Prime Oriontation Date Set

Well yall, I just wrote up my letter of resignation. I will no longer be turning wrenches. I spoke with Prime today and got everything squared away to start orientation on June 6th! My last day at the car dealership will be Tuesday, May 31st and my bus leaves Charlottesville, VA for Springfield, MO on Saturday June 4th. So I will have a few days to wrap things up around town and get my tool box into a storage unit before I head out. From snooping around on this site and visiting the truck stops and calling old friends I know who drive, I am really excited to hit the road! I think this will be a career that I will enjoy

I'm here now and I must say, it's been a great experience so far. I am very impressed with what I've seen up to this point. Now, the greyhound sucks, but I figure Prime spent probably at least $200,000 just on bus fare. That's a lot of money just to get us here. Once, you're here at Campus inn you're pretty well set. The staff is awesome, the food has been real good, the room is cleaned daily, and it's very comfortable here. Today was physical, drug screen, physical agility, and application review, so it was pretty hectic, but I got through everything and I have a little chill time.

Congratulations and good luck. Let me know if you have any questions about my experience here at Prime or if you have any questions about the training program. I have to say I'm glad I came here.

David, Thanks for your reply! I'm really glad to hear that You've had a good experience! Aside from the passport and 150 bucks is there anything else I really need aside from basic clothing and personal hygiene?

Jonathan, I don't know how long your bus ride will be, but you'll want a little pocket money for the ride. I think I spent $20 on the way up here from Florida, but if you pack some snacks and some water you can cut that way down. Bring some black ink pens, highlighters, and a spiral notebook. Laundry cost $1 per load. Greyhound allows one carry on and one checked bag, a second checked bag cost $15. I brought my bedding with me, but I would probably just buy it at the Walmart if I had it to do over. It's one less thing to keep track of on the bus. There is a Walmart about a 1/2 mile away if you need odds and ends. I brought my study materials on the bus, there's plenty of time to read on there.

Bring "patience", Monday is going to be very busy. We were in lines for everything. Think about it, they're processing around 80 truck drivers, oops I mean Students, through physical, drug screen, and interviews in one day. They are very organized about it though. As long as you move from one task to the next without slacking off, you'll plow right through Monday. If you get here early Sunday you can get a jump on your computer lessons. There's 16 that have to be done by Wednesday, I had mine done on Sunday night. I'm taking my permit test tomorrow and if I pass that I'll only have to do sim lab and a couple of their classes for the rest of the week. I'm not bragging I just think it's a good idea to get off to a good start.

Hope this helps let me know any other questions.

What is the bedding for? Like a sleeping bag to use in the truck?

Exactly... You won't need it until the end of the week when you get your trainer.

I'm here now and I must say, it's been a great experience so far. I am very impressed with what I've seen up to this point. Now, the greyhound sucks, but I figure Prime spent probably at least $200,000 just on bus fare. That's a lot of money just to get us here. Once, you're here at Campus inn you're pretty well set. The staff is awesome, the food has been real good, the room is cleaned daily, and it's very comfortable here. Today was physical, drug screen, physical agility, and application review, so it was pretty hectic, but I got through everything and I have a little chill time.

Congratulations and good luck. Let me know if you have any questions about my experience here at Prime or if you have any questions about the training program. I have to say I'm glad I came here.

Hi! I'm heading to Prime in three weeks. How was the agility test? I've been hearing different things, so it'd be great to get some up to date info. I'm a little concerned about the lifting requirements.

Kat, I went through the agility yest about 2 months ago. I'm just finishing up on TnT now so don't think things have changed much. The test is about 7 minutes (minus paperwork & waiting) and consists of lifting boxes from floor level, a few steps, then back to floor level with several weights up to 50 lbs. You'll need to lift these in front of you to chest/ chin level. Then you'll need to lift a rolled tarp (maybe 40 lbs?) from floor to just above your head. The rest is easy. Just prepare yourself for the 50 pounder, that one takes everyone by surprise. If you can get through that and the tarp you'll be golden. Good luck! I'll be hading back for my A-seat stuff in another 5k miles, a week or sp, so maybe I'll see ya there.

50 pounds? Yikes! My dog weighs more than that, and I've picked her up and put her into my car... Not sure it's quite the same though. Do they kick you out if you can't lift that much?

Kat, I noticed people skipping the tarp and heavy weight. I think it's only required if you are flat bedding. They'll let you do it regardless, but some people did refuse and said they weren't going flat bed. It's not that bad though, it's just basic functions most people should find easy.