A Better Life?
Topic 5300 | Page 1
Hey there Jessie and welcome!
I have a couple questions for ya:
1) Where is Graysville? (yeah, I know I can google it, but, where`s the fun in that?)
2} How much can you lift on a regular (not constant) basis? You don`t actually have to answer that but it is something you will want to know to help you decide what kind of freight you will be able to haul, ie, flatbed, reefer... etc.
3) Not a question. Dude, it is two little shots! 
You got this!
Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
Hey there Jessie and welcome!
I have a couple questions for ya:
1) Where is Graysville? (yeah, I know I can google it, but, where`s the fun in that?)
2} How much can you lift on a regular (not constant) basis? You don`t actually have to answer that but it is something you will want to know to help you decide what kind of freight you will be able to haul, ie, flatbed, reefer... etc.
3) Not a question. Dude, it is two little shots!
Thanks for the welcome. I'm glad I found this place.
Where is Graysville? Do you know where Chattanooga, TN is? If you do then I'm about 30 miles North of there. Small town, if you blink you will miss it.
How much can I lift? I figure a 5 gallon bucket of Block filler weighs around 75lbs. 5 gallon of paint weighs around 50lbs. I have no trouble carrying the block filler in my arms but I do struggle with it if I just use the handle.
Shots... I'm not worried about them. I've been getting 5 shots in my left hip once a month for the past 3 months (Sciatic nerve damage).
Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
Hey Jessie, Have you had an MRI? and what the H*ll are they shooting you up with for you need 5 shots a month? water
Hey Jessie, Have you had an MRI? and what the H*ll are they shooting you up with for you need 5 shots a month? water
Ah, I am at the top of the state. 75 lb should not be a problem, but, you may want to stay away from flat bed until you know you can lift the tarp(s) without too much problem. I was just razzing you about the shots, no trucker would ever admit to being wary of them, you know, the whole trucker macho thing.
I would look for a company that has a high percentage of drop and hook and a low percentage of touch freight, at least until you know enough to make a decision on what division would be a better fit.
Hope this helps and good luck.
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.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.
Hey Jessie, Have you had an MRI? and what the H*ll are they shooting you up with for you need 5 shots a month? water
MRI, yes. The Dr that reviewed it said my L4 & L5 were compressing against each other and my spine comes to a "Point" at my hips. The L4 & L5 are also pinching my sciatic nerve which causes my left hip/leg/foot to hurt and sometimes spasm. The shots relieve the pressure and help stop the spasms. 4 of the shots are an epidural and the 5th is cortisone. Big relief considering I dealt with the pain and not being able to walk sometimes for over a year. With the shots I am back to walking straight up, driving my 5 speed truck, running...I have not ran in a lot longer than a year and now my oldest son (17) can't catch me, he gets really mad knowing his 42 year old dad is faster than him. I'm hoping this is the right career choice for me and my family. I have plans to drive OTR for about a year to get some experience then dropping and looking for something local.
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.
OWI:
Operating While Intoxicated
Welcome Jessie.
The one concern I have is the doctors cares. You will need to consult your doctor about this since you are still under his care. Also address the issue of Dot physical and weather or not you will be aloud to continue your drug therapy while driving a big truck. Big trucks have a lot stronger and stringent rules when it comes to drugs threapy and trucks.
You will need to have that sit down talk sooner rather than later with your doctor. But honestly that would be just about the only hold up I see for now.
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.
I guess I should have mentioned that my doctor "Released" me the last time I went. I only need the shots now "When I need them" from what he said. They seem to be holding up. I am calling him today to see about getting the DOT physical and the shots so I can start school.
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.
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Hello all. I'm new here and new to the trucking business. I have decided to give it a go and see where it takes me. I hope I am making the right decision. Main reason I'm doing this is because I was injured last year around Feb and had to quit my job, thought I was so far gone that I might need disability. My daughter signed me up and I was denied. Reason was: I was unable to do the work I had done in the past (Professional Residential/Commercial/Industrial Painter) but I was not Unable to work...What? I figured that maybe (Hopefully) trucking would give a good pay check and be somewhat easy on me. So, I applied for a grant to go to school (didn't want the headache of having to be in a contract with a company, not that there is anything wrong with that, it just wasn't what I wanted to do) and was approved. Applied to a school and was accepted, only thing is, seems that when I was young, I didn't get all of my shots...so now I have to get 2 MMR's (I hate shots). I have a nephew that has been driving for over 20 years that told me that if I got my CDL we would look for a team drive job (Not sure how that will work). I'm just looking for a better way to provide for my family and I know that I will be away from them Alot but they are worth it. In my condition, this is about all I have left. I don't have the education or the want to become a pencil pusher (nothing wrong with that either, just not for me) I can still do the daily normals (walk, run, etc.) as long as I don't over do it, I'm fine. I figure that driving is easy enough (I know there is alot more involved than just driving but I'm sure or at least I hope I can handle it) and I've wanted to drive for awhile now...plus I promised the wife I would buy her a house
So I'm waiting to hear from the school and looking to get my shots and DOT card to start schooling. Hopefully it will work out and I'll see you on the road soon. By the way, I've been doing the tests here, I'm hoping they help ;-) Awesome site and very informative, thanks for the hard work.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.
DAC:
Drive-A-Check Report
A truck drivers DAC report will contain detailed information about their job history of the last 10 years as a CDL driver (as required by the DOT).
It may also contain your criminal history, drug test results, DOT infractions and accident history. The program is strictly voluntary from a company standpoint, but most of the medium-to-large carriers will participate.
Most trucking companies use DAC reports as part of their hiring and background check process. It is extremely important that drivers verify that the information contained in it is correct, and have it fixed if it's not.