Swift PHX Part-time Academy

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Errol V.'s Comment
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Blair comments:

what I think I was trying to say is that CDL school teaches knowledge to pass the CDL exam, not the daily "pro tips" of learning a new industry. Paperwork, dispatch, Qualcomm , time mgmt, HOS navigation, all are taught on the road after graduation

The CDL exam is run by the state to make sure a driver knows the rules (the written test), can maneuver in the toughest things to do in a semi (the skills test) and driving safely in the road (road test). All the other things on your list are company specific.

Yes, there's so much more to learn, about bills of lading, sliding tandems , trip planning, and so on. But these are not part of legal regulations, so no reason for the state to examine them. And finally, all those little pro-tips are impossible to write down in one book, not to speak of learning them all in one go.

Patience, Cricket. smile.gif

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.

Tandems:

Tandem Axles

A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".

Tandem:

Tandem Axles

A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".

Qualcomm:

Omnitracs (a.k.a. Qualcomm) is a satellite-based messaging system with built-in GPS capabilities built by Qualcomm. It has a small computer screen and keyboard and is tied into the truck’s computer. It allows trucking companies to track where the driver is at, monitor the truck, and send and receive messages with the driver – similar to email.

HOS:

Hours Of Service

HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
Blair's Comment
member avatar

Greetings TT!

I am pleased to report I passed my CDL exam Friday evening!

good-luck-2.gifdancing-banana.gif

My class mate passed the day before with no issues and I finished out the week. The exam consisted of pre trip, straight back, offset, and parallel backing skills along with a road test. I pulled off the best parallel yet! Traffic was heavy but manageable and lasted 45 minutes. I report back on Tuesday after upgrading my license. Mentor training awaits!

Blair

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.
Old School's Comment
member avatar

Major props to ya Blair!

Congratulations, and here's those bananas!

dancing-banana.gifdancing-banana.gifdancing-banana.gif

HOS:

Hours Of Service

HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
Rob T.'s Comment
member avatar

dancing-banana.gifdancing-banana.gifdancing-banana.gif

Great job!

G-Town's Comment
member avatar

Great job Blair. Congratulations!

Welcome to Swift.

Miss Ed's Comment
member avatar

Congratulations on passing your CDL exam!

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.
PackRat's Comment
member avatar

Great work Blair! Congratulations!

dancing-banana.gifdancing-banana.gifdancing-banana.gifdancing-banana.gifdancing-banana.gifdancing-banana.gifdancing-banana.gif

Blair's Comment
member avatar

Thanks, everyone, for the support!

One of my main priorities remains realistic expectations for the first year. Resources here at TT and corporate trainers have allowed me to plan for the CDL phase pretty much without incident. My partner already has a mentor and is on the road to Ohio! Have a safe weekend everyone.

Blair

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.
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