union and start working the docks then work yourself up from there if I remember right :roll: If you live in Southern California I would recommend US Xpress they have opportunites to driving locally, regional or OTR, and you only have to be 21 and they take recent grads. Stay away from CR England!!! I know they recurit pretty heavy down there. As far as the schools the private schools are usually more expensive then the public schools, and there are also some trucking company schools like Swift. Look for a school that has a curriculum that covers classroom study, range driving, and road driving. Some important topics that should be covered in school: CDl Permit and endorsement instruction, Federal Motor carrie safety regulations, hours of service rules, vehicle inspection and air brake training. Good Luck

Doaner-

Good to see you are asking questions before jumping in.

As for a CDL, as GMAN has stated the best thing to do is look at Community and Technical colleges, government oriented ones will have student financial aid available to help pay if need be. Please try NOT to go to a company sponsored school (Swift, Schneider, etc.) as these are companies that are not driver oriented, and have very high turnover. On top of which you will owe them a year or two of working to pay off your CDL bill, this locks you in with them. There are many horror stories of driver's being treated horribly with this practice. I would also urge you to stay away from the mega-carriers (Swift, Werner, Schneider, JB Hunt's etc. who advertise extremely heavy for low-paying driving jobs.) These companies have extremely high-turnover for a reason.

Most importantly do some research: safety ratings, turnover, size, type of freight, private vs. public held for any companies you are thinking of driving for.

As far as UPS goes, these jobs are sometimes hard to get. On the parcel side you usually have to work on the docks and work your way to a line-haul driving job. However, these are some of the better jobs in the industry with higher pay and regular hometime. Other union jobs like ABF, USF, etc. are run in much the same way. As far as UPS freight goes you will have to check in your area, as it varies somewhat.

If you are very serious about trucking. It cannot hurt at your age to take some classes on diesel mechanics as well. If you ever want to be an owner/operator one day the knowledge will pay off well.

I'm getting ready for cdl school in September, and I'll start my career at the end of November when I turn 21. I have been in contact with several companies and the 21 thing isn't a problem. Now yes, I have had a few that said give us a call when your 22 or 23, but majority I have talked to have no problem with my age.

It's nice when you have all your ducks in a row before you pull the trigger! 8)

thanks for the all the info guys... I appreciate it :)

UPS is a great company to work for, but you have to start at the bottom. Work part-time on the docks until you have enough seniorty to move up to package driver. How long you have to wait depends on where you live. Some areas are a few months and others are many years. Next time you see a UPS driver in your area ask him. Most are very helpful if you are interested in working at UPS. Also, look at www.upsjobs.com that will have some more info. Feel free to pm me if your have more questions. Also, feederfred is on this site a lot. I think he runs around Southern California. Search his name and pm him. I live in Colorado so I really don't know how long it take to move to driver in California.

Huh, what am I doing here ?? I'm getting ready to pull the plug, July is coming. Anyway, check your mailbox, sent you a pm (I think)...(Oh and be careful of those "golden handcuffs !!!!!! LOL) could'nt help it

Re: New To Truck Driving
 

That's a great choice - especially for someone your age. DHL and FedEx (Express NOT Ground) are good as well. Check out the LTLs like Yellow Freight, Roadway, USF Holland (whoops...Reddaway in your neck of the woods) - some have dock-to-driver apprentice programs. Basically, look for any trucks with small windows in the back of the cab vs a sleeper. Call em' up - some will take a chance on a young guy with a fresh CDL in his pocket.

At your age the last thing you want to do is OTR. Stay home, enjoy life, get laid, etc. Leave the handloading with rosie palm and her 5 sisters to the supertruckers. Check out your local vocational/tech schools or community collges concerning heavy equipment operation. Highway jobs are all prevailing wage, union-scale and California is putting alot of $$$ into its aging infrastructure. Dumps, mixers, pavers, buckets, lowboys = top-dollar and home everynight! :wink: