Profile For Thorpester

Tested out today and passed my Missouri CDL. 2 Points on pre trip. 0 on backing skills and 3 on driving. Thanks for the support!

It just gets easier and easier pal. Keep at it!

Wanted to update to my current situation. Backing is no longer the bane of my existence! I haven't had any alley dock work yet and that will come tomorrow. Straight, offsets, parallels are down well enough that they aren't stressful any longerand I actually look forward to doing those skills.

Whooo hooo!!!! Glad my articles make you laugh... wait until you read the one where I knocked my trailer axle off by hitting the fuel pump barrier!

Keep up the great work!

Thanks Rainy! I'm not ashamed to say that your article made me tear up and also laugh. I appreciate you sharing it.

My day went solidly. I met Naomi this AM and did a full pre-trip and missed one thing. Next we went out on the pad. He told me to just keep doing straight backs. I did around 15 of them and only got 2 points total in 15 trys.

Finally we drove around Springfield for 90 minutes. I did commentary driving and as we came back into Prime she asked me how I felt about how today went. My reply was I felt like it went decently. She said, "Dude you did really, really well. Excellent throttle control, spatial awareness was wonderful. Braking was on point. Pre trip is mastered. She you at 830 on the pad. We start offset backing tomorrow."

A huge part of this is getting past the frustration and looking at it as a puzzle. I wrote this article awhile ago to encourage people. Sometimes we can be our own worst enemy but if we can concentrate on only what we are doing and not everyone else, you can calm down and get it done. Problem solve the puzzle. And to this day, i sometimes say in my head "Which way do i want the back of trailer to go? Turn the opposite. Which way do i want the front of the trailer to go? Turn the same way."

Failed tge CDL Exam, Dont Sweat It!

I failed the backing once and the drive test twice. Yet here I am... nominated for trainer of the year...nominated for female driver of the year 2017, almost 4 years of on time delivery and safe driving.

It was a criminal misdemeanor. That's all I know.

What did the trainer get a citation for?

So good news! Meeting with an in house trainer tomorrow morning to get evaluated for what we need to do to get me ready for my MO CDL Testing. Whatever they decide I'm ready for the task.

And we look forward to reading your posts, Thorpester!

Thanks very much for the encouragement. I know this will work out and I look forward to updating here.

Many PSD instructors avoid backing OTR because when you get to the pad you use reference points. Some students try to replicate what they did OTR but the pad has set boundaries you wouldnt have had in large distribution centers. This causes them to fail.

Learn the reference points. I went from failing the backing....to getting no points. Once my 2nd PSD instructor taught me Primes references, I passed backing with zero points. And it only took 2 hours for me to learn all of rhe manuevers after hours of frustration without the reference points.

In general, most learn driving OTR then come back to test. Worst case scenario, they have pad instructors that will teach you with extra help to pass. This was true for me as well as forum member Splitter. Get the nervousness out of your head, that will cause distractions. Think of the backing as a puzzle.

The way I'm Iooking at it is that I'm going to learn from 3 people and make the most of it. I have my pre-trip inspection down cold. It's not memorized. It's known. I continue to improve my driving abilities. I have had the chance to drive a Peterbilt and Freightliner. All of that is positive. My main concern now is that my backing skills are sorely lacking. Very, very limited padtime and very little real-time opportunities either. When I get back to Springfield I need much more time.

This may be some of the trainer purge in effect. That sucks man I am sorry. Hate to hear Prime represented that way. Just try to brush those two off, you can't possibly get three bad in a row.

Im just waiting to find out whats going on!

DON’T GIVE UP! Prime is a great company, but some of the people are nuts, just like every other company has people that are completely nuts. Stick with it and the reward will be well worth it. I know it sucks now, but it’s only a temporary setback, and a tiny fraction of time in the great scheme of things.

Look at it like your third time will (hopefully) be the charm.

Well this has been an interesting month to say the least. I got through Prime Inc Orientation and within 48 hours of hitting the road with my PSD Trainer he announced he was going to resign as soon as we got through PSD and TNT. From that point, he was disengaged and three days later, I was in SLC UT, trainerless as he quit. I waited a week and was matched up with another PSD Trainer. After being on the road, 72 hours, he told me he was going to get us routed through Springfield so I could test out on 6/23. Now he's trying to get his freight repowered. And I'm in limbo. He got a citation in ID and basically lost his mind. I'm really questioning Prime as my choice and am concerned for my future. All I can do now is realize that everything happens for a reason.

Today was memorable as all get out. It was the first Instruction with my Prime Student Driver (PSD) Trainer. We first talked late last week and he and I got acquainted a bit during that call. He clearly communicated his "rules for the truck, " as well as the expectations he has for me over the next few weeks. Safety is the first and main consideration. Everything that we do will bear that in mind. Secondarily, we will prepare me for the Missouri CDL examination, consisting of pre inspection, backing and road test.

At Prime Inc., the training program requires 4 hours of drive time with your PSD Trainer, prior to leaving to pick up at the first shipper, or to continue on with an existing load. We already have a loaded reefer so we will finish his run.

So we worked on pre trip inspection this morning. Then late afternoon he had me do some driving through a nearby Industrial park. Following that we worked on backing on the training pad. I did left offset backing and right offset as well. Finally, we went out and drive all around Springfield for quite awhile. Part interstate, some in town and some on Route 66.

I have a lot to do in order to be anywhere near proficient yet we can leave for SoCal tomorrow with me a lot less anxious than I was earlier.