56 And Starting Over In Trucking: Part 2

This is where I will chronicle the adventures and hopefully no misadventures of my schooling at The National Truck Driving School in Green Cove Springs Florida. We are having an online informational orientation on 02/18/2016 and start classes on 02/21/2016. I will keep you updated as I can, probable on weekends as I am planning on taking notes during the week and updating on the weekends. I am really looking forward to this school. When I went to their open house the director of training told the entire truckload what their method of training is. Get you behind the wheel so much that you are shifting the trucks just like you drive your car, 'automatically without thinking about it.' He said they know everyone will be a bit nervous and they give you the time to work that off. I know that's exactly what I need. I also like the Core Values that you can find here: National Truck Driving School Core Values Anyway, I am excited about what is ahead and am looking forward to the coming weeks.

Take Care Have Fun Bad Bob

hi BB. I'm a newer member of TT and I just read your part one series. I wish you luck at your new school and good fortune for you!

hi BB. I'm a newer member of TT and I just read your part one series. I wish you luck at your new school and good fortune for you!

Thanks Bruce. I appreciate all the well wishes I can get.

Take Care Have Fun Bad Bob

Well just dont go into this one as a p_ __ed of jounalist with media contacts and attorney savy and you will be fine.Lol Good luck and have fun..

Alright Carl it got to the point where I did not want that school to make any money from me. I will not condone or put up with that kind of behavior from anyone. I got what I wanted from them. The bottom line I will not pay for a product that is sub par. I got my money back and that's it. The school lost money and if they did not fire the instructors then they lost the pay that they paid them. My part of it was, "Give me my money back." and that's all. If you don't understand that then that's your problem.

Hello BB, Congrats on doing what you want to do! Old guys represent! I'm 57 and starting my CDL training at a community college in May. I drove lumber trucks and farm trucks and cattle trailers until I got out of college. I was a nurse for 30 years,but look forward to making a living away from sick people and endless fluorescent-lighted hallways!

Week 1: 2/21/2016 - 2/26/2016

Processing and Safety: All week was spent getting the paperwork straightened out and completed.

I already had my CDL A permit but still had to take a test for the CDL at the school to prove I had at least a passing knowledge of the industry I am going into.

Of course I passed!

General Impressions: The National Truck Driving School is all about safety and has a somewhat relaxed atmosphere. The instructors I have met do give me the impression that they want everyone to pass. That is very important.

It makes me feel like I know I am going to pass and be successful and that’s what I am here for.

Week 2: 2/29/2016 – 3/4/2016

Some more safety stuff films and lectures, then we get to do some pre-trips.

Then . . . (Drum roll please) . . . we get to do some driving.

This is where the real advantage of the National Truck Driving School names into play. We were assigned into groups of four (4) that as of now I do believe will be permanent groups. I think that’s as we get to know each other and help each other out when it’s needed. A trainee took us out onto the truck and demonstrated up-shifting and downshifting. He watches each of us do it at time or two. Then over the next few days we went around the truck in groups of four (4) students (no instructor) and practiced our up-shifting and downshifting.

That was a great way to get that skill down. We were able to work the kinks out without the added pressure of driving in traffic. I now do believe that I downshift better that I ever did during my first career in trucking and it’s because I was allowed to figure it out on my own.

At the end of each long day (10 hours) we were brought into the class room where we did log book exercises. The truth is that was easy for me since that hasn't changed much from 20 years ago.

Near the end of the week we did our first on the public road driving. We all did OK. Nobody had any near disasters. We all came back alive.

That first time I was nervous as hell, but there was no shouting or cursing at anyone like we were to be browbeaten into submission. We were treated as though this is a skill the trainers are helping us master.

The last few days of the week we also did some time on the backing pad. Mainly we practiced straight line backing (the foundation of all the rest of the maneuvers).

We got a taste of offset backing. It’s harder that it looks and it doesn't look easy. But by using the formulas given us, it shall be mastered.

I ended the week feeling real good.

There’s a lot of hard work ahead but it shall be done and the goal to getting the CDL A and regaining all the skills lost to time will be accomplished.

Week 3 3/7/2016 – 3/11/2016

An interesting week filled with frustrating triumphs, hard work, and finally enlightenment.

We did more backing maneuvers.

I thought they would be much easier. Hell, I used to do this stuff 20 years ago without any problems and now I was struggling badly.

I tried doing it by writing the formulas in ways I understood better and that helped a bit but it was still difficult as hell.

As of today I have down with no problem, of straight-line, to both off-sets.

I can do those without giving up a point.

Alley Dock is difficult as hell, but I can get it done.

Parallel parking, I have done a few times but I definitely need work.

Next week we will be backing most of the week. I need the work.

We went on the road and drove 4 times after a few more days of driving the truck.

I the track I had down the shifting so much I felt like I could do it in my sleep.

On the road, nerves had me grinding gears. Either I was shifting too fast or too slow. My timing was off.

The first time I sucked.

The second time I did really good. No major grinding. The instructor said I drove great.

The third time, being graded, I really sucked. The instructor said it was border line of not passing.

The fourth time I did better than the 3rd time and scored much higher even though I had one instance of grinding.

I talked with the instructor, explaining I was really surprised at the problem I was having with the gears. He said he’s seen it with former drivers around my age. We have changed and don’t realize it. We’re just not as quick to adapt to change as we were when we were younger.

Yes, it’s another case of “Welcome to Middle-age.”

In my 20’s I could run until I got bored with it, I sparred regularly, played tennis matches for four hours at a shot, then would go hit the night clubs.

Yes, I have changed.

I am old but . . . I am smarter also.

I will not make the stupid mistakes I made when I was younger.

I will be an older driver but I will be a smarter driver.

I ended the week feeling very good. Doing all the backing maneuvers are doable. I did them all so I will work until I have them all under control.

I will work on my shifting until I have it totally under control.

Even though my final drive of the week would have passed on the test I want to be so good there will be no doubt.

Work is ahead. A challenge is ahead.

Time has taught me one thing, the number one quality to have to ensure success is determination.

When you set your sights on a goal, never give up until you reach that goal.

I will never give up!

Week 4 3/14/2016 – 3/18/2016

This was a tough, exhausting, exhilarating, frustrating and ultimately victorious week.

All week long we did the backing maneuvers. I got so I was comfortable with the Alley Dock, so much so that I was praying to get that one on my test. Whenever I’d nail the Alley Dock with 1 or less pullups I’d be jumping up and down yelling, “Hell yeah!” Like I’d scored a world title fight knockout.

It felt good.

The Parallel parking I never really got good at. But it is what it is. I’d just do it the best that I could. I could do it but not as well as I wanted to.

What I was banking on for test day was getting past the Straight-line and the Off-set without losing any points, going into the last maneuver with the attitude of not hitting any cones and having a lot of points to burn off if I needed them.

The Pre-Trip: I was seeing that stuff in my sleep so that wasn’t going to be a problem.

The Road Test: Don’t do anything stupid, like speed or go over a stop line and take all corners very wide and I should pass.

Perfect would be great but pass is the goal. (Pass, then move onto the next step in this journey back to the open road.) I was scheduled to test the next day.

Friday: We took the DOT written test. I scored a 100. I’ve always been good at written tests so that was a certainty.

We had a little celebration ceremony that was very nice.

We shook hands with the instructors. I thanked them for all the help and really meant it, and went home to the hotel.

Like usual I almost didn’t sleep that night.

The next day when I tested I was as nervous as going into a prize fight. I know that sounds stupid but it was true.

I had to watch 2 other guys test before me.

They did great.

I got even more nervous.

My turn came.

We walked out. Jim Harvey, my tester gave me the bad news. My Pre-Test was the D. It was the entire truck & trailer. I had to cover that entire BIG DOG!

I asked Jim if I could get extra points for doing the hardest test, (3 times the size of all the rest of the Pre-Trips.)

He said, “No.”

I told him, “You’re cruel dude.”

So, I took my time, naming every single part I could possibly think of, working through each section one at a time.

It took a while, … a long while.

I went over the entire truck & trailer & coupling system, naming all the parts, the brakes, suspension systems and well everything. Then I did the In Cab and Break Check still going very slowly.

When I was done Jim told me it was almost a textbook demonstration. I’d missed a few things but nothing major.

Even though my jaws were sore from so much speaking I was happy as hell.

On to the Backing Test:

The Straight-Line: Nailed it. No problem.

The Off-Set Right Side: I screwed it up right off the bat. Thank God I had gotten so comfortable with the Off-Set I had been deliberately screwing up the maneuver on the backing pad to teach myself how to correct it.

Using 1 Get-out and Look, (we’re allowed 2) and 2 Pull-Ups, (we allowed 2 free) I set myself up to straight line back in.

Shaking from tension I nailed that anyway.

On to the next maneuver: I drew the Conventional Parallel.

It was my worst maneuver. I honestly don’t know how many points I ate up but I got the truck and trailer, (just barely) within the boundaries of the box and pulled that horn.

It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t straight, but it was inside the box.

I passed the backing!

It was a cool overcast day and I was soaked in sweat.

On to the Road Test:

Being a novelist I do have a tendency to want to make things dramatic.

This time I can’t.

Thank God the Road Test was anti-climactic. I had made note of the things that are automatic fails on the Road Test. I stayed at least 5mph under the speed limit. I stayed at least 3 feet from any stop line to make certain of not crossing over them. I cut every corner extremely wide. Lose a point, no big deal. Hit a curb and fail the test.

I passed.

I do want to say Jim Harvey deserves a raise for putting up with my nerves on test day. He looked past it and that helped me pass. Thanks a whole lot!

I also want to make certain I give a HUGE THUMBS UP to the National Training Inc. Truck Drivers School in Green Cover Springs, FloridaNational Training Inc. Truck Drivers School in Green Cover Springs, Florida. . If you have followed my posts you know I had a bad experience at another school. So I know the good and the bad. The National Training Inc. Truck Driving School is a very good school. I would highly recommend it to anyone.

Now I can relax the rest of this weekend, go and get the CDL ‘A’ on Monday then go get that job. I have 2 excellent companies lined up that have already stated they’d hire me as soon as I passed.

The Road is open.

The Sky is the Limit!

Until Later

Bad Bob