Witte Bros. Exchange/Witte Driving School
Topic 18076 | Page 2
I would like to talk to you about Witte brothers training I am scheduled to start June 12th thank you.
I would like to talk to you about Witte brothers training I am scheduled to start June 12th thank you.
I would like to talk to you about Witte brothers training I am scheduled to start June 12th thank you.
Happy to answer anything I can - ask away.
It took me a few days to get back to you but I was wondering what you thought of your trainers the facilities where stay and if you took the cdl test in Hannibal I was told that I would take the test in Quincy IL since I am from Il. thanks for your info
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.
It took me a few days to get back to you but I was wondering what you thought of your trainers the facilities where stay and if you took the cdl test in Hannibal I was told that I would take the test in Quincy IL since I am from Il. thanks for your info
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.
It took me a few days to get back to you but I was wondering what you thought of your trainers the facilities where stay and if you took the cdl test in Hannibal I was told that I would take the test in Quincy IL since I am from Il. thanks for your info
1. Instructors: Andrew and Troy are great instructors. Very easy going, patient, and thorough. Genuinely care about their student success and are willing to help or go above and beyond to help you succeed. They have figured out a great system to prepare folks to take and pass the skills test in their first shot. I am extremely impressed by them and thankful to have had them. Everyone in our class that made it to test day, passed the first time.
2. Facilities: The facilities are dorm style. Three bunks to a sleeping room. You will likely have a roommate, they try to pair you up based on personality. I never had any issues with any of my roommates. They strive to keep it clean, but it does come down to everyone cleaning up after themselves and respecting others space. We had a few small issues, but nothing that wasn't quickly solved with a conversation. There are showers, laundry facilities, a full size fridge, a microwave, satellite tv, and extremely comfy couches. Walmart, Aldi, and Kroger are all a few minutes away by driving - tons of fast food and local restaurants to choose from. They have a company car that you can borrow during the day time to go into town, which is convenient. So, sure it's not a five star hotel, or even a holiday inn. But, it's clean, comfortable, and convenient for 5 weeks. I couldn't complain.
3. I'm a MO resident - so I tested in Hannibal. The instructors said that it's actually a little easier to test in IL because the format is the same every time - so you know what maneuvers you're going to have to do. Regardless of where you test, Andrew and Troy will make sure you have the tools to pass the test.
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.
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
Sorry, Gary.
Somehow I stuck my answers into the quote section when replying to your last comment. But the answers are there. Let me know if you have any more questions in the coming months.
So far - I'm extremely impressed with Witte and glad that I chose them. Let me know when you make it in, I'll have to stop by the school and introduce myself.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
Hey I was Wondering how your first week went.
Hey I was Wondering how your first week went.
Sorry for the delay. It's been busy. Week 1 with a trainer is in the books. Bit of a crazy week, but it was productive. We kicked out Tuesday afternoon. Met at the terminal in Troy and got my stuff moved into the tractor. Got two cabinets and half the fridge. Not bad, very accommodating of my trainer. Makes my life easier these next few weeks.
I won't bore you with all the details - but the skinny is we did only truckloads this week since we kicked out later in the week off the normal outbound LTL schedule. We ran a couple of loads around IL, then went out to Ohio and we had a 8 hour layover before delivery. Our Fleet Manager asked us to swap trailers with another driver to help a load make its appointment in PA. We obliged. We had a return load get cancelled by the shipper and ended up in NJ before getting back into Troy around 13:00 Saturday. We kicked back at at 15:00 Sunday for a normal LTL run around Indianapolis.
Focus from my trainer the first week was to let me get comfortable behind the wheel and help me gain confidence. He has been very supportive and answered a lot of questions and given sage advice of how to be successful. I did about 60% of the driving in week 1 (would of been more, but we had to run as a team to get back to MO from NJ - which is highly unusual). So far in week 2, I've done 95% of the driving. Both weeks - I've done all but a couple of the backing/docks.
I've been learning peoplenet and paperwork and it's pretty straight forward. Getting used to life on the road is a little easier with his advice, still a little homesick for my wife and daughter at times, but we need me to provide.
All in all - I'm enjoying my time with my trainer. Enjoying the journey and looking forward to the future.
Any specific questions, just ask.
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.
Terminal:
A facility where trucking companies operate out of, or their "home base" if you will. A lot of major companies have multiple terminals around the country which usually consist of the main office building, a drop lot for trailers, and sometimes a repair shop and wash facilities.
LTL:
Less Than Truckload
Refers to carriers that make a lot of smaller pickups and deliveries for multiple customers as opposed to hauling one big load of freight for one customer. This type of hauling is normally done by companies with terminals scattered throughout the country where freight is sorted before being moved on to its destination.
LTL carriers include:
- FedEx Freight
- Con-way
- YRC Freight
- UPS
- Old Dominion
- Estes
- Yellow-Roadway
- ABF Freight
- R+L Carrier
Fleet Manager:
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.New Reply:
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Week 5:
Same routine - 07:30 to 09:30 working the pretrip. 09:30 to 12:00 and 13:00 to 15:30 practicing backing maneuvers. Instructors continuing to take groups of two out to drive during the am and the pm. This week - the driving focuses on similar road conditions and turns to what we will have on test day to best prepare us.
Again - all very repetitive, but with test day looming (Wednesday) my nerves were kicking in and had me struggling with things I've been doing like second nature for a couple weeks. But - I do suffer from test anxiety a bit.
The instructors were used to this and very encouraging and supportive. Which j appreciated. Still didn't sleep a wink the night before.
This morning (Wednesday) the AM exam appointments were on the road for the exam site at 05:00. First test at 06:30. Then a second at 08:30. Then mine was scheduled at 11:00. Waiting was the worst part. I pulled a partial pretrip with Engine Compartment, Coupling, Lights, and InCab/Air brakes. Perfect score. Followed the script to the letter just like they told us to on the first day and it paid. I did the straight back, left side offset, and right side parallel park - again with a perfect score. The methods and system we've practiced make it easy to execute. Then I took 4 points on the road portion. Got back to Troy in the late afternoon and ran straight to the license office. So I'm officially a Class A holder.
Tomorrow will consist of forklift training and certification in the AM and then the fleet managers will be providing us lunch and having a meet/greet with the students. After that - I'll head home until I kick out with my trainer. I should know Friday afternoon when/where I'm going. Excited for the next leg of my journey.
Fleet Manager:
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.