Question:
I'm taking their 3 week OTR, one week off, 3 more weeks OTR training option. What should I expect from my trainer? What should be expected of me? How much money should I expect to spend? Anybody on here a Werner trainer or recent solo driver? Is it possible/probable to get home to the wife and kids at all during the two 3 week periods? How long after going solo, before I can get onto regional? How long until dedicated? Yeah, it's a lot of questions, but my wife is very inquisitive.
Semper Fi,
Wayne

Answer:
"I'm taking their 3 week OTR, one week off, 3 more weeks OTR training option." Why, do the 6 weeks all at once.
"What should I expect from my trainer?" He's gonna be checking you out like a Gunny checks out a PFC. He should have a curriculum he's to run you thru. In the Navy it's called Personnel Qualifications Standards, don't know what the Corps calls it. "What should be expected of me?" Shut up, listen, ask questions when confused. "How much money should I expect to spend?" Budget $125/week, and don't call Momma a lot (defined as more than once a week).
"Anybody on here a Werner trainer or recent solo driver?" Look for a poster called "U-turn".
"Is it possible/probable to get home to the wife and kids at all during the two 3 week periods?" Don't plan on it, consider it like going to the "field" or "on a float". "How long after going solo, before I can get onto regional? How long until dedicated? Yeah, it's a lot of questions, but my wife is very inquisitive." Call 1-888-487-8257 and ask for Greg Tyler. BOL from CWO3, USN, (Ret).

Answer:
You should expect a long lasting and fulfilling career running up and down Americas highways taking in all the beautiful sights. Really.
Good Luck
"Caution: Door May Open"

Answer:
"Budget $125/week, and don't call Momma a lot (defined as more than once a week)."
That's $18 a day. That's a lot of groceries.
I'll be calling home at least once a day. How is that a problem?
Are you Chief Tyler or is that a friend? I'm a retired Gunny.
Semper Fi,
Wayne

Answer:
Hey Gunny,
It looks to me like sealord is telling you to call Greg Tyler at that 800 number---its probably a contact at Werner that can answer your questions about Werner dedicated and regional accounts.I drive for Swift and I got on a Wal-Mart dedicated account after three months.You will just have to let them know what you want and probably hope for the best.I know Werner has dedicated Dollar General account but other than that I don't know much about them.Good Luck to you!
Semper Fi,
The Governor.
Ooh Rah!
Answer:
First of all Good Luck and keep and open mind!
The budget estimate of $125 per week is reasonable. That should give you enough for some hearty meals, some fast-food, and some small items to take in the truck with you.
Take enough clothes for 5-7 days. This includes socks and underwear. Also take a few extra changes in case you get soaked in the rain, spashed with mud, or get sweaty and dirty on a driver-assist unload. Pack all of this in soft-sided, or better yet a duffel bag. That way it won't take up too much space in the truck. Take your bathroom items in a small gym bag along with one change of clothes and a towel. That way you won't have to carry your large bag into a truckstop shower. And try to shower every day and wear clean clothes.
Don't bother taking any maps, tools, papers, books, or videos. You won't need tools or maps because the trainer will have them. You won't have time for books or videos. Don't bring unnecessary stuff because there isn't much storage in a sleeper cab and what's there has mostly the trainer's stuff. Get any prescriptions filled you may need. Werner will give you all the paperwork you need. Just take a pocket calculator for logbooks and calculating mileage, but this isn't a must because your trainer probably has one. A good cell phone plan for calling home will ease difficult times or at least a calling card.
When you get to the Werner terminal, you will check in and be sent to the motel. It will be a room, and you will probably share it with a roommate. Also, don't expect the Ritz. It is just a room to sleep, nothing more, but best of all, it's FREE. Just remember that. You will attend orientation beginning at 7AM for two days. The company reps will go over everything from company policies to hazmat to insurance benefits and a physical/drug test. Listen and fill out the paperwork and ask questions if you need to. You'll also see lots of videos. When that is over, you'll be assigned to a trainer. The training coordinator may not communicate much with you at this point and you may wait for several days, or even be given a bus ticket and sent to another terminal to wait for a trainer. That is the nature of it, just be prepared and stay calm. Do not get mad at the management, believe me, they remember that. Don't do anything that will make you stand out in a bad way, and don't do anything like go out for drinks after work. This is the first impression the company will have of you. Make it a positive one and it will pay off for you in the long run.
Once assigned to a trainer, get to know this person and try to get along with them. Understand that you will be living in a truck with them for at least three weeks, and since this is a complete stranger, it will take some sacrifice on both parts to live in such a confined space. Learn from them, most of the trainers are anywhere from OK to good. Hopefully you will get a good trainer, but if you don't, you can request to switch to a different trainer. But that may require more waiting at a terminal and hotel, and the next trainer may/may not be any better. So try to get along and unless they are abusive or dangerous, you can live with them for a few weeks. You'll get a chance to evaluate them later after you're finished training.
You may be able to get home before your one week, but then again you may not. If your trainer lives within an hour or so of your home, and he/she takes hometime, they may not have a problem with you going home as well and meeting back at the truck when it's time to go back out. Just depends on the trainer and where they live. But also remember that in your job, you won't get home very often, so better get used to it.
Going with Werner, you probably won't have to unload much unless your trainer is on the Dollar General account. Lots of trainers are, but certainly not all. Understand that you have to assist the trainer unload, not unload the whole truck. You are a driver trainee, not a lumper. But you may be called upon to assist unloading from time to time, so be prepared. You will also have to switch trailers and slide tandems - frequently.
The first half of training you will probably be monitored by the trainer more than at the end. By the last week or two, you will be planning trips, driving, and doing all other functions as if you were a solo driver. The trainer may choose to sleep at this point while you are driving. At the end of the training, you will be routed to a terminal and given a road test. Unfortunately, you might have to wait for a truck. Then haul a load or two before getting home. Again, just the nature of it.
Just keep a positive attitude and you will do fine. Back when I trained with Werner, you had to stay out 8 weeks with a trainer and I was with the same trainer the whole time. The company likes when a student and trainer get along and work together without causing problems.
Good luck to you and ask any more questions you might have.

Answer:
Well $18.00 a day does seem like alot of groceries but it's not. One good meal will cost you $12.00. The other 6 bucks will be for drinks and things. It's actually very little groceries if you eat one hot meal a day.
"Caution: Door May Open"

Answer:
Thanks Jack and everyone, that's the kind of intel I was looking for. What about sleep time? Will the trainer sleep while I drive and vice versa? I'd have a real hard time sleeping that way.
Semper Fi,
Wayne

Answer:
and as a trainee you can not expect to be able to load up the truck with sandwich fixings and other edibles. That is something between the trainer and the trainee.
I will always be a mutter trucker at heart.
Answer:
"I'll be calling home at least once a day. How is that a problem?"
You may not have time to call Momma every day. When you're with a trainer you're going to be doing one of four things, driving, sleeping, fueling, or eating.
You should be giving your trainer your undivided attention. The only time you may be able to call home is when your trainer is doing the same. The costs of calls home may amaze you, save your money.
Driving/sleeping. Initially, the trainer should be awake when you're driving until he feels comfortable with your skills, could last as long as a week. You should also be awake to observe how he does things as well. That's one of the reasons I suggest you do your training all in one piece.
Grey Tyler is a Werner recruiter in the part of the country where I live. BOL

Answer:
Disregard.

Answer:
I drive for Werner and usee to train for them. But I can't ad anything to what's been posted above -- Cadillac Jack in particular is giving you really excellent advise and obvously knows Werner well.
Just this thought: Make sure your personal life details are in order. This may be the most intense project you've ever experienced -- team training -- and requires all your attention and commitment.
For all practical purposes, you might as well be going to the space station. Keep your personal burdens and distractions to a minimum. They'll have to take a back seat to the task at hand.
Fill your hands and head with everything you possibly can while there's someone there to help you and good luck!

Answer:
On the subject of sleeping and driving during training...
I believe Werner does not want the student driving after midnight for at least the first week. I can tell you that I always did, but they might have a rule now. Anyway, the trainer should watch you while you are driving at first to make sure you are a trustworthy driver and have sufficient knowledge to get the truck down the road, shift the gears, and make the turns. Sounds easy, but not every student comes to the company knowing how to do any of this. At this early stage of training, you and the trainer should not run nearly as many miles as a team for the simple reason that you are not ready to do 50% of the driving and the trainer must be awake while you are driving.
Now, as training progresses and hopefully you become more capable, you and the trainer may run more miles where one drives and the other sleeps. Don't worry, you as a trainee will get used to sleeping anywhere at any time. You will sleep with the truck engine running, at noisy truckstops, and even going down the road where your body flops like a fish back there while the trainer drives through Louisiana or Mississippi. Surprisingly, you WILL be tired enough to sleep through this and more. Sometimes you will sleep in the day, and sometimes you will sleep at night. Just never drive when you are really tired, and do not let the trainer make you. You'll get so used to sleeping on an unusual schedule and with so much noise and vibration that sometimes you'll get into your quiet bed at home and wonder why you can't sleep.

Answer:
Learning to stay asleep when you go airborne on bumps is an acquired skill. You have to sleep in a position that won't hurt when you land on the mattress again. The objective is to not wake up! I didn't get it till I reached total exhaustion. It was never a problem after that and I found it strangly comforting sleeping when my trainer drove....

Answer:
Thanks a lot, guys. I must sound like a nervous teenager, just before the prom. Actually, I'm a retired Marine of 20 years in Motor Transport. I drive very well, shift up and down with little problem (occasional scrape) and am very patient and intelligent. I think I have all my family life squared away and things should go very smoothly. One last question, can personal email be accessed in the truck, once I'm solo and does Werner have limits to this usage?
Semper Fi,
Wayne