Young Trucking

Hello everyone! thanks for checking my thread out. I just wanted to start a discussing/get advice on trucking at a young age. I'm 18, 19 in a month and a senior. I'm at the age where everyone is thinking of their careers, and packing up to go to college. Honestly, at no point in life have I ever found the idea of college appealing. Especially now days with student loans and a lack of jobs.

Trucking is something I've always been interested in and I've seriously considered going into it the last few years. Something about it just appeals to me. It's an industry thats easy to get into, pays decent enough and has great job security. Not to mention getting to travel and see new places. Not to mention the amount of money a single man living primarily from a truck can save.

I've spent the last few years researching and learning all I can (videos, articles, lurking forums etc), looking at other career choices, and praying about it. I still find myself attracted to driving. To the point that I've basically committed myself to getting my CDL shortly after turning 21.

So my questions are, any other young guys out there wiling to give advice? And I've got two years until I turn 21, what should I do in that time? I'm working at a local zaxbys and want to get out, I've considered enlistment and getting my CDL when I'm out or just finding some other no-skills job I really enjoy until then.

Thanks so much for reading, I can't wait to hear some of the feedback from you guys!

Wesley, although you can drive within your home state before you turn 21 it is difficult to find someone that would give you a chance. More than likely it would be something in the class B type of truck.

Now with that said there are always exceptions. The best thing that you can do now for your future employment as a driver is to have steady employment. Job hopping does not look good. Whenever you get frustrated and want to explode and quit, think about your goals. This is going to really test your maturity at this point in your life.

You have to think "What is more important, going to that party or keeping my job?" It is very hard for someone your age. I know it was waay back when I was your age. The advantage you have at the moment is that you know what you want. Most kids your age don't have a clue what they want to do.

Now some of the things that you can look into for instate driving are things like dump trucks, cement trucks, garbage trucks, roll off trucks, coke, pepsi, Pickup and delivery (think old dominion and companies like that), moving companies (very hard work) and of course food delivery. Some of these companies have dock workers and/or helpers that go along with a driver and that may be a foot in the door for you.

Well, I'm neither young, nor a trucker yet. But for what it's worth, I'll throw in my 2 cents.

My advice would be to follow your heart. If driving is what you want to do, then by all means go for it. You will never regret the things you went for, but will most certainly regret not giving it a shot.

No one knows what the future holds. You probably won't stay single forever, and may change your plans later. But for now, do as Pat said:

Put yourself in a position now to increase your chances of success later. There's a whole world in front of you..... Take it!

Welcome to the forum Wesley. Arriving at this website when you did will definitely help guide you through this career. You have lots of time to research and learn. A possible way to catch a break at your age is to be around trucks; working for a company that has them, lots of them.

When I was in High School I worked summers for a local construction company as a laborer (at least that's how it started). Granted it was 40 years ago and the rules are far more strict today, but since I was "there" and expressed an interest in learning, an old hand named Luckett took me under his wing so-to-speak and began to teach me how to drive; 6-wheeled and 10-wheeled dump trucks, eventually moving on to tag-along trailers towed behind the dump trucks. Initially Luckett would have me drive the trucks in the yards empty, washing them, checking the oil and fluids, parking them and staging them for the next day's work. Gradually he gave me more and more real-world exposure to driving and loading the trucks. After about a month or so, he mentored me through the first half dozen blacktop and gravel loads;...full cycle from pre-trip, getting loaded to unloading/crawling in front of a paver (that was a trick at first) to the basic clean-out process. I recall a Saturday job we did where we had to pull a back hoe behind a 10-wheeler loaded with top soil. Little did I know that was my first lesson in pulling a tag-along trailer. It was a long day to say the least, but I survived.

Although at that point in my life it wasn't my intent to drive a tractor trailer, I was however learning how to operate large vehicles (and at times machinery). I quickly realized I liked it, a lot. I worked for that company off and on into my late 20's before the owners closed shop. Funny thing is (for me) it never really felt like work, keep that in mind as you get closer to this being a reality for you.

Long story short, it was that experience in my teens that helped to shape who I am today and exposed me to at least a taste of truck driving. Believe it or not, I still think about some of the concepts (and respect) that Luckett repeatedly drummed into my head while he was teaching me. I'll never forget it or his patience with my 18 year old energy. So my advice to you, if you are really serious is to definitely develop a positive history of employment (like Pat said) and if possible try to find a job you like, perhaps working for a company with trucks. Maybe just maybe you too will find your teacher like I did.

In the mean time if you want some interesting reading I suggest you take look at Becoming A Truck Driver: The Raw Truth About Truck Driving. This book is a candid summary of life as a trucker, kind of an A to Z primer of sorts that I highly recommend reading.

Good luck!

Thank you guys so much for the feedback! I'll be sure to check the link you posted, G-town.

My first job was working for a shopping center when I was 15. I got to interact with truckers every day, which was really neat. There's a UPS warehouse nearby that I've been considering applying for, just to get close to the trucks. Plus I've heard they're a great company to work for, and it would help get my foot in the door like you guys mentioned. Right now my life just consists of going to school, work, exercising and trying to put back as much money as I can. I know a lot of other young people that dont even have a hundred dollars in their bank account. My goal is to pay for CDL classes out of pocket, which should be pretty easy once I can go full time somewhere.

As a manager in a medium sized trucking company, my advice would be to go to a local carrier near you, or a carrier that you are interested in and see what they could offer you in a shop until you are old enough to drive. Companies the size of mine or smaller would be terrific resources in helping you find the right fit. You could start in the shop mounting tires, or doing oil changes, or even fueling trucks. This would give you the opportunity to get into the industry. You could get wheel time in the parking lot or test drives. A lot of valuable experience in yard jockeying for the shop around the yard. Then you can see how you really feel about trucking. You can learn skills in the shop and how the trucks work (valuable experience as well given the tech shortage in the industry). All of these things would be very valuable to you when you hit the road.

Thank you guys so much for the feedback! I'll be sure to check the link you posted, G-town.

My first job was working for a shopping center when I was 15. I got to interact with truckers every day, which was really neat. There's a UPS warehouse nearby that I've been considering applying for, just to get close to the trucks. Plus I've heard they're a great company to work for, and it would help get my foot in the door like you guys mentioned. Right now my life just consists of going to school, work, exercising and trying to put back as much money as I can. I know a lot of other young people that dont even have a hundred dollars in their bank account. My goal is to pay for CDL classes out of pocket, which should be pretty easy once I can go full time somewhere.

Sounds like you have a good plan. Good luck.