Comments By Jim W.

Thanks, I working out the travel plans right now, since there's no direct bus or train line to Marshfield. The closest I can get is about a half hour out. Waiting to hear back about shuttle availability.

Hi all,

Just a middle-aged guy trying a new path in life. I was born and raised in central NJ and have lived here my whole life. My dad was in heavy construction and my mom was a homemaker until us kids got older. I became a volunteer firefighter / EMT, which is where I got my introduction to driving heavy vehicles. I worked for public works and drove dump trucks and garbage trucks. I developed my fondness for big vehicles early on. I had my class B CDL and always wanted to upgrade to class A, but providing for a young family took precedent.

My main career was as a refinery operator in Linden, NJ. I left there following a minor medical issue that has since been resolved. For the past few years, I've been working as a massage therapist. That was supposed to be the semi-retirement career that would allow my wife and me to take the time we wanted to do things for ourselves now that the kids are older. Aaaand then we separated. So I came back around to thinking about getting my class A CDL and was kicking that around for a little while. As the dumpster fire that was 2020 was coming to an end, my cousin died unexpectedly in mid-December. He was only 47 and was like a brother to me. We grew up together, we were in the fire department together, and saw him almost every day until I was 30. Right after he died, I got Covid and pneumonia and it was looking kinda serious for a couple of days. So after I was out of the woods and on the road to recovery, I decided I'm not wasting any more time. I did a ton of research, studied my butt off, and passed my tests to get my CLP. Soon I'll be headed out to Marshfield WI to start training with Roehl. They were in the top couple of companies I was looking at, and what clinched it for me is the structure of their training program. I like the idea that the pre-test training will be at the facility and then the OTR portion is run as a solo truck.

As I've said before, this site is an invaluable resource and has helped me research and prepare for these next steps. See you on the road soon.

I got it in the middle of December at a funeral. One person who was positive and said nothing gave it to a dozen others. I got the worst of it with double pneumonia. I was in bed for three weeks.

A big thank you to everyone here and to all the information available on the website. I took my knowledge tests this morning and passed everything on the first shot. I attribute my success to the training tools here and the knowledge I've gleaned from the forum posts. I spoke to my recruiter and I should have my start date later this afternoon. I'll be starting a CDL Training diary soon so I can introduce myself fully to the community. But for now, I can't thank you all enough for helping me to start this new chapter in my life.

Jim

Thanks again. Yeah the person at the MVC said that's the way it works, but after watching her process my paperwork I wasn't 100% confident and just wanted to hear from someone who has gone through the process. I've got an interview with a recruiter today, and I take my knowledge test next Tuesday so hopefully on my way.

Thanks to everyone here and also for the info and training materials on the site.

Thanks for all the replies. I am scheduled to take my written test. The test receipt, which I take with me to the written exam, has an air brake restriction on it.

Hi all,

I recently got my medical card and applied to take the knowledge test in NJ. On the examination test receipt there is an (L) Air Brakes restriction. It was explained to me that this restriction will come off once I pass the air brake portion of the written exam. This is not clearly specified in the NJ CDL manual. Not that I don't trust the random MVC employee, but if anyone could confirm, it would be appreciated.

Be safe

My Trucking Skills goes over a bunch of different scenarios.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvIOEFJvQSx-BH6Ln3uOYDg

Gratz!!!

Hi all,

I’ve been doing my research and studying for a little bit now and getting ready to embark on a new career as a middle aged guy new to the trucking world. I am scheduled to take the knowledge test in four weeks and DOT physical is done. I have some experience with heavy vehicles and had a class B a few calendar pages back. Well, maybe more than a few. I’m not just looking for the career change but the lifestyle change as well. My boys are grown and my wife and I are no longer together, so being on the road is no issue. Hoping to bring my dog with me when it’s appropriate, but that's about it.

I’ve been trying to decide what division I would want to get into, but most of the discussions I’ve found in forums and YouTube, end up coming down to how often you want to be home, which again, is not something I'm concerned about. I am interested by flatbed, but I don’t want to go to a company that only does flatbed until I have a bit of experience, to keep my options open.

I’ve narrowed it down to a couple companies and the deciding factor is length of training. One company spends a few days in the training facility and a few months on the road before you go solo, while the other spends a few weeks in the training facility and just shy of a month on the road. I’m leaning toward the longer time on the road, if nothing else but to glean as much information from my trainer as possible. I’d like to hear what people think. Either about the training or the divisions.