I've Been Accepted To Maverick! Any Other Mavericks With Opinions?

I joined this forum years ago and after some personal issues I held off on pursuing trucking. Last month I applied to Maverick and I was contacted and even though I don't want them to contact my present employer, I was accepted and they will contact them last minute. The reason for the last minute contact is because my employer is known to cut hours/days from people when they know they're moving on to another job and known to corner good drivers like me with trying to negotiate pay and I don't want the drama while I'm there. I am a commercial driver on a Class C license, soon going on 5 years with the same company delivering with a cargo van which is anywhere from 250-450 miles depending on the stop count so not many miles with my current job. What should I expect while there? And is their health insurance good for a family? I'm excited to start another driving career and to experience the challenges that go with it since I'm not used to pulling and backing a trailer longer than 16' Lol. I just want to go into this prepared. I'm leaving my wife and kids behind to do this "dream" of mine and to try to provide better for them. I've been around trucking growing up as my dad drove OTR/ local Tri-Axle and for the past 10 years, local milk truck. Also, I still have the option to set in whether I want TCD, Flatbed or Glass.... I'm unsure which to be set on, the recruiter said they don't like you flip flopping. Flatbed and glass are the higher paid rate but do they slow down more during the winter? Bad roads during winter make for slower travel anyway, so would I be better to go with TCD or try one of the others?

everything I hear about Maverick is good, I aslo applied with maverick and was gonna do there student training program but since my dr. refused to sign paper on med I take I wasn't able to attend orientation. I m about to start student sponsored training program thru CFI in sept.

I joined this forum years ago and after some personal issues I held off on pursuing trucking. Last month I applied to Maverick and I was contacted and even though I don't want them to contact my present employer, I was accepted and they will contact them last minute. The reason for the last minute contact is because my employer is known to cut hours/days from people when they know they're moving on to another job and known to corner good drivers like me with trying to negotiate pay and I don't want the drama while I'm there. I am a commercial driver on a Class C license, soon going on 5 years with the same company delivering with a cargo van which is anywhere from 250-450 miles depending on the stop count so not many miles with my current job. What should I expect while there? And is their health insurance good for a family? I'm excited to start another driving career and to experience the challenges that go with it since I'm not used to pulling and backing a trailer longer than 16' Lol. I just want to go into this prepared. I'm leaving my wife and kids behind to do this "dream" of mine and to try to provide better for them. I've been around trucking growing up as my dad drove OTR/ local Tri-Axle and for the past 10 years, local milk truck. Also, I still have the option to set in whether I want TCD, Flatbed or Glass.... I'm unsure which to be set on, the recruiter said they don't like you flip flopping. Flatbed and glass are the higher paid rate but do they slow down more during the winter? Bad roads during winter make for slower travel anyway, so would I be better to go with TCD or try one of the others?

I think we have a few Mavericks in here. One of our members C.T. pulls a flatbed for them on a regional gig, and likes it alot. I sure see a ton of their trucks on the road.

By the way, you asked about flatbed slowing down in the winter. I can't speak for Maverick, but I pull a flatbed for my company and I never slow down. Winter has shown to have no effect whatsoever on freight, at least not in my little niche.

I agree with Turtle - there's no reason you'll be slowing down in the winter.

I've heard some people complain of this, but if you can prove to be a good solid driver, they'll find work for you to do.

I'm on a dedicated flat bed account and sometimes the plant I'm pulling from shuts down for maintenance or something. Some of the drivers will just enjoy a week or two off, but if a person wants to work our planners will just find us work on the spot market so we can keep the wheels turning.

With the economy like it is there's going to be very little slow down in trucking for the next few years.

I drive for Maverick. I’m pretty new to it. I went flatbed about five months before switching to tcd. I have found tcd suits me better personally. It’s really a personal choice. I started there as a student. I have had my cdl class a for a long time but no recent verifiable experience. When I switched from flatbed USA to tcd I’m receiving exactly the same pay per mile. The main difference for me is with tcd I get a lot more miles because I don’t spend as much time loading securing and tarping . Flatbed got paid tarp pay of $25 and $30 for stop pay you also will be paid detention time over 2 hours if multi stop TCD pays the same on detention but only 20 stop pay. Tcd is far less work than flatbed. I may not be the best example but my first week in TCD I did 2618 miles which is more Than I was getting in flatbed. Also if you got flatbed USA expect to work primarily in the region you live in.

To be prepared get a motor carriers deluxe atlas, a hand calculator, dry erase marker fine point, straight edge or small ruler, minimal items and clothing to get by on about 2weeks. A set of twin sheets or sleeping bag, some cash for food after lunch or Walmart trips. Practice Trip planning, try and get familiar with HOS and FMCSR mainly relating to hos. Pay close attention to the instructors ask questions for clarity. Always try and be about 15-30 minutes early. Don’t bring anything that might be seen as offensive or dangerous. No alcohol, we had one guy sent home because his shirt had skulls on it but I think he was warned and did it twice.

For me it was about 2 weeks orientation and securement then 3 1/2 weeks in a trainer truck then on my own. Once your on your own you will want to make you truck as much like home as you can without modifying their truck. Trust me it can add up fast.

Working at Maverick my not be perfect but they will work with you and you can learn a lot. Be safe hope to see you out here

Tcd is far less work than flatbed. I may not be the best example but my first week in TCD I did 2618 miles which is more Than I was getting in flatbed.

Glen, just a word of caution here concerning Kevin L's comments. He's a rookie, just like he admitted. He's obviously struggling to turn the miles. I seldom have any problems turning 3,000 miles or more per week driving a flat bed. We all struggle at this in the beginning, but there's no reason why you can't turn the miles as a flatbed driver. There's a learning curve to be sure, but some folks are cut out for flat bed, while others are better at running a reefer.

Hey Glen, congrats on being accepted by Maverick. I’ve been with them for eight months and couldn’t be happier. Sorry if I ramble, but just some thoughts about the company and the job. It’s funny how everyone has a different opinion and experience.

I’d never driven a truck, but got my cdl through a private school before being accepted by Maverick. Two weeks of orientation and securement training, followed by five weeks with a trainer, followed by two days of final evaluation, and then getting my truck.

I’m in the USA division, which means they try to get me home every other weekend. My only choices based on my home location were either that or glass. If you are out of their regional area and want to get home every weekend, maybe another company would be better. I live in a horrible freight lane, so they do struggle a little getting me home every two weeks. It’s part of the reason I like to stay out six or more weeks at a time-when you go home only once every couple of months, they will bend over backwards to make sure you get home. USA division accrues one day off per week out, so I usually like to do seven weeks out, then nine days off (Saturday to the following Sunday, then leave out Monday morning.) I have been surprised how far they are willing to deadhead me home.

Maverick’s equipment and maintenance has been excellent for me. I ended up with a truck that is on the older side of the fleet, which worried me a little at first, but I’ve put over seventy thousand miles on her, and she’s never needed any work done that took more than a couple hours in the shop. No major problems at all. Speaking of shops, Maverick’s have been excellent for me. Put in my repair macro, and they have always gotten me in and out real quick. In fact, once had them wave me into the shop as I entered the gate. And they have done more than needed a couple times. For example, had a small gouge in a steer that I had them look at while going by a terminal-it wasn’t bad enough to fail an inspection, but they replaced both steers anyway. And getting routine maintenance at one of our shops cracks me up. They always seem to find some problem that is minor enough that it’s not a big deal, and fix it. Windshield wipers last time, they worked ok, but they replaced them anyway and now they work great. I like that.

I also like the fact that Maverick has never questioned or even raised an eyebrow when I’ve requested auxiliary pay. Detention pay, breakdown pay, payback when buying something for the truck, etc-I’ve always gotten a message back very quickly that I will be paid, no problems. Surprises me what they will pay for too. Random drug test will get you fifteen dollars. And short loads are interesting too. Got ninety dollars for a seven mile trip the other day. I like not being questioned over every nickle and dime.

Miles. This is one that is different for everyone. I get shockingly consistent miles. For example, the last five weeks, I’ve gotten within fifty miles of the same number of miles each weeks. Was very surprised when checking the mileage log the other day. And I get pretty good miles-the only time I get less than 2500 miles a week is when I go home-they have to give me some creative loads to get me in the area, and so I wait for loads longer than normal. Usually get closer to 3000 per week. Speaking of waiting for loads, another thing I like is doing very little of it. Part of that is on the driver-I always make sure to send in my eta macro (sometimes several times), so I almost always have a preplan before I get unloaded. And even without a preplan, haven’t waited more than ten minutes for a load in months.

Unlike Kevin, the USA division gets me around the country. But that may be because of the region I live in and the fact that i stay out. I usually spend two or three days a week just driving my full eleven with no loading or unloading.

I like their terminal placement-can almost guarantee I’ll drive by one every couple of weeks.

Winter miles? My best month was February.

I like their securement hotline. Have actually gotten poor George out of bed at 4 am twice now on loads I’ve never seen where the work order said to call securement if it’s my first time-never a word of complaint.

Couple of problem things. Drop and hook trailers are a crapshoot. Fortunately, I do it very rarely, maybe four times in the last six months, but every time, I’ve had to have work done on the trailer before I could even leave the lot-too many other divers don’t care. My only other problem was a bit of friction with my fleet manager when I was first assigned to him. And that can be completely attributed to two strangers learning how we each do things. Once he learned how I like to run, he keeps me in all the miles I want. And once I learned how he likes things done, I make sure to do them that way. We have a great relationship now. My fleet manager is now one of the things I like. He lets me run my way without a single question. And he could question it, because I run the way most drivers tell me not to run flatbed. But he sees I get the miles at 100% on time, so never says a word, just sets up loads to work with my odd hours.

(Ran out of room)

As for the divisions Maverick has. I’m weirdly close enough to a glass plant to be a dedicated glass driver and I’ve thought about doing that or even an otr glass guy. Even though they make more per mile than the flatbed guys do, I’m not entirely convinced they make more. Most glass guys I talk to seem to have a monster mile week followed by two bad miles weeks then a good mile week, etc. Their weekly average isn’t as good as mine so it leads to a question of whether I am making more with less pay but more miles. Still mulling it over. I do know the two guys I went through orientation with that went glass, have 10k+ fewer miles than I do for the year. Hard to say what division is right for anybody. I am loving the flatbed side, so will probably hang out here till i get tired of staying out.

It’s tough. My first week solo was hell. My first two months were hard. But now, things have gotten good, and I actually enjoy what I do. Very glad I went with maverick.

Sorry I'm late getting to this, I've been home all weekend and pretty busy. Anyway, I've been with Maverick for a little over 2 years now. The other guys covered most of your questions. But I will add a few things to what they said. As Kevin said, yes Tcd gets paid roughly the same as flatbed, however there are pros and cons to both. Since I'm in a regional division, I get more home time than glass and Tcd drivers. I'm typically home Fridays before noon. I live outside of Atlanta so there's always something to pickup or deliver. This is very important to your hometime, as they can only do what freight in your area will allow. Flatbed is more involved than tcd , but once you get the hang of it you can be in and out of a place in 30-45 min. No offense to Kevin, but it will take longer than a few months to become an efficient flatbed driver. I'm still trying to improve myself. I can't say much about glass but I've heard great things about it. I pay 115 or 120 something a week for my family for health insurance. That sounds high, but the deductibles are fair and most Drs accept United Healthcare. I feel like I'm forgetting something but feel free to ask any questions.