Profile For Chad E.

Hey Jayson, hope all is well. I am the lead Class A CDL Instructor, for the Yellow Driving Academy, in Denver, CO.

1) I have had many students having a past with smoking, and none of them had a "Positive" test result. In particular, I had one student who had been smoking for years, waited one month, and passed his pre-screening test before the start of his class. Of course, UA results differ from person to person, based on diet, fitness, the type of quality and quantity you go through day by day, the overall length of time you have been smoking, and other environmental/physical aspects of your personal life. Research vitamins, and other remedies, that can accelerate the timeframe required to bring your urine attributes below the minimum test concentration that acts as the threshold of being considered "Negative" for your prior smoking. Only perform a UA if you feel that you can pass it, for the reasons that the other respondents have mentioned.

2) Research the many companies that are out there, offering training for your CDL, and the methods of drug testing that they use. Do not, at this point, choose a company that utilizes hair-follicle tests!

3) Have a look at Yellow's open positions for local terminals closest to where you live (including YRC Freight, Reddaway, Holland, and New Penn). Take a look at our available positions using:

Yellow | LTL Truck Driving Jobs - https://www.myyellow.com/us/en/careers (this link provides openings including all of our sub-companies, nation wide).

Yellow's Driving Academy program lasts a total of 8 weeks, of which you get paid $17.50 per hour. If there is not an Academy close to where you live, we fly you to the nearest Academy, pay for your travel (including a two-way flight and a rental car), lodging, and issue you a per-diem card covering any and all expenses you will have for the first 4 weeks of training, while you are away from home. We also will provide a mid-training, two way flight, back to your home for the 2nd weekend. This allows you to go back home to visit family and to take care of any other responsibilities. For a more detailed look at the Yellow Academy experience, check out our training website:

Yellow | Paid CDL Training - https://www.myyellow.com/us/en/careers/driving-academy

Additionally, check out Western Express. They provide training and, specifically, OTR driving experience. Ultimately, neither Yellow nor Western Express may fulfill the position you are truly seeking, so do some research if neither company fits you. As previously mentioned by a other TT Member, a speeding ticket for 15+ over the speed limit could be a deal-killer for certain companies, however, Yellow looks past things like this (when considering to hire you) which is why we have our own Academy, training drivers to become safer drivers before you develop bad habits in a Class A CMV.

Fundamentally, the world of Trucking, in the United States, is a massive and bountiful industry, full of opportunities for every person wanting to become a professional driver. I hope this information helps you and wanted to give you a general idea of some, of the many options, available to you. Multiple companies provide similar, yet incomplete, training programs available to onboarding student drivers. Feel free to stay in touch with me, as I would be more than happy to help you out through the process of becoming a safe and confident CDL driver.

Good luck, Chad Eatherton chad.eatherton@myyellow.com Work phone: (720) 402-6290