Thinking hard about getting CDL!

[testekleez]

Hi guys newbie here, looking to get into the trucking biz. There's no shortage of jobs in this field, but I'm a lazy guy and I don't care for the lumping aspect. How hard is it to get Linehaul jobs (I'm more of a night owl anyways)? What about something like driving a dump truck instead of a rig?

I have some experience driving straight trucks. A few years ago I had my Class B permit and worked for a Restaurant supply company running some ridiculous routes (boss was insane!) and I just couldn't put up with it any longer as I worked my butt off running his crazy routes. Had to load trucks as well lol. That's A LOT of work to pull orders and palletize, load truck, run routes and deliver and put up with customers that don't care that the longer they make me wait, the longer my route takes etc.

Anyways, I've come to the conclusion retail work sucks! Too much work and too little pay. Well I figure if I'm not going to get rich working, then I'd rather take the route with less manual labor (not saying trucking isn't demanding just a different kind of "labor").

I'm going to SAGE school soon to talk about their programs and the likelihood of job placement and equipment I'd be best suited for. Going to train for the whole shabang! I figure a class A gets me driving anything basically, so what I want to know is, how hard is it to get Linehaul work dropping trailers from dock to dock or driving dump trucks from site to site for example.

What I really mean is, I want my job to be 95% driving basically. No stopping here and there and picking a little here going somewhere else and picking up more etc.

I'm sure LTL guys get more moeny but that's OKAY by me. For now, I just want to drive and not a taxi lol, that's way too dangerous with all the nuts out there.

Heck, I'd even drive a garbage truck as long as I didn't have to get out of the truck too much lol. I'm lazy I admit but I think I can handle trucking if I can get the right kind of job. I can handle occasional manual labor but all the time PLUS driving and putting up with traffic sucks!

You're thoughts? Advice? Criticism?

[JLKKLJ777]

Entry level ltl jobs will usually require a stint on the dock. It may take a couple of years of loading trucks before a position opens up for you. The upside is you have your foot in the door and have made some connections with the the supervisors. Ltl linehauls are pretty easy in that there is no deliveries to a customer just terminal to terminal and maybe hooking up or breaking down a set of pups. You also would be at top union scale after 2 years as a driver rather than the 10 years or so it may take to get to top pay in the truckload sector.

Speaking of truckload (my area of operation), loading and unloading is becoming less frequent in this segment of the industry. Most companies are shying away from having their drivers unload the trucks as it is time consuming and fraught with potential workers comp claims. Besides the company would rather pay a "lumper" double and even triple the amount of money to unload the truck while you relax and get ready for your next driving assignment.
Long haul driving is becoming less prevalent as well. The time of the solo cowboy riding across country is ending. The coast to coast running is put on team trucks (for high priority freight) or relegated to the railroad for transport at a more leisurely pace (and a steep discount on the freight rates). This strategy also utilizes regional drivers on both ends of the trip which keeps more drivers employed (albeit at a lower wage) and consequently more home time.

Drivers have a different attitude today about trucking. They want it to be a job where they can go home each day (or every few days) rather than a gypsies lifestyle of sleeping in the truck and bouncing from place to place.
You must decide which area best suits you.

[testekleez]

There's no way I'm working a dock unless I'm loading pallets with a forklift lol. I remember back in the day having to manually unload and stack/palletize a shipping containers full of olives by hand!

Every row was stacked with these containers (each container maybe 10 inches in diameter and about 20 inches tall) each row being seperated with cardboard.

Me and three mexicans! Good thing it was a food service warehouse and I could run in the freezer and cool off every half hour or so. It was about 100 degrees outside in the summer lol.

I've got a clean record and no criminal convictions. I realize being a rook that I can't get everything I want, but there's too many jobs available to have to put up with that.

You see it's not really the work that bothers me it's the people you have to deal with. I'm not a people person! Not to mention, I like to keep moving and I've had several jobs that require traveling.

One of the best jobs I ever had had me running South Carolina, Georgia, NC and occasionally Florida. I drove my own truck and the company paid me a wage plus 25c pm for maintenance and also reimbursed me for gas.

ACome to think of it, I didn't mind dealing with the customers in their homes and I met quite a few interesting people that way. Unfortunately the company went bankrupt (not because of me lol) and more crappy jobs were in my future. So I guess I can be a people person but it all depends on the enviroment or conditions I suppose.

I'm old enough and smart enough to know now what works for me and what doesn't and manual labor isn't my cup of tea, mainly because the companies I've worked for are not into improving conditions and could care less about you and sure as hell will pay you the least they can, regardless of how hard you work for them.

It seems to me that most of the people with the good jobs are there because they know someone or are family. That's all fine and dandy but if I wanted to have crappy jobs all my life, I wouldn't have graduated high school and become a criminal.

Not too concerned about the money because I'm in a situation to where my living expenses aren't too much of a burden as I have no children and no mortgage or high rent to pay. I'm getting training and a CDL to DRIVE not to lump!

If money were my only concern, I'd do the warehouse work for a while for companies like Budweiser or Pepsi etc. Not interested in that at all.

Doesn't have to be a rig. Could be anything really except a school bus. No way in hell you could pay me to put up with undisciplined children fighting and mouthing off all the time. God bless those school bus drivers FOR REAL!

Not really interested in coast to coast. I'd prefer in state or tri state routes and I don't mind being away from home a few days but I'd like to be home one or two days a week to be with my girlfriend and friends/family.

T2T sounds right for me. My brother runs a load on the weekends for Nabisco and it's a T2T run. He used to drive a log truck until he took a turn a bit too fast and the load shifted on him. He's lucky he didn't get seriously injured or killed.

He was eating at the time as well. I think he just took on too much at one time in his life so now, no more log trucks for him lol.

[pro1driver]

Originally Posted by testekleez

Hi guys newbie here, looking to get into the trucking biz. There's no shortage of jobs in this field, but I'm a lazy guy and I don't care for the lumping aspect.

here's your first problem, your lazy.......

How hard is it to get Linehaul jobs (I'm more of a night owl anyways)?

getting a linehaul job might not be that difficult, but many places REQUIRE you to pull pups (28' doubles), and YOU WILL LOAD/UNLOAD THOSE, of course, after you break them down and place them into dock doors.

What about something like driving a dump truck instead of a rig?

not a bad job, long hours during the good weather though, possible lay-off when winter hits, or just no work.

I have some experience driving straight trucks. A few years ago I had my Class B permit and worked for a Restaurant supply company running some ridiculous routes (boss was insane!) and I just couldn't put up with it any longer as I worked my butt off running his crazy routes. Had to load trucks as well lol. That's A LOT of work to pull orders and palletize, load truck, run routes and deliver and put up with customers that don't care that the longer they make me wait, the longer my route takes etc.

welcome to the world of trucking, be it class B or A..........

Anyways, I've come to the conclusion retail work sucks! Too much work and too little pay. Well I figure if I'm not going to get rich working, then I'd rather take the route with less manual labor (not saying trucking isn't demanding just a different kind of "labor").

when you figure in the hours you WILL WORK as a driver, you will be earning about next to minimum wage (or so it would seem)

I'm going to SAGE school soon to talk about their programs and the likelihood of job placement and equipment I'd be best suited for. Going to train for the whole shabang!

good, get all you can for the money you will be spending.

I figure a class A gets me driving anything basically, so what I want to know is, how hard is it to get Linehaul work dropping trailers from dock to dock or driving dump trucks from site to site for example.

i think i already answered this/these questions above

What I really mean is, I want my job to be 95% driving basically. No stopping here and there and picking a little here going somewhere else and picking up more etc.

BASICALLY, good luck. a "newbie" driver, no experience, trying to get such a job, when you go for an interview, and if there are 1 or 2 other drivers there, and each one has at least 3 years of experience or more, why should YOU get the job over them....??

I'm sure LTL guys get more moeny but that's OKAY by me. For now, I just want to drive and not a taxi lol, that's way too dangerous with all the nuts out there.

then DON'T get into driving. you think driving a taxi is dangerous, what makes you think that the "nuts" will stay out of your way because you are driving a big rig...?? in FACT, most big rigs are magnets, and actually the "nuts" are drawn to you, so there is absoultely no escaping "nuts"

Heck, I'd even drive a garbage truck as long as I didn't have to get out of the truck too much lol.

i drove a garbage truck as well. the DRIVER DOES GET OUT and help the guys on the back. in some instances, YOU ARE ALSO THE GUY(S) IN THE BACK, meaning, you're all alone doing your run..

I'm lazy I admit but I think I can handle trucking if I can get the right kind of job. I can handle occasional manual labor but all the time PLUS driving and putting up with traffic sucks!

i can't get by your admittance to "lazyness"..........you are looking for all the gravy and no work involved driving job. just to drive a truck is working as well. you must be constantly concentrating on the road, weather, traffic, construction zones, DOT scale houses, etc, etc.

You're thoughts? Advice? Criticism?

don't get into driving, as i said, your admittance to being lazy will hinder you and will cause you to be fired from just about every job you take. you will get "DAC'd" for this as well.................

[pro1driver]

Originally Posted by testekleez

There's no way I'm working a dock unless I'm loading pallets with a forklift lol.

good luck. you will be breaking down and reloading pallets to the CUSTOMER'S SATISFACTION, NOT YOURS.

I remember back in the day having to manually unload and stack/palletize a shipping containers full of olives by hand!

good practice, keep remembering those days, you'll need to...........

Me and three mexicans! Good thing it was a food service warehouse and I could run in the freezer and cool off every half hour or so. It was about 100 degrees outside in the summer lol.

well today, it'll be you and a whole warehouse of mexicans. glad you can get along with them, you'll need to.

I've got a clean record and no criminal convictions. I realize being a rook that I can't get everything I want, but there's too many jobs available to have to put up with that.

yes, there are "too many jobs", but as a "rook", if some experienced driver shows up the same time you do, and he (or she) gets the job, what are you going to do...?? cry a river of crocadile tears because there are "too many jobs" and you think you DESERVE one of those without paying your dues....???

You see it's not really the work that bothers me it's the people you have to deal with. I'm not a people person!

this is your death blow..........if you cannot deal with people, you can be and will be fired for tangling with the customers, even tangling with the "nuts" on the road. you'd better start "dealing" with things pretty darned quick.

Not to mention, I like to keep moving and I've had several jobs that require traveling.

then a long haul dispatcher will love you.......

One of the best jobs I ever had had me running South Carolina, Georgia, NC and occasionally Florida. I drove my own truck and the company paid me a wage plus 25c pm for maintenance and also reimbursed me for gas.

then why did you quit....??

ACome to think of it, I didn't mind dealing with the customers in their homes and I met quite a few interesting people that way. Unfortunately the company went bankrupt (not because of me lol) and more crappy jobs were in my future. So I guess I can be a people person but it all depends on the enviroment or conditions I suppose.

you need to deal with people every day, from the truckstop people, to the DOT ppeople, to the average 4 wheeler, etc,etc. the "enviroment" as you say is not dependant of your particular mood.

I'm old enough and smart enough to know now what works for me and what doesn't and manual labor isn't my cup of tea, mainly because the companies I've worked for are not into improving conditions and could care less about you and sure as hell will pay you the least they can, regardless of how hard you work for them.

i disagree that you claim to be "old enough and smart enough".........
because if you were, you wouldn't be admitting to be "lazy", and "not a people person" some of which is due to the "enviroment" of the day.........

It seems to me that most of the people with the good jobs are there because they know someone or are family. That's all fine and dandy but if I wanted to have crappy jobs all my life, I wouldn't have graduated high school and become a criminal.

well there you go.........an admitted criminal now.........and you want an easy job over a hard worker who has kept a straight and narrow line.....???

Not too concerned about the money because I'm in a situation to where my living expenses aren't too much of a burden as I have no children and no mortgage or high rent to pay. I'm getting training and a CDL to DRIVE not to lump!

ok..........sure...........uh huh.........
as you admitted to being a criminal, you will most likely be getting jobs at "sub-standard" trucking companies.........
hi Mr. Lumper...........

If money were my only concern, I'd do the warehouse work for a while for companies like Budweiser or Pepsi etc. Not interested in that at all.

of course those companies are NOT YOUR CONCERN.....you're an admitted criminal.... you think they would even chance you to work in a multi million dollar warehouse....???

Doesn't have to be a rig. Could be anything really except a school bus. No way in hell you could pay me to put up with undisciplined children fighting and mouthing off all the time. God bless those school bus drivers FOR REAL!

you should be lucky with whatever you end up with........but your criminal past may prevent you from any deceent job anyways..........

Not really interested in coast to coast. I'd prefer in state or tri state routes and I don't mind being away from home a few days but I'd like to be home one or two days a week to be with my girlfriend and friends/family.

don't we all want this.

T2T sounds right for me. My brother runs a load on the weekends for Nabisco and it's a T2T run. He used to drive a log truck until he took a turn a bit too fast and the load shifted on him. He's lucky he didn't get seriously injured or killed.

He was eating at the time as well. I think he just took on too much at one time in his life so now, no more log trucks for him lol.

he probably got fired as well......right....??

i mean, speeding, and flipping over....???

looks like no thoughts of trouble are in either of your minds...........

[testekleez]

Hold on there fella I didn't say I was a criminal. I said if all I wanted was crappy jobs I wouldn't have done things right AND BECOME ONE!

Perhaps I could've written that part better. I AM lazy and that's just the way it is. There are PLENTY of lazy people all around the world that make tons of money.

This isn't 1940 it's 2007! Like my Pastor said, he went to Russia one time and saw people digging up potatoes while they had a perfectly good tractor sitting right there. The only problem with the tractor was a flat tire.

Now, would you rather dig the taters by hand or get the damn flat fixed to make the job A HELL OF A LOT EASIER?!?

I didn't quit the job I said I liked, THEY WENT BANKRUPT! Did you not read that part?


I'm done paying dues pal, I've worked some of the worst jobs you can imagine and I'm through with that mess. They can go get a mexican or hire a teen.

If an experienced driver gets the job over me I could care less because there's about a million companies out there and there will be another one around the bend.

As to the taxi, I wasn't referring to drivers I was referring to crackheads and criminals trying to KILL you to rob you etc.

My brother didn't get fired, it was just one of those things. My brother is a fire chief pal. He works several jobs and probably works a hell of a lot harder than you. He's been driving trucks a long time. Like I said, I think he just bit off more than he could chew trying to provide for his family and when you work too hard for too long, sometimes ya screw up.

It's not like he was haulin *** but he admitted he was eating and wasn't wearing a seat belt and not being as smart as he should. I guess he got too comfortable and that was his wakeup call. You know all too well how fast a load can shift even when you do things right. I understand the responsibilities of driving a rig.