WorkinMan
New Member
Hunting is not a hobby, it is a passion.
Posts: 20
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Post by WorkinMan on Apr 13, 2005 7:02:14 GMT -5
Hey, we have this little "school" here that will as they claim " teach you to drive a big rig with no more experience needed than driving a riding lawnmower". Catchy. I checked them out and they gaurentee that you can learn all you need to know about truck driving in their 15 day program. Am I crazy? I don't think I could learn to drive anything that big in only 15 days. I am sure that some would say that you could leanr it all and have time to spare, but this school says that the first day, within two hours of you showing up you will be behind the wheel on the highway. I would not be comfortable driving a 68 foot long truck anywhere but on the yard for at least a week. maybe two. I may be wrong, but this place sound like they teach you to pass the test, not how to drive the truck.
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Post by dtrain on Apr 13, 2005 19:22:25 GMT -5
Hey, we have this little "school" here that will as they claim " teach you to drive a big rig with no more experience needed than driving a riding lawnmower". Catchy. I checked them out and they gaurentee that you can learn all you need to know about truck driving in their 15 day program. Am I crazy? I don't think I could learn to drive anything that big in only 15 days. I am sure that some would say that you could leanr it all and have time to spare, but this school says that the first day, within two hours of you showing up you will be behind the wheel on the highway. I would not be comfortable driving a 68 foot long truck anywhere but on the yard for at least a week. maybe two. I may be wrong, but this place sound like they teach you to pass the test, not how to drive the truck. WorkinMan; don't believe it. I am finishing up a fice week truck school course and believe me all of those five weeks were vital. "Two hours after showing up; you'll be behind the wheel on the highway!!!" Somebody needs to go for a drug screen; they are on something. A person who has never driven a nine or ten speed; takes days maybe weeks to learn how to properly shift them. Handling a vehicle that is over 60 feet long and bends requires a lot of training. Even bobtailing isn't easy; sometimes worse. My school we spent thirteen days in the classroom and range/lab. Each of those days were vital and full of learning. There is a helluva lot more there than a riding lawnmower. I wouldn't put too much faith in learning to drive a big rig safely and professionally from a school like that, unless you like filling out accident reports because it seems almost guaranteed with a program like that. It is not possible; and this is coming from somebody that has over twenty years of driving an otr motorcoach. I would look to a school that is PDTI certified with at least a minimum of three to five weeks course. These people sound like the type that would sell you oceanfront property in Arizona. Trust your instincts; if in doubt; get out!! Go safely; see you on the big road!
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WorkinMan
New Member
Hunting is not a hobby, it is a passion.
Posts: 20
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Post by WorkinMan on Apr 15, 2005 6:29:54 GMT -5
I kinda figured that this school was a ripoff, but was unsure, sometimes the sales pitches are just really arrogant. From what I have heard this school has not been around too long, and has a success rating of less than half. It is just hearsay, but sometimes the grapevine tells more truth than the school operators. I drove past the facility yesterday and it looked like a tornado hit a barnyard: Haybales destroyed, trucks with pushbars on the front bumper, worn out trucks, trucks with what looked like a nicotine habit judging by all the smoke, flattened road cones, and one truck that was having the matresses pulled out of the sleeper, for what reason I have no idea, etc. It really makes a junkyard look tidy. Less than 10 miles away there is a 3 month tech school truck driving program with a success rate of over 98% on passing CDL exams and of the students who passed the exams a 99% rating for job placement. However the 3 month program is pretty expensive, and the rig that has such a mess out front is really cheap. I guess the "facility" that is new is trying to lure kids in with low prices and high dreams.
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Post by truckertom on Apr 17, 2005 7:58:13 GMT -5
It takes longer than two hours to get a learners permit!
But...and this is a big but. No matter how many weeks, months or years you go through driving school it is still going to take going over the road to make you a trucker. The biggest, longest or the loudest bragger will not make you a trucker...that is going to take going out and doing it. Ten years from now, you will still be learning to drive a truck. When you think you have seen it all; watch out! Something new will happen...something that will scare the crap out of you.
You never ever stop learning to drive a 18 wheeler...the day you think you know it all you had better walk away from it. No one ever knows it all. And if a school tells you they do, run!
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Post by itrucker on Jun 30, 2005 7:37:28 GMT -5
I agree with you guys. However, our government tends to see things differently. Check this out! - Chris
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