Comments By Spaceman Spiff

Tell it politely but firmly, "no."

Is this happening in creep mode or with you on the pedal? All docks or just ones with a graded slope?

I don't hit alot of docks but backing in at truck stops and places I sometimes have to fight the spread axle tire binding effect my trailers have. Feels like a bucking horse a bit if the angle is steep and the asphalt is particularly grippy.

I don't know how bad it is for you but I try to ride it out or stop if it gets heavy. How fast is the truck moving when it bounces?

Ever get that "foot bouncing on the pedal dance" with the truck ?

This is great initiative on your part and shows a good deal of character. However don't be rigid in your personal training to the point where it becomes difficult to re learn the way your new employer wants it done.

First day at Prime for my class, they handed us the pre trip sheets then spent the next ten minutes having us go through it crossing things out, re wording and editing things.

Get a good feel on the general procedure but I promise, you will have an absolute ton of time to study the exact frame work for your employer while your training as well.

Keep the attitude.

This is big. I'll line up my schedule to be tuned in for sure!

I dunno, get enough of these electric mowers in a "platoon" or whatever and you may have something. Imagine the turning capabilities.

Hey buddy,

One year will go by quickly. The important thing will be to get that drivers license as soon as possible, since the one year clock starts once you actually receive it.

Find a job that you can stay with for that time as well, keep all the paperwork in order and relationships in good standing. Part of truck driving is a background check that they will do on every driver that applies to a company.

Make sure to bring as much paperwork from Brazil when you move up here. The industry will want to know what you were doing for years, it's part of ensuring the applicant was not training at a terrorist camp and is now trying to get access to a huge truck to drive into something.

The most difficult thing you could do would be to take time off between working in Brazil and starting to apply in the US. Time spent unemployed makes the companies uneasy. You have to go through extra work to prove where you were living and what you were doing.

Btw OTR driving is a great way to see the world (US) and still make money!

Hi there,

When you say basic PPE what do you mean exactly?

For those reading, PPE has specific products it can protect against while still be critically prone to failure against other's. Polyvinylchloride (PVC) will protect against certain bases but fails against d-limonene (orange oil). Viton is a beast against almost anything except ketones.

The important thing for top quality PPE is to understand what you are transporting or will expect to be exposed to. Then work backwards, identifying the proper material that defends correctly against it.

As far as water cooled clothing, you need to reach out to companies like DuPont or better yet, the chemical manufacturers and get the list of protective gear approved for the products you're hauling.

In my haz mat courses, we always did suit scrub downs after exposure, not sure how feasible that will be but if a rinse station is available that would be cool. PPE should never be stored in the driving quarters.

Try looking into DuPonts Tyvek suits, or the monster, Tychem series. https://www.dupont.com/personal-protection/chemical-hazmat-protection.html They have databases in there to match chemicals appropriately to the suit series so again you will have to know the products SDS ingredients.

Best of luck!

One question at a time. Read the questions all the way through too! You'll do great.

Be nice to John Candy

Ok so after some checking at Prime, we basically just go by state regulations as noted in the post. However he stated it was between 400 and 600. Wonder where the 600 is.

I made 321 and 123 for this.

When attaching a trailer , 123. 1 locked kingpin, 2 landing feet raised and 3 hoses hooked.

For detaching a trailer, the opposite. 3 hoses detached, 2 landing gear feet down, and 1 kingpin released.

123 reminds me of building a project, and 321 is like a launch countdown. Launching off the trailer like SpaceX or something.

Still do them every time. Horrified to drop a trailer, yes it is an instant career ender. Glad you had the wherewithal to stop, WildBill!