Profile For John L.

Sorry sir, I will take responsibilities for my actions.

Beinh a rookie has nothing to do with your attitude. Either fix it now and take responsibilty, or you won't last through your "rookie" period.

Yup, I’m that “rookie” guy.

I don't see anything funny about running into anything, John. Then you don't report it, either? There is no excuse for either.

You are "That Guy".

That “Guy” who failed to report damaging company equipment, failed to G.O.A.L. in a tight spit and has yet to offer what lessons(s) were learned.

Yup...that “Guy”.

Yes sir, I completely agree with you.

Hey John...do you really want honest input?

Cause...professionalism and integrity have nothing to do with being a rookie.

Yup, I’m that “rookie” guy.

I don't see anything funny about running into anything, John. Then you don't report it, either? There is no excuse for either.

You are "That Guy".

That “Guy” who failed to report damaging company equipment, failed to G.O.A.L. in a tight spit and has yet to offer what lessons(s) were learned.

Yup...that “Guy”.

Thanks for the advice PJ! I just don’t know what happened, I delivered there countless times and I get in no problem, but yesterday was my first time getting the trailer stuck on the wall, there were pallets on my blindside and I was too focused on that side that I failed to notice my driver side. The story of the customer saying don’t worry about it is actually not for me, that pertains to another driver from my company that tore his trailer doors down and hit the wall. The funny thing with my situation was that no one said anything, once I got “unstuck” if that makes sense lol they just proceeded to unload me and said what happened man?! I told them it’s one of those sucky days haha!

John you are very new to this career. What other people do will not generally effect you. What you do will. You made a simple mistake. Companies that hire new drivers know these things will happen. The office staff knows who pulls what trailers. It can be traced back to you if they so choose. Like Bobcat said the failure to report will be the bigger issue.

Never never never listen to a customer in a situation like this. The person who told you no problem likely doesn’t have any authority within the company. If his boss finds out and doesn’t agree guess what. That customer calls your company and things go downhill from there.

I’ll share this with you. There are a couple customers I go to pretty regular. I have got to know the employees fairly well. They have shared with me that they have actually banned a certain carrier from their property because the drivers from that company have hit things too many times. They didn’t ban a driver or two, they banned the company, and it is not a small carrier. We never know what goes on behind the scenes with customers.

Things can and will happen. Follow your company policy and you will generally come out of it ok. Honesty is always the best policy.

You got a good point there! But the funny thing is that I know some drivers from my company who has done far worst damages to the trailer but never reported it. Like having a huge gash on the trailer, there was This one time 4 people from our company delivered to the same shipper and one of them didn’t pay attention and hit the other drivers trailer, it was damaged pretty bad but they both never reported it, the driver who got hit was like whatever it’s not my trailer. Both are still employed. I know where your coming from though, btw old dominion rocks! I heard they are an excellent company to work for.

You should have reported it, what happens if the next driver takes that trailer and reports it damaged so they come looking for the last guy to pull it?

At OD you wouldn't be in trouble for the minor accident but definitely would be not reporting it.

Hey y’all, still a rookie here, been driving for 6 months, 2 months with a trainer and 4 solo. Anyways today I was backing into a garage dock, super tight place with pallets everywhere, been there quite a few times and could easily back in. However, today was just a blank backing day, I didn’t pay attention to my driver side and the trailer got stuck and scraped against the pole/wall. Tried a few methods before I could pull myself out, mind you, I was already inside the garage dock. It occurred when I was pulling forward to straightening myself out. The situation taught me how to get out of risky situations. Anyways, left side trailer had yellow scraps and scratches but I decided not to report it to my company, also no one mentioned anything when they were loading my trailer lol so I just left it haha. Another driver from my company also had a blank moment a few years ago backing into the same enclosed dock but he damaged the wall and took out his trailer doors. The owner was super cool about it and said don’t worry about it wall! Man driving and backing in LA is the worst!

Ebenezer Scrooge lol

Discouraged? Bah humbug. I left my walmart job of 11 years in May 2008. Went to Prime and went home without testing. Thought life was over. Went to Roehl in October of 2008. Passed test but couldn’t do the practical driving. Thought life was over again. Finally came to swift where i have a year under my belt. You’ll be ok

Thanks! But dang only one week of training?! I get 2 full months and I asked for an extra week just to practice more on my backing lol and I still struggle. But like everyone else said, patience is the key to succeeding. I been driving and backing super slow, cars and other trucks can go around me. We’re actually very lucky to get a local job right out of CDL school. You always hear people say “OTR experience 1 year before coming back local” I might do OTR in the near future but as of now I like the local work.

Agree with all of the above. Your number 1 priority is not hitting anything. GOAL as many times as you need.

I took a local job right out of CDL school and had a guy ride with me for a week before setting me loose on my own. My backing was definitely not up to par. However! Once on my own, I just had to figure it out and it really hasn't been an issue ever since. You just start to get a feel for the angles and setup. The greater the challenges and the more times you "fail", the more you learn and the more confidence you will develop. You have the right attitude. Just never get in a rush or lose your patience. If you do, just stop for a minute. It doesn't matter who's getting impatient or watching. Get that truck in safely.

When I occasionally FUBAR a backing, I just tell people I'm applying at Swift. It happens. Some days you'll be a master at it, some days you'll look like a rookie. Even for us guys who get into places a truck was never intended to get into multiple times a day. Just have a sense of humor and don't lose your cool.

Thanks for the encouraging words! I GOAL a lot due to the fact that I don’t want to hit anything and also I pull up ALOT, for me I don’t care people Judging me, I rather get it in safe than sorry no matter how long it takes! I guess I just have to be patient with everything and it will fall into place.

Hey John, no worries! I've seen ten year veteran drivers struggle with backing at times. It's one aspect of this career that takes a long time to master. Generally you will get anxious about each backing episode for your first six months solo. You certainly won't get good at it during training.

Don't sweat it. While you're solo you'll actually begin to learn how to set up your truck and back it in properly. Being solo will help a lot simply due to the fact that you have nobody else to depend on.

The Backing Range - It's Like Clown Soup For The Soul

So I finished CDL school in November 2019, started training with a local company January 27th, 2020. My backing skills hasn’t always been all that great, but my trainer has taught me a lot, some days I do extremely well in backing, others not so much (Ex: losing gears, stalling, crooked backing, can’t aim the trailer correctly, missing the street or exit) I have 2 weeks left in my training (2 months total) and I’m getting pretty nervous, the backing part in tight docks in Los Angeles is getting me extra worried. Like this morning I couldn’t back into a wide open dock because it was dark and raining, but at another customer the dock was very tight and I got it in. How long did it take you guys to get the concept of backing? I’m still confused with backing and getting pretty discouraged about it, especially when I’m going to be out on my own after training.