Comments By nomad girl

I wouldn't say it's "forbidden". It's just preferable to shift before the grade. But let's say you find yourself on a downgrade you're not familiar with (or it caught you before you realized it), I would step on the brakes for three seconds, (softly at one and firmly at three). By doing this, I bring the RPMs down by 500 or until it's between 1000-1200. Then, I downshift, remembering that gravity will automatically raise my RPMs. So, service brakes, bring RPMs down, clutch out, RPMs will rise to 1500 with gravity, clutch into lower gear.

Also, if it looks like a downgrade is coming up, it's much better to overcompensate on your downshift as it'll be easier to up shift.

Well, I see a lot of male truckers at truck stops. You could start there.

In this industry, you need a lot of patience. You have to be self motivated and you have to be committed in keeping a positive attitude when things aren't going the way they should be. You are pretty much out on your own.

This is the toughest job I've ever trained for - mainly because my mentor was so hard on me and I still get a little nervous driving because it's a lot of responsibilities for one person to handle.

Still, I remind myself that if I quit, I have to go back to a boring job that I wouldn't enjoy. It's fun being on the road and seeing the country.

I've been driving for three months and like most rookies, the urge to quit is high! The test is not that hard if you practice and do your best. It's the real work that's hard.

Socializing is an important skill. You will have to communicate with shippers, receivers, dispatchers, other drivers, etc. Some people will treat you as an equal, some will be total pricks. On one or more occasion, you'll meet someone on drugs or on a power trip. It's not all daisies. The industry is 95% male. You have to be tough and play it their way.

Second, the money is not that great - not in the beginning. I've had three weeks not making a paycheck because the truck was shut down or ran only enough to make truck payments because we had to go back to a shipper to take off weight because it was over GVW and it took them an additional four hours.

No matter where you work, there will always be politics. The only way to avoid that is to work for a mom and pop or work for yourself.

Driving alone can make you think a lot. Thinking a lot can make you depressed.

I was inspired to go into trucking by a 70 year old female trucker. =)

This is my third month driving truck and the urge to quit is high. But like the advice given, I'm gonna grit my teeth and survive my first year.

I have a hard time too. Sometimes, you are going on a downgrade, that that downgrade is set on an upgrade. Lol.

As for finding the right gear, it depends on how heavy you are and the conditions of the road. If I'm heavy, I'm usually going 5hi on steep upgrades and depending on how gradual the downgrade is, I may be in 6hi or 7lo if it's really steep or 7hi or 8lo if it's gradual. The key is to not rely on my service brakes. If I'm brake checking more than once in every fifteen second interval, I have to downshift so I can get a stronger jake and be more in control of my vehicle. This is especially important to prevent burning the brakes.

Ohio also provides shower facilities at their rest stops. You'll have to provide your own towel. The facilities are pretty well maintained, given that they're open to the public and provided at no cost.

Best time for showers are usually mornings, then afternoons. Evenings are the worse as most truckers are shutting down for the day. I usually shower in the morning so I rarely have to wait.

Across the nation, Flying J, in my opinion, has the nicest shower facilities. They provide brown towels.

Love's is hit or miss. I've gone to a few where they weren't clean. I think cashiers take turns cleaning and don't have a designated shower person like the other big guys. Towels are blue.

TA/Petro are also hit and miss. But they are usually efficient with getting the showers cleaned an ready for the next patron. Towels are orange.