Comments By IR0ND0G

I will be starting company paid training when they get me in after I hit my 20 anniversary where I work now (need to hit the 20 year mark for retirement upgrade). I have worked the last 20 years in maximum security prisons. I've had my fill of corrections and am ready for the change.

Lol, thx. I bleed Green & Gold, die hard cheese head.

A month or so ago I decided it was finally time for a career change. I have been leaning towards trucking for a while but my decision to do it has been on hold until I hit my 20 year employment anniversary in January and after I get a new hip at the end of this month. I apparently fractured my hip when I was younger (I'm 46 now) but my surgeon told me I'd be good to go 10 to 12 weeks after surgery. I was recently conditionally accepted by a company that will train me to get my CDL again. When I called them to tell them I could not immediately start, and explained why, they were very understanding and asked me to please contact them when I'm able to go. Honesty and good communication can pay off. The point of my post is that after reading stuff on here for several months, and then recently joining it, I have been impressed with the quantity of people who give professional opinions and advice to assist others. Again, thank all of you who have offered advice, tips, opinions, and even the dry sense of humor (which I can relate to). You have made my decision easier. I am looking forward to meeting a lot of new and obviously very interesting people. It is a step up from what I'm used to.

No one else can tell you what you should or shouldn't do. Likewise, no one else can tell you what you can or can't succeed at. You yourself hold the keys to the answers of those questions. Do what your heart, mind, and gut tell you to do. When you do it, do it with the attitude and work ethic that make it happen. I understand your view regarding your parents, I was there once. I also understand them as I long ago became the parent. It's a growing and learning process for all, and it never stops, you just switch rolls. Irony is not without its own sick sense of humor. I have recently decided to leave my career of 20 years in corrections to hit the road myself. I have already been conditionally accepted at a certain company to get my CDL and drive for them. I have to shake of 26 years of rust since I last drove a commercial vehicle, but as with anything, it'll come with some studying and some max effort. I hope you find that approval or support from others is nice, but not required to succeed. Fortunately for me, my wife and kids are 100% supportive, but that support is a result of years of earning it. Financially, we are going to take a few lumps until I get going, but the duration of those lumps is on me, so i will not be second guessing myself, or worrying about it. I will just adjust, adapt, and move forward. I wish you the best of luck in achieving your goals.

Thanks for all the input. My wife and I have been discussing it for some time now. I have to wait until early spring to make my decisions so I have time to keep getting more information and getting prepared if I do make the change. Thankfully I have a supportive wife and kids who would rather have a house than a waxed cardboard box to live in.

What are the realistic take home wages for a rookie driver in Roehl's national flatbed fleet. I'm talking about 110% commitment to long stretches away from home. I don't require health insurance (spouse has coverage). I do need their training to get my CDL as I have never held anything other than a CDL learners permit 26 years ago. I have peaked out my wages in my current career at a measly 35k after 20 years. I am under no illusions of making myself or family 'rich'. While my family is important to me, I can't move to find slightly greener pastures, the pastures where I live are even more bleak than the one I'm in, and the mortgage and other bills aren't going to pay themselves. That being said, I am looking at a final career opportunity for me. I am asking for no BS, just facts as best they can be provided. Thank you for your time if you have read this.