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Starting new truck driving job on Wednesday

wanderer03

wanderer03

Well-Known Member
It is getting close to the time to start the new solo truck driving job in Olathe, KS for TransAm. I've got a mixed kind of anxiety and excitement. I have placed a lot of time and effort into preparing for this career and have had a lot of setbacks and challenges. I guess truck driving is the only thing that I can envision myself doing because I have so many issues getting along with co-workers and understanding management in corporate America. So, nothing like the freedom of the open road and communication with management via an onboard computer. I realize I'll have a whole new set of challenges but at least they won't be social!

I plan on bringing my camera along and I'll hopefully get the occasion or two to use it. :-)
 
Awesome! Send pics from the road when you can. My last job included a lot of statewide driving, and I had never really taken the time to appreciate all the forms beauty took when I got out of the valley in which I live.
 
Well, you can get the picture of your truck when you get out of orientation, which will be here: :P

Red-and-Blue-T660s-w-MX-and-Olathe-Building-Sunset-2.jpg


I'm happy for you, being a truck driver doesn't get the respect it deserves. It's too easy for people that don't drive to forget - if you have it, a truck brought it. And that is so true, food, clothing, lumber, aluminum cans, plastic and glass bottles, cars, grass seed, you name it, if you can go buy it, it was on a truck at some point in it's journey to the store or shop. Even the materials to build our homes traveled by truck at some point. Mail, magazines, paper, soft drinks, beer, wine, everything needs a truck to get to the consumer

I wish you all the best, and I hope that soon, I'll flash my headlights to let a Trans AM truck know he can pull into my lane in front of me and, that driver will be you. :) As the say on the CB - Catch you on the flip flop. (means I'll see you when you come back to my town again.)
 
Well, I made it through orientation by the skin of my teeth. I had to share my hotel room with another driver whom snored. I didn't get a wink of sleep each night. Today, I got assigned my truck, a red 2013 Kenworth T700. She's beautiful but she'd been sitting a while so the batteries were dead and the APU is all messed up. I was really hoping to be able to go to Walmart to get some sheets, pillows, and pillow cases but that won't happen as truck #23412 is in the shop. It's nice that TransAm has a bunk room. I'm going to sleep now and hope to roll out tomorrow. It's been really patience trying but this is trucking.
 
GOOD LUCK! For the most part, you will be working alone and that's a good thing for a Aspie.
 
You got a nice rig. APUs are a chronic headache but, you need them working for all of the no idle states or you'll be going without sleep again.

I'm sure customers, idiotic drivers that cut you off and, dumb truck drivers will try your patience a lot more. They pay isn't great starting out, but it gets better. My husband earns a salary of $68,000.00 annually and, he drives just 520 miles per day. he's home every night and home weekends. That's the top of the line for a driver. He's been working as a freight hauler for 7 years, drove tour trucks before that so, it takes a bit to "pay your dues" but, not as long as many other careers and, it's a stable, transferable job.

As long as people need to eat and want to live in towns and cities, there will be a job for a truck driver and, the moving nature of the job means you can work for anyone and live just about anywhere. We live in AR but, the company my husband works for is in IL. he hasn't been to the terminal (they only have one) in 3 years at all. His truck lives in our yard when he isn't driving it and, the maintenance man for the company loads up the service truck and, comes down here when it needs serviced. Repairs are done at whatever shop is closest when it breaks down.

The company, just 80 trucks, treats us like family and, I'd love to give you a referral but, their insurance requires you have 24 months experience. One exception - if you live anywhere between Dallas, TX and Texarkana, TX there will soon be a dedicated, home nightly run opening up and, the owner of the company is willing to bend the rules and put any driver my husband or I recommend on the run. For that run, the driver has a leased truck from Ryder so, all maintenance and such goes through them. It is a city cab so, no sleeper, would have to live along the route so you could go home to sleep.
 
Beverly said:
You got a nice rig. APUs are a chronic headache but, you need them working for all of the no idle states or you'll be going without sleep again.

I'm sure customers, idiotic drivers that cut you off and, dumb truck drivers will try your patience a lot more. They pay isn't great starting out, but it gets better. My husband earns a salary of $68,000.00 annually and, he drives just 520 miles per day. he's home every night and home weekends. That's the top of the line for a driver. He's been working as a freight hauler for 7 years, drove tour trucks before that so, it takes a bit to "pay your dues" but, not as long as many other careers and, it's a stable, transferable job.

As long as people need to eat and want to live in towns and cities, there will be a job for a truck driver and, the moving nature of the job means you can work for anyone and live just about anywhere. We live in AR but, the company my husband works for is in IL. he hasn't been to the terminal (they only have one) in 3 years at all. His truck lives in our yard when he isn't driving it and, the maintenance man for the company loads up the service truck and, comes down here when it needs serviced. Repairs are done at whatever shop is closest when it breaks down.

The company, just 80 trucks, treats us like family and, I'd love to give you a referral but, their insurance requires you have 24 months experience. One exception - if you live anywhere between Dallas, TX and Texarkana, TX there will soon be a dedicated, home nightly run opening up and, the owner of the company is willing to bend the rules and put any driver my husband or I recommend on the run. For that run, the driver has a leased truck from Ryder so, all maintenance and such goes through them. It is a city cab so, no sleeper, would have to live along the route so you could go home to sleep.
Click to expand...
I'm really just happy to be in career. As I write this, I'm lying in my air conditioned bunk, waiting for a load.
 
As I say when I say farewell to a driver I've been talking to on the CB - If you can't be good, be good at it, keep the shiny side up and, I'll catch you on the flip flop.

Good luck in your new career and, I hope you get a load fast today.
 
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