Profile For PT

Well now I am in my second week here at Prime SLC. So far I am learning or learnt my external pretrip inspection and in cab/air brake pretrip. Prime really places an emphasis on safety and equipment management, so when you're on the road and get pulled over by DOT and get your tractor and trailer fully inspected and pass 100% you get a bonus, $25 or $100 company and lease respectively. Be prepared to do a lot of pre and post trip on the road so that you can cover your butt if something happens to your vehicle and it's something that could have been avoided by pretripping.

I am also learning backing maneuvers: straight back, driver/blind offsets, and driver/blindside parellel parking. Haven't learned alley docking as of yet, but it seems all backing maneuvers seem to incorporate offsetting and straight backing. They teach you reference points to follow and once you get those down the maneuvers are easier to handle.

The instructors are very knowledgeable and you will definitely learn your stuff to be successful on the road. I've been dreaming about pretrip because that's what's been drilled into your head. Currently there is a truck shortage, so we've been switching from backing maneuvers on the pad and doing backing exercises on the simulator. The simulator will teach you your reference points, but it's just not the same as actually being in the truck.

Well that's all I've got for today. Time to sleep and dream of pretrip. Goodnight TT.

Sorry, haven't updated the past few days, I've been real busy studying that pretrip!

Late Thursday afternoon was cleared and officially became a Prime student driver. This means you passed your drug test and issued a badge. The results came late and everyone was wondering what was going on, but our whole class got through, which I'm told is fairly rare. From here you start going out to the training pad and start going through the 4 phases of the exterior pre trip inspections.

This consists of: engine compartment, coupling, driver side fuel area, and trailer. Prime gives you a packet containing the parts and specific phrases you'll need to know to pass the CDL test. The HRTP is spot on and you should start studying that, but also remember that Prime has their own way of doing things, so some verbage might be off, but overall it's exactly the same. I passed the engine compartment and coupling on Friday, and today passed the driver side and trailer today. The instructor will call you or you volunteer once you feel you are ready and then you have to get pretty much 95-100% correct to move on to the next section.

Once you have passed your evaluation on all 4 sections, you will then be moved to the backing pad and start learning the in cab pretrip which includes the air brakes section. You will also learn how to do the backing maneuvers as well. So the faster you learn the external pretrip the faster you get to be in the truck! I was lucky in that my roommate had the pretrip paperwork and gave it to me from the first day and I was studying that all week.

Friday is also the last day your meals are paid. Take time Friday night or Saturday night after class to go to the Walmart or Winco foods down the street, about 5-6 miles straight down the road. The downside of our hotel area is that there are now stores close by within walking distance, and you'll have to rely on Uber/Lyft or ask the shuttle drivers during your Prime lunch break to take you there. They say that Fridays at 12 is the walmart shuttle, so use that to stock up on instant ramen, pb&j's, or whatever budget you have to buy food. Your com data card (basically your Prime debit card) does not get filled until Friday after 5pm, so figure that into your budget you bring with you.

If you come during winter months, plan to be COLD. The mornings are in the teens and if the sun doesn't come out and the wind picks up it is brutal. I had to go to walmart to pick up some boots and a scarf to protect your face. Prime's shop has stuff you can buy and surprisingly decent prices, they dont seem to gouge their drivers wallet, which is nice. Be prepared for your clothes to get oil marks, so dont bring your nice stuff, you WILL get down and dirty. Work gloves are also essential, as you will point/touch the parts you're inspecting. The laundry machine at the hotel is expensive, about $5 to wash and dry. At the terminal, I think its 50 cents to wash, not sure about to dry but should be similar.

Well, this post is longer than I thought, since it covers the last three or so days. Thanks for reading, will try and update as often as I can. Catch ya later TT.

Nolan, lol sounds good man. Prime is a great choice and I'm not regretting anything, except the Greyhound, if you have the funds pay your way.

Rainy, of course you're a legend! Chris G. says he missed you by a few minutes and he met up with CK. Hopefully when we meet I'll have some miles under my belt.

Day two of orientation consists of finishing up your CBT's, background interviews, and driver training videos. Interviews are basically verifying your employer background. That's about it really, I'm guessing tomorrow we hop on the simulator. I heard there's only one so with a class size of 20 plus who knows when that'll be done. Well it is what it is, can't do nothing about it. Right now just studying pretrip with the roommates paperwork, I imagine I will never forget the words properly mounted and secured in my lifetime.

Interesting tidbit, if they can't find you a trainer by end of orientation they will place you in the local training program which will count as the required 10k miles. You'll stay at the Salt Lake location and learn your pretrip and practice backing maneuvers on the training pad. Positives and negatives I guess. I really wanted driving experience, especially in winter conditions, and wanting my first taste of the open road. Flip side is, my roommate has told me that a couple students had went out and their trainers didn't go through pretrip or backing with them at all and came back as lost as Dorothy in Oz. Sooo...study that pretrip! So if you end up being stuck in SLC at the very least you'll have proper training to obtain your CDL and grab your driving experience during TNT. I had read on another thread from Rainy concerning lease ops that are in the hole using the training program as a means to get themselves back financially. If that's the case here, I'd much rather stay local and get quality training. But more than likely that is an odd case, just got to be vocal to your fleet manager and inform them it's not on the up and up during your PSD.

Time to hit the sack, good night TT.

Hey CK, good luck! I'll be the brown guy with long hair and a beanie. No prime jacket yet, hoping to upgrade my wardrobe soon lol.

Rainy making me nervous meeting up with trucking truth legends! Itll be great to meet y'all and pick your brain for a bit, honestly the more I'm hearing about the business the more excited I get. I finally get what people mean about those trucker stories, every one is unique and sure to bring a laugh or make you think.

So first day is under the belt with the physical and start of the CBT's. You basically have to watch videos and then get quizzed on them afterwards. We did this right after lunch, which Prime provides of course, you order off a menu in the morning (sandwiches or salads) and a catering company makes and delivers. There are some boring videos, so combined with food coma you might find yourself nodding off. Grab a red bull or something if you need it.

The day ends at 4, depending on the class size there might be a wait for shuttles. Troy, our newbie liaison, gives you a dinner voucher for the restaurant at the hotel which is 10 bucks. The food is pretty good and they give you a lot so that was nice. They have a special menu for Prime called a managers special that covers a drink, your meal and a side if it comes with it. It's in the bar section so remember that you can't drink as a PSD student or else they'll notify Prime by phone and you're gone. They're really strict about it so don't even think you can get away with it. It makes sense, you're here to learn and stuff like that is a distraction. You'll need your wits about you learning what you'll need to learn in the time you need to, which isn't alot.

Day 1 is in the (personal) record books, time to get some shuteye. Hopefully I'll catch CK and Rainy one of these days! Catch you later TT.

Yea I am very much looking forward to seeing how it is in a truck. Have no problems sleeping in moving car as long as its somewhat comfortable.

Nolan, if you're still considering brother just jump on in! Well, like I've been told make sure all your financials and stuff are set, but other than that just do it.

You should check out Chris G's diary as well, we met up on the way here and going to start this week. So far what I've heard is Prime is a great place to train, and the instructors really want you to pass and get your stuff right. My roommate gave me the pretrip paperwork and I've been studying that, he's going to test out this Wednesday for his license. Tomorrow is orientation and paperwork so time for sleep for a 630am shuttle.

Well survived the Greyhound, my butt made its mark on the seat that's for sure. Tough to get a full nights sleep on the bus, but figure that's how is going to be like while trucking so can't really complain. My assigned roommate looks like he's been here for a week already, he wasn't in when I came in, he probably headed over to the training grounds early this morning. I'll spend the day studying up on the pretrip on HRTP and get ready for the start of orientation tomorrow. Catch you later!

Hey Chris,

I'll be the one with the blue sleeping bag if you want to kill time before our bus ride!

Hey Chris,

Lol of all the gin joints in all the world right? Safe travels and see you soon!

Hi Turtle thanks for wishes!

Sorry for the long wait, had to postpone my departure date until today due to family reasons. Currently on the Greyhound bus now heading for LA from Long Beach, then Las Vegas for a four hour layover, then arriving to SLC at 6am on Sunday. The Greyhound bus is actually nice than what I thought, even has power plugs for your devices and Wifi.

A word of advice, pick up your ticket at least a day in advance, in case anything weird pops up and you can talk to your recruiter to straighten anything out. You dont want to get there like me, and find out the original departure date wasnt changed correctly from January and your recruiter wont get back until Monday. Luckily, they were able to change the itinerary date for a $20 fee, which I have the receipt and hopefully Prime will reimburse me for it. On a limited budget so I'm probably gonna need it lol.

Anyways, heading out and arriving in a storm, so I'll pray to the gods that I will arrive in one piece. I'll keep you guys updated, catch y'all later!

Congrats Turtle!