Comments By ThinksTooMuch

Lol yeah I know. Was just funny to read your post because I grew up in NYC.

I grew up in Brooklyn Brett. I am highly offended by your comments in this thread! lol. DON'T go into Brooklyn? Bronx? Queens? Really... c'mon man Manhattan is just filled with the stuff you've seen in the movies. Brooklyn and Queens is where the action is at. Best food, best bars, friendly (and not-so-friendly) neighborhoods, way more exciting than Manhattan.

Driving here is horrible though. It's 2014 and we don't have flying cars or jetpacks yet... highly disappointing!

Cowan is a great company to work for. I get to talk to a lot of their drivers where I am now because the dedicated I am on shares warehouse space with Coca Cola and Cowan does a lot of work for Coke. Most of the drivers seem very happy, equipment is clean and well maintained. I talk to mostly the local drivers but every once in a while there is a regional or two that come thru.

Definitely take a look at Cowan, I think they usually require 2+ years of experience though.

I've never pulled reefer but maybe in the summer time you get to go inside to clean it out and it's nice and cool in there, so that's a benefit. Also with the loading/unloading wait times maybe some people see that as a benefit. They can take naps, do some movie watching, or whatever, more often than with drop/hook dry van loads. Also in reefer the miles are more consistent and there's not much of a drop in the winter as with other types of freight.

Pilot's and Love's also have that "kitchen sink" type thing near the coffee/drink machines. I've seen drivers washing a dish or two in those. Maybe if you wash often enough then you can do it there, or if you save up a load you take it to the shower.

I once saw a gentleman washing his FEET in the restroom sink... He was very good at keeping his balance lol.

All this task in the news recently about minimum wage reform and overtime reform is making me laugh. Love hearing the stories about people who work an ENTIRE 50-60 hours a week and moan about not getting overtime. . .

Where's the reform for driver pay. . . ? Nowhere because we are professionals who get our job done, move the economy, and don't whine.

I agree with the comments so far. Apply to companies and see if they will give you a pre-hire. And if not, ask them why exactly so at least you know.

Also I would highly recommend LCCC. I graduated from their CDL program and so did Redgator. They provide fantastic training. LCTI sells themselves with the 1 on 1 aspect. . . But to be honest you learn a huge amount by watching your classmates drive.

LCCC had a long list of companies that hire their graduates. Call them, ask for the list, then apply to ask of those companies. You can also speak with the program director and ask advice on your situation.

I'm not a picky eater. When I was OTR I hit Walmart before I left for my 2 weeks out. I bought the huge bottled water pack, snacks like nuts, died fruit, etc.

While on the road I pretty much ate at Subway for a late lunch. I told them to pile on all the vegetables, my sandwiches were huge lol. My breakfast was usually cereal, no milk usually. I didn't eat dinner unless I saved half my Subway sandwich from earlier.

Once or twice a month I ate at Burger King or McDonald's or whatever because Subway wasn't available. Once or twice a month I would eat at a Denny's or whatever diner was on the truck stop.

I know Subway isn't the healthiest thing but I figured it's not as bad as other stuff. Plus, unless you grow your own food. . . What you buy in the grocery store is probably almost as bad as Subway. Lol.

I kept a record of my food expenses and it came to about $200-$250 per month.

Partly it is marketing but it is also a bending of the truth. Many companies have a sliding pay scale based on the load mileage. So if your trip is between 1000-1500 miles you get paid .25cpm but if the trip is between 300-999 miles you get paid 0.28cpm and if it is between 1-299 THEN you get paid 0.50cpm. Many companies also pay differently for loaded versus empty trailers.

A lot of drivers don't ask exactly how their pay is structured. They just take the word of the recruiter. Some of that is the recruiter's fault but some is also the driver's fault.

Well put Bill. Nice to see a fellow philosophy major on Trucking Truth.