Question:
Going to take a young guy who is interested in becoming a driver under our wing.
He will be trying it out between my 3 trucks with 3 different TEACHERS for a few weeks in each truck.
This gives him a taste of LONG HAUL , TIGHT SCHEDULE, MID length run on DEDICATED and LOCAL all over the place 200 - 500 mile radius.
He is 22 years of age , clean cut , from a farming family so he is use to long hours and is physically fit.

Answer:
Well good luck to you RoadHugger! Teach him well.... He's the future of this industry...
Head Warrior, TFBU
Former Independent
Owner-Operator.

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Well it has been nearly 2 months and I think we have found a KEEPER. He has a knack for driving , very alert.
This guy is great , listens to what he is told, no back talk , keeps both himself and the truck he is in CLEAN.
His family and fiance are both very understanding , no 'PLEASE COME HOME' phone calls.

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We want to know if there are still no "please come home" phone calls 4 months from now.
I don't think you're being realistic. He has a fiance. She and he are not going to tolerate this forever.
According to Charles Kuralt, "Thanks to the Interstate Highway System, it is now possible to travel across the country from coast to coast without seeing anything."
Semisweet

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Originally posted by lightfoot:
She and he are not going to tolerate this forever.
Amen to that, lightfoot! Neither my wife nor my 5- and 4-year olds like be being gone. I don't much like it either, but - it's employed. Having been laid off from my previous job, I didn't want to go through THAT experience again so - off I went back in a truck...
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I'm not a truck driver, I'm a professional tourist!

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Heres REALISTIC , his FIANCES FATHER was home all the time.
PASSED out DRUNK on the couch , her mother worked 2 jobs to support the family.
She is happy he is working and learning how to make a future for the 2 of them. His family are hard workers who realize you have to start out doing things others might not want to do.
He has the option of LONG HAUL , REGIONAL or LOCAL when he is finished his training period ( he finishes training when I say he's finished not your normal 4 weeks and set free ).
He has been doing all 3 with different drivers so he can get a feel for what he wants. Another month and he will be doing solo trips.
Not every company is SLAVE ORIENTATED , we use to have 33 trucks on the road and the day we sold out we had 53 drivers thank us for the GREAT JOB we had done for them and the way we had treated them.
Our operation today is a bit smaller but our drivers along with our associated O/O's are all well treated and very happy.

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"Fiance" That could mean just about...anything. I wouldn't pay it no mind till there's a ring and a date.
This guy is SO lucky to have found you folks. This is EXACTLY the way new guys should be trained and treated. It's no wonder your drivers thanked you when the company was sold. Smaller operations that treat their drivers good and run a clean business are hard to find anymore.
I was talking to a driver from MO the other day. Worked for a family with only 20 trucks. Didn't pay him much, think he said 22cpm for hub miles, but he went on and on about how they treat him - even brought him a plate of warm food from the dinner table to take with him when he had to miss his own dinner to run a last-minute load...etc. This guy was one happy driver, and I bet he's one of the safest, most dedicated ones out here too.
Glad to hear from someone who still runs a traditional, old-school trucking company. Thanks for holding this guy to a high standard and treating him like a investment in your future, instead of a disposable part as easy to switch-out as a headlamp.
I think to ranching/farming folks this just makes sense. A life of daily lessons in patience and hard work, sun-up to sun-down, builds the kind of character you just don't find much anymore.
Hope your newly reorganized trucking outfit stays successful and lasts a long time. Hiring and training guys the way you're doing this one is sure one of the ways to stay one step ahead of the bean counters and industry 'experts' gobbling-up what's left of this noble profession.
[This message was edited by Shuffler on July 02, 2002 at 13:52.]

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Heres an UPDATE.
Greg our NEWBIE is out on his own , have him on a dedicated run of 5 -600 miles round trip hauling trailers for a customer.
Picked up a nice 1998 T-600 AREOCAB for him at an auction , needed a cleaning up . When Greg , his fiance and his kid sister finished you would have thought it was brand new.
He is kind of on his own until SNOW starts then back with us for WINTER TRAINING, going to team for the winter.
So far so good , uses his head , not afraid to ask , and the customer likes his attitude and appearance.
His family and fiance are very supportive and no problems so far.
SHUFFLER thanks for the great response, so far things are going great for us, using some old tried and true methods as well as some new ideas seems to be paying off.

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I wish there was a place where I could do that, but now that summer is over, I don't have the time, as I drive school bus during the school.
Anyone got any ideas for near Tulsa, OK?
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Fun - (n) - Driving a 14.5 ton Blue Bird full of 11 Year-old know-it-alls while navigating sub-urb traffic consisting of teen-age showoffs, mini-van soccer moms, Rex the dog and the occasional big rig.

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Looks like he has found a good company to work for and you have found a good driver. It's nice for both of you.
I tried a trainee once. After that experience I'll never take another one. I'm neither a mother or a baby sitter. When I decided to train I had a desire to teach a new person and thought it would be kind of neat to watch them learn and eventually get their own truck. I also knew there would be some clashes and problems and an adjustment period. Most new drivers have a fear of getting a bad trainer and have preconceived ideas. In my case those preconceived ideas meant I was stupid and he already knew it all. His school test scores proved he knew it all, just ask him. I was only there as a required stepping stone in his driving career. As I told the boss. if he was as anxious and willing in the truck as he sounded sitting in the office he would've been great. I have trainee fear now. It's hard to find good people on both sides of the fence.
You have a lucky trainee and are lucky to have found a good one.
"Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of all who threaten it"

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UPDATE
Gregs working out just fine , customer called to compliment us on the good service he is providing and also to complain about the appearance of the truck. Seems he is keeping it too CLEAN makes their company trucks look bad.

Answer:
Originally posted by RoadHugger:
Going to take a young guy who is interested in becoming a driver under our wing.
RoadHugger,
That's cool. It's how I got my break into driving. Too bad there's not more people like you in this country who would be willing to offer the same opportunities to others.
I'm sure your trainee will do fine and be a great asset to your operation.

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Some people would be really surprised to find how much further they'd get if they kept a neat and well-groomed appearace. This CAN require some effort to do this... especially out on the road, but it really pays off. The more satisfied the customers are with you, the more the company will be, the more the company is, the more they will strive to keep you a happy driver!
-Just my two cents.
500 years from now, none of this is gonna matter.

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why would being "neat and well groomed" require some effort???
There are restrooms, showers, and even running water all accross the united states

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Well its been another month and he is still doing great.
Keeps both his truck and himself neat and tidy and so far has not failed us in anyway.
He refused to pull a trailer 2 weeks ago until I drove over and looked at it, someone had done a fair bit of damage to it and he was making sure it was not going to be blamed on the NEW GUY.
Turns out that one of our CO OPERATIVE members had bought the trailer for parts and it had the same # as the 1 he was assigned LOL, it had been topped and the reefer was laying inside the trailer. They had dropped it in our lot by mistake.
He and I have just returned from a TEAM run to California , he did very well on the trip and likes the 600 HORSES under the hood of my W900. I let him do the trip plan and fuel stops all worked ot ok .
He will be driving team this winter as the run we have him on will shut down in late November. California , Arizona , Texas will be the runs , drivers will rotate co drivers every few weeks so he will get a good test session.