Profile For Matthew G.

So there are A LOT of jobs out there for CDL work, not all of it long haul trucking. Any search on craigslist will yield pages upon pages of companies looking for drivers to drive small trucks and even people (usually elderly) to and fro. I suspect it is hard for these companies to find people to hire because of what it takes to get a CDL, and most who get it are working in trucking. But these companies must have employees, and they must have obtained their CDL in ways other than going through a company training program. So what are some alternative ways, besides thousands of dollars of school or signing a long haul contract with a major company in exchange for the training, to obtain a CDL license for these smaller, local, non-big-rig transport jobs.

2/19

Miles: 2319

Check Total: 338.25$

2/26

Miles: 949

Check Total: 452.78$

2000 Miles you make 300$ 900 Miles you make 452$

?????????????

Also, why do they keep subtracting money in these "Advances"?

Most company paid training programs will require you to either pay them back or give them some time in service back to them.

Example: C.R. England...... will pay for your schooling up front. In the Philly area they have a fast track program. C.R. E. gives you 3 weeks to pass the course. At which time you either pass or fail. If you pass you will get your Class A. However, before school starts you will sign about 10 pages worth of paperwork. (no lie, I know this personally) The course costs $6,000.00. BUT, they sell this contract to a financing firm. After interest the total cost is $9, 585.00. You also sign a promise note to drive for them for 9 months. Should you choose not to drive for them or do not fulfill the total 9 months you will be obligated to pay them back the 10g's and you are barred from working for any other company they deem as their competitors for those 9 months. They also state in their contract if they find out you are working for another company they can go after you in court, and get that company to dump you because of the contract you signed.

So a word of caution. Before you chose any company paid programs. ASK LOTS OF QUESTIONS.

So if I'm reading this correctly C.R. England (The company on the top of my list) does not charge you anything if you drive for them for 9 months? Or do you have to drive for 9 months AND pay them back the 10 grand? If you have to pay them back is it in installments, or do you have to drive for free for X amount of time till that unpaid work equals 10,000$?

Me again. The Poverty kid. Anyways, Still looking at this option. Waiting until February of next year to give myself plenty of time to think.

So being that I work minimum wage I obviously would not be able to afford a pay to win CDL school. I take it the license is hard to obtain if you just go the "Get a book and take the test" route. And even if you do that I read that it is hard to get hired with no point of reference for the company.

But there has to be a catch to the free CDL courses sponsored by the companies. What are those catches? Do you have to sign a contract saying that you will work there a year? Do you get stuck with the worst and longest and most dangerous routes if you do this? I can't imagine they would train you without some guarantee, even if the industry has a 100% turnover rate. What am I -really- buying by getting the license from the company?

You are a very insightful, articulate and intelligent young man, perhaps beyond your years based on many I've met in their early 20s. I hear your search for stability, happiness, direction and meaning. My intuition says the solution for you lies beyond a CDL, something larger......something different.....something that provides for you more than just "paying the bills." I'm sorry you have suffered. I applaud your resilience. I wish I had better answers and could offer a better sense of direction but I believe with the good head you have on your shoulders, a positive and fulfilling life experience lies ahead in a world that is full of opportunity. Please don't sell yourself short. You are, in my eyes, "dude enough" to be successful in just about anything.

Thank you. Thank you so much. This has been on my mind the past day and a half, and it's made me very happy. That intelligence and resilience is the only thing that has carried me through so far. I've lost all my possessions in my family' eviction, lost my grandmother, lost all of her possessions, lost the house she left me and my aunt, lived with three different craigslist drug addicts, and I moved my whole life to another state all by myself. I've been trying to rise above it all for years but all I've managed to do is tread water. I don't mean to sell myself short, but with all I went through I wasn't able to finish even my AA degree, let alone transfer. All those things I'm looking for, and driving a truck for that level of pay seems like a sensible next step. I may not do it my whole life, but it certainly allows me to solve a lot of my lingering problems. It lets me put out ALL my fires, rather than letting one burn so I can put another out, moving from problem to problem like a whack-a-mole. I'm glad in the eyes of people who have "made it" already that I am "dude enough" to do anything I wish. All of you drivers seem a lot more supportive than most kinds of people I've met.

Old School and Brett Aquila, Thank you VERY much for your detailed reply. You answered a lot of my questions and really helped me make up my mind. I'm very lucky to have had the both of you talk to me about this because you both really know what you're talking about.

You've helped me make up my mind.

I'm going to try this. The more I think about it, the more my preconceptions and worries were proven false by you two, the more this seems like it would be a wonderful fit for me. But I'm not going to jump into it yet. My current lease is up in December. Its a small bunker of a studio apartment that we both share, and between now and December we are going to focus on finding better jobs so that we can qualify for a better apartment when we move. I'm going to take a food delivery job so I can make tips. Come January, if nothing else comes up, and we are set up in a new place with a new lease and we are both pretty well grounded I'm going to ask them to make the sacrifice of only being able to see me for a little bit, and if they can handle that then I'm going to start CDL trailing with KNIGHT TRANSPORT and go from there. If I can't do it and wash out then at least I can say I tried and gave it an honest shot. If I succeed, then after a year I can get much better routes where I'm home much more often and who knows, maybe we might even be happy.

In the mean time I'm going to read the resources and books and forums here on this site so I really know what I'm talking about when I drive romantically off into the sunset (then immediately obscure it with a cloud of black smog).

Does this sound like a good and feasible strategy?

I don't mind that. I'm not raising a family looking to finance a house or anything. I just want to be able to pay my rent no problem, and have money left over to save. Even if I make 1500$ a month I'll be happy.

Wow this site has everything huh? Thanks for your guy's help!

And just what are those hassles? What can I expect in the first year? I hear that a lot, that the first year is hard to get through but after that it gets better. 500$ a week... That's more money than I can imagine. That would pay my rent in one week alone. As it is right now rent is 90% of my income. Can you choose to do local or state-wide routes, or 7 days on the road and 7 days home? I really need some basic information. I can endure a lot, and I'm willing to work hard. But I want to know what I would be in for.

Not sure where I want to start this. I've been browsing this site for a few days and a lot of my preconceived notions as to what truck driving is and what we've all seen in movies have already been blown away. Still, I'm not sure what to expect. After what I've been through and the life-long poverty I've endured the idea of getting paid even 12$ an hour blows me away, and I know trucking pays a LOT more than that. I'm not looking to match an attitude or take on some identity or lifestyle. I just want a living wage. But is truck driving worth it? I've been trying to find non CDL driving and delivery jobs in Phoenix but they are few and far between, and I'm still waiting to hear back from the one place I had an interview with. I wanted to do it for a year so I could tell whether I would enjoy driving for a living as much as I thought I would. I love driving. I love road trips. I LOVE maps (I collect them) and the one job I've had that wasn't silly minimum wage was a merchandising job with a company called CPM where I was left alone, worked without a supervising "boss" and had to complete tasks on time within a certain amount of time. The best part of all of that was the driving cross county and I didn't even get paid for that part! So since I don't seem to be getting any bites and most of the hooks are beyond my licencing Its starting to look like it might be a good idea to just jump the gun and go straight for CDL trucking. I know a lot of companies offer free training (but at what catch) and trucking certainly seems like an industry where the labor seems to have a fair bit of power and independence. Worlds away from what I've been doing wearing silly costumes and paper hats and selling people gas or office supplies, or what have you for 8.50$ because I'm just a 22 year old kid.

But still....I'm unsure and need advice. What kind of people drive trucks? Who will I have to deal with day to day? I'm not looking to enter a high school like environment where I have to "prove myself" to a bunch of guys. I just want to drive, and make a living wage, and provide for the one I love so they can be happy. All the technical stuff, the driving, in different places all the time, that I know I can handle. I might even be able to find a job that only runs me locally, or within the state so I can be home almost every night! Maybe I can even find a place that works me weeks out of the month and the 4th week I get off. (stop me if I'm being silly.) Point is, what can I realistically expect to find. Being as tired of my life as I am I'd tend to view this thing through rose colored lenses. I'd hate to waste a bunch of peoples time getting training in CDL, only to hate it because I'm only home 3 days a month, and have all this money but can never take the person I love out to dinner because I'm never there, or am constantly harassed because I'm not "dude" enough to drive a truck in the eyes of the people I work with.

Honestly, what can I expect, and should I even be taking this seriously?