Profile For Seatack

Day 26 (9/27/22)

Yesterday was a little rough for some of us shifting. Len decided it would be best if we spent our drive time locally practicing upshifting and downshifting. The stop and go would give us more gear shifts than the interstate.

I drove 3rd leg, from about 10:45 to noon. Just before my behind the wheel time we recieved word via school email that the campus would be closed Wednesday through Friday in anticipation of Hurricane Ian. 🥺

I was really disappointed that our week was gonna be cut short, especially because we have our first shot a passing pretrip on Wednesday next week.

I finished my local drive with 43 miles behind the wheel. We went back to campus and had our lunch break.

We returned to a small discussion about how the program would proceed with the campus being shut down for 3 days.

All testing dates will remain the same. Pre-trip Wednesday, if we pass we have backing on Thursdsy. Pass backing and we will have the road test in week 4 on Tuesday. Any failed test will push that test to the next testing date. For those who need it, the 3 missed days will be given back to complete all necessary testing. Testing will be done during pad time so everyone will still get the driving time in their designated slot.

We broke from our meeting and headed to the pad. Len said it would be a little rough but he believes we could pass the tests without the extra days. He's prepared to give them to us if we need it, but he will help us as much as he can.

We continued with our backing practice on all 3 maneuvers till about 3:45. At that time we went back to doing pre trip until 5pm.

Our Instructor gave us some pre trip worksheets he made up to help us study over the break. They were blank and we had to fill in the necessary information on each section. We had to write down the component and say how we would inspect it. I asked for extra copies so I could do it multiple times since we would be out for 5 days.

We filled out our logs and went home.

Day 25 (9/26/22)

The start of week 2 behind the wheel! We are still driving for the first part of the day and doing pad work in the afternoon.

Today we had a different truck, different trailer and took a new route on our morning drive. Len wants us to have a chance to drive all/most of the trucks we have on campus. Last week we drove a 2019 Peterbilt (I think) , this week we are in a 2015 Kenworth T660 studio sleeper.

This was an unwelcomed change, at least at first. We had come accustomed to the feel of the Pete. The K dub has some funky control pedals (at least compared to the Pete we were driving last week). The fuel pedal is tiny and the brake pedal is gigantic. The two are almost too close together! But, boy does it shift smoothly! The clutch has this perfect sweet spot!

I quickly got used to the higher hood silhouette. And before I knew it I was driving just as smooth as I did last week. At least until it came time to downshift. 🤣🤣🤣 I was grinding gears and under revving like it was my first day again. Len told us the first Monday back is usually the hardest for most of his students. The layoff from the weekend really showed.

Our 3rd student was back so we were back to our normal driving time. We each drove a complete circle around Jacksonville on 1-295. The city was beautiful on this sunny morning, especially crossing the Dames Point and Buckman bridges. I got 70 miles behind the wheel today.

We returned to campus and took lunch. We did our usual pre trip and backing practice when we returned until 5pm. We did our logs and went home for the day.

Day 24 (9/23/22)

We found there would only 2 of us today. One of our fellow students had another obligation and wouldn't be here today. So me and the other student would split the 4 hours of our drive time today.

We took the same route, truck and trailer as we had the previous days. Hopped on I-10 in Jacksonville and drove all the way to Madison. I drove the first 2 hours, across I-10, thru the agriculture inspection and through the scale house until we reached the TA in Madison. I drove from 8am to 10am and got 111 miles behind the wheel! That brings my total for the first week behind the wheel to 292 miles. Well ahead of our goal of getting 1000 miles in these 4 weeks behind the wheel.

During our drive time our Instructor Len, gave us a verbal walkthrough of an entire pre trip inspection. It really helped us understand the language we needed to use when it came time for our testing.

The other student drove us back to Jacksonville and then we broke for lunch.

We returned from lunch for a pre trip session. Our Instructor took us around to different trucks and trailers on the pad to point out some key differences. We won't know exactly which vehicle we will have for the test so, it's best we get familiar with all the different tractors and trailers we have on campus.

We spent the last 2 hours rotating on offset and alley dock. Since there was only two of us we got a lot of reps. I found myself trying to get the truck perfectly centered in the lanes, but my Instructor advised me to not use unnecessary pullups. If it was in between the lines, leave it. Today was probably my most successful day at backing.

TGIF!

We filled out our daily driver logs and Len explained how we needed to fill out our off-duty logs for the weekend to turn in on Monday.

All in all, it was a very successful week!

Thanks for the updates. Keep on keepin on.

Have you decided on a company yet?

Thank you George and, no I haven’t decided in a carrier yet. I have some things in the works but no decision has been made yet.

Day 22 (9/21/22)

Today was our first day of interstate driving. We would be going from Jacksonville to Madison and back, about 200 miles round trip.

Same tractor and trailer from the previous day.

I drove the 2nd leg of our trip. The first student drove until we got to the Busy Bee in Live Oak, FL. I took over from there. I went through the scale house on I-10 as well as the agricultural inspection check. I felt surprisingly comfortable driving at 70 mph. I had no problems upshifting, getting on and off the ramps or lane changing. I remembered to keep checking my mirrors and watching my trailer. I struggled a bit when downshifting, but got better towards the end of my leg. Len had me drive in the left lane for about 10 miles just to get the feel of it. I admit I was a little nervous driving past other big rigs on the 2 lane section of the interstate, but managed to do to do so without any hiccups. I drove from Live Oak to Madison and then back to Lake City, FL where the 3rd student took over. I drove a total of 70 miles today.

The 3rd student drove us back to Jacksonville. We will be taking the same route for the rest of the week, rotating times so everyone gets a chance to drive through the scales and agricultural inspection check.

We broke for lunch and came back for our afternoon session on the pad.

The other 2 students got some one on one time on the alley dock. I spent the rest of the day rotating on straight back and offset, with whoever wasn’t doing alley dock at the time. We stopped at 4pm and did pre trip until 5 pm.

Day 23 (9/22/22)

Same exact route and daily routine as the previous day. This time I drove 3rd leg (Lake City to Jacksonville), I got 76 miles behind the wheel. We returned to Jacksonville and broke for lunch.

Pad time went very well today. I feel more and more comfortable with the backing maneuvers with each rep. I think my break from alley dock yesterday really helped me “zero in” my offset. I’m doing it more often now with no pull-ups. My alley dock improved as well.

Day 21 (9/20/22)

Bad start to the day. I overslept. Class starts at 8am, I didn’t arrive to campus until 8:30. To my disappointment my group had already left with the truck. I texted my instructor and he said he would come back and pick me up when they had time.

I decided to use my waiting time to work on my pre-Trip inspection. I went over to a tractor that wasn’t being used, popped the hood and started with the engine components. I finished the engine compartment and began on the suspension and brake system components. I received a text from my instructor around 9:30 that they were on their way back to campus to pick me up. They arrived around 9:45 and to my surprise they were pulling a trailer this time! No more bob tailing. All of our trailers are 53 footers, some dry van, some moving van (equipped with mattress storage compartments, and a few flat bed trailers.

I jumped in the truck, sincerely apologized to everyone for my tardiness and assured them it wouldn’t happen again. We were pulling a dry van trailer. I had missed our instructor’s demonstration on how to drive while pulling a trailer. Yesterday we only had a trailer on the pad during backing practice. He gave me a verbal crash course, and I got about 45 minutes behind the wheel due to my tardiness. We drove the same local route we did the previous day, with speeds up to 45 mph. Turning with a trailer is definitely something I’m gonna have to get used to, but I think I did pretty well. I didn't run over any curbs and I believe my trailer was only in the grass once during a turn. A couple times he did have to tell me to go out further before turning though. I got about 15 miles in after the other 2 students drove and we returned to campus for lunch.

Len told us we would be hitting I-10 tomorrow at speeds up to 70 mph! I asked “will our trucks go that fast?” and he told me none of the 2018 or newer Peterbilts are governed. I was a little nervous but excited nonetheless. He told us we would each have at least 1000 miles behind the wheel before the completion of the program.

We came back from lunch for our afternoon session on the pad. In the afternoon we have to couple the trailers to the tractor as part of our practice. Today was my turn to do it. I remembered my checklist from the class and the things the student did the day before and got it done.

We each rotated about 5 times on the straight back maneuver and then moved into offset. I felt a lot more comfortable doing the offsets today, I even managed to do it 2 or 3 times with no pull ups on either side. Len said we were doing so well he wanted to introduce us to the alley dock. He took me first and left the other 2 to do offsets.

Most of the newer tractors were in use either on the pad or on the road with the other groups. We used an old international tractor and 53 ft moving van trailer. He ran thru the maneuver twice with me sitting in the passenger seat, explaining how and when to turn, and what to look for, then we switched seats. (Deep exhale) I could see this was not going to come to me as fast as the other two backing maneuvers. I struggled, like severely! We stayed at it for a little over an hour and I think I made it into the boundary once on my own. (I competed it twice with him in the passenger seat telling when and how much to turn). My confidence took a big hit. Len gave me a pep talk and told me it was just the first day doing this not to worry, I would have plenty of time to get it down in the next 3 weeks. Tomorrow the other two students would get their turn on the alley dock and he would leave me to do offsets and straight backs all afternoon.

We filled out our driver logs and went home for the day.

Day 19 (9/16/22)

Our last day of classroom instruction!

We began our day with the ELDT test. For those of us who had their permit before Feb. 7th we were exempt. I hung out in the breakroom while they tested, along with the 3 other students who were exempt. We used that time to study for our final classroom test.

When everyone was done with their ELDT test we returned for a final review, and our final KAHOOT game of the class. I retained my crown as the number 1 player, to no one's surprise this time, lol!

We broke for lunch to give us a break before our final test.

Our final test was 75 questions, covering everything we had learned during these 4 weeks. The test took quite a while. After we finished, it was graded and we were given our final grades for the course! (There was only 1 student who failed the course, he will be forced to repeat the 2nd two week class again).

Before we were dismissed, we were given a checklist for the driving portion of the course, and assigned an instructor to be paired with in our truck!

Day 20 (9/19/22)

We are finally out of the classroom and now ready to drive! We began our day with roll call and then we broke into our groups to meet our instructors for the next 4 weeks!

We now have 15 students and 4 instructors. I just happened to be in the group that only has 3 students, (would have been 4 with the student who didnt pass). My Instructor is Mr. Len.

He began with a course outline, and calendar. Remember we are taking CVD 3 (vehicle inspection and backing) and CVD 4 (road driving) at the same time. Or group will do driving in the morning and pad work after lunch everyday for next 4 weeks.

Our calendar outlined all the state testing dates. Our first shot at vehicle inspection will be on Wednesday of week 3. Assuming we pass that, our first shot at backing will be the next day (Thursday of week 3) , and the road test would be administered on Tuesday of week 4. (State of Florida mandates a 48 hr window between a failed test and a retest, so any failed tests will delay the next. We have as many shots as that mandate will allow before the end of the course.)

After checking to make sure we all had our DL, CLP and medical card we jumped right into a truck (a bobtail).

We started with everyone taking a few laps around the track that surrounds the training pad. After Len felt comfortable with that, we took the bobtail out on the streets near the campus. We rotated seat time. I was first up and got 20 miles behind the wheel at speeds up to 45 mph. Concentrating mostly on just upshifting and getting a feel of being behind the wheel. The other 2 students got about the same mileage and we returned to campus for lunch.

After lunch it was all pad work for the rest of the day. We spent the 1st hour or so rotating seat time on the straight backing maneuver. After everyone seemed to get that down we were introduced to the offset backing maneuver. This one didnt go as smooth as straight back but it was our first day behind the wheel.

We are required to fill out driver logs daily and turn them in before going home. We went inside to do our logs and then we were released at 5pm.

It felt good to finally be driving and I was so glad to get from behind the desk! I am truly excited about this part if the course!

Day 17 (9/14/22)

Day 18 (9/15/22)

I grouped these days together because they were basically the same. I won’t bore you with every little detail.

Map reading and trip planning are the last things to cover in the classroom portion of this program. We spent both days doing multiple exercises and worksheets. We had a quiz each day.

Day 15 (9/12/22)

The start of our final week in the classroom!

We began with an open book quiz on FMCSA regulations. Then we went right into our Final review for Hours of Service/Monthly Summary/Recap. We played everyone’s favorite game, KAHOOT! Back in first place for me again! (starting to become a recurring thing now 😎). We then broke early for lunch and given 30 extra minutes to study for our Final Test on everything regarding Hours of Service.

We came back from lunch and had our final test on H.O.S., I missed 2 questions but still got a 97% - A. We then reviewed them and addressed any final questions on the subject.

We were now onto our Introduction to Trip Planning! We had a J.J. Keller slideshow and an instructor lecture. We finished our day with a Map & Trip , Arrival and Departure exercise.

We were assigned chapter 28 (Trip Planning) to read in our J.J. Keller ELDT textbook for homework, and then we went home.

Day 16 (9/13/22)

Today was another half day for us, as our instructor was once again selected to do state testing for the class already driving. This time we arrived after lunch, for the afternoon session only.

We dove right into the Motor Carriers Atlas. We had a another map reading and trip planning slideshow/lecture. We then had an overview of the map key and identifiers.

We did 4 map reading exercises/worksheets and then had our 1st quiz. After quiz review we went home.

Day 13 (9/8/22)

We started the day with an exercise called “Stack The Coupling System”. It required us to list in order from front to back, top to bottom, how we would inspect the coupling system.

We then moved on to doing our first logbook entry. We talked about daily logging requirements, how to log multiple days off duty. All of our logs will be on paper. We then were given 2 logbook exercises to do and then we reviewed them.

We had a quick quiz on Hours Of Service, then another quiz on Hours of Service Requirements. We continued working multiple logbook exercises until lunch, with each one getting progressively harder. It seemed like everyone was catching on pretty good.

We came back from lunch for our 2nd recruiter visit. This time from Melton Truck Lines (Nick Glasson). Many more students had questions since we knew what to expect after our first recruiter. OTR/Flatbed company based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. A few people put their names down to get more information, and after about 90 minutes we were back to doing class work.

We continued working logbook exercises until we were dismissed. We were given a logbook exercise for homework.

Day 14 (9/9/22)

We began our morning with our Pre-Trip Inspection Test. We were allowed to use our pre-trip packet and any notes we had wrote inside of it. I got a 100% - A.

We then continued with the FMCSA Hours of Service, and how to fill out a monthly summary. We did 2 monthly summary recap exercises, with the 2nd introducing the 34 hour reset. We were then released for lunch.

We returned from lunch for another quiz. This time closed book on Hours of Service. After our instructor graded and we reviewed the quizzes we had more monthly summary/recap worksheets. We had our final review on the same subject and then took our final quiz , another 100% - A for me.

Day 11 (9/6/22)

We were given a reading assignment over the holiday weekend to prepare us for our first few days of CVD II.

-FMCSA: Part 395 Hours of Service Rules

-J.J.Keller ELDT textbook: Chapter 23: Hours of Service

We started the day outside on the training pad for our first walk thru of the pre-trip inspection. Our Instructor did an entire pre-trip inspection on the outside (engine, tractor, coupling system, and trailer). He advised us to make notes in our pre-trip packet and I also recorded the bulk of the inspection on my phone.

After the demo on the outside of the vehicle we broke into groups of 4 and each group was given a truck. We were instructed to start practicing our outside the vehicle pre trip until our instructor came back around to our group. He would be going group to group to do the in-cab inspection and brake check (safe start checklist, brake tests and exterior light check).

We continued with our pre-trip practice until it was lunchtime.

After lunch it was back to the classroom for a pop quiz on this weekend’s reading assignment. We followed that with a J.J. Keller video on “Hours of Service Regulations”.

We finished the video and then did a worksheet called “The 70 Hour Challenge”. This was our first introduction to the 70 hour / 8 day Rule ( and 60 hour / 7 day rule). We were also introduced to the 34 hour reset provision. That wrapped up our day.

Day 12 (9/7/22)

Our instructor told us today would be a half day for us. He had been selected to administer pre trip test for the students in the other class who were scheduled to begin their state testing.

We headed outside to do nothing pre-trip practice and in cab inspections and brake checks for the remainder of our class time. We were released for the day at what would have been our normal lunch break time.

Day 10 (9/2/22)

Today is the last day of CVD I, in order to move into the next section of the class you need to have a passing grade and have your CLP in hand.

We started the day with our instructor collecting and making copies of our driver’s license and CLP. There were 3 students who did not pass all the written tests at DMV to acquire their permits, one student left his wallet at home!

We had our final review for the course final and we played KAHOOT! Of course I was excited to get back at my rival classmate. And I did just that, back in 1st place.

After that we had our course final, a 75 question test on everything we covered in the 1st two weeks.

Our instructor began grading our tests and put on a video for us titled “Life on the Road”. It showed life as an OTR driver from 3 different driver perspectives. All 3 of the drivers had LoneStar edition International trucks. What a beautiful truck! All the bells and whistles and premium features!

We were given our final grades for the test and the course overall. I passed the course with a 96-A!

We were then given an option for the rest of the day. Students who still needed to acquire their CLP were released to go back to DMV and retest. The remaining students could either go home for the day or take lunch and return to get some simulator time.

Of course I couldn’t pass up getting some time on the simulator! So I went to lunch and came back. Of the 12 students who had their CLP 6 of us came back for the simulator.

There are 3 simulators, only 2 were working at the time. So we rotated seat time.

Our first activity was called “The Beat”. Preparing us for double clutching, we had to shift out of gear and into gear in a smooth, rhythmic timing. It didn’t matter what gear we shifted to just make sure we did it on time and we double clutched. It took me 2 tries but I made it thru. Most of the other students got it, but 2 greatly struggled.

Next up was actually double clutching and shifting to the right gears. Part one was only gears 1-5. We all struggled and took multiple attempts at passing this section. Only one student completed this task and it wasn’t me. The simulator has a lot of valuable tools. The issue I ran into while trying to complete this task was clutch depth. I was spot on with my clutch position when shifting out of gear ( from gear to neutral), but the simulator kept saying clutch too deep when shifting from neutral into gear.

My instructor could see my frustration and ensured me I was doing just fine. He told us we were doing just as well (or as bad for that matter), as his previous classes. He ensured us that clutch position on the real trucks would be more forgiving. He said the simulator wants everything to be perfect, and to not get down on ourselves. He even went thru the exercise himself to show us he is not perfect either. Still not sure if he did that on purpose or not.

He gave us an overview of what to expect in CVD II, and told us he would see us next week! Monday is Labor Day so our class would resume on Tuesday.

I took my ELDT training online for the Hazmat endorsement to satisfy the new law.

Seatack, were you able to take the online training/class for the Hazmat endorsement on your own before you started school, or were you already enrolled? I'm wanting to get this done but having trouble finding the info I need.

Sandman, everything that Mark stated is 100% correct. Even down to the website I got my training on!

Day 7 (8/30/22)

We continued our coverage on the general knowledge section of the CDL manual (anti-lock braking systems, skid control & recovery). We followed that by watching a J.J. Keller video on “Skid Management”. We then had a quiz on Skid Control and Recovery.

We had a short break and then we dove right back into the general knowledge section of CDL manual, this time the sub sections on Accident procedures and Fires. As you can probably see there is a pattern to this curriculum. Manual reading, then a J.J. Keller video. So of course, next up was a video on Accident procedures. I can’t lie I’m starting to get a little bored with all the manual reading. I understand the first few weeks is all about getting the CDL permit but, since I have mine already the repetitiveness is getting to me a little. I’m pushing through nonetheless.

Finally it was time for lunch, I really needed a pick me up. I had some Chinese takeout and Monster!

I returned to class so we could finish the last section under general knowledge, “Alcohol and Drugs” & “Hazardous Materials”. Onto chapter 3, Cargo Securement. We then watched a J.J. Keller video titled........ you guessed it, “Cargo Securement”.

We have finally covered all the sections in the CDL manual necessary for the CDL permit tests. We had our first 2 DMV practice tests for the CDL permit. This one was open-book.

We finished our day with our introduction to the FMCSA Safety Regulations manual. (The little green book, as my instructor calls it). We had a look-up exercise where we were given a regulation and then had to choose the appropriate multiple choice answer. I can honestly say some of those regulations felt like they were written to be more confusing than they actually needed to be. I guess it’s a good thing we aren’t expected to remember any of them, just need to know where to find them and to interpret it ( at least to the best of our knowledge).

That completed our day.

Day 8 (8/31/22)

Today is all about review. Tomorrow is the day everyone who doesn’t have their permit already goes to DMV.

We started with any final questions on anything we covered in the general knowledge section of the CDL manual.

Now it’s time for our favorite game so far..... KAHOOT! Time for me to defend my crown as the number 1 player in the class.

Well.....It didn’t go as well as I thought It would and I ended up back in the first loser’s position. The same student who’s been battling me all class took 1st. We had a lot of fun, our instructor even mixed in a few pop culture questions to mix it up.

We had our 2nd DMV practice test. Graded and reviewed. It seemed like most of the students are confident they will pass their written tests at DMV.

We finished the day with a J.J. Keller video on “Roadside Inspections”.

In anticipation of the DMV appointments we were released early.

Day 9 (9/1/22) No class! Today was the day to acquire the Commercial Learner’s Permit. For those of us who already have it, we got the day off.

Are you guys using this training module, by chance? JJ Keller Safe & Smart . When you have time (haha!) look that over. It deals with endorsements, and is pretty awesome, especially if available in your curriculum. It enables you to get the HazMat endorsement early on, while you're already studying and learning. It's harder for someone getting licensed after the ELDT to obtain later on, than it would be.. say, PackRat.

Our curriculum doesn’t deal with endorsements at all. Fortunately for me, I already have the tanker endorsement on my permit. I have also passed the doubles/triples as well. We have a week of “night driving” coming up and I will go to DMV and take the written for the Hazmat endorsement during the day then. I took my ELDT training online for the Hazmat endorsement to satisfy the new law. I actually already have my TWIC card too, which should speed up the background check thru TSA/Homeland Security. As you can probably tell, I wanted to get as far ahead as I could before starting CDL school.

Day 5 (8/26/22)

We started the morning continuing our discussion on the pre trip packet we received the previous day. Our instructor then told us about all the things that are listed in the “automatic fail” list for our state tests. We then watched a J.J. Keller video on pre and post trip inspections.

We had a short break and then took a non-graded quiz on “in-cab inspection”. After the quiz review, we dove right back into the general knowledge section of the CDL manual, specifically the section on vehicle control (accelerating, steering, stopping, backing safely and shifting). We then were released for lunch.

After returning from lunch we watched a YouTube video by CDL college on shifting. I was very familiar with this video as I had watched it multiple times already. I feel it really explains the concept of double clutching extremely well, as well as the positions of the “hard” and “soft” walls.

After that, we continued in the general knowledge section of the CDL manual.

It was now Friday and we made it through our 1st week successfully. We were rewarded by our instructor, who assigned us seven chapters to read in our ELDT textbook for the weekend! (Speed management, space management, hazard perception, night ops, extreme weather, railroad crossing, and skid control)

Day 6 (8/29/22)

Monday morning. We started the morning by setting DMV appointments for all students who didn’t have their permit already. There will be no class on Thursday, everyone will be given the day to go to DMV to test for their permits. Those of us who had it already would have a day off! Yay!

Another pop quiz! This time on turns, intersections and roundabouts. There were a bunch of students who evidently didn’t do the reading assignments over the weekend. Our instructor went on to tell us the importance of these tests and quizzes. Although passing the 3 state mandated tests will ensure you get your CDL license, this is a college course. You need an average score of 80% or C average, over the entire 8 week course in order to receive the 320-hour career certificate. A D is passing (70%) but not good enough for that career training certificate. He continued on by telling us the difficulties we would encounter as a rookie driver looking for work without it.

We were given a break from the reading and lectures we had encountered the first week. Today was video day!

We watched 8 videos in total.

6 from J.J.Keller - Road hazards - Distracted driving - Night driving - Railroad crossings - Mountain driving - Emergency maneuvers

2 from YouTube - Railroad crossings accidents - Trucks using runaway ramps

Lunch was sandwiched somewhere in between all theses videos. We were told tomorrow we would have our first quiz on general knowledge. Our instructor assigned a few chapters in the ELDT textbook (post crash procedures, drugs/alcohol, driver wellness and handling cargo). We were also told to read section 3 in the CDL manual on cargo securement. Then it was time to go home.

Good luck with your plan. I'll be following.

Thank you PackRat! As you can probably tell by the dates I'm a little further ahead in the class than my diary is so far. I have taken good notes, I'll be sure to get caught up ASAP.

Wish you the best, as well! Sure sounds like a great program, from a Florida (transplant!) and a NY'er BORN!

Glad to see ya stop back, sir! I'll be following, and hoping you all the best.

Let us know how it goes, all is well that ends well, good sir.

~ Anne ~

ps: Pre Hires, as TMC .. are a GOOD THING!

• Article: Understanding Pre-Hire Letters: The What, Why, And How Of This Important Step
• Trucker's Wiki: "Pre-Hire Letters"
• Forum Topics Tagged "CDL Pre-Hire Letters"

pps: for now, FOLLOW ALONG! Apply For Truck Driving Jobs

I'll still wonder .. Still not sure why you wouldn't go with Cypress . . . right in your back yard ~!

Thank you Anne! I will be sure to check out those links!

Honestly, I visited Cypress and wasnt impressed. It is close to me but, FSCJ was even closer. They also kept pushing the contract on me, and I really didn't want that. I was fine with paying for school on my own.

Day 3 (8/24/22)

Our class has been cut down to 15 students. One student failed his drug test.

Started the morning off playing Kahoot. (It’s a question and answer game online, you get points for answering correctly and bonus points for answering quickly). The instructor said we will use this multiple times as an interactive review. This time it was all about Air Brakes. I placed second.

We had Air Brake quiz number 2. It was graded and then we reviewed it. Next up we started on section 6 in the cdl manual, Combination Vehicles. We then watched a J.J. Keller video on backing (90 degree alley dock, straight, offset and parallel. After the video, it was time for lunch.

We returned from lunch and had our final written test on Air Brakes. Following that, we continued and finished the Combination Vehicles section of the CDL manual.

We watched another J.J. Keller video, this time on Coupling & Uncoupling. We then headed out to the pad for a demonstration on coupling and uncoupling. We were given 4 chapters to read in our ELDT textbook and then we were dismissed.

Day 4 (8/25/22)

Pop quiz! Surprise, surprise (not really).

Quiz was actually open book and all about combination vehicles. We once again reviewed and discussed the results. Now it was time for another Kahoot! I really wanted to win this one but ended up placing 2nd, again. This was all about Combination vehicles, we all had a good laugh at some of the answers that were put into the game (my instructor likes to add what he calls a bit of “dad” humor).

We then had Combination Vehicle quiz #2, which was closed book. Some students didn’t do so well. Some complained that there were questions on the quiz that we didn’t talk about. Our instructor agreed but, reiterated the need to read the designated chapters on our own as that information could be found there. If it’s in the manual, or textbook, it’s fair game!

We played 2 more Kahoot games on combination vehicles. This time I placed 1st on both! The guy who beat me out on the first two games placed second both times. It looks like he and I will be battling it out for the next few weeks. I love competition and I’m always up for the challenge!

We then broke for lunch. When we returned we had our Final test on combination vehicles.

After test review we had our first introduction to the Pre-Trip inspection. We were given a packet developed by the college with all the information needed to pass that portion of the state test. We were also told about our state testing procedures and given dates.

All 5 instructors at the college are state certified. We will do all of our testing with them. When we get to the driving portion of the course we will be split into groups of 4, and paired with one of the instructors for the entire 4 weeks. We will not be “tested out” by the instructor we were paired with. It will be one of the other 4.

Now onto the longest section of the CDL manual, general knowledge. We got thru about a fourth of that section and then we were dismissed for the day.

(There are 4 other students who also have their permit already. We have a bit of a head start seeing how this isn’t the first time we’ve reviewed these sections of the CDL manual.)

Day 2 (8/23/22)

Started the day with our first recruiter visit! The company was TMC. I was familiar with seeing those beautiful black and chrome Peterbilts rolling around town. (not to mention, I just had a friend start with them about 2 months ago). He answered lots of questions, left us with a pamphlet and his business card. The recruiter passed around a sheet for us to put our contact info down for anyone who was interested.

We will be working out of our CDL manual and the J.J. Keller ELDT textbook for the next two weeks.

We went through chapter 1 in the CDL MANUAL (Intro). Then proceeded to finish the chapter on Air Brakes we started the previous day. We watched a J.J. Keller video on air brakes and then we left for our 1 hour lunch.

After lunch we had an open book quiz on air brakes. After the instructor graded our quizzes and we reviewed them, we headed out to the pad for our first look at a truck. He gave us an overview of brake components and an air brake demonstration.

We headed back in for reading assignments and then were relased.

Day 1 (8/22/22)

First day of class. We started the day with our Instructor introducing himself and then giving us a course syllabus and outline. The class is broken down into 4 sections.

CVD 1 - 2 weeks, Intro into trucking. Preparation for state permit exams (general knowledge, combination vehicles, air brakes). Must obtain permit to proceed to next class.

CVD 2 - 2 weeks, overview of required operational and daily skill set of commercial drivers (hours of service, monthly summary, trip planning and eldt theory)

CVD 3 - 4 weeks, Vehicle Inspection and backing

CVD 4 - 4 weeks, Road driving

(**CVD 3 and 4 are ran concurrently.)

After that we proceeded to student intros and then had a visit from our campus admin and security briefing. We concluded the day by starting the chapter on air brakes in the cdl manual.