Regional Home Weekends Trainee?

Absolutely there are companies who will. Swift is a great company and they have many thousands of drivers who are obviously quite content there. The plus for them is their company sponsored schools. I love my company, but they don't have a school so to come here, one has to either be experienced or go to a private school. I attended a school that's contracted to a community college near my home. They don't do tuition reimbursement either. Mine (except for $200) was paid for by a scholarship program so the reimbursement (or lack thereof) wasn't a consideration for me.

I'm leaving tomorrow to go to Swift's orentation and then out with my trainer. Once I'm done I'm going into their dedicated division and I'll be home daily. So there are companies out there who will hire guys right out of school and put them in the type of situation you are looking for.

Running Bear, it's not just that there are "some companies" that will do this. Location is one of the major factors in determining whether a new driver can get in on something like what you're hoping to do.

You also have got to realize the risk you take by starting your career this way. Generally, a home daily driving job will have a lot more challenges involved for a rookie. It's a fairly common theme we see. A rookie driver gets a local position, has a few issues due to the maneuvering skills needed for the job, then gets let go. Now you've been fired from a trucking job, you've no OTR experience, and no one will even consider you.

It's a bad position to be in, and can be completely avoided by taking the prudent path of developing yourself as a driver while gaining that very valuable OTR experience. I completely understand wanting to be home, but many folks have let that desire derail the very career they were pursuing because they misunderstood the ramifications and consequences of not being properly prepared for the rigorous demands of a home daily trucking job.

The learning curve is steep, the consequences of not being prepared are great.

Old School I understand where your coming from. I appreciate your advice and I would not be doing this if it weren't for personal reasons. Originally I had planned to do OTR for a year or so then do dedicated. This is a second carrier for me so I'm no stranger to hard work. I will work to hone my craft. I will use this form a lot for advice and sometimes for a laugh. Again thank you for your council.

I'm leaving tomorrow to go to Swift's orentation and then out with my trainer. Once I'm done I'm going into their dedicated division and I'll be home daily. So there are companies out there who will hire guys right out of school and put them in the type of situation you are looking for.

Running Bear, it's not just that there are "some companies" that will do this. Location is one of the major factors in determining whether a new driver can get in on something like what you're hoping to do.

You also have got to realize the risk you take by starting your career this way. Generally, a home daily driving job will have a lot more challenges involved for a rookie. It's a fairly common theme we see. A rookie driver gets a local position, has a few issues due to the maneuvering skills needed for the job, then gets let go. Now you've been fired from a trucking job, you've no OTR experience, and no one will even consider you.

It's a bad position to be in, and can be completely avoided by taking the prudent path of developing yourself as a driver while gaining that very valuable OTR experience. I completely understand wanting to be home, but many folks have let that desire derail the very career they were pursuing because they misunderstood the ramifications and consequences of not being properly prepared for the rigorous demands of a home daily trucking job.

The learning curve is steep, the consequences of not being prepared are great.

Running Bear wrote:

Old School I understand where your coming from. I appreciate your advice and I would not be doing this if it weren't for personal reasons. Originally I had planned to do OTR for a year or so then do dedicated. This is a second carrier for me so I'm no stranger to hard work. I will work to hone my craft. I will use this form a lot for advice and sometimes for a laugh. Again thank you for your council.

Running Bear your ability to land a Swift Dedicated account enabling you to be home daily requires that you live in close proximity to the Customer D.C. your assigned to and that particular account has openings for rookie drivers. There are accounts that have additional qualifications, like some experience. Make your desires known, and if there are waiting lists try to get your name added.

Good luck.

I know if you live in the in the Columbus area, rookies can get onto the Target account. However you have had to do your 200hrs with a mentor on the account AND the mentor has to recommend you

I'm not sure how it's going to work in my case. I live with in the mileage for this route. They need drivers and when I called I ask about this account and they said yes. I will keep everyone updated on my journey

Absolutely there are companies who will. Swift is a great company and they have many thousands of drivers who are obviously quite content there. The plus for them is their company sponsored schools. I love my company, but they don't have a school so to come here, one has to either be experienced or go to a private school. I attended a school that's contracted to a community college near my home. They don't do tuition reimbursement either. Mine (except for $200) was paid for by a scholarship program so the reimbursement (or lack thereof) wasn't a consideration for me.

Does your company have anything near Raleigh area in NC?

I'm leaving tomorrow to go to Swift's orentation and then out with my trainer. Once I'm done I'm going into their dedicated division and I'll be home daily. So there are companies out there who will hire guys right out of school and put them in the type of situation you are looking for.

Running Bear, it's not just that there are "some companies" that will do this. Location is one of the major factors in determining whether a new driver can get in on something like what you're hoping to do.

You also have got to realize the risk you take by starting your career this way. Generally, a home daily driving job will have a lot more challenges involved for a rookie. It's a fairly common theme we see. A rookie driver gets a local position, has a few issues due to the maneuvering skills needed for the job, then gets let go. Now you've been fired from a trucking job, you've no OTR experience, and no one will even consider you.

It's a bad position to be in, and can be completely avoided by taking the prudent path of developing yourself as a driver while gaining that very valuable OTR experience. I completely understand wanting to be home, but many folks have let that desire derail the very career they were pursuing because they misunderstood the ramifications and consequences of not being properly prepared for the rigorous demands of a home daily trucking job.

The learning curve is steep, the consequences of not being prepared are great.

Thanks oldtimer! Very valuable advice there. Guess I hadn't looked at it quite that way. Makes a whole lot of sense. And another thing is that local will possibly require more in town/city driving which from what I've hears can be a pain. So to have to do that daily with not much variation would not help me develop as a driver and would become monotonous. Also, correct me if I'm wrong, but I would think it has less room for advancement . Loving the responses . Thanks again.!

What makes a lot of local accounts particularly difficult for rookies is the demands they make. You are always on a tight schedule. You will have to navigate cities and towns frequently. You will be subjected to difficult backing situations. Many times you will participate in the unloading.

I will use the example that is used often. Dollar accounts. Dollar Tree, Dollar General, Family Dollar, etc... Those accounts pay well. But you WILL earn every penny. You will have a tight schedule. You will unload the trailers. You absolutely WILL be subjected to horrendous backing situations. Experienced drivers run from these accounts. That should be the biggest hint. Dollar General accounts are notorious for the backing situations. If you doubt me, go find 3 Dollar Generals. One in a larger metropolitan area. One in a large town. Finally, one out in the middle of sticksville down some 2 lane country road with no shoulders. You will quickly realize that the engineer designing the layout of the parking area is a complete idiot with zero foresight.

There are many types of local work. But, understand they make heavy demands. It boils down to a LOT of added pressure for usually not much extra compensation.

Drive Safe and God Speed