Comments By Danny S.

Jim, You will have no problem getting a job I still have two weeks of school left and I already have five prehire letters and at least three more potential ones. These companies want you as much as you want the job and if you meet their minimum qualifications they will give you an opportunity.

Jim, welcome to trucking truth, you have found a website that is truly honest and balanced on the lifestyle of trucking. I am same age as you I was a pastor and I also drive a,school bus. It was a tough decision for me but I come to learn that I was cut out to drive a truck it is really something I have wanted to done since I was a kid. I've been in school for six weekends got two more to go I test on 12/19 and then I'm set to leave on January 6 to go to H O Wolding to start my driving career. We are not too old, we are mature and from what I have found most companies like people our age especially with good driving records and good backgrounds. The biggest question I had to ask myself was am I willing to take on this type of a lifestyle, once I settle that question the rest was just a matter of choices about such things as schools, companies to work for which companies best fit me and what I am looking for. If I can do this you can do it; there are going to be good days and bad ones but you will make it. Just decide if this is the lifestyle you want, I didn't say a job it is a lifestyle, then do your research and make your decisions. These websites that have theses horror stories, I'm sure they happen but I wouldn't say they are the norm, that's why this website is great because you will get the truth about truck driving the good with the challenges.

Sam, I am not driving with them yet but I have been pre-hired by them. I did alot of research on the companies that hire inexperienced drivers. The section on here about that is a great place to start. Brett has got all the pertinent information all together in one place. H O WOLDING is a good starter company in my opinion. I talked to Carol in recruiting for over an hour the first time she told me everything I wanted to know plus more. She was not just giving me a,sales pitch she was honest and sincere after talking with her I felt like I was talking to my neighbor. They are a mid-size company which l like. When you talk to them you quickly come to see that you are not just a number but you are a person with a name. If you look at their Facebook page you will see that from drivers and people who have posted there. Next search their name on the internet you will find little to nothing in the way of complaints about them. Next look at their fmcsa safety rating very impressive to me which shows they are very safety conscious which to me says they not only care about the company but they care about me and the lives of others. It also says to me they hire only quality people. I'm a person of first impressions and after talking with them and doing my research I knew they were a good fit for me. I know they are not a perfect company but they are a perfect fit for me. Also I found a video on YouTube with a guy who drove for them he said they were a good company that does what they say. I chose them because I could go regional after training and they have good home time for drivers. Their pay is comparable to most companies. In my opinion they are a good company to consider. I start orientation with them on January 7th I will be posting my experience with them as I go. I would definitely get a pre-hire from them.

Bonarro, Check out this YouTube video on double clutching the best I've seen.

Thanks Richard for the info. Yes I have talked to HOW got my pre-hire from them back in October and I have talked to them a couple times since. Right now I scheduled to leave for Wisconsin on January 6th to start orientation on the 7th if all goes well. PJ glad all has gone well with you at Roehl, I looked at them early on but found HOW and they seem to be more suited for me. I have been following your post while in school and training was very informative and exciting to read everyday. Looks like the Georgia Boys are making their presence known in trucking. Wish both the best let's keep in touch as we go on.

It went good Richard, got to drive over to Fulton industrial twice on Saturday. Got my shifting and down shifting pretty good. I remember you talking about having to downshift in such a short distance, on 278 that was for sure just about the time you would get up to 9th gear you be coming up on another light and have to down shift. I pretty much have all the skills down. We had the yard all to ourselves on Sunday so Joe our instructor got the keys to another truck so we had two trucks we were using got a lot of time behind the wheel. Have you got a start date with Schneider yet? Got ant bits of advice on the testing at Dalton that might help me. They say that the examiners at Dalton are a little more leanient than the other places, what's your take? I will keep you updated as I finish up school and get close to testing,keep me updated on your journey.

Congratulations Richard, I know you feel relief to get that passed you. I wish you the best with Schneider. I can't wait until I get that day behind me. All this has been exciting and also a challenge but I'm ready to move on. I got to drive on the road today it was exciting and I felt at home but also realized that you have to be totally aware of everything going on around you.Driving a school bus for the last seven years helped me know the importance of being aware of everything around you. Going down Thornton Rd I think I caught every light but I sure got a lot of downshifting practice. Sure enjoyed it though and just confirmed to myself that I am a good fit for driving a truck. Look forward to hearing your post from Schneider orientation updates.

Went to DDS today and took my Hazmat Endorsement Test. I passed it but was a little disappointed that I just passed. I have read over the High Road CDL Training numerous times and taken all the practice test here on Trucking Truth and I also did another sites practice test several times. But the questions that I missed were asked in a different way that caught me off guard. But I guess the important thing is that I did pass. I now have all my endorsements just got to finish up CDL School and get my class A then off to Orientation in January to H O Wolding in Amherst Wisconsin.

Daniel Sorry to hear about the loss of your DM, Life just stinks sometimes doesn't it? I know you will will get through this with the a positive attitude because as I have followed your post I know you have what it takes to come out on top of the situation.

I look at my kingpin setting rule for each state. I'm going through IL, KY, TN, GA. And TN has the lowest of 41' so I set my tandems at the 41' mark and head for the CAT scale.

You made this statement about the kingpin settings for each state, where do you have that information, is it a downloadable file or something? Been looking for this information so I will have it when I hit the road soon.

Thanks Danny S.

Would like to hear from some of you experienced drivers and some who are going through company training. My question is this, since you as the driver are responsible to make sure on a daily basis that the truck is in a safe mechanical condition are you required to perform such things as adjusting the brakes, replacing light bulbs in other words what do companies require or expect you to do other than adding oil coolant fluids and such. Not referring to O/O, just company drivers. I have heard alot of different advice and opinions on this.