New To Site With A Few Questions, Re: Career Change
Topic 28863 | Page 1
Welcome to the Trucking Truth site, Bud.
Do you have W2's first these fill in jobs?
If you're retired, just list when you officially retired on any application. If needed, you could get some letters from a few friends notorized as stating, "I know Bud. He's been happily retired since XXX date."
67 is not too old, although it is perhaps on the higher end of the age group out here. The average age of a driver is around 52. I have met drivers over 80! I will be 65 later this year myself.
We recommend company sponsored education. You apply to a major carrier that will both hire you and teach you what you need to get your own CDL. Afterward, you may need to drive for them anywhere from 8 months to two years to pay back their school costs. Private schools will gladly take your money so you may or may not get a CDL , plus many of these have no guarantee of your job placement with a reputable carrier.
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.
EPU:
Electric Auxiliary Power Units
Electric APUs have started gaining acceptance. These electric APUs use battery packs instead of the diesel engine on traditional APUs as a source of power. The APU's battery pack is charged when the truck is in motion. When the truck is idle, the stored energy in the battery pack is then used to power an air conditioner, heater, and other devices
Thank you for the info. Seriously considering but want as much info as can get. Thinking of using the service provided by TT with the one application and see what turns up. Once again Thank you for your comments.
Bud L., Pact Rat gave you some really good advice. You have the right approach in using the tools available to you here on TT. Decide on the type of driving that you would like to do ( otr , regional or dedicated ), then are you interested in dry van , reefer , flatbed or tanker. Read everything that TT has to offer here to help you understand your concerns and goals and yes their single application would be the easiest way to apply to many job opportunities. The people here are top notch, right-on in their desire to steer you in the right direction and a great source of the best accurate information available. Good luck in your goal and keep us posted.
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.
Dry Van:
A trailer or truck that that requires no special attention, such as refrigeration, that hauls regular palletted, boxed, or floor-loaded freight. The most common type of trailer in trucking.Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
If your interested in Paid Company Training, Roehl is a good choice. We have a terminal in Grand Prairie just outside of Dallas so getting you home when you want would be easy. As the others have said there are drivers older than you on the road. The big thing is based on your physical fitness or just how much you want to do physically will determine what kind of driving you get into. For instance if your not interested in dirty physical work, i wouldn't recommend flatbed. Good luck on whatever you decide.
Terminal:
A facility where trucking companies operate out of, or their "home base" if you will. A lot of major companies have multiple terminals around the country which usually consist of the main office building, a drop lot for trailers, and sometimes a repair shop and wash facilities.
Welcome, Bud. You're at a fine age for a truck driver. In fact, I think a lot of companies prefer more mature drivers, as they tend to be more committed and reliable.
I'd ask that you start out by looking through our starter pack of sorts. There's a lot of good information in here:
- Truck Driver's Career Guide
- Brett's Book: The Raw Truth About Trucking (free online version)
- High Road CDL Training Program
- CDL Practice Tests
Next, read this article on the benefits of paid training through a company:
Why I prefer paid CDL training
Good luck, and let us know how you're doing. We'll try to help.
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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Hey Guys, hope this finds all safe and doing well.
I am semi retired, 4 years. Since then I have been working fill in jobs to make some extra to go with Social security. In good shape and health. No hits on TDL, no arrests, just a boring guy getting older. No major debt.. LOL!!
Question 1. Would the "semi retired" for 4 years qualify as the three year documented employment.
Question 2. Is 67 too old to start a CDL career.
Question 3. Live 60 miles N of Dallas, suggestions on schools.
Thanks BL
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles: