Profile For Baron T.

It was called “Phoenix Truck Driving Institute”

I'm curious what school that is in Phoenix, Baron, do you know...is it called "Phoenix" or "Southwest" or "Roadmaster"?

Maybe this?

Caught this this morning. Inside of rear drive tire. What causes this kind of damage or is it just from aged rubber? Still holds air somehow.

Greetings My trucking school in SoCal informed us a couple days ago that the California DMV is shutting down in-vehicle testing as of last Friday because of the latest COVID surge. Don’t know when they will re-open. My class was supposed to test the upcoming Friday. So close yet so far away. Instead, the school is paying for us to go to a trucking school in Phoenix to test because they have their own DMV on premises and their governor hasn’t shut them down like ours has. So, we’re all driving over, staying in a hotel and the next day late in the afternoon doing some classroom time (we have to know their way of teaching) and then doing our pre-trip/air brake/in-cab/skills/on the road testing at night! Our school has assured us that it’s a lot easier testing over there (40’ trailers instead of 48’ in a 53’ parallel box, no 90 degree dock backing test, 15 minute road test) and they would only send their worst students there to get them passed. So I’m fine with that solution but the only unknown is when will OUR DMV reopen so we can get our California class A license finalized. I thought about just getting my class A as a Arizona license but I have no physical address over there to present to their DMV. Several trucking companies I applied to keep calling asking about the hold up but I just explain they’ll have to wait. I’m hoping the vaccine will start making things better once millions of people get it but with Christmas/New Years coming I’m sure there will be another surge of hospitalizations in the prior weeks after.

Greetings,

Not a trucker yet but just waiting for work to slow down so I can go to school! When I got out of high school I didn’t know what I wanted to do so I thought I’d buy time doing two years at community college. Once I did that I had to choose a field to go into at state college and I chose a “worthless” degree in Industrial Technology (fancy name for all the shop classes we took in Jr/Sr High!). Graduated and went into my field (printing) for 6 months and got laid off. Spent the next 10 years working at a courier company and other odd jobs. Stumbled into Property Caretaking and did that for @10 years. Liked it but rich people are f**ked up mentally. Started doing work on a military base that lasted 8 years until the contract was up. Now I’ve been at an artificial grass company doing deliveries for the past 3 years. Said they’d sponsor me to get my class A and do some heavier work for them. I think they’re reneging now that Covid has been going on. No worries. I saved up enough to go to school myself. Just waiting for it to get slow so I take a month off to go to school.

Laura,

Thanks for the advice. I picked “Pokey” because I helped my friend move there and it kind of reminded me of Montana a little. I’ll also know someone there and the housing is affordable on my budget.

Baron,

I was 63 when I got my CDL through a school and am now 69. I would not advise a school because, living in Idaho, you will have a tough time finding work. Most of the companies in Idaho or down in the Salt Lake area would require 1 years experience... I had that problem. How I got around it was by being hired by my first boss and his wife who hired my brother also. My brother had 6 months experience but the insurance company said I had to run with him. Now, I will tell you I had experience driving long-haul with a chauffeur's license Back in 88 to 93. I never drove after that till I got my CDL. But I had started looking for work before my brother was hired by my first bosses and needed one year requirement.

So, you go to a national company as you call them, get your training, run for a year which will go by fast and then go to someone that suits your purpose. I drive for a company out of Twin Falls and we run to Wisconsin down to Arkansas and everywhere West. Only once did I go into Western Tennessee, ran up to Kentucky to get my load and came back through Illinois to Missouri and normal routing after that. I can be out between 10 days, which I did at first when I joined this company, to being out 3 weeks or so with a run by the house while under load. I do need to go home on occasion to do IRS paperwork and stock up the truck and head back out, but I'm doing very well with how the company runs me. Many smaller companies in Idaho stay from the Mississippi River on West... So that might be more Regional for you.

Why did you pick Pokey? Most people coming from California have settled in the Boise to Ontario area. I live just west of Twin Falls and we're beginning to get a lot of transplants from the West Coast... But it's still fairly reasonable cost-wise.

Laura

Greetings, I need to know if I’m realistic about a plan I have: I am 55, in good health (just passed my DOT health check) and not ready to retire any time soon. I have been driving straight trucks/trucks with flatbed trailers with my class C for the last 20 years. Driving record is excellent. Not married/no kids and currently living in a van while working to save money. I want to get my CDL through a driving school. Work might sponsor me but if they reneg I have the money set aside to pay my own way. Once I get my CDL I can do some larger loads at work but nothing like driving a ‘53 trailer for some experience. Eventually, I will move from California to Pocatello, ID and hopefully pick up a regional trucking job. It’s the only thing I can think of doing for work where age discrimination won’t come into play.I hope to do this until I’m @70. In your opinion am I too old to be getting my CDL? I don’t really want to do cross country work but regional so that’s why I was thinking of a truck driving school as opposed to getting my CDL free through a contract with a nationwide company.