Comments By Colin K.

Han Solo Cup: G-Town covered many of the reasons people drop out, or get asked to leave. (Lying on your application is another big one. Yes, companies call who you list as former employers and references.)

As to the other question...I'm not a gear head either. We've been given time each day to practice our pre-trip. Each day, we've all gotten better. First I worked on being able to name the parts. The verbiage is pretty much the same for all hoses, metal parts, etc. so that is easy to plug into the equation. After that, it's just a matter of practice.

Many of us took photos of all the parts that we are supposed to name, in the order we want to name them. Tonight, I'll be looking at the photos, saying the part name and verbiage. It's just like practicing at the truck. I hope that answers your question.

I may not get to updating my diary tonight as I want to study. If not, I promise to update my diary tomorrow. Does anyone else have any questions?

Best Regards, Colin K.

Today was our first day out in the yard at C.R. England. Part of the day was spent doing straight backs. As some of you remember, I had a heck of a time trying to do straight backs in the last program that I was in. I probably tried 12 times and failed to do even one decent straight back.

Today we each got a chance to try three straight backs. I did fine with all three of them!!! Many of you were right there with me as I had your advice and encouragement in my head as I was doing this.

What else made the difference? My instructor. He patiently took the time to explain how to do a good straight back. He let us all look in the rear view mirrors to see what a good straight back looked like, what a bad one looked like and what happened when he made the small necessary adjustments. He even walked alongside the truck with each of us during our first back, offering pointers.

I can't tell you what this has done for my self-confidence. I feel like this is doable now. Will it be easy? No, but who cares?

I just had to share this with everybody. Thank you all for your advice and encouragement. I can't tell you what it means to me.

Best Regards, Colin K.

Best of luck, Brandon! Please keep us posted.

Best Regards, Colin K.

This is my entry for Saturday, June 2nd.

Today we had a new instructor. He was very upbeat and positive. He broke down the Pre-Trip inspection into manageable parts. We all went out to the truck. He showed us the various parts and then lead us in groups, and individually, in repeating the names of the parts as he pointed to them.

He also let us take photos of the parts to help us remember them. We didn't go into the verbiage that needs to be said about each part, we just focused on learning the parts. I found this a very good way to learn this material. It is a lot of material, and can be overwhelming if you don't break it down into manageable parts. We also went over information needed for the Air Brake Tests that we will be learning to conduct next week.

Later on, he showed us some YouTube videos of trucks crashing. We discussed the reasons for the crashes and what we, as drivers, could do to help minimize them. He also shared some real world stories of his experiences while driving.

We got to leave a little bit early today. Tomorrow is our only day off during training. I plan to do my laundry and practice my Pre-Trip Inspection using the photos and the verbiage that he taught us.

Our class started with 60 people. After our first week, we are down to 22. People dropped out for a variety of reasons, including failing the drug test or failing the DMV permit test. Those of us who are left are helping each other out wherever we can. We each want all of us to pass.

If you have any questions, feel free to post them here. I will do my best to answer them.

Best Regards, Colin K.

Great, and timely advice, Rainy. If I get a trainer even half as good as you are, I will be happy.

Thank you! Colin K.

This is my update for Day 3 and Day 4 of my training with C.R. England. So far, things are going very well.

Yesterday was the day that most people in the class went to the DMV to take the tests for their permit. Those of us who already had our permit were given an advance copy of the study guide for the Air Brake Test, In-Cab Inspection and the Pre-Trip Inspection. We were then given the option of leaving early, which most did. One student and I stayed until lunchtime to study.

Today we saw more training videos on things like driving in rain and snow, what speeds to take a curve and on/off ramp, etc. We also got a PowerPoint presentation that showed the various parts we needed to identify for the Pre-Trip Inspection. I found this part especially helpful. Not being mechanically inclined, I did not know what all of the parts we inspect look like.

We also got a schedule of what we will be doing in the days ahead. Everything is VERY organized and the handouts are written in a way that makes them easy to understand.

We later divided into groups to do a test where we matched the part description for the Pre-Trip to the actual part. I'm proud to say that my group was the only group that stayed in class during our afternoon break to work on the test.

Today one of the instructors from the yard came to talk to the class. He stressed that it is his job to make sure that we pass. He is pleasant but is no nonsense. He called out two of the people in our class who were talking during his presentation. I was glad that he did.

One thing that I especially liked: He said that if we are having problems with a particular skill in the yard that they have somebody whose job it is to work with us on our weakness and get us up to speed so we can pass.

There were about 60 of us when we started on Tuesday. For various reasons, we are down to 40 or so. Tomorrow (Saturday), we are scheduled to start learning how to pass the Air Brake, In Cab and Pre-Trip Inspection.

As always, feel free to post any questions that you have. I will be happy to answer them.

Best Regards,

Colin K.

I promised to give you an update on the new pay levels from C.R. England. Here is what I know so far:

There are currently two phases of training. Our instructor said that they are going to a flat rate of pay, at least for the first part of training. He said that was to make pay during training more consistent. He said that they listened to the feedback from trainees and decided to make the change to make things easier for them. I am hoping that it goes into effect for our class.

He also said that he heard that the flat rate would be somewhere between $550 and $650 per week. Please do NOT take that as gospel as that is only what he heard. I promise to post the info here and in my diary when I receive it next week.

Stay safe out there, everyone, Colin K.

Congratulations, Workhorse! Keep up the positive attitude and please keep us updated.

Stay safe everybody, Colin K.

Congratulations, Splitter! That is awesome news.

Best Regards, Colin K.

As I mentioned in my diary, CR England has indeed announced pay increases. Our instructor has promised to get us that info. Once he does, I will post it here and in my diary.

Whatever it turns out to be, I am looking at the big picture of getting my foot in the door in the industry.

Colin