Any Word Of Advice Appreciated.

I would say just start applying to all of the company-sponsored programs and see if someone will give you an opportunity:

Paid CDL Training Programs

That's about all you can do.

Check with your DMV , in NC you can take your CDL test after having your permit for 14 days. All you need is a truck and a CDL holder with you. Good luck

That's probably not a good option because you won't have any sort of certificate of completion from a legitimate truck driving school and that's required for most carriers that hire new drivers. You want to make sure you go through either a private school or a company-sponsored program to get your CDL or you're going to have a heck of a time finding work.

Thank you everyone, I used your application system and got emails back so I'm calling direct a Lil later when their woke up. I appreciate all of you all so advise and this site is #1 to me. Roll Safely!!

Thank each and everyone of you , for the push to carry on. And all the advice.

I had and interview today, my application was accepted and they seem very professional, I told them what had happened also and they just said they wished I'd came there first, I said me too.

At Least my feet are wet now lol. I have my physical , drug test and waiting on background. Then off to Ivy tech / sage here in Indy.

Any insight to help me prepare would be awesome. Thank you for this site and all you honest truckers :-)

Well keep us updated

Good luck! & keep us updated!

Hey, that's great news Lorie!

So I'm assuming you already have your permit, correct? If so then you're good to go with that but we have some awesome sections of our High Road Training Program that will help you immensely out on the road:

Learning The Logbook Rules

Understanding Truck Weight And Balance

Those two sections are loaded with information that's critical to doing your job out there. Obviously the better you understand the logbook rules the more efficiently you can use your available time which translates into money in your pocket.

The Weight & Balance section will help you understand the Bridge Law, how to get your axle weights balanced properly, how to calculate fuel burnoff, how to figure out how much fuel you can add and still be the legal weight, and how to load cargo properly.

So doing those sections would help prepare you for the road in a big way.

If you haven't read it yet, my book is free to read here on the website and it's full of insights and stories from my years on the road. It's a rather quick and easy read that will give you a much better understanding of how the industry works and what lies ahead for you out there. You can find it here:

Becoming A Truck Driver: The Raw Truth About Truck Driving

Also our truck driver's career guide is awesome. You can skip the earlier sections about choosing a school and getting your permit, but later sections will be quite helpful to preparing for life on the road:

Truck Driver's Career Guide

So you're going through Ivy tech / Sage in Indy - is that private schooling that you're paying for out of pocket or is that a company-sponsored program?

I thank each of you very much. The support here is honest and sincere. This is the best site and the only one I continue to come too.

Brett , I took your advice. I was truthful and honest and told them everything that's happen on this journey so far. Thankfully Carter Express will be sending me to school after drug test and physical, background you know the routine. I can't Thank Carter Express enough for an honest Opportunity.

I will be starting on the logging and reading your book. Thank you so very for this site and all the wonderful people here.

Hey that's fantastic news!

Interestingly enough we just added the information for Carter Express to our website. I honestly don't know the first thing about em other than the information we've presented so we would love to get some feedback from you about how things go over there.

Listen, everyone runs into obstacles of some sort trying to get their career underway. For some it's background issues, for others it's health related, and for others it may be family related or even personality conflicts during training. But regardless there are always bumps in the road. Just keep a great attitude, keep working hard, and trust that one way or another you're going to be out there doing this professionally soon enough. Hopefully you've cleared your biggest hurdle and now Carter Express will be your ticket into the industry. If you do hit more obstacles, simply plan on negotiating them and continuing moving forward.

We've had a long list of members, including some of our moderators, that had one heck of a time getting their career underway - far more difficulties than you've faced so far. So don't ever get discouraged when things don't go smoothly. Things rarely ever go smoothly in trucking and that applies the most to those out there doing the job day in and day out. You learn to roll with the punches, handle the challenges in front of you, and keep moving forward. That's what it's all about. You've done a great job of that already so just keep moving forward and knocking out those milestones one at a time. You'll get there.

Keep us updated!

That's truly Awesome,

I Will check out the information this morning too.

I will keep you all updated, So far I can tell you the interview was very laid back and professional.

They told me about the company , how it started and their growth and even gave me an opportunity to ask any questions I had.

I go next Wednesday for drug, background ect. And then they said they will send me to work one there's and introduction class then to ivy tech/ sage I think.

I will try and update as I continue on... Any feedback back of anyone going thru ivy tech would be super too.

Thank you ever so much for the positives, that's means so much, as you know, to us who are getting started.

Just FYI,

My interview was at 2:00 and I didn't get back to my car till 4:38 , it wasn't rushed and very informative and detailed. Even showed me around and their trucks are new equipment.

Stay positive and roll with the punches as you stated. Thank you again :-)