Wow, it’s hard to believe, but I’ve been at my current employer for 1 year as of today. I began Truck Driving School in January of 2009, completed that in February of 2009, and was hired on in March of 2009. This post will simply serve as some observations that I’ve made as my first year of a truck driver.
Archive of posts tagged Stories of the Road
My First Year as a Truck Driver
Posted by TruckerMike on 17 March 2010, 6:30 am
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Career Help, Tips, Advice, Current State of the Trucking Industry, truck driving lifestyle.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, being a truck driver, dealing with the boss, driver responsibilities, First year on the road, hard lessons learned, life on the road, Stories of the Road, truck driving lifestyle, truck driving stories
1 Comment
Truck Driving Down Donner Pass
Posted by TruckerMike on 4 March 2010, 10:40 am
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…
Truck Driving In A Cave
Posted by TruckerMike on 1 February 2010, 1:25 pm
On occasion I get to go to a place called Springfield Underground. It started life as a mine for limestone and is now and underground storage facility. If you never thought you’d see a big rig driving through a cave, well here’s your chance!
Inside Trucking Part 3: Life On The Road
Posted by Rhonda on 20 January 2010, 3:00 pm
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 fuel purchased, you get 1 cent/point put on the card. You can use these points [...]
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Career Help, Tips, Advice, Great Stories, Stories of the Road, Women In Trucking, truck driving lifestyle.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, driver responsibilities, hard lessons learned, life on the road, Stories of the Road, truck driving lifestyle, truck driving stories, Women In Trucking
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Truck Driving in Winter Weather
Posted by TruckerMike on 19 January 2010, 5:51 am
Before I became a truck driver, there was nothing better than a good snow storm in the winter. Sliding around in my 4-wheeler, sledding, snowball fights, snowmen, hearing the scrape of the snowplow as is passes by, and the beautiful sight it leaves. That was then, and this is now!
Randy’s Phase 1 CDL Training – Part 9 – He’s Done!
Posted by rbradyjohnsen on 6 January 2010, 9:01 am
I talked to Randy sooo much today. We discussed EVERYTHING about trucking, the school, our experience so far, every aspect of our future, and how we’ve both been sort of “cracking under the pressure” lately.
Randy’s Phase 1 Training – Part 8
Posted by rbradyjohnsen on 23 December 2009, 12:56 pm
I keep reading that the 2 most important factors for a successful marriage, especially in OTR trucking, are trust and communication…this week, we had neither one. I suppose the added stress of all this didn’t help, and we both had a major thinking/behavior relapse. This career truly does test a relationship, and any weakness that existed before WILL be magnified 1000 times.
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, Career Help, Tips, Advice, On The Road In Training, Rhonda & Randy's Story.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, getting your CDL, hard lessons learned, life on the road, On The Road In Training, Rhonda & Randy's Story, Stories of the Road, truck driver training
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Another Night Of Driving And A Very Close Call
Posted by Rhonda on 18 December 2009, 5:48 am
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.
Randy’s Phase 1 CDL Training – Part 7
Posted by rbradyjohnsen on 17 December 2009, 7:06 am
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.
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, On The Road In Training, Rhonda & Randy's Story, Stories of the Road.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, CDL training, On The Road In Training, Rhonda & Randy's Story, Stories of the Road, truck driver training, truck driving lifestyle
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Pulling Another Trucking All-Nighter
Posted by Rhonda on 2 December 2009, 6:04 am
I was all settled in for the evening and looking forward to watching Donny on Dancing With The Stars. Phone rings. It’s the boss. They need me to deliver 2 loads to the canning plant. The calls are coming in for loads. Trailers are being loaded now. I am assigned a truck too. I told them I can work and I’ll get there as soon as I can. This is gonna be a long night….
Filed under Great Stories, Stories of the Road, Women In Trucking.
Tagged Stories of the Road, Women In Trucking
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Randy’s Phase 1 CDL Training – Part 5
Posted by rbradyjohnsen on 2 December 2009, 5:37 am
Another day stuck at the school, another interesting story…don’t know if it’s true, but it’s interesting. Supposedly, a student took a bottle of liquor on the truck while with an instructor and other students. They got 30 miles away at a truck stop, the safety manager and cops were called, and he got a D.U.I. If it really happened, it’s incredibly stupid! A lot of odd things happen at that school.
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, On The Road In Training, Rhonda & Randy's Story, Stories of the Road.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, attending truck driving school, Becoming A Truck Driver, CDL training, getting your CDL, life on the road, On The Road In Training, Rhonda & Randy's Story, Stories of the Road, truck driver training, truck driving stories
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My 33rd Anniversary In Transportation
Posted by Rhonda on 30 November 2009, 6:36 am
October 27 2009 is a special day for me because it was October 27 1976 when I entered the transportation world. My only experience in this world was riding the school bus for all the years in school. What an amazing journey it’s been.
Truck Driving – Experience and Enjoyment of the Job
Posted by TruckerMike on 13 November 2009, 7:55 am
I love being a truck driver, and certainly plan on doing this for a while. I’ve also found that as my experience grows, my enjoyment also continues to grow. I’m still considered a rookie with only 8 months experience, but the little experience I have is already paying off.
Truck Driver Appreciation Week
Posted by TruckerMike on 11 November 2009, 8:33 am
Last week was National Truck Driver Appreciation Week. It certainly was nice to feel appreciated for a week. The list of sacrifices that drivers make can go on and on for days. Most of the sacrifices can’t be explained in words, they simply have to be experienced to truly be understood.
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, Current State of the Trucking Industry, Stories of the Road, truck driving lifestyle.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, Becoming A Truck Driver, driver responsibilities, life on the road, Stories of the Road, truck driver appreciation week, truck driving lifestyle
4 Comments
My Overweight Ticket
Posted by Rhonda on 1 November 2009, 6:44 am
Sometimes you’re put in a position as a driver where you just can’t win. One day I was leaving the shipper with a heavy load and was pulled over to see if my weight was legal. Problem was, I never got a chance to weight it myself – they nailed me on the way to the scale. What is a driver supposed to do?
Filed under Advice and Opinions, Career Help, Tips, Advice, Current State of the Trucking Industry, Great Stories, Stories of the Road, Women In Trucking, truck driving lifestyle.
Tagged Advice and Opinions, being a truck driver, driver responsibilities, hard lessons learned, life on the road, Stories of the Road, truck driving lifestyle, Women In Trucking
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