Backing. After six weeks, a trainee should be able to back like a mad dog. When I was in training I would hide from the instructors when my turn to back at 90 and 45 degrees came around. So would my class mates. When we got to Dallas only about 10 or 11 could do a 45, 90, or serpentine. If you cant back that big fat trailer up to a dock or in a parking spot at a truck stop after six weeks then you need more training or a career change.

Well, I've read all these posts, and I don't disagree with anything said so far. But, I have had a slightly differenct experience, and have a slightly different opinion. I don't mean to insult or alienate anyone by my comments.

You should know the basics of shifting and backing before you ever get out of CDL school.

What you learn in 6 weeks, will have alot to do with the training method and the abilities of your trainer, as well as yourself.

I've heard the maxim about "learning til the day you retire" and "retiring when you think you know it all." I'm sure I will learn something new with each year of experience... but I don't learn something new every day. If I did.... I should STILL be in training.

My first week out - in a "team training" mode, I was shown how you can tear up the front of another truck by not using BOTH mirrors while backing up. I still see drivers doing this every day! You cannot maneouver and control your truck by focusing on ONE side of it!

In 6 weeks (I learned in 2) you should be able to shift gears competently, know what gear you are IN - and what gear you're going to - without looking. If you're STILL having trouble with the gears after 6 weeks, you've got a problem. You don't understand the truck, nor the dynamics of grades and weight. (But, don't FRET over this early on.... it usually comes with time, and one day just "happens.")

You should know how to park in MOST situations. You must not only SEE the spot you are going to park in... but should be able to "visualize" the angles that will allow you to do it. You're out there on the road with this big huge "hump" on your back! You gotta learn to PUT IT SOMEWHERE!

You should know the major parts of the truck, and be able to "hear/feel/smell" when something isn't right. A vibration, an air leak, a drag, or a smell.

You should understand the importance of a good pretrip inspection so that you are confident in the safety of your truck.

You should be able to concentrate on shifting, driving, lane maintenance, traffic around you, sounds of the truck, turning without crushing something..... ALL without being so concentrated on any ONE part of it that you miss the big picture of what is going on around you! You must feel in control of the truck, or you are dangerous.

As others said, you should know your QC, your shipping documents, and your prodedures.

You should have a good understanding of the area that you drive in. Major highways, where they go, which direction they are going. You should know where St. Louis is compared to Springfield, IL.

You should know what the numbers in an interstate designation MEAN. 2 numbers or 3. Odd or even. Same for U.S. Highways. And how to read a map.

You should not only know when and how to slide tandems and 5th wheel, but how to do so when they don't WANT to slide! And how to get "under" a trailer that has been left too high or too low for you.

You should know how to LOG proficiently (legal or otherwise) and you MUST understand the HOS rules - and have a good idea what ELSE the DOT will require you to know.

You do NOT have to know which wifi card is best, how to plug your "bluetooth" into your ear, or How to get a female driver to show you her assets!

IMHO, if after 6 weeks, you are not as comfortable driving your rig as you are your car.... you haven't "gotten it" yet, and may need more training.

Now, all that being said..... MOST drivers get pretty good at ALL this within 6 weeks. That is a LONG time. You don't have to rush everything. Be patient with yourself and the truck. Rome wasn't built in a day! But, it was ruled by Generals who thought they were GODS!

One more thing. You may not LIKE your trainer, and may have issues with him. You may even KNOW he's wrong about something. But, NEVER talk back to him, or question his abilities (although you may ask questions of him for clarification.) Do not be confrontational, or act like you know more than him about anything! Discretion is the better part of Valor. Your day of independence will come! :lol:

Your job is to make sure that YOU are ready for it!

Good luck, Driver!

I'm presently in training, and this thread has already done me a world of good!
It's still sort of embarrassing to discover "gaping holes" in my understanding of my new field, but I'm still working on filling them. I understand the spirit of what the poster meant when saying, "never talk back to the trainer"; it's just that, sometimes, I've been given the impression that my training ranks in priority as a distant second to his making more money than usual. That feels lousy, and I end up thinking I'm learning on my own.
I'll just keep reading, here...It's an education in and of itself!
Jewels

Depends on the whole situation too. A guy who starts out and picks up in Philly to deliver in LA to pick up in San Diego to deliver in Atlanta is only going to get so many backing opportunities along the way. I started out doing 10+ stops a day, and all kinds of crazy ass backing, so I knew more about backing in two weeks than some people I've seen driving for years.

On the other side of the coin though, I've only parked in truckstops a handful of times in 10 years. I hate to do a hard 45 between two large cars, and I can't do it without spending half an hour getting out and looking, which makes me look like a total n00b moron. (I used to back between trailers spaced so tight you could barely get the dollies cranked up when you hooked to one, but trailers don't have expensive mirrors to hit.)

I don't know much about running a Qualcomm either, or a couple other things on that list a few posts up. Managing weight, sliding. It has a lot to do with what you start out doing. I'm a kickass stick hauler, but I'm a little green at driving a real truck full of real freight, even though I have close to million miles under my belt, and none of it was local.

I did OTR, I just did a different kind of OTR. Almost never slept in a truckstop, because I used to park at the first stop. I liked to wake up where I needed to begin my day, instead of waking up early and driving in.

Anyway, it's fair to say you never stop learning, and you get smarter as you go. A LOT smarter. I'm at the point now where most of the other drivers I run with are in their 60s. We figured out how to get this thing done day after day after day, and the biggest secret of all is PATIENCE.

I'd say you know enough to start training yourself and if you don't at least you know how to ask other truckers for the answers. We are all there at one time and I still ask questions and listen to other truckers.

I disagree with your assessment cecole74. Yes you should be pretty confident in the big distribution warehouse in 6 weeks .. but I can off the top of my head name 6 places that would challenge even the most experinced driver. (See my postings ) Places requiring backing across major highways and cutting perfectly between two poles. Places requiring the perfect cut or you will take out a fence, sign, or a trailer. As far as truck stops ... well the Flying J in Billings has some pretty challanging spots to back into.

BTW) The degree of difficulty is all in knowing exactly the set up, how much cut and how much chase given the room to the front and sides. That comes with much more experince than 6 week IMHO.

If you read this forum you might find an article or two where the 5, or 10 year driver hits something while backing in these hell holes.

I can name you places where if you did not know how to get into these places right .. the next step -- backing is impossible.

Personally it took me 6 months to understand and duplicate the "L" maneuver vs. a 45 degree dock. How tandems really affect the "angle of the dangle." How to encompass all the visual clues around me not only the things I am going to not hit but the things that will help me be straight at the end.

Oh well .. just my thought ..