Profile For The Riot

I'm Cajun, my family is from the Breaux Bridge/ St Martinville area, even though I was born and raised in New Orleans.

And Turtle is correct about Don's in Scott, especially if you are in a CMV. You can see Don's from I-10, it's on the frontage road. There also Billy's Boudin at that exit, which is also good.

And Don's has good jerky. Buy some and you can snack on it for the next couple of days.

Don, congratulations.

And did they give you the option to remain in Joplin while waiting on a trainer?

LSU's Mike the Tiger in the snow this past December in Baton Rouge.

Don, why were the 3 students sent home?

That's great news Don. It seems like you wrangled with your decision of what company to go to. Best wishes for your success.

Gtown, I called Todd and read him what you responded to me. He said, like Schneider, he wasn't put on a hazmat load until his 6th or 7th month of driving.

And in general, he agrees with you and Brett 's reasoning about driving tanker right out of school. But, in his case, the company took a chance with him, provided the training in how to handle a tanker, had him drive dozens of loads with a very experienced local driver in Houston, and pull around an old tanker half filled with water in the vicinity of the terminal to get used to the surge when maneuvering.

He said the company hires very few rookies, but he knows of a few others that were hired since he has been there. I asked him why did he think he was hired,and he said that when they gave him a test drive before hiring him, the company guy complimented him on his driving skills for being a rookie. I asked him to join TT and post about his experience and he said that he doesn't do any social media, but he said he would think about it and maybe he would.

Gtown, I wasn't disagreeing with you and Brett, I was jjust conveying the experience of a friend who had success in going into tanker work as a rookie. Maybe he is the 1% that succeeded.

Peace and out.

Gtown, if you look in the 5th paragraph, I referred to him as a friend. I used acquaintance as a figure of speech.

And you will refrain from humiliating me? Come on man, we're having a discussion, I don't see the need to "humiliate" anybody. My opinion may be faulty and you disagree, but I would not try to "humiliate " you.

And the company that hired him is not Scheinder, who is known to hire rookies.

Jmart, I'm going to throw my inexperienced 2 cents into this discussion.

I can understand the reasoning that Brett and GTown are expressing, but I don't think that one size fits all in their precautions.

I have an acquaintance that graduated from a local CDL school that wanted to get into tanker work. But nobody would hire him without any experience. He went to the local terminal of a large tanker transport company, spoke to the terminal manager and the terminal manager had him fill out an application, brought him on a driving test, and eventually hired him without any driving experience. The company sent him to their headquarters in Houston and gave him extensive training in loading/ unloading tankers, safety, and driving a tanker.

The company guy that is in charge of training told him that if he can find the right candidate who is inexperienced, he likes to hire them because he can train them the correct and safe way to drive a tanker, before they start driving dry van and develop habits that may not be best when driving a tanker.

My friend has been with them for 3 or 4 years now, and even though he is OTR, he often gets home because he does a lot of out and back, as they have trailers that are dedicated for only one chemical

Living in SE Louisiana most probably helped him land a job like that right out of school because this area if a hot bed of tanker activity with all the chemical plants between New Orleans and Baton Rouge.

If you can find the right company and training, I say go for it and good luck.

I have a question about CFI and since it looks like the CFI regulars are following this thread, I'll ask it here instead of starting a new thread.

Does CFI complete a thorough background check before accepting a student to their school?

I'm thinking of applying and even though I don't think there are any disqualifications in my background, one never knows.

And, way to go Jmart, it seems like the other day you just completed school and got your CDL. Time just keeps moving on.

Chuck, at Crowder, do they furnish free meals over the weekends?

How many students are in your class?

Do you recommend driving your own vehicle or taking the bus?

Good luck and keep us updated.