Considering a career change, any cdl drivers in here?

Seriously? $110K starting?




I may have to look into this.

 

@Wahayes best tip I can give you for your shifting is actually something a guy I was training to get his CDL said to me. He picked it up in the Army. "Slow is smooth and smooth is fast." Patience is your key, match your RPM range to the gear you're going for and match the gear to the speed you're travelling.

Another guy I trained would try to shift without making the speed or RPM correct, and then get panicked/frustrated and try to just ram it into gear. Took a while to get him to stop overthinking and go for smooth. He got better, and was a good driver. Just took him a bit longer and he didn't do as well in town/city situations.

 

I did . I started on grain trucks and a 65 f100 4 speed.

yea this job will actually pay quite a bit more than 110k starting lol I’m not sharing the name of the company as a) it’s not finalized yet and b) it’s just good social media habit , but I made my buddy show me paystubs to prove what he was claiming

 

I actually heard that one before when I was in the police academy lol been a long time but definitely applies here too

 

Walmart is def a good outfit. They actually donate old equipment to my cdl school. The 10 speed freight liner I’m in a lot came from them , still only has 544k and it’s clean.

 

You must live somewhere flat? While not unique to this corner of our round earth, if you miss a couple shifts on some of our downgrades you’ll be “overlanding” up a runaway lane in no time. It’s an apples to oranges comparison to a light vehicle with a synchronized manual transmission that can maintain speed and stop on those downgrades without the help of engine braking, even if that’s the wrong way to drive them.

I do agree it is ridiculous to have to start from scratch, but then again, how do you gain the skill and prove it without a supervisor and a road test?

 

Well put. Imagine a newbie who has never driven a stick truck attempting something like Parley's Canyon just because they know how to drive a stick shift car... I'd be shocked if they didn't kill themselves, somebody else, or both. It is 100% different and needs to be a license requirement.

 

Haha we’re doing parleys in school next week

 

Are you allowed to use jakes? I was not for the test, so for training I didn't. I'm positively spoiled now, and would not want to run that hill without them.

 

NH…when you take a tank test you do it with an empty tank. How does that prove you can operate a vehicle a vehicle with a half filled tank. Not arguing…comparison of pointless CDL requirements. I took a class A in a pickup truck and a dump trailer…yet I can drive a tractor trailer. I don’t drive a TT nor ever intend to. I need it for my truck and trailer.

 

Or a land yacht 43’ rv motorhome with air brakes and a tag axle. No CDL required. Baffling. I get it’s not commercial. So maybe “oversize license”

 

^
I drove standards growing up.
My first 9 years at UPS was driving standard package cars.
When I went to UPS feeder (semi) school in 1994, shifting a tractor was an entirely different thing.

As to shifting;
The way they taught me, there is a gate of opportunity when shifting, depending on the vehicle.
For example, if you take it out of gear at 4K RPM, it will slip into the next gear at 2K RPM.
You just have to drive it and learn how a specific vehicle shifts.
Even tractors of the same brand and year model shift differently.

Our 5 speed GMC/Astros would slip in and out of gear easily.
Our 10 speed cab over Internationals were a bitch to shift.
Even the training supervisors were grinding in and out of gear shifts.

No matter what tractor I would drive, I'd learn the patterns and give management what they wanted.
After I went solo, I only used the clutch from a dead stop.
I didn't need it to up or downshift, much like when I drove the package cars.

Most of our newer(?) tractors are automatics.
I still have to get in an old Kenworth or Mack from time to time and it comes right back like riding a bike.

Funny to see rookies crying is dispatch that they don't know how to drive a standard, only because they want a newer tractor.
EVERY one of them was trained in a standard tractor, even if only for a few days.
They're just spoiled Millenial pussies....

2 more years and I'm done, no more CDL, not more CDL annual physicals..

 

I officially have my Cdl with no restrictions! Got my tanker endorsement and waiting on my hazmat background to come back

 

We didn’t on the test but when we ran parleys absolutely. We also ran it with 70k lbs to get the full experience. My school does it just to get you experience with it so you’re not freaking out the first time. My school was really good about not just teaching enough to get your license and move you out the door but also things you need to know to be safe and be a good driver.

 

Sounds like a good school! If you can make the 5 year mark without a serious incident, you're solid. Most drivers get into trouble after a year or two because they have just enough experience to get a tiny bit complacent.

 

Whatever you do stay out of the medical field esp. nursing, ( and I'm putting this nicely) very difficult and thankless job. You answer to everyone and have power over no one. No breaks, no lunch 1/2 hour, tough to even get to the bathroom most days. Twelve hour shifts that are never 12 hours, 8 hour shifts that are never 8 hours, nights, weekends, holidays, lousy pay,the hospital constantly calling to see if I could come in on my days off. I could go on and on. Was a nurse for 15 years, worst decision I ever made. Went back to school at 50 y/o and this was the career I chose, 558.00/month student loan payment for 10 years. I doubt it's any better now

 

Don't forget about lot lizards!

 

@dondino damn , that sucks. I had a Swedish guy in my cdl class that was a nurse and changing careers. Probably in his early 50s.

I just started past week with my new company. Everything worked out how I planned it. I work for a large environmental company that deals with hazardous waste disposal. So far I am loving the change. I'm really glad I did this . Being away from home sucks sometimes however my wife and I previously worked opposite shifts anyway so we never saw each other when the other was awake anyway , so honestly it isn't terribly different lol the company takes really good care of us and is all about safety above everything else including when you get there. The compensation is great and ALL time is paid. I'm happy with my decision

 

Sounds like a good job Wahayes. Happy to hear it............

 

Good deal, man. I'm glad you got one of the good CDL jobs. If I ever get a hankering to drive again I may have to look into your company, because many aren't great to their drivers and don't pay enough for the BS. Super glad to hear you are enjoying the new career path!

 

Yea , I'm a bit weird about social media and company names which is why I didn't list who specifically but if you ever want to know DM me and I'll be happy to talk about it. I hear you on the trucking industry in general. Honestly this one specific opportunity was the only reason I made the move. I probably wouldn't have done it had I not had an inside lead on this ahead of time and just had to pick a company and hope for the best.

 

Hell 99% dont pay worth a crap for the amount of work you have to do for them.