Backing Exams Are The Most Humbling Experience I’ve Had In A Long Time!!

Congrats. I hope to be in your shoes later this summer, early fall.

Congratulations!!!

I knew you'd get it.....eventually. Outstanding!

Thank you everyone! What an incredibly humbling experience. My head is still big in diameter but a ton less swollen!! Thank you all for the amazing guidance & support. Stay safe & God bless.

Hey Chris S. Make sure you you’re pre-trip studying in & the High Road Training in as well. You’ll be miles ahead of everybody else & you can focus on your other particulars. Physical, CBT’s, Sims, etc. Good luck to you. Any questions, feel free to hit me up. Oh & please some of the prime diaries. They helped me a ton!!

Congratulations!!!

You don't know me from Adam but I was pulling for you. Congrats!

I took my CDL on March 7th in Springfield I am with Wil-Trans and only missed two items on the Pre-Trip and moved onto the backing and my straight line was perfect my offset to the left was perfect and I had to do the drivers side parallel and got a little messed up ran over a cone and she blew her whistle and looked out and said I'm sorry I killed your cone and she laughed. I pulled up and repositioned and backed in with one GOAL and got in straight. I knew I passed when she removed the cones infront of me so we could go on the road test.

So I was a happy man. We took off and I only got dinged with two errors not turning on my turn signal as I was making the hard right turn where the curb on the right sticks out and when I realized it was was a in the lane of the street and said **** and turned it on and she said Nice Try and laughed! How stupid of me lol.

When we got back she got out of the tractor and said you passed and told her thank you! She said Curt you did it not me and you should be very proud and I said I am for passing on the first time.

I called the office and said come get me but one of the trainers saw me during the road test and he said you passed I said YES I did he could hear the BIG smile over the phone. It was a great day for me and have been racking up the miles with my trainer.

One bit of advice I found when I thought about if you stall you fail so what I would do is adjust my steering wheel to where my left knee would hit on the back of the steering wheel so you could only let the clutch out so far without a problem of stalling and I would also always start in 3rd gear!

My backing still needs work but it's slowly getting better but always trying to improve. Everyone says it will improve over time just to never rush anything.

Keep on rolling and relax. My instructors at Wil-Trans have been amazing and can't say enough good things about Wil-Trans' training program.

You need to study and study for your exam and your Pre-Trip because it is on you! If you are prepared you will pass with flying colors and if you don't study and prepare you will struggle and most likely fail. Its all in how much you want it and let me tell you I wanted it BAD!

Curtis

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.

Wil-Trans:

Darrel Wilson bought his first tractor in 1980 at age 20, but, being too young to meet OTR age requirements, he leased the truck out and hired a driver.

Through growth and acquisition, Wil-Trans now employs over 200 drivers, and has a long-standing partnership with Prime, Inc. to haul their refrigerated freight. The family of businesses also includes Jim Palmer Trucking and O & S Trucking.

Congrats !!!!

Reyn, in the end it really doesn't matter how many tries it takes to pass the skills test. We all start this career on an equal playing field - none of us has a clue what we're doing!

What does make a difference is how you develop yourself as a driver during that first year. There have been plenty of drivers who passed on their first attempt, yet failed at the career itself. I know you are aware of how we stress the importance of that first year. That is where it's make or break. You're getting yourself in position now for the real schooling.

Buckle up, it can be a crazy ride! Those who pass the ultimate test - hanging tight with their first company for one full year - those are the ones who prove their worth, and I know you can do it.