Western Express Question

I read on the western express website that they do dry van as well as flat bed...also says home weekly, biweekly or otr..........most of the information says it's based on 2013......I was wondering if they will let a driver pull some of each? I am going to CDS IN Richmond Virginia starting March 7th......after much research both on TT and the net Western express is at the top of my list. And by the way the new features on TT are awesome!! I am so excited about going to school. I am fully aware that for the first year I will be"paying my dues" and learning to become a professional driver. I have bought my Rand McNally laminated trucking road atlas, also going to get a Rand McNally GPS. GOD bless and be safe out there.

I read on the western express website that they do dry van as well as flat bed...also says home weekly, biweekly or otr..........most of the information says it's based on 2013......I was wondering if they will let a driver pull some of each? I am going to CDS IN Richmond Virginia starting March 7th......after much research both on TT and the net Western express is at the top of my list. And by the way the new features on TT are awesome!! I am so excited about going to school. I am fully aware that for the first year I will be"paying my dues" and learning to become a professional driver. I have bought my Rand McNally laminated trucking road atlas, also going to get a Rand McNally GPS. GOD bless and be safe out there.

Just an FYI before you spend your hard-earned money, wait to see what amenities your company truck has. I've been driving a year and have never needed my own gps. There's one built into my Qualcomm and Trucker Path and Google maps apps work great. I also rely heavily on my printed road atlas, which my company provided.

But just be careful you don't spend money unnecessarily.

Good luck!

I read on the western express website that they do dry van as well as flat bed...also says home weekly, biweekly or otr..........most of the information says it's based on 2013......I was wondering if they will let a driver pull some of each? I am going to CDS IN Richmond Virginia starting March 7th......after much research both on TT and the net Western express is at the top of my list. And by the way the new features on TT are awesome!! I am so excited about going to school. I am fully aware that for the first year I will be"paying my dues" and learning to become a professional driver. I have bought my Rand McNally laminated trucking road atlas, also going to get a Rand McNally GPS. GOD bless and be safe out there.

Just an FYI before you spend your hard-earned money, wait to see what amenities your company truck has. I've been driving a year and have never needed my own gps. There's one built into my Qualcomm and Trucker Path and Google maps apps work great. I also rely heavily on my printed road atlas, which my company provided.

But just be careful you don't spend money unnecessarily.

Good luck!

I understand what you are saying and I learned how to read a map from my dad and he also taught me some about trip planning.......He wasn't a trucker but was in the Air force so we traveled some..........I only will be using the GPS as a secondary tool......I will use my maps more I know it is faster to use a GPS but I don't want to depend upon it.

Ok so I just reread my post and I am sorry for rambling on. My question is 1. Will Western express let you pull both dry and flat?

Will Western express let you pull both dry and flat?

At Western Express your dispatcher or driver manager (DM), as they call it, will either be a dry van dispatcher or a flat-bed dispatcher. Those dispatchers are in two different parts of the building - flat bed dispatchers only work with flat bed loads, while the dry van dispatchers only work with dry van loads. So you can't just pull flat bed for a few days out of the week and then decide you want to pull some dry van loads for the rest of the week - you are assigned a dispatcher, and that person works with you for all your loads - you are "on their board." This is an effective way for you to build a working relationship with someone who knows you and can help you be successful at your career.

I had two really good dispatchers while I was working at Western, my first one quit his job for a better opportunity in another field after we had worked together for more than a year. The second one I was assigned also kept me moving across the country turning great miles and I was still able to keep myself among the core group of top producers in the company.

So to answer your question, no you can't pull both types of loads, at least not at the same time. You can switch over from one division to the other if you request it, but you really should try to stick with one or the other for at least about six months. You will want to build some sort of a relationship with your dispatcher. The way to success in this business is by proving yourself on a consistent basis. There is no way for you to do that if you are constantly switching around from one pursuit to another, even if you just think you want to try different types of loads so you are a more versatile driver. These trucking companies have a lot of layers of management involved, and you want to build for yourself a reputation on many different levels in the company. When I was at Western some of the load planners knew my truck number and recognized that I was a driver that made things happen. They would purposely send good loads to my dispatcher when they could see that my truck was in the area to handle those jobs.

I realize I've kind of stumbled around here and given you quite a bit of information you weren't even asking for, but I wanted you to realize the way things work and why.

Also, I would not expect to get a job at Western right off the bat where you go home on weekends, most of the time you are going to have to go over the road first and show them some commitment and responsibility first. They do have some dedicated jobs where you get a certain amount of minimum pay each week even if your miles are not sufficient for that pay and those jobs do get you home each weekend. Of course you would have to live in the area where those dedicated loads are run to be able to do that. Also, in trucking you need to realize that "home every weekend" doesn't mean what it means in most other careers. It will be different each week - sometimes you may not get home until close to midnight on Friday, and then need to pull out and get back on the road Sunday morning at ten a.m. Other times you may get home on Friday afternoon, and then leave at 3 a.m. on Monday. The time you spend at home on the weekends will always be determined by the load you are under, and the delivery time and location of your load.

Will Western express let you pull both dry and flat?

At Western Express your dispatcher or driver manager (DM), as they call it, will either be a dry van dispatcher or a flat-bed dispatcher. Those dispatchers are in two different parts of the building - flat bed dispatchers only work with flat bed loads, while the dry van dispatchers only work with dry van loads. So you can't just pull flat bed for a few days out of the week and then decide you want to pull some dry van loads for the rest of the week - you are assigned a dispatcher, and that person works with you for all your loads - you are "on their board." This is an effective way for you to build a working relationship with someone who knows you and can help you be successful at your career.

I had two really good dispatchers while I was working at Western, my first one quit his job for a better opportunity in another field after we had worked together for more than a year. The second one I was assigned also kept me moving across the country turning great miles and I was still able to keep myself among the core group of top producers in the company.

So to answer your question, no you can't pull both types of loads, at least not at the same time. You can switch over from one division to the other if you request it, but you really should try to stick with one or the other for at least about six months. You will want to build some sort of a relationship with your dispatcher. The way to success in this business is by proving yourself on a consistent basis. There is no way for you to do that if you are constantly switching around from one pursuit to another, even if you just think you want to try different types of loads so you are a more versatile driver. These trucking companies have a lot of layers of management involved, and you want to build for yourself a reputation on many different levels in the company. When I was at Western some of the load planners knew my truck number and recognized that I was a driver that made things happen. They would purposely send good loads to my dispatcher when they could see that my truck was in the area to handle those jobs.

I realize I've kind of stumbled around here and given you quite a bit of information you weren't even asking for, but I wanted you to realize the way things work and why.

Also, I would not expect to get a job at Western right off the bat where you go home on weekends, most of the time you are going to have to go over the road first and show them some commitment and responsibility first. They do have some dedicated jobs where you get a certain amount of minimum pay each week even if your miles are not sufficient for that pay and those jobs do get you home each weekend. Of course you would have to live in the area where those dedicated loads are run to be able to do that. Also, in trucking you need to realize that "home every weekend" doesn't mean what it means in most other careers. It will be different each week - sometimes you may not get home until close to midnight on Friday, and then need to pull out and get back on the road Sunday morning at ten a.m. Other times you may get home on Friday afternoon, and then leave at 3 a.m. on Monday. The time you spend at home on the weekends will always be determined by the load you are under, and the delivery time and location of your load.

Thanks Old school. I do understand that the first year is proving oneself to the company. Being safe, on time, and not crying when things don't go your way is just part of showing the company that you are a good dependable driver. I fully expect to be gone 3 to 4 weeks at a time until I earn my strips and then maybe if I have done a good job for that year it may be possible to get a position where I can be home more. But I in no way expect any company to just hand me what I want. I was raised in the fashion if you want it work hard for what you want. Thanks again for the information.