Arrived in Springfield.....

Hmmm....got here about 4pm and checked into the hotel...everyone that I have met is so professional...such a complete 180 from the other company. Was given a packet of paperwork to fill out for in the morning and talked to the simulator examiner...I will have to complete a simulator test tomorrow to see where my skill level is and where I need to be training wise...I am going to ask about the Flatbed division and see if I can get into that instead of refrigerated...could possibly mean more home time if I can get into the flatbeds.

Will update tomorrow on what happens and see if everyone remains professional :)

Leaving....

Well...I am on the dog headed to Springfield...will arrive at 3:30pm tomorrow...and thus beginning another chapter of my adventure.

And the adventure continues...

I leave tonight on a Greyhound Bus for Springfield, Mo. on the next chapter of this adventure.  I am going to another company...one that hopefully does not treat their new, inexperienced employees the way the last one did. For those of you that know me, know that I do not tolerate very much rude behavior from anyone...so I will not be sitting back taking the same crap I took with the last company without making myself heard a little bit more. So here we go...lets get this party started on a good note, my new company pays more to start out during training and after training...woohoo

Training Truck #339...The truck I passed my CDL test in.

Wading through the bovine fecal matter....

Well it has been awhile since I updated this blog...being on the road with a trainer that would not let me use my phone or plug my laptop into his precious inverter...is the only excuse that I have.  I have never in my years been treated so badly by a  "professional", to be ridiculed, belittled, cursed at and used  for 500+ miles a day just so he could get paid for my miles too and then say that I am costing him money. I hope that this is not the way they all are! My trainer ran red lights in NYC missing cars by inches, had road rage issues, falsified log books, would not shower and had many more issues...I was with the guy for 3 weeks and he took three showers. The truck reeked and was filthy...did I mention this guy stank? and training new students for the wrong reasons...money should never be the motivator when training rookies. I spent the first half of my life in a professional job field and was an instructor for many of those years, training rookies that had to make life and death decisions in a split second. The noble reason to train is to give the knowledge that you have to the inexperienced so that they may go into said profession being safe, courteous and knowing how to do his/her job right. NOT because you make more money.  

I so have the bug for over the road trucking...there were times when I had a good time with my previous trainer...not many...but enough to make me want to continue the path.

I will hopefully be able to keep this thing updated regularly this next trip ;)

Day nine...

Today was very nerve racking...being in the city on the road with other cars and trucks is a scary thing for someone that has not maneuvered a 53 foot trailer. It makes you think. Shifting gears while watching mirrors and the rear of that trailer, while watching cars...needless to say I was sweating like a whore in church. I was nervous...real nervous. I missed some gears...Out of the two things that's an automatic fail at DPS for a CDL license...number one is hitting a curb with the trailer tires...I was so nervous...I missed a gear before my turn and got my set up too short...I worked it out to where I did not run over the curb...I just grazed it with the right trailer tires. My instructor told me that I recovered very well from that and did not roll over the curb onto the sidewalk...but still would have been a fail. I did not hit another curb :-)  Tomorrow is gonna be a real fun day...we are going onto the interstate...YAY!!!!!!

Day eight...

Today we are on the skills course again with our trailers...what fun...still have not hit a barrel yet. I did however make my own way through them...ooops...instructor said you must be really lucky to get that trailer through there...I said, yeah, I was watching the rear of that trailer...I got this.  She just smiled and marked needs to watch gauges on my sheet ;-)

Tomorrow is driving in the city...watch out motoring public...here we come!