hey tony, many of us "will try" to help you, but there "might" be a troll here that'll chime in. please disregard his information or his crying about the industry. i will PM you after this posting as to that person's name.........
i think you'll get some "interviews" here as well. frankly tony, i have just over 20 years in it myself. i teach people to be drivers. but frankly, even though MY salary is derived from student enrollment, i still always try to sway people AWAY from trucking. and there are many reason's which can be elaborated on at a later time. then you might be able to "see" if trucking is for you,. but more importantly, are YOU for trucking, once you hear some "true" horror stories, minus the ranting of the person whom i'll inform you of later.
i do not think that flagging down truckers is a good idea........those people that told you to do this ought to have their heads examined, and here's why.......first, if you WERE to flag down a trucker, and you're a guy i'll surmise, they might think you're a "buffalo"........( a male hooker) and they may try to run you over..........so DO NOT DO THAT......!! next, you WILL BE bothering people on the street.........so........your best bet is to go to a truck stop, if that is even possible where you live, and go inside, and sit down at the lunch counter. if there is a trucker or two there, politely ask if you can ask them questions about driving, as you "think" you want to do this........now beware here too......."some" truckers fabricate tall tales of misery and woe, much like that person who i will tell you about in that PM to you........you will need to LISTEN intently as to NOT be rude, but take many things with a grain of salt, meaning, they will joke with you and since you are not familiar with things, you will be their entertainment.......why don't you print up what i just said here and bring it to that putz who told you to "flag down truckers"............
actually, a forum would be GOOD, not the best............i do have time to answers your questions, then email them, but then, other "wannabe's" will not see what i emailed you.......PLUS.........it's NEVER a good idea to advertise your email...........you're gonna get spammed so much for it now......what i will do is "quote" your questions and provide "generic answers" as this is best in most instances. there aren't too many specific answers for "some" questions......ok.........??
let's roll.........!!!
you MUST make it clear, the person WILL NOT be called by anyone, that you just need to have "real people" as interviewee's........
as it stands now.........yes...........and ........NO........
the economy sucks (we all know this, right...??) so experienced drivers are on the unemployment lines due to company closings, cut backs, and other reasons that may present itself. so, for a "newbie" fresh out of school, unless you got a GPA of 3.5 to 4.0............PERFECT attendance, your chances of a job "right away" are slim........but NOT impossible. so you really NEED to be an excellent student......each and EVERY day, to make your chances of getting a job right away, look good........
will you please go back to that person, (who said flag down trucks) and SLAP him/her silly, till they yell out Willy.....??? NO company driver will know for a fact if the company is hiring. they may only "have an idea", but NO solid facts.........in the community.........how is any driver supposed to know about the community............???? again, biotch slap that person, will ya...........??
straight backing, blind side parallel parking, sight side parallel parking, alley dock, maybe "lane change", drop & hook (this is dis-connecting and re-connecting the trailers), paperwork such as logbooks, federal regulations (although, you DO NOT study the manual, you "familiarize" yourself with the contents, maybe some very, minor repair procedures (although practically NO company wants you to touch the equipment for repairs), there may be more, but depending on which school you go to and the cost the grants will pay for, determines your course length.
see above for the hands on, maneuvers, as far as software, the school has that, like maybe programs which you do a question/answer session, or maybe a driving simulator. beyond that, no software for you to buy........but BOOKS, and photo-copied tests, after tests, after tests.........
you go for the highest you can go, a CDL-A .....tractor-trailer license...........some people only want a CDL-B straight truck license, but this severely limits you to driving above this license, meaning, you will NOT be able to drive tractor-trailer on a "B" license.........now tony, there is MORE to the license, regarding "endorsements", but let this go till later...........
ok.........things change........remember.........the economy..??? who hired last month, or even last year, may NOT be hiring these days...........so this will be tough to fully answer.....but generally speaking, certified schools, certified from the PDTI, and there is another one or two certification organizations, i just cannot remember them.
satisfactions "might be" no boss over your shoulder, but that boss is only as far as the communication equipment...advantages.........a better than average working person's paycheck, but buddy, NEVER believe the "fist full of dollars" ads you will see........because buddy, those will be one dollar bills, not thousand dollar bills...........but YOU WILL put up with a lot of crap, day in, day out, night in, night out.........this ain't for every one........and if you want to do it simply because you (tony) feel that you DO NOT have what it takes to go to college or a technical school, let me tell you this..........you will MAKE MORE MONEY being a plumber, electrician, carpenter, HVAC mechanic, x-ray tech, fireman, policeman, cook, nurse, auto-mechanic...........get the picture here.........?? you HAD BETTER BE SURE you want a life of too many inconveniences in your life........which IS THE LIFE, of a truck driver..
LONG HOURS you WILL NOT get paid for.........!!! you will work, days, nights, weekends, holidays, you will miss family events, personal events, appointments, you name it, you'll have many drawbacks............
do your job, keep your nose clean, do not be a company rat, do not lie, cheat or steal, do not have any accidents, no matter how minor and maybe you'll get the new truck when it comes in.maybe even a pay raise with out asking for it, maybe an office job if you wish to get off the road and inside, the "potential" is there, question is...........will you be in the right place at the right time.......??
nope, sorry, not gonna do it.........next to impossible to pinpoint..........."maybe" $25,000 the first year, maybe more, maybe less.........sorry dude, this one is on YOU...........how much YOU WORK, is HOW MUCH you EARN.......... but an "average might be" $25,000 and maybe $30,000.........i cannot give specifics here...........
seriously, SHOP around the other SKILLED trades and occupations before you decide on trucking.........long hours, not enough money, not enough sleep, not enough food, not enough bathrooms, not enough privacy, not enough "off time", not enough jobs....................
this is the way it is, buddy..............
P.S. check your "notifications (top right of the screen), i just sent you the PM regarding who NOT to listen to here.............!!!!!!!!
