Profile For David W.

As a manager in a medium sized trucking company, my advice would be to go to a local carrier near you, or a carrier that you are interested in and see what they could offer you in a shop until you are old enough to drive. Companies the size of mine or smaller would be terrific resources in helping you find the right fit. You could start in the shop mounting tires, or doing oil changes, or even fueling trucks. This would give you the opportunity to get into the industry. You could get wheel time in the parking lot or test drives. A lot of valuable experience in yard jockeying for the shop around the yard. Then you can see how you really feel about trucking. You can learn skills in the shop and how the trucks work (valuable experience as well given the tech shortage in the industry). All of these things would be very valuable to you when you hit the road.

It would concern me that you need to ask. If you are not a 'user', it should not matter which method is used. Don't forget that as a CDL driver you will be required to participate in random testing as well as any post accident testing. Some companies also employ 'reasonable cause'.