First Day With Company Trainer

A big THANK YOU for TT site! The journey so far has been so much easier with everything I've learned here. Tomorrow I meet my trainer and hit the road. Have to admit I'm more nervous about tomorrow than any other point in the process. I asked for a non-smoking trainer, but have been informed that didn't happen. I'll be training in my assigned truck (vs his). Any advice on how to handle this? I thought I'd bring it up soon after we meet, but not sure how or if I dare ask if he could refrain from smoking in the cab.

Your truck, I think you're right to be assertive and say that you'd really like it to be a non-smoking truck. But if that isn't acceptable to the trainer then you have to decide, and it might be best to just tolerate it for the training period rather than having to wait for a non smoking trainer, which could take a long time, I imagine.

My advice. Keep the door closed and the wheels turning. Stick to the smith system at all times while driving.

Clearly state your wishes; "you had originally requested a trainer who didn't smoke", and want to come to an understanding. If he or she has a two pack per day habit, I can't see this working unless you both compromise.

Think about what your tolerance level is and what he is willing to accept. Meet somewhere in the middle and try to set some boundaries; like "no smoking in the bunk area" or "roll the window down when you need to light up". Be professional and respectful in discussions with your trainer.

For better or worse - you have to decide whether to sit & wait for a non-smoking trainer - or deal with living with a smoker.

Communication is key - but understand, you are on THEIR TRUCK, in THEIR HOME and while you hope they would be somewhat considerate of your feelings - it is what it is.

I can see this from both sides - having quit recently (4 months - hating life, but seeing how long I can stay quit). If I got on a truck with a smoking trainer - I would likely start again. Or have to go back on the nicotine gum to keep from starting again.

There's also whether or not it's a HEALTH ISSUE (allergies) versus just an annoyance. Keeping in mind (if you've ever been a smoker) that the nicotine/smoke gets on everything. A truck with a couple 100K smoker driven miles, is going to be saturated - even if they drive with the windows open, and wipe the interior down frequently.

Surprisingly enough - as much as companies try to incentivize not smoking, in trucking at least - it seems the smokers vastly outnumber the non-smokers. Not a whole lot else to do but keep it between the lines, and smoke.

When I had my bus and was taking bands out on tour, I was pretty much a chain smoker when behind the wheel. I had a second car that I rarely smoked in - sold it with 20K miles on it - and the buyer whined for months about the smell.

Which brings up the point - when you eventually get your own truck - chances are it will be SMOKED IN. Prepare to do a few hours of cleaning to try and get the sticky film and reek out of it.

Give it a shot, just to get out there and not sit waiting. If it becomes an issue, stay patient (remember, it IS THEIR HOME) and ask the DM to get you on the first non-smokers truck that becomes available.

Best of luck - keep us posted...

Rick

Got a call from trainer "JJ" and HE brought up the smoking issue! I used G-Towns advice and we agreed to each give a little and says he'll limit smoking while up front with window open. JJ seems like a very reasonable guy. Rick - we'll be in my assigned truck, I even get the bottom bunk as JJ says he's the visitor. I must have gotten lucky as my assigned truck doesn't have the stale smell or sticky residue of past smokers. Hitting the road to Kansas City tomorrow afternoon! Thanks for all the replies and safe truck'n.

Hey Rick - good luck staying "clean." Both my parents were able to do it using Chantrex (spelling?) after 40+ years of smoking and many, many attempts to quit. They too have a harder time tolerating smokers than I do.

My codriver and i both smoke but NEVER IN THE SLEEPER so thats an excellent compromise. We also keep the sleeper curtains closed all the time.

We keep our truck extremely clean by washing everything down several times a week.. Our "trash can" is actually a cleaning bucket. Love mr. Clean with febreeze. Floors, doors, dash, curtains, glass cleaner on windows and mirrors, upholstery cleaner on seats once a month or so.. literally every surface and i use those glade plugins in one of the outlets in the sleeper.

If we have a few minutes at a shipper or consignee , one or both of us is cleaning something while we wait.

My point is, shop personnel who dont smoke have commented more than once about how clean and great smelling our truck always is. If you have an apu/inverter i highly recommend the plugin air fresheners.

Consignee:

The customer the freight is being delivered to. Also referred to as "the receiver". The shipper is the customer that is shipping the goods, the consignee is the customer receiving the goods.

Shipper:

The customer who is shipping the freight. This is where the driver will pick up a load and then deliver it to the receiver or consignee.

HOS:

Hours Of Service

HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.

APU:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

Shutting the curtain to sleeper seems to have worked. Thanks for the tip Sue! First day went well, although no daily shower will take some getting used to. Thank goodness for baby wipes.

Shutting the curtain to sleeper seems to have worked. Thanks for the tip Sue! First day went well, although no daily shower will take some getting used to. Thank goodness for baby wipes.

Gotta love those baby wipe showers! I bought a box at Costco. I seem to shower every other day on average. I spent a couple of decades in the Construction Business. Was used to 1 or 2 a day for many years. It took a little getting used to! I don't think many people understand how hard it is to schedule a shower every day when you are running hard. Good Luck on your new adventure!