Behind The Wheel Training

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Bucs/Clips-Nation (aka Ne's Comment
member avatar

Do you guys think that 20hrs of behind the wheel training is enough time for someone completely new to trucking? It will be 1 on 1 which is a huge plus for me. Trucking is a completely new beast but I'm a pretty quick learner, hopefully that will be the case here also. Schneider, which is the company I am aiming for once I get my CDL , has an orientation program which has additional classroom and simulator time before getting on the road with a trainer as well. The school I will be doing the 20hrs through beforehand is "America Truck Driving School", thanks

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.
Starcar's Comment
member avatar

20 hours behind the wheel isn't nearly enough, in my estimation. One way for you to decide if this is the school you want to go to, is call some recruiters, and ask them if a school that only gives you 20 hours will pass their muster, cuz its all up to them anyway. You want ALL the time you can get behind the wheel. Anyone can do the "book learnin'" part. It is literally where the rubber meets the road that will prepare you for whats out there. That amount of hours, if you break it down, would allow you little to no backing, some real road driving, little time working thru the shift up and shift down, and never enough training on the true essentials of being out there mixed in with the motoring public.

Wow...I think I had more than 20 hours of road time during my little 4 day cdl school !!!

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.
guyjax(Guy Hodges)'s Comment
member avatar

You will need a break down of how the hours are done. Is that 20 hours for ALL the school or just 20 hours drive time and there 110 hours of in classroom?

But like Starcar said 20 hours is not even enough. Most schools are 3 weeks long with one week in classroom and two weeks in the trucks. Most schools are 170 to 300 hours long.

As was mentioned you HAVE to call up companies and see if they will take students from that school. You will not find a magic short cut through school. Nor is cheaper better cause you had fast schooling at a cheaper price.

I could charge you $500 dollars to train you and I will promise you that you could get your CDL but if companies will not hire you afterwards then what good does it to go to a school no one will hire from?

In this case not all things are created equal.

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.
ThinksTooMuch's Comment
member avatar

I am in school now, it is 4 weeks total and 172-hours. Just finished our first week. It was all classroom, 7am - 6pm Monday-Thursday. We got out onto the range for like 4-5 hours just to stretch our legs, practice pre-trip, do a few couples/uncouples, and so on. So figure we did around 30 hours in classroom. Next 3 weeks is 7am - 6pm Monday-Thursday all on the range and road. But we are not 1:1 student to instructor ratio, so I will be in the truck with instructor and 2 other students at a time. So actual behind the wheel time for me will probably be 3-4 hours per day, 12 days, so around 40 hours behind the wheel but around 100 hours in the truck observing.

And all the major companies hire out of my school, I've gotten lots of pre-hires already.

Hope that helps.

Pre-hire:

What Exactly Is A Pre-Hire Letter?

Pre-hire letters are acceptance letters from trucking companies to students, or even potential students, to verify placement. The trucking companies are saying in writing that the student, or potential student, appears to meet the company's minimum hiring requirements and is welcome to attend their orientation at the company’s expense once he or she graduates from truck driving school and has their CDL in hand.

We have an excellent article that will help you Understand The Pre-Hire Process.

A Pre-Hire Letter Is Not A Guarantee Of Employment

The people that receive a pre-hire letter are people who meet the company's minimum hiring requirements, but it is not an employment contract. It is an invitation to orientation, and the orientation itself is a prerequisite to employment.

During the orientation you will get a physical, drug screen, and background check done. These and other qualifications must be met before someone in orientation is officially hired.

Pre-hires:

What Exactly Is A Pre-Hire Letter?

Pre-hire letters are acceptance letters from trucking companies to students, or even potential students, to verify placement. The trucking companies are saying in writing that the student, or potential student, appears to meet the company's minimum hiring requirements and is welcome to attend their orientation at the company’s expense once he or she graduates from truck driving school and has their CDL in hand.

We have an excellent article that will help you Understand The Pre-Hire Process.

A Pre-Hire Letter Is Not A Guarantee Of Employment

The people that receive a pre-hire letter are people who meet the company's minimum hiring requirements, but it is not an employment contract. It is an invitation to orientation, and the orientation itself is a prerequisite to employment.

During the orientation you will get a physical, drug screen, and background check done. These and other qualifications must be met before someone in orientation is officially hired.

Bucs/Clips-Nation (aka Ne's Comment
member avatar

The classes are a month long, I called them and got the info I wanted at the time. Everything seemed good except for the behind the wheel hours, they mentioned swift, schneider and others as companies that hire their students. For $1,495 it was worth checking out, but yes I want to feel as comfortable as possible behind the wheel going into company training, not trying to cut corners here. Appreciate it starcar/guy, and thanks for the breakdown of your schedule "ThinksTooMuch" very helpful. This site is great stuff!

Brett Aquila's Comment
member avatar

If you can call companies like Schneider and swift yourself from home to verify that they do indeed hire from that school then that school should be fine. You said the instruction is 1 on 1? In that case, 20 hours behind the wheel on driving on the highways (I assume that's what they mean) isn't bad at all. Most schools have you share a truck with other students and you're lucky if you get an hour a day to actually drive.

But make sure those companies hire from that school.

Also, speak with some of their current students to find out how they feel about the schooling. If the students that are currently taking classes think the school is doing a good job and the major companies will hire from there then that school is definitely worthy of consideration.

HOS:

Hours Of Service

HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
Bucs/Clips-Nation (aka Ne's Comment
member avatar

Thanks Brett, I spoke with Schneider and Swift recruiters and they do accept students from this school. It is pretty much a completely hands on training. There is no in class time for the permit testing, students are given a study guide/answers to study and obtain a permit on their own, school provides the truck for the DMV test. The entire time is spent doing pre trip, and all the behind the wheel goodness. Total cost is $1,495, they don't offer financing but allow you to put $400 down and pay as you go. You cannot complete the program without having paid the entire balance, how much your installments are will determine how many classes you're allowed to take before the next payment is needed to continue. I'm not a fan of that, I'll just start when I have the $1,495 up front. I like the idea of this school, I'll drive up there to talk with some of the students prob Friday and see what they have to say

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.

DMV:

Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles

The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.

Brett Aquila's Comment
member avatar

When you say "there is no classroom time for the permit", does that mean there's no classroom time at all, or they just don't cover the materials needed for the permit? The reason I ask is because most states require a minimum number of classroom hours as part of the curriculum. I'm assuming that since the major companies hire from there then they must have classroom time but I just wanted to make sure.

Let us know what the students say about the school. The price is cheap and major companies hire from there. If the students seem happy with it then you likely have a good candidate to consider.

Bucs/Clips-Nation (aka Ne's Comment
member avatar

There is no classroom time at all, they give students a pamphlet with questions and answers to study. I checked on the dmv.org website and for California where I'm located, you are not required to take any class specific courses before applying for a CDL. I will let you all know how it goes with the current students on Friday

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.

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.

DMV:

Department of Motor Vehicles, Bureau of Motor Vehicles

The state agency that handles everything related to your driver's licences, including testing, issuance, transfers, and revocation.

Brett Aquila's Comment
member avatar

Yeah, looking forward to what the students say about it. I just don't know of any truck driving schools that have no classroom time at all. Usually it's at least a week. But hey, what matters is that you get your CDL and land a job at the company you want to work for. That's the entire point of the schooling. And honestly, our High Road Training Program can pretty much teach you everything you need to know from a classroom standpoint.

I'd love to see trucking schools be allowed to let students do the materials online. It saves the school and the students time and money, and you'll learn the materials better online also. So it's a win-win for everyone if it can be done that way.

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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