Profile For Kieran L.

Happy New Year everybody!

That sucks. I hate salespeople with bad attitudes. You might have better luck at another dealership though, especially if you can find a good used truck dealer, because they figure there's a much higher chance of you possibly buying a discounted used truck from them if you decide to try being an Owner/Operator.

With a sleeping bag, if you don't like feeling "cocooned" there is an easy fix for that.. unzip the sleeping bag. You can even lay it out flat and just sleep on top of it, using the blanket of your choice.

C.S. is right. Once you have your CDL, you'll almost certainly be running as a team with your trainer. You're just going to have to get over your fear of cooties and hot-swap the bottom bunk (with your own bedding of course). There are many situations that require sleeping in places others sleep as well, not only hotels but anytime you're staying at a friend's house, or if you're in any branch of the military chances are good that you'll sleep somewhere that someone else has slept many times. Its not a big deal as long as you've got your own pillow. Its just a soft spot to catch some Z's before your next shift after all.

Again, there are plenty of trucking companies that DO allow dogs, whether service animals or just the family pet. You just might have to look into other companies instead of Swift. I'm in the same situation myself, I have a large dog that is like my kid and I will only consider driving for companies that allow me to bring my dog with me. There are plenty of options in companies that do allow dogs, fortunately. :)

As a former vegetarian of several years turned back to meat-eating, I won't try to pass judgement in any way or tell you what you're doing is right or wrong. I think that's up to every individual to decide, and you should live your life whatever way makes you happy as long as you aren't stepping on other people's rights to do so. I personally love animals but at the same time I realize that many animals eat other animals in the wild, there is a relationship between prey species and predators which is part of any healthy ecosystem, and I view the consuming of prey animals as a natural and normal thing to do as part of earth's food chain. I do believe large commercial animal farms leave much to be desired in their handling and treatment of the animals however. Honestly large commercial vegetable/agricultural farms are pretty terrible too. The world is far from a perfect place. That being said...

In response to your concerns about vegan food in the trucking world, I would NOT expect any trucking company to provide a balanced vegan meal option to you during training. If they provide food at all, they will almost certainly provide one set meal for everyone, which will undoubtedly contain meat and/or dairy, and if you have different dietary needs it will be on you to bring your own food. There might be some exceptions, but I certainly wouldn't count on it. I would suggest bringing several days worth of non-refrigerated ready to eat vegan food items, just in case, as well as money to purchase more food when you get the chance.

When actually out on the road, it shouldn't be that hard to find something you can eat in most truck stops, especially if you're already used to finding vegan food choices wherever you go in your day to day life, but you'll probably mostly be buying groceries and cooking in the truck rather than eating out in the restaurants. You should pretty much always be able to find something, though.

Good luck and drive safe! :)

With e-logs becoming a federal requirement, I'm sure once it goes into effect you will not be able to legally drive without your e-log system operational. If it is "on the fritz" or "broken down" you will be forced to stay put until you get it repaired or else face a ticket from the DOT, just like it is for any other piece of required safety equipment on the truck.

I don't smoke and don't do well in an enclosed space with someone smoking, but I have no problems at all with someone who vapes around me (uses an electronic vapor cig) as it is essentially steam with nicotine, and it doesn't have the same noxious/nauseating effect as cigarette smoke. If I was training with a smoker I'd politely ask them if they could smoke outside the truck and I'd possibly even consider buying them a vaping setup if they would use it in the truck instead of smoking regular cigs. I would highly recommend looking into switching to vaping if you're a smoker anyway, as its much better for you and still gives you the nicotine and the sensation and action of smoking. If you're a trainer, you might also be able to get more non-smokers on your truck if you're vaping, versus not being able to with smoking regular cigarettes.

The main problem with driving a big rig in the northeast is that all the cities and roads were designed and built way before the invention of the modern semi truck and trailer, or in many cases even before the automobile. so as a result, the streets and turns and clearances are much, much tighter than they are in other parts of the country where the road system was developed and built later to ease traffic congestion. There are many places in the northeast where a truck and trailer simply will not fit. And finding the places where it will fit, or getting it to fit where you need to go, can be a very big challenge.

I guess it depends on the type of person. Some people can't stand anyone in their personal space and are extremely concerned with privacy, other people enjoy backpacking through europe or another foreign land while staying in hostels sleeping in a bunk with 10 other traveling strangers in the same room. Although there are exceptions, generally speaking I have no problem sharing a room with someone I just met, as long as they're friendly like myself. I think situations like that can be very positive experiences, allowing you to meet and make friends with people that you might have never approached otherwise.