Roehl Interview On Monday @ 10am
Topic 17978 | Page 1
Thanks for the informative post. Good luck to you. Don't be worried about TMI. TMI is in the mind of the reader.
Are you doing flatbed or van? Just curious
Are you doing flatbed or van? Just curious
I have an interview scheduled with Roehl at 10 am on Monday (1/23/17). I am going to be going through their "Get your CDL" program and when finished will be driving in their Van National Fleet.
Missed that I'll bet.
Rick
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Good luck on everything down there. I start in Appleton on Feb 6 for OTR Van Fleet as well.
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
Ricky you can change your mind when you get there. But yes I was hoping we had a new flatbedder on board
Ricky you can change your mind when you get there. But yes I was hoping we had a new flatbedder on board
Was talking with a friend today that drives FB for a concrete company. They just got new conestoga trailers, so he's happy he doesn't have to climb and throw anymore.
I have the greatest admiration for ya'll that do the physical rigors and risks of running FB - I just AIN'T THE ONE myself.
Rick
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.
Roehl has a good school. I am a graduate. I worked for them awhile to get experience under my belt which has opened alot of doors for me. Their instructors were top notch and cared about the student learning and not just pushing numbers through. The otr trainers I had I still stay in contact with. The equipment is top notch, just watch some of the older trailers have issues sliding the tandems. Have a great interview and enjoy your new adventure
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Good luck to you.
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I have an interview scheduled with Roehl at 10 am on Monday (1/23/17). I am going to be going through their "Get your CDL" program and when finished will be driving in their Van National Fleet. So it looks like if all goes well, I will start class on 2/27/17 (a Training Diary will be made in the proper forum). Not going to hash out all of the details (their site is pretty damn informative when it comes to letting you know how things roll around there). But I will say, i will be starting at 33 cpm with a 1cpm raise at 3 months and another 2 cpm raise at 6 months (guaranteed). Just in case anyone here was wondering. Average mileage is 2,300 - 2,600 a week with a schedule of 11-14 days out and 3 days home. I am sure the option to stay out longer is available. I know that numbers always have the chance of changing (especially when it comes to home time) but it doesn't seem like too bad of a deal. 15 months is a great amount of time as A) it will give me "Loads" (see what I did there?) of experience, and allow for a long enough "test" period to decide if this is the lifestyle for me and my family. I am leaving a Career in Quality Management Systems in a Medical Device Company to start this journey and will always have that and my experience in LEAN manufacturing to fall back on if it doesn't work out. I want to thank all the members of this site for the plethora of information that has accumulated here as it has helped me to get a good idea (yes the good, bad, and even the ugly) of what I am getting into. My wife has been extremely supportive of this decision and I think I am more nervous about the impact it will have on our family than she is (her only stipulation was that I buy a No Lot Lizards decal for when I get my own truck, and PUT IT ON!)
After the interview (assuming it goes well) I will travel down to the DMV to take my CDL test to get my CLP before heading to training (which is close enough that I will be home every night during that time as it is only about 40 minutes away from my home, city driving). I have 3 weeks of Vacation time, 1 week of sick time, and 3 Floating Holidays left at my current job for the year, so if I use up my Sick time and Floating Holidays (they will not buy me out of that) and save the 3 weeks of vacation (for them to pay out) it should provide a decent buffer for that time in between starting class and getting paid. (don't forget the tax returns)
I know this post was a bit long and maybe even a touch of TMI, but I wanted to help contribute even a little bit if there are any members out there thinking about leaving their cubicle for the open road. Thank you all for your help so far, and I will definitely be sure to stick around for progress reports, and general BS.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.DMV:
Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles
The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.
CPM:
Cents Per Mile
Drivers are often paid by the mile and it's given in cents per mile, or cpm.
CLP:
Commercial Learner's Permit
Before getting their CDL, commercial drivers will receive their commercial learner's permit (CLP) upon passing the written portion of the CDL exam. They will not have to retake the written exam to get their CDL.