Aspiring New Driver, And Have A Few Questions

First off this site is GREAT!

Okay with that being said,I'm REALLY wanting to get behind the wheel of a big rig and have wanted to do so for many years. But here is my questions, I filed a app with Swift and C.R England about 2 weeks ago, Well about a hour ago a lady from CR England called and said if you have these 2 forms of i.d and 2 pieces of mail proving your a resident of Pa i can have a bus ticket in the mail for you today... I was really shocked about this, I'm thinking; okay you dont know me or anything about me and your going to pay for my trip there AND pay for my hotel?? So I get excited and call my wife and so forth and so on. Then i Google the company and im finding ALOT of bad things about the company. Can anyone here shed light on the company/school for me b4 I make a really bad choice. As for my back ground its clean. As for my DMV I have 1 speeding ticket, 0 accidents and 0 dui. But the only other thing im worried about is the D.O.T drug test. I use to smoke pot, Now i have quit and have NO want to do anymore ( having a good career to provide for my wife and kids is WAAAAY more important to me).. How do they do the test for D.O.T? is it just a urine? If so then cool My system will be clean, im worried about if its a hair test, from what im reading online that can stay in your system for upto 5 years..

Thank you for taking the time to read this post, and Drive safe out there!

Geo

Hey Geo, welcome to TT..well, where to begin..where you get your information regarding companies can be just as important as what you read..lot's of websites are full of guys who couldn't cut it and now they are full of vitriol and bile..if you go through some of the past posts on here you will see it said time and time again..YOUR attitude as the driver is much more important than how "good or bad" a company is, but to answer your question, we have a few members on here that are going through CR England's school and have had good things to say about it. As for the drug test, if you quit smoking over 5 years ago, you shouldn't have to worry..most companies WILL only do a urine test, but SOME, will do what is called a follicle test, which means that they use a hair sample, BUT they are only supposed to use the 1.5 inches closest to the scalp for the test..so, if you have hair that is long enough to be 5 years old, cut that stuff off... but seriously, if you're clean that long, I wouldn't even give it a second thought...the bigger question is going to be, how honest with them are you going to be? They are definitely going to ask you about past drug use, and if you are honest, they may boot you out because of it, but if you lie and they somehow find out then they will CERTAINLY fire you for lying on your application, so, you have to decide how you want to handle that...personally, and it's been said on here before, if you have never had any run ins or legal implications from smoking, then the best thing to do might be to deny, deny, deny...hope this helps and don't hesitate to ask any other questions you may have..

I was a lease op with CRE for 3.5 years. I have used drugs in the past and much harder than pot. I used to do east coast/west coast turn around by myself as a solo driver....anyway

While I was there ,2009 to 2012, they only did UA's but there was rumor of them starting drug test using hair samples. Though I have not done any drugs at all for 14 years I was completely honest with them cause they asked if I have every done drugs at all in my entire life.

They are not a bad company. They are like any other starter company. They are used to get your foot in the door.

Don't listen to so called reviews of companies cause those are the guys that have the time to sit at the house and talk bad about a company they could not hack it at.

I posted my numbers of what I made while I was working there in the old forums and you don't get those numbers unless you bust your butt and do your job. Make no mistake. While trucking allows you the freedom of the open road and allows you to see things you would not normally see you have to remember its still a job and you do have to work.

I graduated from CR England just over a year ago. I went to the Richmond school. The training is good IF you are able to absorb it. It is fast, and not a lot of room for failure. When I was there 3 fails and you got sent home. I passed on my second try. Was very stressful.

The rooms are owned by the company. They aren't anything to get excited about. Hopefully your roommate won't smell like mine did. Also, you will make no money until you get hired I.E. pass your CDL driving test. Then it's 25 bucks a day while you wait to get with a trainer. It took me about 15 days to get with a trainer. Then I think it was $50 a day for phase 1, .12/mi for phase 2. My phase 2 trainer rocked. We got over 6000 miles a week.

I am not sure what their promotion is now, think I heard 9 months. If you leave the company before that time you will owe them the tuition, about $3195.

The hair follicle test is random. They say it goes back about 1 year. They seemed to prefer taking samples from the armpits of men according to those I talked to that were tested, but they only did UA on me.

If you are serious about trucking CR ENGLAND is a quick and easy way to get your CDL, that's why I did it. Three months after I got my CDL with them I started with another company doing dedicated home daily. I am paying them the tuition back... worth every penny in my opinion. If I had it to do over again I might have stayed with them longer, but the home daily position is what my ultimate goal was.

Be prepared to totally immerse yourself into getting your CDL. This is basically true for any school you attend. My team partner went to a three month school that was totally awesome in the 90's. He also paid a pretty penny for it. If I had the money I would recommend something different, but for me at the time CR England was the perfect choice and I don't regret it.

I would also check into what PRIME, Werner, and Schneider have to offer. Of course there are resources on the website to help you out. And, I am sure Brett himself will chime in here shortly!

Good luck. Getting into trucking is something I do not regret. I wish I had done it twenty years ago.

[=> ButtonUp / Best of luck to you! <=]

Thank you all for the reply's. as for the quitting smoking part its honestly only been about 2-2.5 months. long story short, i used it to help me with pain when the pills didnt work. but NEVER any trouble with the law with that or any reason except the speeding ticket i received back in April. Im going to hold off on commiting to them until i hear back from swift or someone else, i just want to see what other offers are out there. Thank you again all

Geo

Geo, you can't really believe the bad reports you find on the internet, about ANY company. All companies have their share of disgruntled ex employees, who have nothing better to do than spend their days trashing a company while they hide behind their computer monitor. So don't even waste your time doing the Ripoff Reports, crap on other trucking forums, etc. Your best bet is to find a company that FITS you. Get all the learning you can from THIS site, and go to their school with the idea, that you will be spending a year working for them. Thats why you pick a company that fits you, not the other way around. Make use of EVERYTHING on this site. IT is invaluable help, and will see you thru your company choice, schooling, training, and going solo. We're always here to help you all we can. And lets face it, theres no better help than what you can get from a group of seasoned, professional drivers. We have the experience that you won't find in any book. So make use of it. Good Luck !!

Geo, you can't really believe the bad reports you find on the internet, about ANY company. All companies have their share of disgruntled ex employees, who have nothing better to do than spend their days trashing a company while they hide behind their computer monitor. So don't even waste your time doing the Ripoff Reports, crap on other trucking forums, etc. Your best bet is to find a company that FITS you. Get all the learning you can from THIS site, and go to their school with the idea, that you will be spending a year working for them. Thats why you pick a company that fits you, not the other way around. Make use of EVERYTHING on this site. IT is invaluable help, and will see you thru your company choice, schooling, training, and going solo. We're always here to help you all we can. And lets face it, theres no better help than what you can get from a group of seasoned, professional drivers. We have the experience that you won't find in any book. So make use of it. Good Luck !!

Thanks kinda what i was thinking, there is always pi$%ed off workers that will talk crap, what i think im going to do is go out to TA or flying J and see if I can find any CR Drivers out there fueling. And as for getting the most use out of this site, oh trust me, im going to do all the practice tests and all the study guides i can b4 i even leave for which ever school i decide to go to just so i have a jump on the class room. Its been 20 years since i have been in a class room setting..Still haven't heard anything from any of the other schools/companys i contacted a few weeks back. i just want to make sure i weigh all my opptions and not just jump at the first offer of schooling/job. Thank you all again for taking the time to shed light on this new caree/life change. bad part is i think my kids are more excited about me doing this...( to get me out of the house for extended periods at a time) lol

Drive safe guys!

Geo

Once you have filled out the online apps you have to make a pest out of yourself. I mean that seriously. Call every two days or so. If you don't then don't except contact from them. You are wanting the job. They already have a job and have people calling in and bugging them everyday about their applications. This is one time that bugging the hell out of them will tell them you really want a job and training. The Squeaky Wheel really does get the grease.

Once you have filled out the online apps you have to make a pest out of yourself. I mean that seriously. Call every two days or so. If you don't then don't except contact from them. You are wanting the job. They already have a job and have people calling in and bugging them everyday about their applications. This is one time that bugging the hell out of them will tell them you really want a job and training. The Squeaky Wheel really does get the grease.

ahh, okay, will do! Thx guy!

**UPDATE*

Good morning everyone Well Got off the phone with CR, and it looks like i will be leaving for their school in Indiana the 16th of next month, School there for 17 days. Then out on the road for 4-6 weeks. Then back to get my truck and then back to Pa for a few day home visit then back out for 3-4 weeks then rinse and repeat. The best part my wife and kids (well most of the kids) are very supportive with my new career choice.

Will keep updating this topic as needed.

Drive safe all!

Geo