Profile For Buck_weat

Hello Doug R.

I was at Maverick earlier this year and I never saw a manual transmission. I went through the orientation and training, then went to a trainer for three weeks. I never even drove a Maverick truck until I was with the trainer, but I hadn't driven in a long time. You might not have to go with a trainer.

I hope you live in an area where there is a dedicated route, which was not the case for me.

Good Luck!!

Hey Rainy,

Thanks for the kind words. Hopefully I will find something with more frequent home time.

I have a question.. how much experience does Prime require to be considered an "experienced" driver. They have a dedicated account (tanker) that I maybe could get on, but I really don't want to go out with a trainer again if I don't have to.

Thanks again.

Hi Patrick C.,

Yeah, I wish I could have done that. I'm happy for you that you found something that fits your needs and that you are happy doing.

Thanks Don R.

I live in southern Ohio, but I will check to see what their hiring area is.

Have a GREAT day!

Hi Old School and C.T.,

Thank you both for replying.

I totally agree with you, Old School. I should have asked for more help before I quit, and I should have given more updates as I went along. You are right - it was a mental thing. It wasn't the physical side (although that part WAS hard at times as well). When I first left for orientation, I was gone for about 7 weeks straight. I went through orientation, flatbed training and then glass training. (C.T., I was in the glass division). Then I went out with my trainer for 4 weeks. Next was final eval and I picked up my truck. Then I did finally get to go home for about a week.

When I started driving solo it was all good at first. But as I continued it was getting harder to leave the house after my 3 weeks out. I started dreading having to leave knowing it would be a long three weeks until I made it home again. I could have stayed out for just two weeks, but the home time was not guaranteed then. I would get by the house, but maybe only for a 10 hour break.

What I said before about the work being hard at times is also true. It is not the main reason that I quit, but as I think about it, it did contribute. It IS a lot of work securing and tarping the glass, and it took me a lot of time (5-6 HOURS on my first couple loads.) Everyone said I would get better and faster with time, which was probably true. But I am almost 50 years old and not in great shape, so it was pretty hard for me. Not unbearable, but hard work. I asked my fleet manager if I could switch to the TCD (referigerated) division, and he said I should stick it out in glass for a while and I would get used to it. I did for a while, but I asked him again, and he said it might take a few weeks to make it happen. So by this time I wasn't liking glass, AND I wasn't getting home enough.

So a couple of weeks ago, I was doing a 34 hour reset at a Maverick terminal, and the whole time I was thinking "I could be home right now". So I rented a car and cleaned out my truck and went home. I called my fleet manager and told him and that was that.

I regret making a hasty decision like that, and I am not usually that way. I don't know..it just got to me mentally and I was not happy when I was out. Trucking is a totally different lifestyle - at least OTR was for me. And I DID know this going in to it. I just thought I would get used to it. Yes, I could have waited to get into TCD, and the work would have been easier, but I would have still had to be out 2 -3 weeks at a time. And that, at least for me, is too much time away from my wife and family.

So that is the story of why I quit. I should have asked for more help/advise on here along the way. If I do get another trucking job, I will be sure and not drop off the face of the earth again. Hopefully I can find something with weekly home time. Or maybe trucking just isn't the right thing for me.

Thanks for reading, and have a GREAT day !

Hello everyone,

I just wanted to post an update. I left Maverick a couple weeks ago. I still think they are a great company, but I just couldn't handle being away from home for weeks at a time. I thought I would get used to it, but I was wrong, I guess. I wish they had a dedicated account where I live, but they don't. So now I am looking for something with at least some weekly home time.

I'm considering switching to glass because of the pay but it doesn't do me any good for home time. You will earn that cpm for sure. Also, not sure if things have changed but that 1st Tuesday after orientation was a VERY long day lol. Best of luck

Yeah, glass seems to get less home time than the other two. They said today that the average is 1.1 34 hour reset at home per month for the glass division.

Sorry I replied before I read the whole conversation. My post really isn't relevant at this point.

Maybe it will help somebody else though lol.

Good luck.

Congratulations on your choice, Peter B. Schneider just ended up not being the right fit for me, but it sounds like you are happy there. Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm sure it will help a lot of people.

I'll be in NLR tomorrow I think lol. I'd say you made the right choice. No bias here. Btw if you recruit your buddies you can get 4k for referrals on tcd drivers. They must really need them. Roll on

Yeah, they mentioned the referral. That could add up very quickly! I ended up going with the glass division, so I'll see how that goes. If it is too hard for me, I might switch to TCD. Maybe I could get my own referral bonus! LOL

Just a quick update - I ultimately decided to go to Maverick. I am currently going through orientation, and I think I made a good choice. I have enjoyed the experience so far. I passed the DOT physical and agility tests today, which I was a little worried about. But it was not as hard as I had thought it might be.

C.T., maybe I'll see you around if you get back through Little Rock.

Thanks again, everyone, for all of your help. I really appreciate it.