Profile For Harish S.

Thanks everyone. I'll keep you all posted and I know where to come with questions.

Jimbo,

Good luck! I live in southern NY and just got my class A. My biggest advice would be to be patient with yourself. Having a few years of class B experience, I went in to school thinking I would have an advantage. To some degree, I did. However, it took a lot of practice to get used to the non-sychronized transmission (10 speed Eaton). But just keep practicing and be kind to yourself if you don't get certain things at first. And as the other folks here said, listen to your instructors. I also took the initiative to ask as many questions in order to clarify what I needed to do to get it down right. Before you know it your license will say class A!

All the best, Harish

Hello everyone ,

Just wondering if anyone know of a trucking company that does local jobs (home every or almost every night) and offers a mentorship for rookie drivers? I know this is kind of rare and is something that is usually offered by OTR and regional companies. The company NFI is actually a local company in my area that offers a mentorship for rookie/student drivers. However, I recently found out that NFI is no longer accepting graduates from my school (NETTTS), due to a student that was hired and got into an accident in an NFI truck.

I would greatly appreciate any leads on this. I have a prewire with Schnieder for doing regional but I would really prefer doing local.

Thanks in advance!

Harish

Cool! I'm trying to learn guitar as well. It's not going so good lol!

I live approximately 30 minutes south of Newburg. I know it sounds odd but I don't really mind making less money. What is important to me is my time home. I'm taking online college classes full time and I'm afraid being on the road all week may make it tough to do school.

I was really bummed when I called NFI yesterday and found out that they do not take students from my school anymore. Rumor has it that a student from my school got in an accident, but I can't be sure of that. NFI is the only company I have come across so far that is local AND offers driver training. A coworker suggested applying to the local railroad (they need class A drivers) but I'm hesitant to do so because they most likely don't have driver training.

Harish - yep, I play guitar, but I'm actually a drummer too. I don't play gigs anymore, no time.

I saw that you responded where you live. You'll have to dig around a bit, but you should have local opportunities. Don't let anybody tell you that you'll make more OTR as opposed to local, it can vary. You'd be surprised what local jobs could pay, and LTL jobs are some of the best-paying in the trucking industry. Are you around Beacon, NY? I know we have a terminal on the other side of the river in Newburg.

Hey Heavy C- to answer your question- I live in Westchester county. It's about 40 minutes north of the New York City line. I see Sysco trucks a lot here too. That's cool that your had plenty of opportunities after school. My school is really trying to push OTR/Regional.

Just curious- how many hours of driving time did you guys get in your school? When I say driving time I mean driving on the road, not practicing maneuvers in the yard.

Thanks!

Hey harish! So i don't know about nfi except for they are everywhere! Their equipment looks great though. Also where in the ne are you? That could seriously effect what's available for you. I live in Maine and had plenty of opportunities when i finished school. So you may be able to get something without much problem. Check with ltl companies and food delivery companies. Sysco is huge up here in the ne and you would be home every night. Beware though, with delivery jobs comes a lot more physical labor.

Hey Heavy C and 6 String...

Thanks a lot for the advise. I will definitely check LTL companies. As far as doing the labor goes, I'm kind of trying to get away from that. Working for a moving company on and off for 14 years has me cringing at the idea of more labor (haha). However, if it's just a matter of rolling some pallets off and on the truck, I would be ok with that. But I've also heard stories of having to roll pallets off truck when on an incline.

The great thing about NFI is that they offer a driver trainer program where a mentor drives with you for the first month, or so, of employment. I'm guessing this is hard to find in local companies (?). I was really hoping to get hired by them but was very disappointed today when I called them and they said they no longer hire students from my school. There was a rumor going around in my school that a graduate from my school got in an accident in an NFI truck. Ironically, I found out that they hire Sage students. I almost went to Sage but decided on my school because it was in commuting distance. I'm wondering if there are other local companies that offer training to recent graduates.

Schneider already said they would hire me. I hear they are a good company but I'm trying to avoid doing regional. However, I will do it if I have no local options. The good thing about Schneider is that they can transfer me to local after I get some experience with them.

6 String- I was reading your extensive write up of LTL trucking. It was very informative. Good job and thanks. It's good for us newbies to read detailed info like that. Btw- do you play guitar? I'm a drummer myself.

Hello,

Just wondering if anyone here works or worked for NFI in the northeast. They seem to be one of the few companies (that I'm familiar with) that offers local work and has an apprenticeship program (I recently got my class A).

Just curious what it's like working for NFI or any other local companies. I appreciate any input!

Harish

Hello Douglas,

I have about 5-6 years of class B experience. I decided to get my class A this summer and just passed my road test to obtain it a few days ago.

Unfortunately, I did not do adequate research before choosing my school. As a result, the process was quite a headache. Turned out that my school's policy was to give us at least 10 hours on the road. 10 hrs. is not much. We students had to keep pestering teacher to take us out on the road. After I failed my road test the first time, I went back for more practice. After working on right turns and fine tuning my shifting, I finally passed. Now it turns out that the company I would love to work for, NFI, does not take graduates from my school!

Here's what I suggest; ask plenty of questions up front before you sign anything. Ask how many hours road time you get. How many hours doing maneuvers. Is it one on one or do you go out in a group. What kind of trucks do they use? Are they manual or automatic (if they're automatic, don't go to that school). As what theoretic knowledge they teach. How much do they charge for the road test? What if you fail the road test, do they charge again? Look over the contract. Speak to the instructors. Try and find some students to talk to. They will really tell you what the school is like.

It can be hard to find a good school. You have to do your research. By the way, if the school is accredited, it means nothing. My school is accredited and they have a lot to learn when it comes to organization.

Another approach that may work is to decide what company you'd like to work for. Call them and ask if they recommend a certain school. Werner recommended my school.

Good luck.

Harish

I have been contemplating driving truck for many years now. I have a younger brother who drove Global Van Lines for many years doing the Seattle to L.A. runs and now he drives for Costco. He is definitely behind me on this career move but, the only thing is, he didn't go through a training facility so I am left with reading the truckers truth and watching a ton of YouTube videos to try and decide which is best for me. Got any advice on which one I should choose? I am located in the North West in Oregon State.

Thank you guys for all your advice. Brett, I did just what you suggested and got a list of schools that Werner hires from. There is one about an hour from me in Connecticut called NETTTS. They are accredited, do one on one driving instruction. Have hours which suit my schedule and are priced well. I plan to visit them soon to check them out. I definitely prefer this to getting in house training from a company and signing a contract. I would preferably like to do local work (for more home time) but I realize I may have to pay my dues and do some regional work.

Thanks again!

Hello, Has anyone gotten their training at CDT in Hurley or West Babylon NY? I'm considering this as an alternative to Sage since it's about 1 1/2 hours closer, $800 cheaper and is accredited. I don't want to sacrifice quality of training though. I'd prefer to pay more and make sure I get the best training. Also, probably most importantly, I want to make sure I can get a job after I graduate. I prefer local but realize that these positions aren't easy to find. I realize I may have to do regional.

Any thoughts or opinions on CDT? Are they helpful with job placement?

If anyone knows any other good schools within 100 miles of northern suburbs of New York City, I'd greatly appreciate the information.

Harish

Good idea... unfortunately there are none locally. There is one at a Boces at a community college in upstate New York, but it's too far. I'm thinking about going with an in house training with a company such as CR England. Still debating if this is the way to go.

Are there any community colleges near you that offer CDL training?