I would go with Desert Truck Driving School in Sparks. I went with them instead of Horizon or Nevada. Much less expensive than Horizon.

If you choose Desert, you should go out on runs with Frank Fox. He is, in my opinion, the best instructor I have had for anything. I have seen him take a girl that has never even driven a stick, and within 30 minutes she can up and downshift n the road in a no traffic situation. He has you do what you are capable of. If you are a good driver he will put you through your paces with challenging driving situations and take you to real alley docs.

I highly recommend that you read through the CDL manual for Nevada a few times and take little notes on the side summarizing what was in the section, and above all make sure you can answer the questions at the end of each section. If you are even a moderately intelligent person, after reading the manual 6-7 times you will be able to take and pass all portions at the dmv. Also, you can find practice tests online for free and there are some at the school. Take a practice test each time you read through the manual. If you can consistantly get above 80% to take the tests.

Also, be prepared at Desert to learn by error. You will drive around all day in the yard practicing your skills. You will watch a video on how to complete them correctly (take notes), then its up to you. If you are having problems Navy Frank (another one) will help you if you ask him. Otherwise, just do your skills over and over till you master them. Oh, the pre-trip, just memorize one section at a time and understand what that section is, and you need to memorize the whole thing.

The two Frank's, Sue (administrator), and Jimmy (owner) are all good people. It is not the swankiest establishment, and the equipment is far from new, but you WILL get your CDL.

Good luck to you and if you go with them tell them Chuck at Arrow says hi!