Celadon/ Quality Drivers Academy Any Current Info?

Hey Guys & Gals! Anybody have any fresh info on this school? I'm leaving out Saturday Feb. 27th to start on the 29th. Most everything I've read here is 1yr. + old. would really like some updated info to get myself prepped and ready. I already have my CDL permit and DOT medical card from when I went to swift in Memphis. Any current info would be much appreciated. Thanks, and hope to see you out there on the blacktop!

Dragon Slayer, what in the world happened at Swift? I'd love to give you some helpful advice, but it's hanging in the balance on why a guy with a great conquering name like Dragon Slayer didn't finish what he set out to start in the first place. Fill us in with a few details, please.

Had some personal situations at home that couldn't be left un-attended. Was told I would have to start over when I came back, and I wasn't impressed with the training I got in the first place. Hence, my decision to start fresh somewhere else.

Thanks Dragon Slayer.

Didn't mean to put you on the spot, but it does help me to know how to help you.

Had some personal situations at home that couldn't be left un-attended.

That's understandable to any truck driver. Being able to leave things at home up to someone else at almost all times is a very hard adjustment for all drivers.

Was told I would have to start over when I came back, and I wasn't impressed with the training I got in the first place.

That part of your answer concerns me a little. We've had a good many drivers in here who came through Swift's program and then go on to be very successful in their careers. You are very new to our web site and you are also brand new to trucking, so let me give you some generic advice first. Our whole focus here is to help total newbies break into trucking and hopefully lead them in a way that will assure their success. One of the things that we see repeatedly here is that folks who go to private truck driving schools or Company-Sponsored Training Programs are very quick to point out to us that the training they received was not sufficient, and they are exactly right it is not sufficient to make you into a professional truck driver. If you want to know the truth about it most of us were total doofuses when it comes to handling that gentle giant we all know as a Big Rig when we first got our CDL. You will be the same way, the training you will receive will be just enough to get you to the point of being able to pass the driving test at the DMV , and brother that doesn't take all that much - it is an accomplishment, but millions of people have accomplished it. The real accomplishment in truck driving is the ability to hang in there until you begin to perform like a true professional.

I'm sure you have noticed all the whining and complaining on the internet about how this company or that company screws their drivers over, and you definitely should not work for them. Those are the losers at this game, they are the ones who quit at every little sign of difficulty or unexpected turn of events. Two of the biggest stumbling blocks people face when they are new at trucking are mis-information and false expectations. If you remember anything as you start this career please remember those two things foul up most new entrants into this rewarding career. If you can get past those two things you just might make it.

Getting started in this career is tough, it is a proverbial horse that throws most of the folks who try to ride it. You've already gotten thrown once, and now you are in here asking our advice. My advice is to go right back to Swift and make it happen over there. But, since I'm sure you have already set yourself in another direction then I will just say this: When you get to Celadon be prepared for plenty of delays. Be prepared for it to be overcrowded with students, some of them who have already been there for weeks and still have not progressed to the next step in the course.

If you want to succeed in trucking you have got to make yourself stand out. This whole career is performance based, even the schools are that way. I can promise you the students who excel at Celadon move on quicker than the ones who are just there looking for a free ride. There are actually people who attend these company sponsored schools just for the hotel room and a few free meals. I know you are not one of those, but I just want you to realize that you will have to rise above the crowd if you expect anybody to notice you and help you advance your career. The others will get left behind, and it will be this way all through your career - you will have to perform at the highest levels if you want to be a real success.

Wherever you get started you need to commit to staying with them for one year of safe driving. This is where your real training comes from. As a new truck driver, that first year will pretty much formulate what kind of success you are going to have in the future. It will probably be the toughest year of your life, and it may very well be the most rewarding year also.

Okay, you've had my speech, now go get em - Slay that Dragon who defiantly stands there barring your way to success!

I'm with celadon, which school location will you be attending? I went through the refresher course but got the training from the same instructors as the students so if you have any questions just ask. I completely agree with everything old school just pointed out, there are "students" that have been here for 6 weeks or longer. You have to want this or you will never get it.

Old School, Nathan, Thanks for the replies. I'm really not a "newbie", in 1980 I drove an R model Mack for about 6 months. But that was many moons ago, before CDLs, E logs, and the log jamb of bureaucracy we've seen in the past decade. I'm 59 yrs. old and nobody has given me anything in my life. I've kicked an fought for everything I've ever done, been or had. I ran a successful construction co. for 20+ yrs. I got my GED at 35 and went to college when I was 40. I rode and flew a patch in my younger years, when I caught my one and only felony, I realized that wasn't how I wanted to spend the rest of my life. I know how to tolerate a lot of crap. But no man is going to steadily degrade me or put his hands on me EVER! I know the trucker life, and will get my CDL , and no person, school, instructor or circumstance is going to stop me. A thinking man can always find a way.

and all I really wanted to know was if I was going to have to gat an Indiana permit and license or how they worked that.

You wont have to get an indy permit if you have one from your home state.

Thanks Nathan! How do they work the license test then? Do I go back to SC to take my tests or do they use 3rd party testers or what? I know it'll be crowded and that a lot of people think its a game, but my entire future is riding on this. Thanks again brother, any input is most assuredly appreciated!

My brother got his cdl through indy so I'll explain what happened for him. He got his permit in Arkansas went through their school, then tested with 3rd party in indy, after that it went into the national database so when he went back home he just went to the DMV and they gave him his license. Hope this helps brother!

Thanks Nathan, that's exactly what I needed to know. I've been seeing a lot of stuff about theft and things of that nature at the Indiana facility, but all that was over a year old. I want to bring my laptop and digital camera with me. What's your thoughts and observations on that? I've heard a lot of great stuff about the company, and only about 5% bad, which is a great ratio from what I see with other companies. I know there's always cry babies, whiners, snivelers and just plain old B!#!**&@S out there, and I don't put any stock in that till it passes about 40% or so and then I do deeper research. I guess my first post could've been seen as the beginning of a bi*^!#fest, but that's really not me. Sorry I gave you and old school the wrong impression. I get ticked off and upset, but I get over it quick and start looking at things from both sides which generally brings forth some level of understanding. When you can understand something you can almost always devise a plan or method to overcome, circumvent or eliminate the issue or problem. Anyway, that's what works for me. But I did have an instructor back hand slap me in the chest because I was having problems double clutching. I learned to float gears , never taught double clutching. So when the "stress times" I subconsciously resorted to what I knew. I didn't retaliate, but that was the beginning of the end for me at swift.