I am a female driver and have always worked in a man's industry. Coming from a small, country town, it's just the type of work I was raised doing. Anyone, regardless of gender, wanting to enter any type of profession must think long and hard about everything involved in that profession & what they're willing and not willing to tolerate. I knew coming into this profession years ago what to expect, because my dad drove a truck for over 40 years.
As a woman in the industry, yes, there are several men out here that like to get all puffy-chested and flaunt their testosterone whenever they encounter a female driver. I've been talked to like I'm an idiot, asked if I know what I'm doing when working on my truck and always get asked the million dollar question.."so how long have you been driving?" It gets old, but I blow it off because I'm used to it. I'm a different person out here than I am at home. Don't get me wrong, I am not disrespectful to anyone, I simply keep to myself. I do not make eye contact with other drivers, I never ask for help from other drivers and I no longer offer to help a driver with repairs. I made the mistake of offering to help a male driver with an air leak a few years back & he was very slighted that a female offered to help & in his anger of not being able to move his truck, he proceeded to yell at me asking me what the f&+# I knew & the only thing I could help him with was sucking his d&+#. So needless to say, one of my $3 unions never helped him fix his trailer air leak in less than a minute, so he sat there at a truck stop waiting for road service to come from another truck stop to fix his leak.
Some drivers think that you don't know crap about this profession if you're a female. You just blow it off & sadly it keeps you from ever talking to other drivers. Just because some of us care about our hygiene & don't dress like Larry the Cable Guy, or look like a female lumberjack, many drivers think it's our first day out here. Let them think that..who cares. I chose this profession, but I have very thick skin, so it takes a lot to rattle me. Words are just words & no one is going to rent space in my head because they pissed me off by something they said. Do you honestly think the driver that pissed you off is thinking hours later how good it made them feel that they pissed you off? No, they sure aren't..they're on to other things. I even had a driver pass me in Virginia, noticed I was female, got on the cb complaining about how I should be home barefoot, pregnant & cooking for my husband and not out here driving a truck. "Who does she think she is", he said. "Someone should rape her to teach her a lesson that this is a man's industry and she don't belong in it." Did hearing that scare me? Hell yes it did because I only saw the color of his truck, not the name & didn't know if he'd be parking at the same truck stop as me in a few hours. I simply drove to my next stop & slept in their lot instead.
When I first got my cdl, my trainer was a man. I cannot say enough great things about him. We was by far, one of the best people to teach anyone the ropes of this industry. He was a black man & I am a white female. We drove across the country for 6 weeks together. Oh boy, the crap we heard over the cb when people would see us driving together. There's many cb Rambo's out there..they'll key up to say anything across the radio waves, but they don't have the backbone to say it to your face. That's just a sad part of life out here.
At any rate, as a woman looking to come into this industry, you should think long and hard about everything it involves or could potentially involve. Don't enter any industry for the wrong reasons. Meaning, don't do it because you've got something to prove, or because the fairy tale of seeing the U.S. sounds exciting. Do it because you know you can handle the work, you can handle the bs, you can handle being in and out of the elements at any given time, you are willing to learn everything you can about your truck & work on it to keep you rolling if need be, you can blow off trivial bs you're going to hear from male drivers (..and yes, you will hear plenty..), do it because you know you can do it & are a good fit for this industry. Not everything is pleasant out here and I honestly feel that trucking is for a certain breed of people. I personally love this job & wouldn't trade it for anything. I have learned to fix more things on my truck/trailer than many other folks out here. Every day is a learning experience and I just about find something new to learn on a daily basis.
Patience, willingness, common sense & your inner drive are key to this profession. Don't let your mind be your worst enemy, or you'll be afraid to do anything in life. There's bad things in every profession, but if you're smart, observant & willing, it may just be for you.
Don't think you're going to scratch tons of vacation spots off your bucket list, because you'll rarely get to visit places you've always wanted to see. Big trucks aren't allowed in most places. I've been 3 miles from Niagara Falls, but couldn't see it cuz of being in a big truck, been 5 miles from Mount Rushmore, but couldn't go see it, cuz I'm in a big truck. This land is beautiful, but don't expect to see much in regards to attractions like those.
Like I said, there's downfalls in every profession, but many are easily avoidable if you're smart about things.
Best of luck to you in whatever you decide