Profile For Chickenman

I am receiving quite a bit of flack from others who think that I am too smart to want to obtain my CDL and look at trucking as a new career field. When I start to explain why I would consider this, I am shutdown by head shaking and told to use my degrees to look for something else. I have read on here about others who have moved on from other prominent careers and seem to be happy with their decisions. I absolutely know I am ready for a change. Has anyone else dealt with this?

Don't worry about it …. do what you feel is right for you. I graduated college with a BS in Automotive Technology looking to go to work for the Big 3, but soon realized I was not a "suit & tie" kind of guy, so since I had driven a tow truck throughout college, I already had my commercial license and decided to drive locally for awhile ….. well, that was in 1977 and I just retired from trucking in 2015. I learned my first love is DRIVING, so trucking was a perfect fit and I never looked back. You are entering a time when drivers are needed badly and you should receive pretty good pay and a good career. Go for it !!! :)

Congrats !!! It's always nice to get a brand new truck so that you know how it will be broken in and treated. I'm retired now and can still remember the "bare steel cab" days with no A/C, stereo, or air-ride seat …. so the newer trucks I operated (2006 Volvo) always amazed me in their comfort with stand-up sleepers, stereos, TV & fridge …. wow …. what a change over the years. Glad to hear you are enjoying the ride … the desire to drive, it always made the job enjoyable. As we used to say … "keep the shiny side up" !! :)

It is my intention for anyone and everyone to tell fellow drivers their experiences with truckstops and driving in general. Not boring but just to show some differences with the real world of today. Some will be funny, some sad, some true and others not so true. So what, let's have some fun.

Hello HH …. just signed up … I'm a retired driver that started in '77 and retired in 2015, so paper logbooks and Mom & Pop truck stops are fond memories. When you mentioned plywood across the seats, it brought back many a memory trying to get a piece to clear the twin-sticks in my old Jimmy. I can remember the day we finally mounted an A/C unit on the roof …. I thought I was in heaven, even though it froze up every 15 miles and you had to run windows down for 5. :lol: What a great time to be a trucker … a lot of freedom and comradery out on the road. I was always a "regional OTR driver" here in the Midwest (Kansas City, Wichita, Dodge City, Des Moines, Omaha, Tulsa, Springfield, Springdale, etc.) , so was never out much more than three days and then back home. Always a company driver so I left the big worries up to the owners. Fond memories of truckstops in Dodge City, KS (Gunsmoke), Lamar, MO (Lamarti's), and the T/A in Des Moines, IA (Urbandale). Also had some good "private parking" spots at several customers that allowed me to walk to little local eateries like MaidRite, NuWay, Braums, along with the usual fast-food joints. Always enjoyed trucking, even back when we had to change our own flat tires (we carried spares on a belly rack), did our own maintenance in the company shop, and slept in the cab with the windows down on nice cool evenings. I guess I didn't realize this was a forum for new truckers??? …. they'll probably run me off !! Talk at ya later …. keep the shiny side up!