How Old Were You When You Started Driving Truck?
Topic 16178 | Page 6
I’m 60 and looking to enter the trucking industry. Your the man I need to talk to
Started driving at 64, 12 years later still going.
I started at 59 a few years back. I see drivers from 21 to 80 every day. As long as you have the commitment to do this job, you can become a highly successful driver at any age.
PackRat said: "I started at 59 a few years back. I see drivers from 21 to 80 every day. As long as you have the commitment to do this job, you can become a highly successful driver at any age."
But if you start at the senior citizen age level, take care of yourself. PackRat had a heart transplant and that took him off the road for several weeks. Now he's going like a madman trying to make up those 7,000 lost miles. Lol
Dm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
Thanks all for the encouragement! I’m just wondering. I saw somewhere that anywhere from .30 to .40 cents a mile is customary pay. How many miles per year can I expect to drive reasonably?
I’m 60 and looking to enter the trucking industry. Your the man I need to talk to
Started driving at 64, 12 years later still going.
I started at 59 a few years back. I see drivers from 21 to 80 every day. As long as you have the commitment to do this job, you can become a highly successful driver at any age.
8-12,000 miles per month is a realistic ballpark range for OTR driving the lower 48 states.
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
Mark,
The link below has information about many trucking companies, including average pay comparison.
Some of the information may be a little stale, but it gives you a realistic idea of what to expect as far as pay.
In addition to mileage pay, many trucking companies have safety bonuses, mileage bonuses, detention pay, and other extra pay.
A lot of you have probably answered this question in some manner on here already but how old were you when you started your driving career? 48 for me
age 30, in US Army, year 1994, an M900 Series 5-ton 6x6 tractor (3 axles, rear duals) day cab connected with a semitrailer (two axles, duals) dry-van. Trailer 40-feet long if memory serves me correctly. in Germany, and even on the Autobahn!! Never drove any Class 7/8 or held any CDL now at age 55+. I bet no CDL driver here has ever driven any Class 5 or heavier 18-wheel tractor-trailer on the European continent. The Autobahn or on the cobblestone narrow streets of Europe as I have!
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Day Cab:
A tractor which does not have a sleeper berth attached to it. Normally used for local routes where drivers go home every night.
Sure Todd.
Sure Todd.
Don't know about this TODD dude, PackRat, but sorry if I bragged on myself a bit too much. I do envy any successful CDL holder here to be quite honest. An army 5-ton, even a semi, is really an oversize tinker toy. Those Allison 5-speed auto transmissions in the M900 series are junk but I do love the smooth and quiet non-blown Cummins 855's those things sported under the hood. Maybe TODD was my name in a previous lifetime. General Patton thought he was once Alexander the Great and latter on Napoleon. President Trump thinks he's Patton come back to life.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.New Reply:
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Becoming A Truck Driver Changing Careers Older truck drivers
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Mark, welcome to our forum! Don't worry about your age. Just do the job well and you'll be welcome at any trucking company. I started six and a half years ago at 53. I'm still loving it, and making good money. Check out My Friend Eugene, he's in his eighties and still a flatbedder!