Prime TNT First Week
Topic 13054 | Page 1
Glad to hear all' going well. How many weeks will you be out with your trainer and what do you think home time will be like
Glad to hear all' going well. How many weeks will you be out with your trainer and what do you think home time will be like
The company says 1 day home time for every week out, min. 3 weeks out and a max of 4 days home.
However, my trainer is staying out until May. (He's O/O ) When I inquired if I was not getting home time until then, he said "if you stay on my truck, then yes. " I'm fine with that. I'm used to long hitches away from home from working in the oilpatch. Not to mention that that since the oilfield's collapse, I'm in desperate need of the cash.
So far, I've started in MO. and delivered in PA. then GA. to Vegas. Now we are leaving Vegas and headed to Idaho to make a delivery to NY. working the 1500 to 0300 shift. (NOT VIOLATING THE 11HR. drive clock)
Living it so far. Even the crabby ass yard workers in PA.
Diver Driver mentioned:
Once in PA, we drop and hook at a Hershey facility.
Then Diver Driver quipped:
Living it so far. Even the crabby ass yard workers in PA.
Some of those "crabby ass yard workers" are my neighbors. They like to think they have a wonderful sense of humor, and they might know they are crabby...
But... Should you ever load out of there again, I would hate for them to delay your next departure by, say, whatever time you have left on your 14 :-) As you may have noticed during your latest visit, there's plenty of room to park in and around Hershey.
Oh, and most importantly, thank you for sharing your experience with Prime! I am living the experience vicariously.
Good luck!
Drop And Hook:
Drop and hook means the driver will drop one trailer and hook to another one.
In order to speed up the pickup and delivery process a driver may be instructed to drop their empty trailer and hook to one that is already loaded, or drop their loaded trailer and hook to one that is already empty. That way the driver will not have to wait for a trailer to be loaded or unloaded.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
I'll be following you here! And, as I'm testing soon and TNT-bound afterward, I'll be following you there as well.
OWI:
Operating While Intoxicated
TNT:
Trainer-N-Trainee
Prime Inc has their own CDL training program and it's divided into two phases - PSD and TNT.
The PSD (Prime Student Driver) phase is where you'll get your permit and then go on the road for 10,000 miles with a trainer. When you come back you'll get your CDL license and enter the TNT phase.
The TNT phase is the second phase of training where you'll go on the road with an experienced driver for 30,000 miles of team driving. You'll receive 14¢ per mile ($700 per week guaranteed) during this phase. Once you're finished with TNT training you will be assigned a truck to run solo.
Diver Driver mentioned:
Once in PA, we drop and hook at a Hershey facility.
Then Diver Driver quipped:
Some of those "crabby ass yard workers" are my neighbors. They like to think they have a wonderful sense of humor, and they might know they are crabby...
But... Should you ever load out of there again, I would hate for them to delay your next departure by, say, whatever time you have left on your 14 :-) As you may have noticed during your latest visit, there's plenty of room to park in and around Hershey.
Oh, and most importantly, thank you for sharing your experience with Prime! I am living the experience vicariously.
Good luck!
My bad. I didn't clarify. This was AFTER the Hershey drop. Hershey people were sweet. (Pun intended) it was for Firestone where the jack wagons were.
Drop And Hook:
Drop and hook means the driver will drop one trailer and hook to another one.
In order to speed up the pickup and delivery process a driver may be instructed to drop their empty trailer and hook to one that is already loaded, or drop their loaded trailer and hook to one that is already empty. That way the driver will not have to wait for a trailer to be loaded or unloaded.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
Made it to NY a day ahead of schedule.
I'm finding out that floating the gears is not my strong suit. (My trainer was trying to show me) so for now it's just gonna be double clutching.
I managed to get us off route and back on route yesterday. Long story short, the Qualcomm was muted, so I didn't hear the turn. Not making excuses, just the facts. While I don't want to minimalize the fact that we were outta route (luckily it was only interstate and not a back road with weight restrictions or low bridges) at least I was able to get us back on route. (Ego is the only thing bruised)
So not the most positive update, but I hope some of you can learn from my mistake. Before moving the truck, check everything ! Yes, that includes the Qualcomm and also your atlas. Your Co-driver may have muted the QC due to a phone call or what ever. Also, double check your atlas at every trip. L/E, your employer, and your wallet is not going to be happy if your only reply is "the Qualcomm" or "The GPS" said. ..
Qualcomm:
Omnitracs (a.k.a. Qualcomm) is a satellite-based messaging system with built-in GPS capabilities built by Qualcomm. It has a small computer screen and keyboard and is tied into the truck’s computer. It allows trucking companies to track where the driver is at, monitor the truck, and send and receive messages with the driver – similar to email.Interstate:
Commercial trade, business, movement of goods or money, or transportation from one state to another, regulated by the Federal Department Of Transportation (DOT).
Double Clutch:
To engage and then disengage the clutch twice for every gear change.
When double clutching you will push in the clutch, take the gearshift out of gear, release the clutch, press the clutch in again, shift the gearshift into the next gear, then release the clutch.
This is done on standard transmissions which do not have synchronizers in them, like those found in almost all Class A trucks.
Double Clutching:
To engage and then disengage the clutch twice for every gear change.
When double clutching you will push in the clutch, take the gearshift out of gear, release the clutch, press the clutch in again, shift the gearshift into the next gear, then release the clutch.
This is done on standard transmissions which do not have synchronizers in them, like those found in almost all Class A trucks.
Phew, WHAT A WEEK !!!
Once we delivered to NY, we received our next load....... Fresno, CA ! We only made it as far as Springfield, MO. though. My trainer was honored at the Millionaires banquet for his 1st million miles at Prime. (My trainer is better than yours. :p ) Pardon my school yard humor.
We got into town Wednesday. The Banquet was Thursday night. It's now Saturday. We are waiting on the truck to get out of the repair shop. (Almost 500k miles on her. )
They have me put up at the Econo lodge since the campus is full. Cool thing is, I have the room to myself. :D
This past weeks settlement saw me break the 600 dollar limit (based on 5k miles) I guess doing a lap around the United States will do that.
Digging it so far. Yes, I miss the house, but at least I'm able to call home any time I like. (Vs. Working in the offshore oil field) Plus, when you finish training and solo out, you can bring someone with you. (Can't do that offshore)
about 1 mile down the road from the Campus Inn is Pancho's Mexican restaurant. The carne asada burritos are pretty good. Closest thing to the socal version anyway
Psst. Shredded beef chimichangas. I gotta try those carne asada burritos, love that place.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.New Reply:
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I had to wait a couple of days for my trainer to arrive. (On a side note, about 1 mile down the road from tge Campus Inn is a Poncho's Mexican restaurant. The carne asada burritos are pretty good. Closest thing to the socal version anyway)
My trainer finally arrives and we head out to dinner to get acquainted.
The next morning we head out. My first trip as a big rig driver and I'm getting some serious schooling. Freezing rain, and snow is everywhere, as we head to PA.
Once in PA, we drop and hook at a Hershey facility. 42k lbs of sweets to be delivered in GA. another drop and hook, and we head to Firestone in AL.
Now fully loaded, we are off to Vegas.
Loving it so far !
As its been said. Bring a notebook or tally book, and lots of pens. You'll want to take notes, because there is a lot of things to learn.
Drop And Hook:
Drop and hook means the driver will drop one trailer and hook to another one.
In order to speed up the pickup and delivery process a driver may be instructed to drop their empty trailer and hook to one that is already loaded, or drop their loaded trailer and hook to one that is already empty. That way the driver will not have to wait for a trailer to be loaded or unloaded.