Question:
Someone started a post concerning this a while back but I can't find it now. So, newbies forum alumni check in and give us an update on where you are now. Or if you know what happened to some of the other Newbies, please share.
Statistics say many drivers don't make it through the first year of trucking for whatever reason. Maybe we can do our own informal poll here to find out some of the reasons.
Hubby (Graywolf-current CB handle) and I found Trucknet in early 2000 when he was beginning driving school and trying to make a decision on a company to start with. I wish we had found it sooner, we might have chosen a different route with the driving school (probably a less costly alternative such as a company sponsored school).
.I was planning on driving also once Hubby could be my trainer. However, I soon began to have doubts about THAT and we decided to at least postpone that decision to a later date.
After school Hubby went to Swift orientation the next week, did 6 weeks with a trainer and began driving solo.
2-00 to 04-02 Swift (drove all 48 states, got some exp., had 1 costly accident and backed into a couple things but survived)
04-02 to 06-02 local flatbed job (he fell off flatbed, found out that they had no worker's comp the hard way)
06-02 to 08-02 laid up recuperating and broke-Swift was starting to look GOOD again
08-02 to 11-02 was having serious doubts about trucking, returned to pre-driving school employer building race car chassis
11-02 to 03-03 couldn't stay out of trucking, found another job with local company, no bennies but at least we KNEW it this time. Had regular hometime but there wasn't enough runs to keep him busy and make enough money for us.
03-03 to 07-03 another small company this time peddling furniture. I also got a job as a helper. We worked out of state for several weeks at a time, Hubby drove sales/con men around in a tractor/trailer while they sold furniture .
I assisted by "babysittiing" and making sure the money stayed intact until we could turn it over to the boss. THAT was a pain since the guys were always wanting an advance that I wasn't allowed to give (hence the term babysitter). They were paid cash out of sales receipts (work a few weeks and get paid right before going home because boss couldn't control the partying any other way).
We stayed in a motel every night, it was one big party/circus/joke of a job but kind of fun while it lasted. Soon had to get back to reality and find a REAL job once we found out the boss had no intentions of letting Hubby and I find a decent helper, give us a truck and let us work by ourselves (we were needed as babysitters, for one of his top sales/con men-a 22? yr old kid who needed a watchful eye). That was the biggest problem out there, finding someone who could be trusted with the money.
07-03 to present-West Side Transport
Note: The "job-hopping" of past 2 yrs is NOT recommended but sometimes it happens due to "the grass is greener" syndrome, false promises/sales pitches, etc.
Here are links to a couple of those starry-eyed newbie posts, the first was me posting for Hubby to get some answers, then after he started driving and was too tired to have much input, I got my own screenname.
http://roundtable.truck.net/viewtopic.php?t=14984&highlight=
http://roundtable.truck.net/viewtopic.php?t=15337&highlight=
Answer:
"Note: The "job-hopping" of past 2 yrs is NOT recommended but sometimes it happens due to "the grass is greener" syndrome, false promises/sales pitches, etc."
It's the norm shewolf. More drivers do it than don't. I wouldn't be able to list all the people that came to Tn as a trainee and all the jobs they have had while here. More than anything I think it's the false expectations that cause it. Thats not always the drivers fault either. Those expectations are put in newbies heads from the munute they start wondering if it's for them or not. Reality is a little tough to take sometimes and a whole lot different than what most expect.

Answer:
I am guilty of job-hopping in the first year too. I started with Roehl, and went through training, and drove solo for a few months. I wasn't unhappy, but I did have a few complaints about the lack of organization and the truck I was driving... It just wouldn't pull.
A few weeks ago a local guy started asking around for a driver, as he had a truck empty. A mutual friend put us in touch and I met up with him and ended up taking the job. It's a world apart from the highly structured environment that I left with Roehl. I have a good solid truck and my boss tells me to move X comodity from point A to point B. How I do it is up to me, and when I do it is according to the arrangement I make with the customer. I am home on weekends and a few nights per week, and the pay is the same as what I was making with Roehl.

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Chris (Cammy85)went to Roehl in November. He never posted much on here, but he read everything and talked thru email with IBStrollin and Bandit58 (I think it was him ). He went solo on Dec 31st and is loving it. He was involved in one accident (another driver backed into him at a weigh station) and a few differences with his first FM. Other than that, all is well with him.

Answer:

I am guilty of this as well, and I'm about to do it again. the local job I just took is not what it was promised to be. First it is 50% warehouse and 50% driving (was promised all of the out of town runs with minimal warehouse work.) I don't fit in with the warehouse crew because I don't speak Spanish. The pay is less than what was "agreed to" , and I have yet to even take any of the runs I was told I was hired for. So I have an interview on 3/21 with another company that is 100% driving and no warehouse, local home every night, and also about $3-$4 more per hour.

Answer:
i have been out of high school for 13 years and in that time i have had 19 jobs to right now . two of the jobs have lasted almost 3 years each some a year and some less then a month. in that 13 years i have got my cdl i am a ase master mechanic in trucks, a class a mechanic on heavy equipment and very good at running heavy equipment the thing i am getting at is this if you do not like what you are doing or how you are payed or the work environment or the people or what ever you sould give it a chance but after that leave because you will not be good at that job that you do not like. all the jobs i have had i only regrat leaving 2 of them the grass was greener on the other side but when i got there it was the same old thing. right now i have no problem finding a job i left driving on 3/03/04 and not looked for a job i got home and when looking for a job the following monday on thursday i had 4 jobs i could go to monday on saterday i had 6 more i could go to not counting driving jobs and not places i have worked before . i will only take so much crap from a job before i leave and i make that clear before i start

Answer:
I`ve been driving now for about two years. The first job out of school was with Swift. I did my mandatory six months and went to a flat bed company that paid by persentage, but only hauled thier own stuff for cheep so 70/80 hour weeks were common, and the take home pay was about 5-550.00 a week. Too much work for to little pay for such long hours. Drove tanker at the fires last year and raked it in, but that ended. Now i drive for a Propane Co. delivering gas to residences. Don`t make a ton of money, but have good bennies and am home every night. I`ll probably stay here for awhile.
Answer:
Just a lttle note on job hopping if you are sitting in the john reading the bathroom reader mags and all the ads sound good and your having a bad day with your co and thinking about jumping ship just flip thur the pages cause if your co is in there too read their ad and oh boy it sounds as good as the others then you can save yourself the hassle of hopping
They all sound good in the ads but thats what they are just ads when you can read all the mags and never see the co you drive for in there thank your lucky stars cause you prob have a pretty good job
Answer:
Graduated school back in July 2003, and hired on with a local O/O out of Florida.
There are days when I have quit this job a hundred times. Like any job. some days are good, some bite the gargantuan hiney!!!
I haul newspaper inserts all over, but mostly easy of I 35. I have been told that they would run me out west in the spring or summer.
Pay is decent/pretty good. A lot of petty little things, but all in all not bad.
Nuclear Nick quit OTR, and is back working in the corporate world.

Answer:
This is a great post. Its nice to know Im not the only driver trying to grab the brass ring. Heres my deal.
Swift 12/01 to 09/2002 ***first trucking job****
Us xpress 10/02 to 12/02 *** crappy miles or bad dispatcher cant decide***
Swift 01/2003 to 07/2003 ***went back to Swift ,more organized company better miles(in my opinion)***
Snapple beverages 08/2003 to 10/2003 ***laid off due to grocery strikes**
local tanker job hauling liquid aspalt 12/03 *****PAID BY THE LOAD 2 WEEK CHECK ==525.00 cant survive on that plus its dangerous work******
OTR job 01/2004 to 03/2004 *****forced to go to NYC and had to run teams, both sucks*******
Im due to start at Sysco this Monday ( note) Ive been on their waiting list since November. And the finally called. Anyways theres my little fiasco .

Answer:
Finished Roehl's School in January of '03
Went Solo March '03
Was asked to train experienced drivers on ppwk and qualcomm in Dec '03
Was asked to become a newbie trainer in February was issued a brand new truck March 1.
Finished training to train new drivers last week. My first trainee is sitting in the hotel across town right now.
If you see a big red Roehl truck #3843 gimme a shout!
Biggest recomendations I have for new drivers...ATTITUDE is EVERYTHING!!, resist the urge to hang around terminals listening to and participating in negative conversations...they impact your attitude negativily! Work hard, be on time, and form your own opinions, don't adopt the counterproductive attitude some of your co-workers have.
Answer:
First off this is not a slam against you Wiz, but I am trying to fathom the idea of a One Year experienced OTR driver training new drivers. IMHO I think driver trainers should have a minimum of 7 years OTR.
Answer:
No Problem, No offense taken.
I'm probably a little more qualified than most 1 year drivers simply because of my backround in driver education. I've been a certified Motorcycle Safety / Operation instructor for the last 5 years. Have trained in excess of 150 persons in safe driving techniques.
One might argue the correlation of motorcycle to truck...the only real difference is size. The techniques of scanning surroundings, correct following distances, and other defensive techniques is the same. The impact of poor setup and execution of driving skills is high.
I am of the opinion (after witnessing many poor driving behaviors) that some 7 year vertrans of driving should not teach new drivers. Either due to dangerous habits or an inablity to convey information.
Of course I will be the first to admit I don't know everything, Nor will I ever know everything. Nobody will!! Personally I would run away from anyone who said that they know everything.
Contrary to many on this board driving truck is not that difficult of a job. It is 90% common sense, 110% of following rules, and company policy, and adopting good time management habits. Yes there is a lot to know, Yes there is a great deal that can go wrong if good practices are not followed. Yes the job takes effort and the ability to make good decisions, both in operation of the machinry, and in communication with dispatchers, company personel, enforcement officials, shippers and consignees. Contrary to the opinion of a great deal of the public a Truck driver is far from stupid or un-educated as a whole.
Answer:
Your last paragraph hit the nail smack damned dead center, my friend. What I've been trying to relate all along. I too have stopped going up to the driver's room, unless I see someone that I know well. No end to the Just remember:If the world did'nt suck, you'd fall off!
The more I see and read about Republicans and Democrats, the more I wish we had an Independent Party.
IMPEACH BUSH!!!!!!!!!!

Answer:
Just recently I have trid to train someone. I tell you it is hard. Everything I do I take for granted and when I try and convey the thoughts and movements etc, it all gets mixed up at times. I have been OTR for 13 years and yes I have some bad habits, just ask Bearbell.