Comments By Brian

My problem with my driveway is it doesn't look long enough. It's only a two car wide driveway and maybe 80 feet long to garage. With the snow banks at the end of driveway I don't think a truck and trailer would fit. I have called the flying J and they say I can park there just not for 3 days or longer. Which is fine, just worries me about winter. I'll be calling more places around my town. I know there's three trucking companies in my town alone.

What does everyone else do for their home-time for parking?

Day 14:

No school today, as it's -22F with a wind chill of -35F to -45F. It's not looking to good for tomorrow, as tonight/early morning we will be hitting -26F and wind chill around -55F. Might be cancelled, and that's a bummer. We test next week, and that just means I'll be pushing myself harder every day. Time to study my pre-trip some more!

Day 12:

It was another good day of classroom learning, and essentials. Today we were learning the tunnel dock, so I tested out of that as well. I've been trying to do more challenging things everyday so I know how to maneuver the 53' trailer better. It's interesting how tight spots can be with something that large. On the road I was shifting smoother and travelled to my first weigh station, pretty basic information they just pass you through with arrows.

Day 13:

We had nasty weather in the morning with it being super cold and windy but it warmed up to 32 by noon. Monday is supposed to be -30 and below with wind-chills. There were accidents all along 94 in front the school. So, it was a slow day at start to take it easy and with the wind blowing. I was testing on parallel parking on the range, passed that with flying colors. I've narrowed down my decision for work, so I have that being set up soon. I'm excited for my next journey after school. We have another full week of class, then a weekend and two days of classroom and our test date for DOT.

The truck stop is about 6 miles from my house. I just want to make sure I can start it in cold weather.

I've seen the battery shut off switch on freightliner. That's good to know, too.

The company I'm interested in says that the truck and trailer must remain attached. Does the diesel 911 work? I know I'm not going to have my own truck until end of March with training but I am looking at ideas for next winter.

Hey crew!

I have a question about parking. I live in between two truck stops and I can park there for home time as my driveway isn't big enough for the trailer. I live in Wisconsin and the companies I'm looking at don't have APU. So, my question is what do I do for the trucks to prevent battery draining and fuel gelling during my 2 days off? The company just says to park at a truck stop but it's also my responsibility.

Thanks Old School! I should have my CDL by February 5th.

Hey Josh I would highly recommend Century, it's very professional and it is a decent pace to learn.

We've had some recruiters come from Dart, Werner, and Schneider. Tomorrow we'll have TMC showing up which is in my top three of companies I'm interested in.

Day 10:

We had a long weekend and extremely cold weather so today was no fun. We did our usual classroom and range and road driving. Today we were learning the tunnel dock. I didn't get a chance to try it as I was testing out of my offset parking all day. I've been doing repetitions of daily tasks to keep remembering how to do them for the exam.

Day 11:

It was a very cold and windy morning. There were accidents all over I-94 due to the icy conditions. Today was just interesting, I tested out of my lower gears for down-shifting, and I tested out of my 45 dock. It was another good day, and overall I'm just happy with my pace. I have high confidence in this program and in myself. Since day one I've noticed improvement every day!

I should mention we have Eaton 10 speeds at this school. It's the uniform manual transmission out there and once you learn this you can learn anything else. Alright, I have to study for my quiz tomorrow and be ready for another good day of driving!

Hey Troy Thanks for the info on modular.

Larry, thanks for input on melton. I've been compiling a huge pros and cons with companies that are interested in me. They seem like a really great company. The downfall was the home time but my wife says she lists them as number one as do I. I have a big decision to make soon as I am graduating school in a couple weeks. And I'm looking to find a place to call home for work and making sure bills are paid.