First congrats on the soon to be newborn. Welcome to the group, and good luck in your venture.
First congrats on the soon to be newborn. Welcome to the group, and good luck in your venture.
Thank you :) -NiMa
Hello T.T. members :) I've been paying attention to the forum for the past few months and first off, I wanted to compliment the High Road training program for it's incredible efficiency and simplicity in helping me obtain my CDL permit! Now, introductions... My name is very long and it's stuck for years, and I have no problem going by "heavy" or "warrior" or HMTW or anything of the sort. I am a month shy of 25 years old, and I live in central Georgia. Through much deliberation, my wife and I have decided to take the plunge into the trucking industry. I say my wife and I because even though I will be the one on the road, she will have the responsibility of raising our newborn son (late july) when I am away. It will be a 200% team effort. We have been married for nearly two years as of this august, and we decided we need a more substantial income than us both working full time with a child on the way. So we have talked on the subject for quite some time, and have chosen to part ways with our jobs and send me off to the road with Roehl's GYCDL program so my wife can avoid her stressful job of watching 20 undisciplined children (pre-k) and spend time at home with our beloved son. It was very difficult on my part to make the decision to leave the two of them for training, but we have God first in our marriage, and have come to the conclusion that trucking would be better for my wife and son, financially, than continuing this meat cutter job which I have already lost part of a finger to. My wife and I built our dating relationship on long-distance communication, and we feel that we are prepared for the trials and rewards that lay ahead.
Anyway, I have already had Ashley @ Roehl contact me about driving flatbed for them after going through the CDL program in Gary. My wife and I are continuing to save money to support ourselves through the training period, and shortly after he is born and I get some time to spend with him, I will be leaving for Roehl training in mid August. I have always been allured to the thought of living on the road, where the only thing that determines your survival are your wits and skills. Ive had my share of breakdowns hundreds of miles from home, and the only chance of getting back involves pulling the intake manifold apart on the side of the expressway. Waking up in a new location every morning is one of the most exciting things I can imagine. Of course, nothing can beat the feeling of being home with my wife and son again. I plan to move to a more regional route when possible, but for now, my plan is to get my CDL. Anyhow, that is my story. Thank you for your time, and I cannot wait to see the excitement and challenges that lay ahead for my family and I. I hope this can help somebody decide in the future with a similar situation. Until the next update, take care!! -Heavymetal
Congratulations on the almost newborn, I am 24 myself and currently in CDL school with a 15 month old, my lady unfortunately isn't able to leave her job just yet due to the debt we currently have. She has a car payments at $230.00 a month, me $108.00 a month on my truck because I put so much down when I bought it, then we have her medical bills that will be paid off in december and my son's medical bill which comes to a grand total of $25,000ish... Oh, did I mention I also own a horse? Lol, as soon as we pay my truck off this year, and her medical bill, i'll make her car payment and if it makes sense have her go part time. She is a manager but only makes $11/hr at subway and I am self employed as a caregiver. I feel you on starting in this industry with a new family, I look forward to following you!
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
Usually refers to a driver hauling freight within one particular region of the country. You might be in the "Southeast Regional Division" or "Midwest Regional". Regional route drivers often get home on the weekends which is one of the main appeals for this type of route.
Operating While Intoxicated
Congratulations on the almost newborn, I am 24 myself and currently in CDL school with a 15 month old, my lady unfortunately isn't able to leave her job just yet due to the debt we currently have. She has a car payments at $230.00 a month, me $108.00 a month on my truck because I put so much down when I bought it, then we have her medical bills that will be paid off in december and my son's medical bill which comes to a grand total of $25,000ish... Oh, did I mention I also own a horse? Lol, as soon as we pay my truck off this year, and her medical bill, i'll make her car payment and if it makes sense have her go part time. She is a manager but only makes $11/hr at subway and I am self employed as a caregiver. I feel you on starting in this industry with a new family, I look forward to following you!
It's great to hear I'm not the only one, Chris! My wife works for $8/hr at a local day-care and I work as a full-time meat cutter at a grocery chain called Harvey's. The company is going bankrupt, but for the time being, I'm making $12/hr which is very much decent for somebody my age in my location. Our rent is $525 a month, plus a credit card, plus our utilities and oh, $27,000 in student loans. We can manage, but who wouldn't want better? More money plus more time at home. My wife and son are my priority over myself anyway so trucking seems to be the better choice. Anyway... Who are you schooling with? -NiMa
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
Operating While Intoxicated
Congratulations on the almost newborn, I am 24 myself and currently in CDL school with a 15 month old, my lady unfortunately isn't able to leave her job just yet due to the debt we currently have. She has a car payments at $230.00 a month, me $108.00 a month on my truck because I put so much down when I bought it, then we have her medical bills that will be paid off in december and my son's medical bill which comes to a grand total of $25,000ish... Oh, did I mention I also own a horse? Lol, as soon as we pay my truck off this year, and her medical bill, i'll make her car payment and if it makes sense have her go part time. She is a manager but only makes $11/hr at subway and I am self employed as a caregiver. I feel you on starting in this industry with a new family, I look forward to following you!
It's great to hear I'm not the only one, Chris! My wife works for $8/hr at a local day-care and I work as a full-time meat cutter at a grocery chain called Harvey's. The company is going bankrupt, but for the time being, I'm making $12/hr which is very much decent for somebody my age in my location. Our rent is $525 a month, plus a credit card, plus our utilities and oh, $27,000 in student loans. We can manage, but who wouldn't want better? More money plus more time at home. My wife and son are my priority over myself anyway so trucking seems to be the better choice. Anyway... Who are you schooling with? -NiMa
Whew! I wish my rent was that low, my total monthly expenses for me alone comes to $2500, for her roughly $600/month. I am going through the 4CDL program through my local community college, it's not the college's program originally, im not sure how they ended up putting their office there, but i paid cash for the course to get a $1000 discount. Where are you based out of?
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
Operating While Intoxicated
I'm not sure yet. Ashley will have paperwork moving along in the coming 2 or 3 weeks and that's when stuff will start happening. I live in Eastman, Georgia but we may be moving down closer to her mom near Brunswick before I head out. -NiMaTode
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Hello T.T. members :) I've been paying attention to the forum for the past few months and first off, I wanted to compliment the High Road training program for it's incredible efficiency and simplicity in helping me obtain my CDL permit! Now, introductions... My name is very long and it's stuck for years, and I have no problem going by "heavy" or "warrior" or HMTW or anything of the sort. I am a month shy of 25 years old, and I live in central Georgia. Through much deliberation, my wife and I have decided to take the plunge into the trucking industry. I say my wife and I because even though I will be the one on the road, she will have the responsibility of raising our newborn son (late july) when I am away. It will be a 200% team effort. We have been married for nearly two years as of this august, and we decided we need a more substantial income than us both working full time with a child on the way. So we have talked on the subject for quite some time, and have chosen to part ways with our jobs and send me off to the road with Roehl's GYCDL program so my wife can avoid her stressful job of watching 20 undisciplined children (pre-k) and spend time at home with our beloved son. It was very difficult on my part to make the decision to leave the two of them for training, but we have God first in our marriage, and have come to the conclusion that trucking would be better for my wife and son, financially, than continuing this meat cutter job which I have already lost part of a finger to. My wife and I built our dating relationship on long-distance communication, and we feel that we are prepared for the trials and rewards that lay ahead.
Anyway, I have already had Ashley @ Roehl contact me about driving flatbed for them after going through the CDL program in Gary. My wife and I are continuing to save money to support ourselves through the training period, and shortly after he is born and I get some time to spend with him, I will be leaving for Roehl training in mid August. I have always been allured to the thought of living on the road, where the only thing that determines your survival are your wits and skills. Ive had my share of breakdowns hundreds of miles from home, and the only chance of getting back involves pulling the intake manifold apart on the side of the expressway. Waking up in a new location every morning is one of the most exciting things I can imagine. Of course, nothing can beat the feeling of being home with my wife and son again. I plan to move to a more regional route when possible, but for now, my plan is to get my CDL. Anyhow, that is my story. Thank you for your time, and I cannot wait to see the excitement and challenges that lay ahead for my family and I. I hope this can help somebody decide in the future with a similar situation. Until the next update, take care!! -Heavymetal
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
Regional:
Regional Route
Usually refers to a driver hauling freight within one particular region of the country. You might be in the "Southeast Regional Division" or "Midwest Regional". Regional route drivers often get home on the weekends which is one of the main appeals for this type of route.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.