Comments By djwaglmuffin

So, I'll keep this as short as possible.

Clearly, you've all heard this about a gillion times but the thing I'm finding is that some of the posts I've been reading are about a year or two ago so I was having some trouble finding up to date information. It's possible I'm not digging deep enough...

As it stands, I am a single, no children female veteran with virtually no health problems and zero problems going OTR. Problem is, I am having a hard time finding a place to start for either free or super cheap. I also don't have any roots in a particular area so establishing another home base is also not an issue for me. Need a driver based out of Nebraska? Maybe an empty field in North Dakota (Why, North Dakota?!)? I can provide this. I'm also not at all adverse to being OTR for long periods of time. I have family members who have done this and they say while it's tough, but it was a great chance to explore a bit and get to know the country we live in. They say my greatest advantage is that I have no obligations at home.

I only have a few preferences...although only one of these is highly preferred: 1. I ultimately want to go solo. 2. I would rather avoid the east coast as much as possible. It's not my favorite part of the country...as much as I loved welding for the military, I hate the rust belt for some reason. (this is not a requirement) 3. I really, REALLY don't want to lease right out of school. If this can be avoided, I'd like that very much.

Here is what my research has yielded thus far, and I value any and all feedback on any of these options as well as any other ideas you all may have:

1. Celadon: As one can imagine, the words "Free this, free that" is incredibly attractive and tempting for someone in my predicament. I do not, however, wish to be preyed upon. I just talked to one of their recruiters and it didn't feel like a scam, but I've been let down before. (I ended up in the Navy...) But the fact that they pay for everything and, as a vet, I'd start out at a higher cent per mile than my counterparts who are not vets...the draw is almost too much to deny.

2. Swift: The only requirement with Swift is a CDL permit(?). This is something, to me, that isn't totally clear. Swift seems like a very solid carrier, however, and I appreciated the their recruiter seemed up front with me when I was asking questions. I did, however, hear some horror stories. One particular one that a woman started with them and, apparently, she wasn't "learning fast enough" by the first week and they kicked her out. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't know the entire story and this was second hand information from a for-profit institution trying to get me to spend $10K on a 6 month CDL program. I suppose my only question, to all of you is, would getting my CDL permit open more doors? Also, Veterans with Swift apparently don't have to repay the tuition fee of the school. But...they have this online course we need to take? I despise online courses...

3. Prime: I am doing additional research on Prime as we speak, but they seem, so far, like they want some up front costs that I can't afford right now. But if anyone has an exposure to them, I'd love to know.

4. Roehl: I love Roehl. But they require me to have my CDL walking in, which is expensive. Meaning, I'll have to go to this very unattractive for-profit.

Anyway, I'm really leaning to Celadon, simply because of all the "free" everywhere. If anyone knows anything about the current environment of their schooling, it would be greatly appreciated. And, again, I'm open to other ideas.

Thanks in advance, ya'll! And cool site;s it's been incredibly helpful in this difficult time.