Hi everyone, first post.

I'm approaching my 6th month solo OTR with Swift and i'm looking for some input from anyone who is/has trained with them.

What is the pay like? Do you get higher preference for loads? A better DM that isn't trying to rip you off every chance she gets!?

 

One question for you.

With only 6 months experience what makes you think you can train someone else?

 

Sure, I'll give you 2 answers.

Considering industry standards, my lack of experience alone would be enough to not qualify me to train others... no argument here.

With Swift, however, a driver with 6 mos., no accidents, and no log violations fits the basic qualifications to train.

Now I have to ask myself if i'm fit to train others.

I would say the short answer is yes... or at least yes because I know I would be better than my trainer (12 yrs exp, no communication skills, no teaching skills, only knew how to yell and scream... I learned more in my first 2 weeks solo self-taught than i did that whole 6 weeks)

I've heard countless horror stories about swift trainers, with good stories few and far between. I know I could do better.

 

I'll be honest with you.
I don't drive yet... I start school next Monday.
When I "DO" start driving, last thing I want is someone with "only" 6 months under his/her belt. I would refuse you.

 

Actually, if I were driving for Swift, I would rather have a good trainer with 6 mos experience over a crappy trainer with 6 or 12 years experience any day of the week.

I would say, go for it!

 

I wouldn't have any problem knowing that students turned me down.

Just curious... what is the minimum amount of experience a trainer would need to have for you to accept?

Would a trainers experience level be the most important determining factor if you had a hypothetical reference that documented a trainers abilities through student reviews?

When I finished my orientation, only 3/13 of my class were immediately placed with trainers. Another guy was matched 8 days later, and the rest all left for different companies.

3/4 had horrible trainers... 2 of them quit... me and the late starter are the only ones still with the company.

There isn't a whole lot that goes into driving a truck. I would say the most important qualities a trainer can posses are communication skills, and the ability to not treat your student like a sub-human... pretty simple... yet, most swift trainers don't meet these standards, and this is their biggest problem as a company imho.

If you're an idiot, have no respect for your student, and are only concerned about maxing miles on both log books... there is no amount of experience that will validate your worth as a trainer.

 

I also have thought of trying the swift trainer program too. I have nearly 10 years. But I don't know if I could handle some of the students that the CDL mills turn loose.

I've trained people before, but they were experienced road drivers learning how to use a dump trailer and drive off road at the mine sites.

Good luck man.

 

There are a lot of people out there training who should not be. Some due to lack of experience and others who can not or will not teach.

IMHO 2 years of experience is the min anyone should have before attempting to teach someone.

Did you know that states often require 5+ years of experience before you can become a "liscensed" instructor at a CDL school?

 

This is a pretty sticky subject for some people. I'll tell you about my swift training experience.

I went through their CDL school in Millington, TN even though I had my Permit for 6 months prior to going there. I even asked if I should just go get my CDL at home before leaving as my family has a few car haulers. They told me not to which I thought was very strange, but I soon found out they only wanted me to go through the school to get their 2000 dollars or however much it cost.

The school was a joke, the majority of the students were barely qualified to drive a car much less a truck. I ended up being the person who demonstrated everything to the class and was always picked on in the class room. The whole time in class I felt like I was being drug down to a much lower level because most the others were clueless. I also ended up being the go to guy that everyone in my class came to for help with different things.

Once I got with my trainer in Jonestown, PA he let me drive after an hour of being with him. After that point we ran like a team as he saw he didn't have to teach me anything but the qualcom and the paper work. He was a lease operator who had been driving for swift for 4 years. On numerous occasions he would have me back into places after he tried several times and could not get it in the hole. He was a really nice guy except for the fact that he was having an affair with another female trainer and we would stop at truck stops with her and her student all the time.

He did however try numerous times to tell the DM that and training supervisor that I was ready to get my own truck starting as early as 2 weeks with being with him. They didn't go for it though, which makes me think that they don't even trust their own trainers opinions. I also was forced to stay out an extra week which meant I was out for 9 weeks because they couldn't get us a load to a terminal. :roll:

So the moral to this story is I had better skills as a "trainee" than my trainer who has been driving for 4 years. Granted I grew up driving trucks in the yard and backing them since I was 9 years old. I even drove more miles than my trainer the whole time I was with him, as I did not stop but maybe once per 11 hours to take a bathroom break. While my trainer would stop every 3-4 hours or so.

So take that how you will, but I personally would take a trainer with less expierence than one who still doesn't know what he is doing after many years. Just my two cents.

 

I'd say yes, cuz with your attitude,it has to be better then being yelled and screamed at for 6 weeks. you can't learn anything that way.