What To Do If I Dont Think I Would Like Flatbed

Troy,

The issue you are having is one of the reasons I chose Prime over some other companies. They have reefer/flatbed/tanker divisions. So just in case I didn't like where I started, I could at least try a different division & still stay with the same company.

I was in the reefer division from Oct 2011 until Aug 2013. At that time I switched to flatbed. So far, I really enjoy flatbed (not being out in the cold mind you, just the challenge of it). But in case for whatever reason, I can still change if I want/need to. That is the beauty of a multi division company.

Ernie

I was actually just looking at Prime. How does their training work for someone with only a month experience. I dont think Im gonna move on because i wanna last at least a year there because the company is AWESOME. Just curious.

That really depends on a lot of factors. The only way to know is to call & talk to them. I am pretty sure that if you are wanting to come over to Prime, you will have to go out with one of the trainers for a period of time.

Just an FYI, Prime does have all drivers pay for all their equipment (yes, including company drivers)

Any questions, let me know, will be glad to help if I can.

Ernie

Troy, I'm not sure if I can add anything more helpful than what has already been said, but I do want you to realize that almost everyone who starts this career goes through a time of wondering whether they made the right decision or not. It's just a tough career to break into at the beginning, and most people consider quitting it at some point during their first three months. I don't usually recommend that a person start out in flat-bedding because it just adds several more difficulties onto the already demanding introduction to this lifestyle altering career.

I would recommend that you at least try and stick it out for three months. You shouldn't have too many problems trying to get on with another company, but you sure don't want to establish yourself on paper as looking like the type that cuts and runs every time it gets a little bit difficult. Not only is it difficult starting out in flat-bed, but you also started in the dead of winter. That's by far the most difficult time for a flat-bedder because just about everything has to be tarped, if for no other reason than to protect the product from the salts on the roads this time of year.

I don't know if it will help or not, but I want you to realize that it does get easier as you gain some experience and confidence. I remember how Larry E. was struggling with his concerns when he first started his new gig and now he's starting to sound like an old hand at this. It just takes a little time to establish yourself, and there are so many things about driving a big rig that have to all come together at the beginning so you don't go out there and tear something up or seriously hurt someone. Flat-bedding just adds several more layers of concern and responsibility on top of the already demanding burden of being safe out there. If you do stay with it for at least three months you may not be feeling so overwhelmed and be more able to sort out your feelings about the job and know for sure if you want to move on to something else or not. At that point you will have a legitimate reason for explaining to a prospective employer that you tried the flat-bed thing and it just wasn't what you thought it was going to be so now you would like to try something else. Quitting after just one month will be interpreted by many as a guy that will cut and run at the least bit of difficulty.

Troy, I agree wholeheartedly with the guys above. When you're new to trucking there are a ton of ups and downs. Everyone considers quitting a few times. Everyone wonders if they chose the wrong company or the wrong type of freight. Everyone goes through a lot of challenges, setbacks, and hard lessons learned.

Right now, stay the course. You're too early in your career to be jumping ship. Other companies aren't going to like seeing that and we're at the start of the slow season so companies aren't hiring quite as hard as they normally do. So you might find yourself in a bit of a pickle if you quit that job now and try to go elsewhere.

You're at the absolute toughest stage of your career right now. You know very little about trucking and you haven't had time to adapt to life on the road yet. On top of that you're hauling flatbed in terrible weather which makes it ten times worse.

You won't have to do this much longer if you don't like it but I would highly recommend you stick it out for at least a few more months before looking elsewhere. You'll know ten times more in two months than you do now and things will already be a lot easier than they are now. A lot of the uncertainty will be gone and that feeling of being overwhelmed all the time will subside.

I'm from outside of Buffalo, NY so I totally understand what you're saying about the weather. It wears you down sometimes and you start to feel like you're going a little bit loony. But hang in there. Soon you'll hit a nice patch of weather with dry roads and sunny skies and you'll be feeling 1000 times better.

Trust me when I say we've all been there. We know how you feel. But you'll get through this just fine and before you know it you'll be the one encouraging others with your own stories of determination and toughness. We're passing it down to you, you're living it, and soon you'll be passing it on to others.

Hang tough! You'll be feeling a whole lot better real soon - guaranteed.

Thank you all a ton for the words of encouragement. It really means and has helped a lot. So far this week has been tough. Had a midnight delivery in the middle of a snow storm on sunday night/ monday morning. After that we went to a hotel which was at 5 am monday morning. We got up at 10am and we were snowed in. We were parked on a little service road that had semi parking for the hotel. Well we are sruck and can't get out. The tow service said they can't get to us and we are at the mercy of the city plow trucks. The hotel said that could be a coyple days. Lovely! We are still at the hotel and the truck wouldn't start this morning. Its -11 out with wind chills at -35. We are still sitting here. Good times.

But again thank you guys for the words. It has really helped.

Thank you all a ton for the words of encouragement. It really means and has helped a lot. So far this week has been tough. Had a midnight delivery in the middle of a snow storm on sunday night/ monday morning. After that we went to a hotel which was at 5 am monday morning. We got up at 10am and we were snowed in. We were parked on a little service road that had semi parking for the hotel. Well we are sruck and can't get out. The tow service said they can't get to us and we are at the mercy of the city plow trucks. The hotel said that could be a coyple days. Lovely! We are still at the hotel and the truck wouldn't start this morning. Its -11 out with wind chills at -35. We are still sitting here. Good times.

But again thank you guys for the words. It has really helped.

When you say the truck wouldn't start do you mean it wouldn't fire up or it wouldn't turn over at all???

It wouldn't fire up. It tried but to cold I guess.

Yep..definitely too cold for it to start...that's why those diesel engines sometimes have glow plugs..to heat the cylinders..guess when it's that cold even those won't do the trick..brrrrr....

The guy from Ryder can't even get it to start.

The guy from Ryder can't even get it to start.

Hmm...a lot of companies have block heaters installed to warm the engine up in really cold weather..sounds like yours doesn't have that option..

Troy...sorry to hear your having truck problems...but I want to address something else you said twice.. You said you just want to drive on dry, or even wet roads for awhile..... So my question to you is.....Do you think that flatbedders are the only trucks out on the snowy, icey, slick roads ??? If you want to have some fun, try a reefer , loaded to the gills, with the wind blowing sideways, on snow and ice covered roads....I'll take my skateboard with a cab low load any day....Those boxes catch alot of wind, slop, snow, ice...you name it, it catches it, on top and underneath...I'll admit that chaining and strapping in the weather is miserable...but I pulled reefer...and theres nothing that skates easier than an empty box trailer..poetry in motion....