Profile For Kim (baby outlaw)

Congrats kristine! I've been driving for 15 years and have arthritis in my spine and lupus that affects my joints. The company I work for will not allow me to lift anything that may hurt me worse. We are required to use chains in the winter but they even pay someone to put them on and take them off for me. Same goes with driver unload or driver assist loads. Many companies that hire new drivers won't allow their employees to chain. If it's bad enough to chain it's too bad to be on the road... read the policy of the company and if you don't like what it says find a company that fits you better. Never settle or be unsafe. Good luck and happy driving.

Hi vickie! I'm new to this site but have been driving solo for 15 years now. There are several driving schools you can go to for a decent cost. They walk you through all of the cdl tests and help place you with a company. Some companies will pay your tuition if you work for them for x amount of time or have their own driving schools they send new hires. Truck stops have books that tell you which companies will be a good 1st stepping stone to your new career. Best of luck!

There's also a built-in problem with e-logs that many people don't know about unless they've used them. After driving 11 hours or (working 14 hours) and dealing with all headaches you encounter on the road it takes some time to wind down. Plus, if you have to do laundry, have pets to care for, talk to loved ones, want to eat, shower, etc, your 10 hour break shown on your e-log is really only a couple hours if you're lucky. Many dispatchers/companies don't care and they will push drivers because they "had a 10 hour break" according to their computer. I've worked for a couple companies that were horribly unsafe in this way (both were large companies). I was even fired from a large company because i refused to drive over my 11 hours on the e-log system after the owner's son told me i had to do it. Many driver's are afraid of this happening to them so they will do things they shouldn't. The longer you're a driver the easier it becomes to stand up for yourself and others. Driver's are responsible for their actions behind the wheel but companies also need to take responsibility for what they do too. Luckily, I now work at a great company with awesome dispatchers that listen when drivers say I can't do it.