Comments By Phishtech

Any updates Phistech?

Finished 1st week of bookwork here in Dallas. I’m now driving on the Costco dedicated with my TE.

Much better equipment than the driving school which makes driving a lot easier.

Still in a 10 speed although Schneider will be all auto by next year. Got a really good TE which is nice. Kind of a culture shock just getting started away from home and ssssoooo much to learn so fast. The driving is the easy part. Love that smart cruise control, makes it simple while moving.

My only gripe is that Schneider doesn’t have APU’s (I’m told) and I’m wondering how I’m gonna make it in a hot sleeper berth next summer. They don’t allow excess idling.

Finished truck driving school last week when I passed my driving skills test. Took my Tanker test yesterday and passed (it was really a no-brainer test). Took my HazMat test yesterday and failed so I took it again today and passed.

Now after all this I find out I still have to have ANOTHER background check and more finger prints since I did the HazMat.

Gonna report to Schneider next Tuesday to start the real training, can't wait.

Thanks Old School. Your years of experience and knowledge of the overall trucking industry makes me want to listen up when you chime in on a post. I'm gonna take your advice and stick with the Costco route. I'll let everyone know how it goes when I start.

Be careful of dedicated routes. Many require you unload the truck yourself and after all that stressful driving, that might be hard. you will already be exhausted.

also, make sure intermodal divisions are also company drivers. some companies, including my company, intermodal is for lease ops only and that is a whole other issue you dont want to deal with. so.be sure to ask.

Schneider's Costco dedicated is 100% no touch drop and hook, dry van and reefer.

Their intermodal is all company driver. The Costco dedicated starts in Laredo or Dallas TEXAS then runs thru TEXAS Oklahoma Louisianna and Kansas. I feel sure the Costco dedicated route will be a lot less stressful than a typical OTR job, although if I were single I'd really like the OTR.

I was hoping a Schneider or other intermodal driver would post up what kind of miles and pay I could expect.

Hey Phistech,

I went through the same dilemma when I went through Schneider. Either Dollar Tree or Intermodal. And also like you I wanted the one that would get me home the most. I ending up going Dollar Tree however in the end they probably both would of ended up being equal. Now for Intermodal Chicago is a major hub and pretty much all containers being picked up was somewhere in the city. So definitely hard on a new driver. The regional guys I believe did alot of runs to Indianapolis and back and after 3 months I think you are "elgible" for local. How long you'll have to wait for local can be another story. So I hope this helps I don't know anything about cosco so couldn't comment there

And now that I think about it if you go on youtube and search a channel called Ricecake ftw he was a Schneider intermodal driver and filmed a lot of his experiences. Hoped this help alittle. And you definitely have my respect going in trucking at your age.

Costco dedicated starts either in Laredo or Dallas which is where Costco has their distribution centers.

From there I'll drop loads in TEXAS Louisianna Oklahoma and Kansas.

Schneider intermodal delivers to rail yards within 400 miles of Houston.

Gotta report to Schneider's Dallas training site in a couple of weeks. My Green Bay recruiter tells me they'll start me at 37 cpm, while my local recruiter said 40 cpm when I talked to him.

I'm trying to determine which would pay more in the long run (miles driven). Green Bay says I'd average 2000 miles a week driving a dedicated Costco route, but I can find nothing about average miles for their regional intermodal jobs.

Gotta be home weekly for the wife's sake so these, pay wise, seem to be best for my needs.

Please advise me on this as I'm a 72 year old newbie.

Would you please recommend a good brand to use?

Amazon has several from $60 and up. Thanks

Just wondering if taking my laptop along would benefit me since it has a large screen and all the navigation apps I should need like Google Earth, Maps, etc. I even have some software I haven't used called Streets and Trips. And thanks

How much experience are they looking for do you know?

From what I understand, a lot of the companies in the oil fields will take you with no experience and train you.

Also, the folks who haul sand to the fields live in man-camps and work 3 weeks on 1 week off and a minimum of 12 hours a day. They're booming and need people. Best bet would be to do a little computer searching and get your info.

ODESSA, TEXAS (Reuters) - Job fairs are stocked with people hungry for better opportunities, but inside the MCM Grande Hotel in Odessa, Texas, oil services giant Halliburton is the one doing the wooing.

“We need to hire you is our message,” said Chris Redman, a field services manager with Summit ESP, which Halliburton acquired last year.

More than 500 men and women flocked to the hotel in Odessa, Texas, on a Thursday last month to be courted by Halliburton, which needs people to handle everything from oilfield technicians to truck drivers, as oil production booms and qualified workers become more scarce.

The U.S. unemployment rate is 3.9 percent, just off an 18-year low, but job growth has slowed more recently - notably because companies are having trouble finding people.

That is particularly true in the oilfields of West Texas, where workers from local towns like Midland and Odessa have flocked to the oil industry for higher pay. According to a June Dallas Federal Reserve Bank survey of 60 oil executives operating in West Texas, more than half cited difficulty finding workers as a potential drag on growth.

Halliburton, the second largest provider of oilfield services after Schlumberger, is adding more than 175 jobs a month, hiring executives say. Redman said people with commercial drivers' licenses are in particular demand, but numerous attendees at the jobs fair do not have that license.

Janice Venables, 57, drove out to West Texas from Mississippi a month ago, after being laid off from Mississippi Power last year. She is applying for two jobs with Halliburton, but says she has applied for as many as 26 other oilfield jobs.

“I don’t care where I go. I just need a job, and I’ve heard the wages are good,” said Venables. She lives in a recreational vehicle with her dog and cat, does not have a commercial driver's license, but has started the process to enroll in a commercial driving class this fall.

Kenneth McGowan, 21, drove 12 hours from Mississippi with five friends, some just above the legal age to work for Halliburton, to apply for oilfield jobs.

Like many in attendance, they heard about the fair through a Facebook advertisement. McGowan, who works as a stocker at a Walmart, hopes to find a job providing cementing services for wells.

“I’m not worried about the long hours,” said McGowan, who is supporting a 3-year-old daughter. He does not have a commercial driver's license, but said he is prepared to get one if needed.

McGowan and his friends are not the only job hopefuls to make the trek from Mississippi, where employment in June was 4.7 percent, one of the highest levels in the United States, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The rush to apply for commercial drivers' licenses comes as demand for truck drivers, in the oil industry and elsewhere, has driven up wages for anyone with the license.

Frank Hardin of Tennessee, who previously drove trucks delivering sand with Amerifield Inc, said he recently landed a job as a driver CIG Logistics.

Instead of getting paid per load delivered, he now has a salaried position with CIG, which starts workers at as much as $85,000 with full benefits. Hardin welcomes the change.

“That’s what everyone wants. It’s a cakewalk for guys who’ve been on the road for years,” he said.