Considering The Switch
Topic 24043 | Page 1
In many cases the paid company training is the best way to go. You'll have to make commitment with the company to stay with them for a period of time. Usually one year or pay them back for the training. Possibly prorated. The big thing here is the company have a vested interest in you.
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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.
Hello and welcome aboard. You can't go wrong with either company. Really depends on what you want to haul and where you want to run. Also it depends on how often you want to be home. If you want more home time options, I'd go with Maverick. I drove for them for 2.5 years, great company. They have regional flatbed, otr flatbed, otr reefer , regional glass and or glass as well as boats. Prime doesn't offer as much home time I don't believe but you will see more of the country there. They run all 48 if I'm not mistaken. Mavericks glass does 48 and Canada I believe. Flatbed is mostly east of i35. As far as getting your cdl , both have cdl sponsorship programs. Prime's is more refined since Maverick hasn't been doing it very long. They will send you to a local school in little Rock to obtain your cdl, and I believe prime is all in house. There are plenty prime drivers here and a few current maverick drivers, so feel free to ask any questions.
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.
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.
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
Arizona is way outside maverick’s hiring area.
Maverick just started an in house cdl school, like this month. However, (and this goes against what everyone will tell you here), if going maverick, it will be quicker to get your cdl on your own and then apply, the waiting list for their school is very long, and even longer if you are outside the regional Midwest hiring area. They do offer tuition reimbursement.
Honestly, as a maverick driver, I wouldn’t have done a thing differently.
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.
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.
No you really can't go wrong with either company. Prime does run all 48 states, but they also have many opportunities for regional or dedicated gigs that get you home much more often than OTR. For example they have a "Western 11" flatbed regional gig that can get you home weekly. I think the reefer division has the same option. I believe we have some drop and hook out and back dedicated accounts out of Arizona as well, but don't quote me on that.
Talk to the recruiters, explore your options and go from there. Good luck.
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.
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
Drop And Hook:
Drop and hook means the driver will drop one trailer and hook to another one.
In order to speed up the pickup and delivery process a driver may be instructed to drop their empty trailer and hook to one that is already loaded, or drop their loaded trailer and hook to one that is already empty. That way the driver will not have to wait for a trailer to be loaded or unloaded.
Arizona is way outside maverick’s hiring area.
Maverick just started an in house cdl school, like this month. However, (and this goes against what everyone will tell you here), if going maverick, it will be quicker to get your cdl on your own and then apply, the waiting list for their school is very long, and even longer if you are outside the regional Midwest hiring area. They do offer tuition reimbursement.
Honestly, as a maverick driver, I wouldn’t have done a thing differently.
Thank you for your response. I actually live about 2-3 hours from the maverick Hq. I know they have like a 3 month waiting list and that doesn’t bother me. I’m still working my job getting everything squared away at home before I make the leap. But I think maverick is my route. Do you happen to know how long mavericks cdl training is? A big reason I like maverick is I feel more comfortable making the switch because I know I can still pay the bills while training with maverick.
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.
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.
Sorry, thought I saw Arizona in your bio location.
School, depending in which one you go through will be three to four weeks, then securement training, then minimum 21 days with a trainer. There are some maverick training diaries on this site that are pretty good.
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Hey my name is Chris. I’m 24 years old and single. I love to travel. I’ve been working on a warehouse since I graduated high school. I don’t mind working long hours and love making money. Since I was young I’ve always been interested in trucking. I’ve really been looking into everything for the past couple weeks. I’ve narrowed it down to 2 companies. Maverick and prime. I guess my real question is, should I obtain my own cdl , or go through a company program? And if there is anything you guys would do over, what would it be? Feel free to enlighten me on anything!
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles: