I Don't Believe It, But I Did It.

Firstly, I would like to thank all the people here posting on truckingtruth for all of the advice. It has been very helpful. I found a job that is willing to train me. I about fell over when the man offered me the job. I thought by this time next week I would be at a company sponsored trucking school getting my training. I was ready to go and I told my wife that if I didn't get a serious offer by Thursday, I would make arrangements to be at school the following Monday morning. I answered an add in the paper that said "Truck Driver Wanted" with no specifics just an address about 40 miles out in the sticks. I drove out this morning and found out it was a part farm, part milk storage facility. Now, you guys don't laugh too much but the job is driving a smooth bore milk tanker and the Truck is a 7 year old International day cab. It's very clean and everything appears to work. The driving is on a dedicated short haul route that is about 240 miles total. I spoke with the man and he said he was looking for an experienced truck driver but he said I was the only one to come out to talk with him so he gave me the job. His son is going to take me on the route for the first week or so, maybe less, and teach me the ropes. So, you can stop your laughing now because I am the new Milkman baby.

Congrats!

Robert The Milkman! Congratulations!

Good for you!

I'm happy for you sir! But you have some seriously rough roads ahead. I wouldn't ever recommend a smooth-bore tanker to a new driver. I see you're from Texas, that might be your biggest advantage in this. Just remember to use extreme caution, those things are no joke man.

I'm happy for you sir! But you have some seriously rough roads ahead. I wouldn't ever recommend a smooth-bore tanker to a new driver. I see you're from Texas, that might be your biggest advantage in this. Just remember to use extreme caution, those things are no joke man.

As I am finding out, you are correct. I've been on the job for 3 days now and everything's going pretty good. Couple of revelations in the learning curve. Two of the dairy farms require chaining the drive wheels when it's muddy. So happens, it was muddy. No big deal, I need the exercise. The man training me showed me how to keep the truck from getting stuck in the mud by surging the milk in the tanker but only slightly. It works very well and I have used the technique a couple of times with success. Most of the driving is on Farm to Market roads with little traffic and restricted speeds. I am being careful with the smooth bore in curves and stopping. My trainer says I'm being a little too careful if there is such a thing he added but with experience he assured me of a smooth ride in time. One major let down, I was told all my life that the Milkman meets a lot of women. This is a bald faced lie. The only girls I see have 4 feet and a tail.