Need Some Advice...

I know I've much less than forthcoming with the information about this whole incident but just being able to vent it out and get some sort of feedback had helped me work through this mentally.

Are you willing to share a satellite view of where this occurred and explain it so others just starting out are able to avoid the same thing happening to them? Thats what this forum is all about.

I did communicate that I was following the instructions of my trainer they are saying that since I was ultimately driving it's still on me.

this is one thing we frequently stress on the forum that at the end of the day its the trainees license on the line and they're responsible for what happens when they're behind the wheel. With that being said I hate that a trainee is being put in this position. The whole purpose you're in training is to learn. Being told to do (or not do) something that may not be right puts the trainee in a tough spot. Listen to the trainer who SHOULD know better, or ignore them and risk making your trainer upset with you. Its easier at other jobs for the trainer to be upset but when you're living in a truck with them most trainees unfortunately blindly listen to them because they think "well if the company thinks highly enough of this guy for him to be training he must be right!". I hope it works out the way you're hoping. Getting hired so soon after an accident is going to be tough but please let us know what happens.

Good luck.

After reviewing the description, I see he doesn't say he's turning at an intersection. He could be leaving a customer. I think what he did was legal, but perhaps not the most prudent way to go about it in a big rig. I would definitely wait until I can turn into my desired lane.

You are right old school. It is legal, but not the best course of action. I can understand why tho, bc I've done it myself after waiting 30 mins for the road to be clear. It is really a judgment call and as seen here it can go wrong. Hindsight is always 20/20 and I'm not sure if he actually was pulling out from a customer since the company is looking at it as a u turn. Also to do it properly neither side should have had to slow down and put 4 ways on. This is a great reason why every company always preaches to slow down and examine the situation.

Unfortunately as we get more information it just keeps sounding worse and worse.

Optical you made this statement...

the company is taking it as me making a u-turn which is why they are reviewing my employment. Though the turn I made was not technically a u-turn as I was completely off the road before making the turn that resulted in the accident, they are still considering it a u-turn.

Where were you when you made this turn? Were you on the shoulder? Because that is still a U-turn. I have heard of countless drivers getting fired at Knight for taking a U-turn in a big truck. It just isn't safe. You found out the hard way. Things go wrong when big trucks take up the space and the time necessary for a U-turn.

It's crazy sad that your trainer was telling you to do this! I understand. I had a certifiable nut-case for a trainer. I felt like I was training him most of the time.

I'm sorry all this happened to you. I also am concerned that you are jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire. I'd just like to see you get a safe year of driving out here in an OTR situation. It would help you tremendously. It sounds like you may be trying to get on with a smallish outfit. Is that true? For a rookie that could be a bad mistake. What do you think will happen if something like this happens again? Usually those smaller companies are stricter on accidents. If you lose this second job it could be that you make yourself almost untouchable by anyone willing to hire a new driver. I just don't want to see that happen to you.

Please keep us informed as to the outcome of your present employment. If there is any way they let you stay, that is what I would do. You need to put some time between you and this unfortunate experience before moving on.

Nearly two weeks later, and the OP is still holding back pertinent information. Difficult to offer any advice when you want to piecemeal the facts on here.

This reminds me of watching the first 10 minutes of a movie, then leaving for the following half hour. Upon returning for the final 25 minutes, you ask the person next to you, "what happened?".

Optical,

You could look into Dutch Maid here in Ohio, if your current company chooses not to keep you. They took Marc Lee on (as his 4th try) but sadly he didn't make the cut.

They are a reefer outfit here in Ohio, and quite 'forgiving' re: hiring. Just a thought, as I agree with Old School on the OTR route for now.

You could also look into Don's outfit, FAB Express, here in Ohio. They took him on after 4 months out with CFI. It's not a 'multi stop' type local company; more 'regional'/ ie: intrastate. They used to want a year, but do bend their own rules. My guy's been there 5 plus years, and is quite happy with the company. Pics in my profile.

Thinking out loud for you; yet I also, don't really understand your incident.

Best of luck to you~!

~ Anne ~

Any updates, Optical ?!?!?

~ Anne ~

Hey guys,

I'm sorry for the lack of response, and am really sorry for being a little close to the chest with the details of what had happened. This whole time, I've been in a kind of holding pattern of sorts with the company. I was being kind of closed with the details due to there being a lawsuit to the company over the accident that had happened. Some more information had come to my attention in these past few days though. Unbeknownst to me, the company marked me down as voluntarily quitting back at the end of December. So, I was thinking I was still officially hired on with them until this past Monday when I was on the phone with a recruiter from CFI who had informed me that I was not.

To answer some of the concerns that had risen up and questions in the thread....

I know I've much less than forthcoming with the information about this whole incident but just being able to vent it out and get some sort of feedback had helped me work through this mentally.

Are you willing to share a satellite view of where this occurred and explain it so others just starting out are able to avoid the same thing happening to them? Thats what this forum is all about.

This is a satellite image of the road I was on. The blue line is my path, the green arrows are the other vehicles travel direction. The little red line is where I stopped my tractor to check each direction before going on my turn. This image is also before they had done the construction on the road. The road was recently widened and a center turn lane was added into the middle of each direction of travel.

This image shows what the road layout is like currently. This is a little further north of the same road.

I was doing everything my trainer had told me to do. Having this time to think about it and work it through, I know now I should've told him no and just kept going straight until I found a MUCH safer place to turn around at, and that is my mistake. It is a mistake I've learned from though, and will not allow this to happen again.

As for what's going on NOW.....

I was pushing to get on with my buddy's local route curtain side company(Palmer-Donavin), while also this past weekend I had blasted out about 6-7 applications to various companies. After talking with a couple of them on Saturday, I received a call from a recruiter at CFI on Monday. I was open with the recruiter, and stated on my application that I was involved in an accident and was cited for failure to turn while safe. The recruiter was ok with it, and I signed a conditional job offer with them. I have gotten my rental car information and will be leaving to go to orientation this coming Saturday.

Again, I can't apologize enough for my lack of being forthcoming with the information, but I was nervous about my future and what details I could release at the time. I also apologize for how long it's taken for me to update this thread to you guys, but with the time it's taken for this all to unfold, I've gone through bouts of depression between trying to keep my head and get back out there and get back on my feet. I understand the lack of information and the lack of timely responses was frustrating.

I hope you all have a fantastic day and drive safe.

Optical

I'm glad things are looking up for you. I will say that you learned something and because of the seriousness of it it will stick with you. But at the same time dont let it control you. If CFI is willing to give you a shot then the best advice I can give is to just look ahead. You can't change the past, you can learn from it and move on. And always remember no u-turns lol

Good update best wishes your way

Hey guys,

I'm sorry for the lack of response, and am really sorry for being a little close to the chest with the details of what had happened. This whole time, I've been in a kind of holding pattern of sorts with the company. I was being kind of closed with the details due to there being a lawsuit to the company over the accident that had happened. Some more information had come to my attention in these past few days though. Unbeknownst to me, the company marked me down as voluntarily quitting back at the end of December. So, I was thinking I was still officially hired on with them until this past Monday when I was on the phone with a recruiter from CFI who had informed me that I was not.

To answer some of the concerns that had risen up and questions in the thread....

I know I've much less than forthcoming with the information about this whole incident but just being able to vent it out and get some sort of feedback had helped me work through this mentally.

Are you willing to share a satellite view of where this occurred and explain it so others just starting out are able to avoid the same thing happening to them? Thats what this forum is all about.

This is a satellite image of the road I was on. The blue line is my path, the green arrows are the other vehicles travel direction. The little red line is where I stopped my tractor to check each direction before going on my turn. This image is also before they had done the construction on the road. The road was recently widened and a center turn lane was added into the middle of each direction of travel.

This image shows what the road layout is like currently. This is a little further north of the same road.

I was doing everything my trainer had told me to do. Having this time to think about it and work it through, I know now I should've told him no and just kept going straight until I found a MUCH safer place to turn around at, and that is my mistake. It is a mistake I've learned from though, and will not allow this to happen again.

As for what's going on NOW.....

I was pushing to get on with my buddy's local route curtain side company(Palmer-Donavin), while also this past weekend I had blasted out about 6-7 applications to various companies. After talking with a couple of them on Saturday, I received a call from a recruiter at CFI on Monday. I was open with the recruiter, and stated on my application that I was involved in an accident and was cited for failure to turn while safe. The recruiter was ok with it, and I signed a conditional job offer with them. I have gotten my rental car information and will be leaving to go to orientation this coming Saturday.

Again, I can't apologize enough for my lack of being forthcoming with the information, but I was nervous about my future and what details I could release at the time. I also apologize for how long it's taken for me to update this thread to you guys, but with the time it's taken for this all to unfold, I've gone through bouts of depression between trying to keep my head and get back out there and get back on my feet. I understand the lack of information and the lack of timely responses was frustrating.

I hope you all have a fantastic day and drive safe.

Optical

Thats great news that you're being given another chance. Thank you for sharing what happened so others can see why most carriers have a zero tolerance in regards to U-turns. In the future when you discuss this I'd highly suggest not telling them it technically wasn't a U-turn. Regardless if you used that extra wide shoulder or not you still did a 180 degree turn to go the opposite direction.

The company did you a HUGE favor by listing your departure as voluntarily quit. Had they listed it as fired for safety violations it'd be far more difficult getting hired elsewhere.

Did you pay off the contract with your (former) carrier? That particular carrier has been known to sue other carriers for hiring drivers that are under contract from their schooling.