Profile For Old School

Hey Joe, welcome to Trucking Truth!

This would be true for an Owner/Operator. Fortunately, the company driver will just be issued a different truck and be back on the road the next day. What is your point sir? Surely with a first post worded like this, you must have something else you are wanting to share with us. Curious minds are eager to see where this is going.

Hello Marcus, and welcome to our community!

This is why the EB-3 is so appealing - the truck driver shortage is a well-documented fact.

You bring up an interesting path to truck driving. The problem is that what you consider a "well documented" problem is not easily agreed on here in the U.S. Many of the trucking employers see the same truck drivers coming and going all the time. Some refer to this as "driver churn." Many here don't really think we have a "shortage" of drivers. We have drivers moving around a lot from one employer to another, but as far as a shortage goes, no one seems to agree on that matter. Even the large trucking driving organization, OOIDA, has been known to argue in court against this "fact."

That is why you don't see drivers from other countries being allowed to use the EB-3 window of opportunity. There is no consensus that there is an actual shortage here in the states. Our freight is being delivered, and there are some drivers, even those in this community, who find their work has slowed. I don't think you can count on this program being applied to truck driving any time soon.

The only, "advantage" is that you now have just 7 hours before you have to go back to work again instead of 10.

I'd say being able to extend your 14 hour clock by two hours just by taking a 2 hour break is a pretty big advantage on some days.

Hey Brian, how long have you held a U.S. driver's license?

Gerhard, welcome to Trucking Truth!

I am sorry to let you down sir, but the U.S. does not issue work visas for truck driving jobs. There is a political reason for this dating back to the glory days of the teamster's union.

That sounds good. You make me wish I was stuck there with you.

Drew, you're making the classic decision making mistake. You're making a decision during a time of stress. You want to get home, but the weather isn't cooperating. You want to be compensated for not working, but the company isn't cooperating. Now you made a decision to not go home, and that's irritating you.

Any fool could make the decision to move to greener pastures under those circumstances. A wise trucker keeps the bigger picture in focus. He makes that decision a few weeks or months later when things are going well for him. Don't let the temporary problems we all face in this business dictate your decision making process.

Hello Mikenzie, and welcome to our forum. You'll be doing yourself a huge favor by hanging out with the drivers here. They are friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable. Engage yourself in the ongoing conversations and ask as many questions as you like. We understand how hard it is finding reliable trucking information on the internet, and we do our best to help with that issue.

One thing I want to mention to you is the Commitment required when trying to switch over into the trucking career. You mentioned...

I could always try it and if I end up not liking it, then I have backups.

It's best to go into trucking with a full fledged commitment of trying it for one full year from the date you start driving solo (without a trainer). The challenges when attempting this career are unbounded. Many people give up during their first three months. That's the most challenging time. If you are counting on having back ups you will easily decide trucking isn't worth it and bailout. You need to walk this tight rope without a net. You need a commitment to success. Without it you're easy prey to discouragement.

Now, I also want you to know how much many of us love this career. I can't imagine doing anything else. This is a second career for me and I'm passionate about it. I had a really difficult entry, but because of my commitment I survived the difficult part and have been very successful and happy as an OTR driver.

Since you are doing research... here's some of the really great and free resources on our site. Enjoy reading them and please engage yourself in our forum.

• Truck Driver's Career Guide
• Brett's Book: The Raw Truth About Trucking (free online version)
• High Road CDL Training Program
• CDL Practice Tests

It's great to hear from you Moe!

I just want to add something I've observed over the years. We certainly associate bad weather with bad truck accidents - snow and ice have serious effects on the conditions we rely on to keep us safe. But... beware of the pleasant sunny afternoon when it seems you haven't a care in the world. Those were the conditions when I had my worst close call of nearly being involved in a serious trucking accident. There's just no time out here immune to trouble. It can pop up unexpectedly at any time.

Dexter, you need to start looking into some other type of work for now. No one is going to hire you with litigation hanging over your head of this sort. You will need to get this legal process over with and hopefully come up with something from the court that gives you some sort of exoneration. As long as you have this pending "at fault fatalaty" I don't see how any legitimate trucking service is going to be able to get you approved for employment due to their insurance underwriters considering you an extreme liability risk.

It's absolutely something I think about. It's generally the more experienced commercial drivers who have serious accidents. Rookies back into poles or little things like that due to their lack of abilities to maneuver their vehicle or somehow thinking It's a symbol of inexperience to G.O.A.L.

Experienced drivers sometimes have a confidence that needs to be shaken a little. We tend to think we can do anything in any circumstance. In snow and ice, it's almost always the over confident driver who start these calamitous accidents.

Definitely cast a wide net. You just never know what might happen. I thought Roehl hung the moon when I was in truck driving school years ago. They flatly rejected me. They said, "We have much better candidates to choose from." I was the top student in my school. Another fellow in my class, who barely passed, got immediately accepted at Roehl. He didn't even finish with his trainer before quitting.

Hiring brand new rookie drivers is a crap shoot for these companies. We have nothing special to offer them. We have no track record as commercial drivers. Sometimes they just try to read between the lines and make a decision. You definitely want to apply to multiple places.

PackRat is right. Every trucking company out here has it's die hard fans and its haters. You may get to Roehl and decide its nothing like you hoped and dreamed. I love my job at Knight - PackRat was very disappointed with his, so he moved on. That's a common occurrence in this business.

I like to plan things ahead

You'll have to develop a long term plan. First I'd scratch Mexico off my list. It's a terrible place to be a truck driver. Low pay, lousy trucks, and lots of truck and cargo theft.

If you want to be an American trucker you have to come here first and find some other form of employment for a few years. You'll have to hold a regular U.S. driver's license for one year before you can apply for the Class A CDL (a trucker's license). There are no work Visas granted for truck driving jobs here. You must integrate into our society first before being eligible to be a truck driver.

I do not know the Canadian rules. I have heard you can get started there much easier as an immigrant. If that's true, you might want to research that option. Many Canadian drivers cross the border working freight lanes in both countries under the authority of their Canadian license.

Tucker, explain to us what a drug test violation is. I've never heard of one.

I'm starting to wonder if we don't understand what happened. Normally you pass or fail a drug test and there's not much recourse if you fail. I've simply never heard anyone refer to having a drug test violation.

Can you elaborate and be more clear and specific with us?

Maybe we are understanding. Maybe you prefer being really vague because it helps you develop a sense of being a victim instead of taking responsibility for your issues and facing the consequences. I'm not accusing you of anything. I just wonder why you seem to feel the way you do but the rest of us can't even understand what your true situation is. The key to having someone help you is to give them accurate information.

I'm not sure what you mean by "clearing up a failed drug test." Going through SAP doesn't remove the evidence that you failed a test. It merely means you've taken the required steps to deal with your issues. At that point it is still up to the employers discretion. Most of them feel they have much better candidates to choose from.

I mean no disrespect to you Tucker, and I'm thrilled for you if you've figured out how to stay away from your vices. Employers who are willing to put you behind the wheel of 40 tons are going to be far less thrilled than me though.

It's the reality you face now. It's called consequences. Trust me I know about consequences. They can be overcome, but it takes resilience, resolve, and responsibility.

Hang in there, apply everywhere, and if you get a recruiters ear, try to explain your situation while taking full responsibility for the failed test. Tell them what you've learned and how those lessons will make you a much better driver now.

Hey Doug, it's great to see you pursuing this career! Just take things one step at a time. Try to relax and embrace the hectic process. We've all felt backing anxiety. It's every rookies weak spot.

We have a fun article about learning to go backwards. I hope you'll check it out.

The Backing Range - Clown Soup For The Soul

I picked up 10,581 board feet of rough sawn white oak lumber today. I sure wanted to take a little home with me.

Here's what it looked like after I wrapped it all up.

Hey Jim, it sounds to me like you're trying to force a square peg in a round hole.

You want less physical labor, yet you also want to be home every night. Most local jobs are delivery jobs requiring the driver to handle the freight. You already know this because apparently that's what you do now. They also typically require a good deal of hustle to meet the demands of the job. They pay well, but the money is definitely earned.

You also want to run under your own authority. I talk to a lot of drivers. Most of them seem to think owner/operators make more money than company drivers. It's not necessarily the case, and far more times than not, they actually make less. Don't fall for the trap.

It sounds like you have a great job, but you would prefer having less physical labor. Were I you, I'd check into LTL companies. A linehaul position sounds ideal for you. Most of them are home daily. You'd be pulling doubles, and the new guys almost always run the night shift, but seniority comes quickly sometimes as senior drivers retire or quit.

Have you considered any LTL companies? Are there any LTL terminals near you?

How many tickets have you had?

Most states require one year of holding a regular license before you can apply for a CDL. There are a few exceptions. I believe Florida is one of those exceptions.

What is your motivation? If it's to be home daily, why not seek out opportunities like that as a company driver first?