Start With Roehl On Monday

Sounds like things are going very well. I am very interested in your experiences. I am in the midst of trying to get in with Roehl on the east coast. I don't have my CDL so will be going through their 3 week in WI. I did get the opportunity to meet their local training supervisor and learned a lot from him on their expectations. Sounds like your living up to those very well. Keep it up. The guys I spoke to here been with the company 10-14 years and love their jobs.

Roehl is on my short list of companies to work for. I have only read good things about them. I start with a private school next Monday and I'm really excited about the future.

It's nice to hear all these details. I am considering Roehl as they have advertised a VA program that allows you to draw VA benefits during your first 2 years. That will be a lot of extra pay. If you hear of anyone in your class in that category, please post what you learn. I am to contact a recruiter tomorrow and so I will already have some questions pre-loaded.

The only vet in our class was the one that had to leave because of his friend dieing. So no info for you. Sorry.

AZ Scooby...you sound like you are a perfect fit for the company you chose !!! Now you know why we say..if it all looks good, and it fits you, then go for it. I'm glad you are finding the schooling challenging and educational..thats as it should be. Keep us updated...and go show em how its done !!!

Roehl was my first choice for a number of reasons, so I'm really happy that I was chosen by them. So far I'm very happy with everything that I've learned. The instructors have been great and take the time to explain everything in detail before turning us loose to try it on our own. Anyways I will keep posting on my experiences as I go along.

Sounds like things are going very well. I am very interested in your experiences. I am in the midst of trying to get in with Roehl on the east coast. I don't have my CDL so will be going through their 3 week in WI. I did get the opportunity to meet their local training supervisor and learned a lot from him on their expectations. Sounds like your living up to those very well. Keep it up. The guys I spoke to here been with the company 10-14 years and love their jobs.

So far they have lived up to my expectations. They have a drivers lounge here so we've been able to talk to some drivers. They all seem pretty happy. I'm sure I made a good choice.

Today we learned how to secure 2 trailer loads. One trailer had 2 different types and stacks of metal pipe. The second one had a suicide coil, shotgun coils and a couple of concrete blocks. We learned blocking, bracing, strapping and chaining. I learned a lot today. I'm really liking this flatbed thing so far. I can't wait for phase 2 when we get out on the road.

The only vet in our class was the one that had to leave because of his friend dieing. So no info for you. Sorry.

Not a problem. I am still enjoying all these updates you are giving. Very informative. Keep 'em coming!

Today was the last day of Phase one. Lots of hiring paperwork to fill out. Then right before lunch I learn that my trainer is nearby and I'll be the first one to head out. We were scheduled to be in the classroom until 3:30. My trainer showed up at 1:30. Was told to grab my stuff and go. Crappy part about that was we were gonna be able to borrow the shuttle van and go to Walmart for supplies after the end of class. So I missed out on that. Dang it!!!

The trainer seems like a pretty cool guy. Hes trained 14 drivers and only 1 failed. I don't plan on being number 2. So he drives the truck and empty trailer to the hotel so that I can grab my stuff and then we head to pick up our first load just down the street. Its a load of aluminum needing a full tarp. So I'm not even 2 hours in and I'm already learning how to tarp a load. Best part about it is the trainer (Dan) said he's had drivers out for 2-3 weeks that never get a tarped load so he never gets the chance to teach them how to do it. We get the load secured and tarped and he drives for about 2 hrs until his time runs out. Tomorrow I'll be driving first thing. We're relaying the trailer to Gallup, NM then picking up a load to CA. This will be my first mountain drive. Pretty much a 6% climb for about 12 miles. Wish me luck!!

I'll do my best to keep these posts coming asap. Take care and be safe out there.

AZ Scooby, so glad to hear your flat-bedding career is getting off to a great start! Keep us posted, we've got quite a few flat-bedders in here right now and I'm sure some of the new folks will be interested in your updates. When I first joined this forum I was the only new person interested in flat-bedding, of course I had our flat-bedding matriarch StarCar to provide encouragement and tips along my way, but now there's a growing crowd in here.

Roehl is a great place to get your start. Hang in there, if it gets tough (and it will) just realize your training time is short and it will soon be over. Of course then you'll be wishing you had that trainer back the first time you take a wrong turn and have to drive 35 out of route miles just to find ample space to turn that behemoth around. I just remembered that Roehl's training time is shorter than most, so pay attention and learn all you can. When they turn you loose you've got a family of support right here when you have questions.

Andy sounds like your getting right down to business. That's great. I was told since I'm going through their school they will do phase one there before they send me to my terminal. I'm very interested in your trip. Going to take my permit test in a couple hours. The training supervisor here told me I would go straight to phase 2 once I hit the terminal. Their phase 2 he said is around 13 days, however student dependant. He said they shoot for 3000 miles, at least that's his take from the Atlanta terminal. I would think it's the company standard. Stay safe out there.