OT - Trucking industry questions

[rjohns94]

How would you recommend (or not recommend) someone getting into your line of work as a driver. As I see it, there are several ways to do so but I have no knowledge on the details.

You can sign on as a company driver with a company that pays for the training yet seems to pay below market at around $32K a year. Or you can pay 7-9K for advanced CDL, using grants, loans and/or out of pocket cash and get placed in the market at around $40k OTR. Or you can get a class B and drive dump trucks or local van routes, delivery routes. Some companies allow you to lease to own and you get a higher rate, better gas discounts, and similar benefits as owner/operator. Or you can pay for the school, get a rig and run as an owner/operator from the git go. Lots of jobs out there in the field and despite the down turn, it looks like a person could still scratch a living on the road. Your thoughts please?????

thanks in advance

[DBW]

How would you recommend (or not recommend) someone getting into your line of work as a driver. As I see it, there are several ways to do so but I have no knowledge on the details.

You can sign on as a company driver with a company that pays for the training yet seems to pay below market at around $32K a year. Or you can pay 7-9K for advanced CDL, using grants, loans and/or out of pocket cash and get placed in the market at around $40k OTR. Or you can get a class B and drive dump trucks or local van routes, delivery routes. Some companies allow you to lease to own and you get a higher rate, better gas discounts, and similar benefits as owner/operator. Or you can pay for the school, get a rig and run as an owner/operator from the git go. Lots of jobs out there in the field and despite the down turn, it looks like a person could still scratch a living on the road. Your thoughts please?????

thanks in advance

Mike,

Check out this link: http://www.tdt-ok.com/entry-level.html

Tuition for Oklahoma residents runs around $2250, non-residents runs $4500. Housing is available for about $400 for the four weeks.

The course at Central Tech is four weeks, M-F. Weekends are yours. You'll be about midway between Tulsa and OKC.

I went through this course back in late 2001. It is an excellent course and I highly recommend it. A lot of the major trucking companies draw their recruits from CT.

Trucking comes in two flavors... local and OTR (over the road). Local is what it is. Sleep in your own bed every night, home with the family, etc. Pay varies on what it is you do and your location. I know in OKC a driver for a major concrete company there earns around $15/hr.

OTR is what I do. I see the country and get paid to do it. I sleep in my truck. I see my wife occassionally unless she comes out with me on the road. On a good week I can bank $1000 after taxes. On a poor week I bank $650. Average is around $850 after taxes. Because I have no bills other than my cell, wifi and food I don't stress out when the weeks are slow. God is watching over me in this respect.

After a few years of trucking it does get to be the same ol' same ol' even though the scenery changes along with the weather. But still, I enjoy it even though I'm currently only getting home 4 days each month. Hopefully this will change once Brenda comes down to Oklahoma this fall.

I don't recommend leasing until you decide this is what you are going to do for a long while. Lease operators are small businessmen and as such comes with stress.

[Rusty]

Mike,
I'm on the other side of the coin. I'm a company driver and I run "local" meaning I sleep in my own bed every night and don't leave the state except on rare assignments. If there's a truck stop near you stop in and go through the shop as if you were going to the fuel island where the big truck fill up. Usually in that area you'll see boxes that look like news paper boxes but they are full of free magazines that have ads in them for different companies trying to recruit drivers. Some of them will tell you they offer training. Most states have several different driving schools in them both private and those run by county educational systems. There is one by me here in the Tampa area that operates out of the Florida State Fairgrounds that even has recruiters come to the school to hire people. I'm sure it's that way everywhere. If you go the route of going with a company that offers training there is usually a catch to the system in that you have to agree to work for them for a year in exchange for the training.
The absolute last thing I would ever do would be to buy my own truck as a means of learning. That's a lot of money, like $100K for a new truck and some lessons can be very expensive. Better to learn on someone else's dime. IMHO

Are you gettin the itch? It's been a good livin for me for the last 30 years.

[rjohns94]

I have had a military carreer, a sales carreer, and a teaching carreer at the college level. I'm thinking about it for sure. Because of the training times available at some of the schools here in the area and my current employment, the timing is a bit off right now, but I may start training in Jan. and be available to start driving in May of next year. I have searched several schools in the area and looked at the costs, timing and such. Thanks for the info, and if there are any others out there, I would love to hear you weigh in.

[kimwcook]

I'm sure Griff will chime in when he sees this.

[Griff]

Chiming as you typed!

Back in '95 I got laid off from a middle management position with the County... and went thru the State unemployment office... being WM>45 & medically retired from another field; then in a job market that was overloaded with degreed folks in that field... (mine's in English with minors in History & Law Enforcement), they paid for my "retraining".

Most large companies are requiring a new driver to have attended a school or have a year's experience. Our company has just curtailed their recruitment program... miles are down (although I've done 4300 over the past 7 days, my son has about 1200, with somewhere between there as the median). Couple of reasons for the difference is that I've been out west... have over a million & ½ miles with the company, have kept my hazmat certification and he's only been here a little less than 3 years and just got his hazmat. Ain't a big diff, but... when the planners see my truck #, and something hot is up... I "know" I've been given the nod although there're other trucks around... (they've called and confirmed I'm ready and willing to deliver... "no excuses").

I understand other companies are also cutting back on recruiting and selling off equipment. That doesn't bode well for the industry, or for the economy at large. Confidence is lower than many are willing to admit.

I drove a company truck for 3 years before I ventured out and bought my 1st truck. I then scrimped and saved until I had three... and last year decided the headaches and all wasn't worth the small additional income, and MUCH larger tax burden. I sold one and GAVE my son his truck; paid for, and still have a net increase in income.

Whatever you decide... good luck. If you have some specific questions, feel free to email or call me. You do still have my number?

[rjohns94]

thanks Griff, yes I have your #. I will take you up on that when i feel I am close to a choice in schools or opportunities.

[Rusty]

Mike I will add as well that IMHO the money difference between running the road and running local isn't all that much different. While the road jobs look like more money, expenses are greater as well. You'd have to have a pretty sharp pencil to prove otherwise to me. It costs a lot to live out on the open road, unless you WANT to travel. Then the money isn't an issue.

[Les Staley]

If you're willing to re-locate to Wyoming, you could get a driveing job in the gas/oil field.. I was lucky enough to living here when the boom started, have been driveing my own Semi pulling a water tanker for fourteen years.. leased to a service company that hauls produced water here in Sublette county, sleep home every night, work about 60 hours every shift, five days on, three days off.. make over 200 K before expenses, (truck maintenence, fuel, taxes).. some activity going on around Meeker, Rifle Co., and some around N. Dakota also.. PM me and I'll give you a couple of phone #s.. Les

[Travis Morgan]

If you're willing to re-locate to Wyoming, you could get a driveing job in the gas/oil field.. I was lucky enough to living here when the boom started, have been driveing my own Semi pulling a water tanker for fourteen years.. leased to a service company that hauls produced water here in Sublette county, sleep home every night, work about 60 hours every shift, five days on, three days off.. make over 200 K before expenses, (truck maintenence, fuel, taxes).. some activity going on around Meeker, Rifle Co., and some around N. Dakota also.. PM me and I'll give you a couple of phone #s.. Les

Les,

I'd also be interested in that info; I used to live around Meeker, and never had the pleasure of being around nicer folks.

[JollyWhiteGiant]

One big problem with going through a company school is that you are contracted with them for at least a year at a lower rate and can really be a pain. You will end up paying for the school they provide by working for a reduced rate. if you leave early they send you a bill for the schooling and often their schooling is more expencive and not as good as a private school (CRST school comes to mind). I was lucky and got OTJ training with my compay with no contracts.

As stated before run as a company driver for a while before venturing out on your own with your own rig. Talk to drivers about their companys and talk to recruters. But 2 things to keep in mind doing so, 50% of what recruiters tell you is complete BS. And most often a drivers complains about his company are problems of his own doing.

there are also regional and dedicated runs. but often dedicated are for drivers that have been with a company for a long time and have proven themselves and their reliability.