Schneider Start

I officially start Schneider ground school tomorrow at 9:45 am but got a little bit of a 50min drive and because I want to be early I will be leaving at 8am.

I am both excited and nervous. Questions: What can I expect on my first day? Any tips for getting overwhelmed? I am just starting ground school so don't think there's anything like loads with experienced driver but I heard that when those start they can be really stressful. Any tips for when those start? Also what should I expect to learn during ground school? What will I be doing?

Congrats!! That went quickly.

First day and a few will be hurry up and wait stuff. Tons of paperwork, the welcome aboard stuff and a drug test. They have to have results back before you drive off their property with a instructor.

Hopefully they give you a schedule breaking the course down. You will be doing pretrips in your sleep by the second week.

Keep in mind they will be watching and noting all you do its a lenghty job interview.

I officially start Schneider ground school tomorrow at 9:45 am but got a little bit of a 50min drive and because I want to be early I will be leaving at 8am.

I am both excited and nervous. Questions: What can I expect on my first day? Any tips for getting overwhelmed? I am just starting ground school so don't think there's anything like loads with experienced driver but I heard that when those start they can be really stressful. Any tips for when those start? Also what should I expect to learn during ground school? What will I be doing?

Stay awake during any in-class portions of training. Sometimes training can go from being out in the heat to being inside in AC. It is easy to start feeling drowsy after being out in the heat. Stand up and walk to the restroom to splash water on your face, if you are feeling like you may nod off.

Constant repetition on pre-trip. If you think that you have practiced it enough, you probably haven't. You want to reach a point where you find yourself reciting your pre-trip as you fall asleep. By doing tons of repetitions of the pre-trip, you build in muscle memory. You want it to flow naturally so that you don't have to put a great deal of effort into remembering it. The reason for this is that your backing maneuvers and drive test will be highly stressful. You want the pre-trip to be as stress-free as possible.

I didn't go through training with Schneider, so my comments are concerning CDL training in general.

You should find the training process is geared to the average student, so someone like you will be fine. You will be able to concentrate without stress. Sometimes the classroom stuff is boring and tedious, so keep some coffee handy. Every Schneider instructor I’ve encountered has been even tempered, friendly and professional. Bring an ample supply of water with you to the practice pad. Remember, all of your instructors are trying to get through the day and come out in one piece, just like you are. So they want teachable, cooperative students because it makes their job easier.

You will do great and the time will go by fast. Soak up as much instruction as you can. The best students ask a lot of questions. Interject some humor into the process, everybody likes to laugh at something funny.

Okay. So days over and I have got a lot of information shoved in my brain. I think I asked to many questions that I didn't need to know yet. Which kinda stressed me but it went okay. My instructor told me to study PTI on my free time because I need to master that before I start getting into the advanced stuff. Although I should get it easier since we do PTIs on all our fire apparatus

Remember how it was in grade school? It was advised to bring an apple for your teacher. With Schneider, bring an orange. Lol.

Personally, I think that when you are in training the only dumb question is the one that doesn’t get asked.

What’s the program for Tuesday?

Okay. So days over and I have got a lot of information shoved in my brain. I think I asked to many questions that I didn't need to know yet. Which kinda stressed me but it went okay. My instructor told me to study PTI on my free time because I need to master that before I start getting into the advanced stuff. Although I should get it easier since we do PTIs on all our fire apparatus

We're all pulling for ya, D/E !

If you haven't already, look over some of THESE in conjunction with what THEY'VE given you:

• Pre-Trip Inspection Study Guide
• Daniel's Pre-Trip Inspection
• Pre-Trip Inspection Checklist
• Pre-Trip Inspection Practice Questions

Best to ya; keep us posted!

~ Anne ~

ps: GOOD one, BK....'bring an ORANGE!'

They were my first company and I thought the training was great. I love that they are big on safety. Hopefully you get a good Yard/Drive trainer who does things by the book. My advice would be to always use the reference material that they give you to complete your PTI/Coupling/Brake check process until you can remember. Don't be afraid to use that. They have THEIR way of doing things and I think it really molds you into a great safe driver over time. Just as Ryan said, repetition and it will stick. Wishing you well on your journey with Schneider!