Comments By Muleskinner 6

Well the saga continues. Every two hours last night someone was calling trying to get hm to deliver the load. Buy hr just kept calmly saying he is going home on time and hr is not taking the load to Houston.

So they started calling me again too and I just said its between you and the driver, not me.

This morning the head of safety called and my trainer calmly explained that he has been reminding his DM everyday he Ned's to be home on Friday morning and she knew the situation. He explained that if he didn't have a repower by lunch he is driving the load to the terminal (we have to drive through Houston) and he is cleaning out the truck and he us done.

He has never once bad mouthed the company to me and every day he yells me how much he loves his job. He even told head of safety that he has nothing bad to say about the company and he really doesn't want to quit because he has so much time invested with them.

Lets see what happens next.

I decided to go sit in the lounge and watch TV. DM called and I told her I was staying out of it.Her boss called and asked me to go tell the trainer to call him personally. I told him the same thing.

Yes I do have my CDL and I'm not going to leave him here. He is a good guy thats just going through a rough time. I will let them finish their ****ing contest and decide who has the bigger set of balls.

This is just my opinion,

I don't see how you have the authority to take over the truck from your Trainer. The problem is between him and the company, not you. Your concern should be what they intend to do with you if this guy doesn't move. Let him fight his battle and let the DM fight their end.

As a veteran, I hope your Trainer gets to meet his brother. I cannot tell you how tough it is to return home and watch others be greeted while you aren't.

Good luck with the remainder of your training and your solo act.

As a veteran I totally understand too and I also understand the companies side too.

I'm not worried about him or the load. I just care about what happens to me. Right now he isn't talking at all. He is just sitting in the drivers seat with a "thousand yard stare"

Evrtytime they talk it turns into a screaming match then she calls me ordering me to get the load to the destination. I'm not even going to start the truck because it is his truck that he is leasing. I know legally it still belongs to the company not him.

OK so what do I do?

My trainer has been driving for about ten years and training for half of that. He is really easy going and is a great trainer.

Problem is he usually stays on the road for three months at a time and never asks for time off. Since he lives near where we usually haul from he occasionally stops by the house for a night to do a reset maybe once every other month.

He asked his DM a month ago to be home this weekend because his brother is returning home from Iraq. Since last week his DM has been sending us further and further away from his house and can't tell what her plan is on getting him home on time.

So today he said he isn't moving and he refuses to answer his phone when she calls because she wants to send him to south Texas instead of towards his house. I know it is kind of childish but I understand his point point too. She said instead of having him home Thursday she might get him home Saturday or Sunday. But he wants to meet his brother when he steps off the plane. He said it is very important to him to be there.

But what do I do? His DM is calling me wanting us to head to Laredo. What do I do? Just leave him here and take the truck? Do I ask to get off the truck? She wants me to be the middle man and I'm not comfortable telling a grown man to put his big boy pants on and suck it up. I have 23 hours of drive time before I finish training. I can finish training in two and a half days but now I am going to be delayed.

He is a great trainer and very patient. He was nominated for trainer of the year last year. I feel bad for him but I Ned to do what I have to.

Advice?

The closest drop yard Stevens has to NYC is Kearny, NJ which looks like it is right by the George Washington bridge which works out good because Stevens hauls a lot of product to Hunts point.

I just came out of Hunts point yesterday. My first trip to NY and its not as bad ad everyone says it is.

I currently work for Stevens and so far I am happy. I am still with a trainer and i am getting around 3000 miles a week. (That's just the miles I drove)

They do have really nice equipment. I am I'm a 2016 Kenworth and yes it is governed at 66 miles an hour. But think about it from the companies perspective, do you really want to turn a rookie loose in a brand new truck that can do 75? I was like the other guy the first time I dropped off a steep grade, I was doing 45 and the pucker factor was through the roof. I swore I was going to roll over.

Their training program is really good. Students aren't put with a trainer to be "meat in the seat" to help the trainer pay his lease. During the five weeks out with the trainer you have to watch videos and take tests with a required 240 hours behind the wheel. You have to hit all five regions and bump a dock in the north east. You have to cross a minimum of three qualified mountains with a minimum of 25,000# in the box.

As far as their lease program they arent like other companies and try to force you into it. So far I have only had to sit through a 5 minute speech about the topic in orientation. You have to qualify to be considered. you have to have a high MPG rating, perfect on time rate, and no accidents.

Today I had three drops on my load, 2 in Los Angeles and 1 in San Diego. I got to my first drop and I should have back in from the street but I decided to nose it in and do a u-turn in a very small parking lot. I got it in the slot with only two pull ups. which I didn't think was bad with the amount of room I had to work with.

Second drop I waited in the staging area and my trainer told me he had been there before and I better hope I don't have to back into door number 8. Sure enough the guard came out and told me to back into door number 8. The best description I can give is it was a blind offset 45 with a building in the way. to my surprise I backed it in on my first shot with no problems at all.

My third drop was super easy plenty of room and no problem at all.

I was feeling pretty good until I got to the truck stop. All I had to do was a straight line back with a curb on the drivers side. Three pull ups later I finally got it in the hole. I was a little upset at myself.

But hey I got it in and didn't hit anything expensive.

When I asked my trainer why he doesn't have a CB on his truck he asked me if I really wanted to listen to the super trucker wanna-be talk trash about me when I was trying to back up.

I just laughed and said I can only inagine what they were saying. I'm good not knowing.

You my friend are very lucky. Your trainer sounds like a real gem. Practicing your backing skills in a truck stop during off-peak hours is one of the better places to learn and I applaud him for taking his job seriously and helping you in this way. The true professional will not chastise a student when they are learning (we were not born knowing how to do this), and like you experienced, many will offer some assistance and/or encouragement. Your trainer is doing you a huge favor by forcing you out of your comfort zone. It will pay-off in spades when you are out there on your own, negotiating tight loading docks and congested truck stops.

Thank you. At first I didn't think we would get along but so far he is pretty cool.

This morning when we got up he told me to get some coffee because its going to be another long day if backing practice at the truck stop, since our load doesn't drop till tomorrow.

I am very greatful he is pushing me to learn instead of just making me drive.

I was very appreciative that everyone wanted to help coach me and give me pointers. My preconceived notion that all drivers are rude and hateful was totally wrong.

Well you're going to find that a small percentage of drivers are just "undesirables"......they have little or nothing of value to offer anyone, nor are they interested in doing so. You'll recognize the type before long and you'll avoid them altogether if you can.

Most drivers are at least decent to talk to for a while, as long as they don't get started on a complaining rant. You just have to steer them away from trucking themes and talk about something more positive.

One thing you'll find is that people are far more willing to help someone who is humble and is clearly giving it their best effort. It's a waste of time trying to teach someone when they're obviously not going to listen and learn. But when someone is clearly looking to get better and they're taking the right approach then an experienced driver knows the time they spend on that driver will be worth it.

Just completely ignore the jerks out there. Remember, the obnoxious ones are looking to get a reaction out of you so don't give them one. If they make fun of you, start ranting on the CB, or anything of the sort just smile and ignore it. Don't even respond. Any response you give is a victory for them.

But you'll find plenty of great people out there. Most drivers are decent people most of the time.

When I asked my trainer why he doesn't have a CB on his truck he asked me if I really wanted to listen to the super trucker wanna-be talk trash about me when I was trying to back up.

I just laughed and said I can only inagine what they were saying. I'm good not knowing.