Looking for some advice.
 

Well after driving for local companies for years I have decided to go OTR. The economy here in Idaho is terrible and jobs are scarce. I'm not worried about the driving part of the job, as I have driven rigs for years. I would just like to know what I have to look forward to out there. Also, CR England and Roehl are a couple of companies that I'm talking to. Can anyone tell me anything about these companies. I would really hate to start my OTR carreer with my foot in the wrong door so to speak. Thanks, and always stay safe out there.

Looking For Advice
 

Expect to be treated like a newb by an entry level OTR company. Most really don't accept "local" driving even if logkeeping was required. Most will require you to go with a "trainer" until they're satisfied you know what you're doing. Roehl should be good because you have a choice of dry box, flat or curtain-side. BOL

Thanks for your input.

Since you are already driving truck locally in Idaho....Instead of talking with CRE or Roehl.....Talk with Doug Andrus out of Idaho Falls first......

Doug Andrus Distributing

Arlo G Lott out of Jerome........

AGL - Arlo G. Lott - Trucking Inc., Jerome Idaho -- Over 30 years in Business!

Giltner Trucking out of Jerome....

Giltner Inc

Or.....better yet........the Giltner Milk Transportation LLC company....... (couldn't find a website...just the phone number)

Giltner Milk Transportation in Jerome, ID | 45 S 200 E, Jerome, ID

BCTI ...... (Boise Cascade)........... Boise ID

Boise Inc. - BCT, Inc.

System Transportation...AND it's sister companies ....................... out of Spokane WA.......

System Transport

Corcoran Trucking out of Billings MT........

Corcoran Trucking | Billings Montana

and of course The Waggoners Trucking out of Billings .......

Waggoners Trucking


Okay now........Those right there should give you plenty to do.............and should keep you away from "Rift" and "Raft".

Thanks so much for all the leads. I will get right on them. I truly appreciate it.

Check out what big orange said, if it comes down to CRE and Roehl go with Roehl. I worked for them and was not happy (it was me)BUT they won't do you like CRE!

There are a lot of little "Mom & Pop" trucking companies around Idaho that will treat you much better than any of the "Mega" carriers will...and most will give you credit for your local experience. They all understand that if you mastered driving local in Idaho.......you are going to be just fine out on the big road. You will still need to train for the paperwork, regardless of where you hire on.

FYI.......I grew up in Southwest MT and that is where I learned to drive. I knew Doug Andrus and Arlo Lott.........once upon a time. Both were decent men who talked straight. Hopefully their kids carry on the tradition. I remember how proud Arlo was, when he delivered a load of hay to the ranch I grew up on. That load was his 5th or 6th, after he started his company. I was a 13 year old kid who struggled to tip bales off the trailer without breaking them! I remember that he had a brown Pete with tan strips and a fruehauf flatbed. I also grew up with a dozen of his cousins.

Another company I failed to throw out there would be L.W. Miller, out of Logan UT.

LW Miller Web Site

Just spoke with Gay at AGL, and it sounds like it may be a good fit. Thanks for all the help.

You are more than welcome. I had the opportunity to talk with an AGL driver in January. He had 6 years with them and said he was just happier than a bobcat with a mule deer to feast on.

I agree. I've never driven for either, but I first started researching this career in 1996, when I talked to a CR England recruiter who painted a picture so good I had to check up on it every way I could to see if it was true. In the 15 years since then, I have never heard anyone say one positive thing about that company.

When the market for trucking jobs around here hit absolute rock bottom in 2008, for months the only ad in the trucking jobs section in the paper was for CR England. We literally had more than 1,000 area drivers lose their jobs within a few months of each other, and in spite of the economy absorbing all those displaced drivers, CR England still had to keep paying to run ads. Think about that, and run away my friend. There just has to be a reason for all of this, and I, for one, will be happy to go to my grave without discovering what it is first-hand.

Anyway, best of luck my friend. It sounds like you're looking at a similar picture to what I faced around here, and I sincerely wish you the best finding someplace to land and keep working. Hopefully one of those leads will work out for you.