Category Archives: Stories of the Road

The Showdown With “The Colonel” – Handling My Trainer’s Tirades

Posted on June 2, 2011 by Philosopher Paul

3200 miles with colonel Kurtz and still going surprisingly well. I needed to keep things light with this guy because I still had two or three weeks left with him. When it seemed like he wasn’t going to let up on me, I knew we were going to have a showdown. Continue reading →

Posted in Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, Great Stories, On The Road In Training, Stories of the Road | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Dealing With Some Crazy Personalities During Training

Posted on May 24, 2011 by Philosopher Paul

I’ve been really happy with my fortune so far but the first day I met my finisher, I got a little concerned. The first thing he told me was “Forget everything you learned at your school.” And it got much crazier from there. Continue reading →

Posted in Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, Career Help, Tips, Advice, Great Stories, On The Road In Training, Stories of the Road | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Remembering My Earliest Days Of Trucking School

Posted on October 16, 2010 by Brett Aquila

For many of us that drove truck, the early days of becoming a truck driver were some of the most exciting times in our lives. Here’s the story of some of my earliest days in 1993 attending truck driving school and heading out on the road for the first time. Continue reading →

Posted in Becoming A Truck Driver, First Solo Months On The Road, Passing The CDL Test, Stories of the Road | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Keeping Your Head Screwed On Straight In A Crisis

Posted on May 24, 2010 by Rick Huffman

I learned two things from a recent misadventure: first, that being safe out here requires being careful and being lucky and, second, that I needed to keep my head screwed on straight in a time of crisis. I had made the wrong initial decision, but I had gotten lucky—next time, I might not. Continue reading →

Posted in Advice and Opinions, Career Help, Tips, Advice, First Solo Months On The Road, Great Stories, Stories of the Road | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Fighting Through The Challenges Of Life On The Road

Posted on May 11, 2010 by Rick Huffman

After loading up some drywall that had to be tarped on a rainy day in a muddy mess of a parking lot I began to question whether or not becoming a truck driving was a mistake. Continue reading →

Posted in Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, Career Help, Tips, Advice, First Solo Months On The Road, Great Stories, Stories of the Road | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Night Shift

Posted on May 3, 2010 by Angelique

I work the night shift and haul carfuells. That work goes on for 24 hours almost 7 days. The Netherlands is not that big and most of the work is in our own part of Holland. Continue reading →

Posted in Advice and Opinions, Great Stories, Stories of the Road, truck driving lifestyle, Trucking In Europe, Women In Trucking | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Bad Directions, The Wrong Entrance, and A Coon Dog Cemetery

Posted on April 22, 2010 by Rick Huffman

The first delivery of my first full solo week was to Simpsonville, South Carolina. This one, thankfully, went very smoothly; the directions were accurate, it was easy to get to, and they had me unloaded quickly. This trend, however, would prove to be of the one-in-a-row variety and I came across some odd sitings! Continue reading →

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A Humbling Adventure: My First Delivery Driving Solo

Posted on April 15, 2010 by Rick Huffman

After saying goodbye to my trainer, it was time to set out on my first solo run. And what an adventure it turned out to be! Continue reading →

Posted in Advice and Opinions, Career Help, Tips, Advice, First Solo Months On The Road, Great Stories, Stories of the Road | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

On The Road In Training With Ringo Part 2

Posted on March 31, 2010 by Rick Huffman

The first couple of weeks on the road driving flatbed were hard, because my body was not conditioned to this pace, this type of work, or these long hours. I lost most of the feeling in the tips of my fingers, and I had aches in places where I would have sworn I didn’t have muscles. Continue reading →

Posted in Becoming A Truck Driver, Great Stories, On The Road In Training, Stories of the Road, truck driving lifestyle | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

On The Road In Training With Ringo

Posted on March 29, 2010 by Rick Huffman

My first time out on the road in training I had a patient, entertaining, and unique character for a trainer – Ringo – an imposing, grizzly bear of a man with a beard like Dan Haggerty. His patience and entertaining stories made for a very unique experience. Since we were running southeast regional, we would get to go home on weekends, but the “trucker’s weekend” was not something I’d been prepared for. Continue reading →

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Not Much Help For The Drivers

Posted on March 7, 2010 by Steve Rubens

The Qualcomm system at most companies have directions to customers listed, but a lot of the time the directions are wrong. Unfortunately, even when dispatchers and customers know the directions are wrong nobody seems to care enough to do anything about it. Here’s an example of the mess it can cause. Continue reading →

Posted in Advice and Opinions, Cathy and Steve's Story, Great Stories, Stories of the Road | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Truck Driving Down Donner Pass

Posted on March 4, 2010 by TruckerMike

Until recently, I had never actually been on Donner’s Pass in California. Donners Pass is usually touted as one of the more dangerous areas for truck drivers and is the site of many fatal accidents. It’s quite an experience! I had the pleasure of going through it at night. I would have liked to take it during the day so I could see some of the scenery around me, but I’m sure I’ll get that chance in the future. I was still able to make some key observations though… Continue reading →

Posted in Great Stories, Stories of the Road | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Inside Trucking Part 3: Life On The Road

Posted on January 20, 2010 by Rhonda

With all the fuel that drivers purchase, it’s wise to get the driver payback cards from the truck stops that offer them. Its free, and it’s a way of saying thank you to the professional driver. For each gallon of … Continue reading →

Posted in Advice and Opinions, Career Help, Tips, Advice, Great Stories, Stories of the Road, truck driving lifestyle, Women In Trucking | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Another Night Of Driving And A Very Close Call

Posted on December 18, 2009 by Rhonda

Even when you’re just cruising along, minding your own business, and doing everything right, you never know when someone is going to do something incredibly dangerous right in front of you, and this was one of those times. Continue reading →

Posted in Great Stories, Stories of the Road, Women In Trucking | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Randy’s Phase 1 CDL Training – Part 7

Posted on December 17, 2009 by rbradyjohnsen

Life on the road is not getting any easier for Randy, and life at home without him is getting even worse. He’s due for home time and we’re hoping it comes real soon. This is getting to be unbearable. Continue reading →

Posted in Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, On The Road In Training, Rhonda & Randy's Story, Stories of the Road | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment