Pride Transport Inc New Driver Training Review
Topic 19416 | Page 1
I thought I'd post an update now that I've been solo for almost four months. I'm really enjoying it out here driving with Pride Transport. I've been to 28 states so far. I spend a lot of time in the mountains out west, but also get over to OH, PA, MD, NJ, etc. Lately it seems like I've been mostly in UT, NV, CA, AZ. My favorite drive so far is probably up into Idaho through Twin Falls...I need to spend a few days there sometime.
I had the direct TV removed after I found that it didn't work for me. Instead I got an unlimited cell plan with Verizon and a Roku stick. I removed the small TV mounted on a bracket in a shelf and instead suspended a nice 32" TV from the end of the upper bunk...mounted a sound bar below it and now I can put a microwave on that shelf. Extra stuff required to make all this work best included a UPS and a Mi-Fi device...actually the later was really only made necessary because I put in an Amazon Echo Dot and now Alexa is in charge of everything. I should make a special post just about that.
Safe and happy trails to all...
Dave
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.
Glad you came back to post an update! I'm still 12-18 months away from the career switch but your post gave me some good stuff to think about: tech'ing up your truck. I think I could have a lot of fun trying to cram in some high tech stuff like you did: mounting a larger tv, sound bar, putting Alexa in charge (haha). Please post more when you get a chance. I'd love to hear more about your rookie year, where you go, and how you've customized the inside of your truck.
Glad you came back to post an update! I'm still 12-18 months away from the career switch but your post gave me some good stuff to think about: tech'ing up your truck. I think I could have a lot of fun trying to cram in some high tech stuff like you did: mounting a larger tv, sound bar, putting Alexa in charge (haha). Please post more when you get a chance. I'd love to hear more about your rookie year, where you go, and how you've customized the inside of your truck.
I'm really enjoying the Echo Dot. I use it non stop for everything. I usually play some Amazon Music channel. Sometimes a song will pop into my head that I want to hear and then I have Alexa switch to that. I also have her turn on my baseball games when the Detroit Tigers are playing, have her control audio books from Audible, give me a daily sports update, daily news briefing, etc. I'm going to get a light that I can have her control in the back, haven't done that yet. I just ordered a Hot Logic Mini, mostly so that I can reheat items if I have a large meal from a restaurant that I didn't finish. I found some disposable pans the right size with metal lids. I can't deal with clean up :-).
My amateur TV mounting seems to be holding up well - still secure after a couple weeks bouncing around. I attached a conventional wall mount to the side window by getting some longer screws and washers.
I still want to get a We Boost cell signal booster...need a big pile of money for that. Right now I'm in Pennsylvania and never have a problem getting a signal in this part of the country, but out west in the middle of no where, it can be a different story. I almost never have trouble getting a good signal wherever I park, but going down the road in the middle of a rural part of a western state sometimes I lose signal. When that happens now, I switch to satellite radio or a CD or a stored audio book. But I am going to become a trainer in a couple of months and then will be teaming a large part of the time so I'll want non-stop Internet. I'm thinking of getting a DVR to help with that along with a gadget to allow capture of streaming video.
Dave
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.
OOS:
When a violation by either a driver or company is confirmed, an out-of-service order removes either the driver or the vehicle from the roadway until the violation is corrected.
Hey Dave, are you still at pride? I am considering going back OTR and was interested in them.
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.
New Reply:
New! Check out our help videos for a better understanding of our forum features
Preview:
Why Join Trucking Truth?
- The High Road Training Program
- The High Road Article Series
- The Friendliest Trucker's Forum Ever!
- Email Updates When New Articles Are Posted
Apply For Paid CDL Training Through TruckingTruth
Did you know you can fill out one quick form here on TruckingTruth and apply to several companies at once for paid CDL training? Seriously! The application only takes one minute. You will speak with recruiters today. There is no obligation whatsoever. Learn more and apply here:
TT On Facebook
I obtained my CDL last year but didn't get started in the industry. Actually, I went to Roehl and following their very short training I had trouble with backing and they dismissed me. Recently I decided to try again, and after researching a number of companies, I began training with Pride Transport based in Salt Lake City.
I informed Pride that I didn't really have a permanent home base these days but have relatives in Maryland and Michigan, so they could consider my home location to be either of those. Pride advised that they don't have regular customers in either state and haven't hired from them historically, but now they are in a growth mode and are willing to offer candidates from states that they don't regularly travel to a deal wherein we're out for five to six weeks, and then they'll fly us wherever we need to go for home time of five to six days. This works for me, so I signed up.
Orientation is 3.5 days in Salt Lake City, beginning on a Monday. Pride flew me from BWI to SLC on my preferred airline. The recruiting director that I spoke with also runs the orientation program. He (Steve Schelin) and other Pride team members do a great job. Pride puts you up in a single motel room that is decent and has a breakfast. Lunch is furnished at the terminal. Dinner is on your own, but they give the attendees a van to use for the evenings.
Everyone that I met was very cordial and professional.
Drug tests and physicals on Monday, followed by briefings. Tuesday and Wednesday more briefings, videos, etc. One day is devoted to safety with briefings from a safety department representative. Thursday morning you meet your dispatcher , training supervisor, and have the opportunity to attend classes on Reefers and Chaining. (All Pride trailers are temperature-control units)
Experienced drivers are given a road test, then assigned a truck and sent out on Thursday. Semi-experienced drivers are assigned to a trainer for a 50-hour evaluation. Students (like me) are assigned to a trainer and sent out for a minimum of 100 hours supervised sol driving followed by a minimum of 200 hours team driving. I completed the time in the 300 hour minimum and was taken back to SLC for training. A 40 question written test is administered on mapping, company policies, etc. No essays - multiple choice and true/false. Then a pre-trip, hooking, road test, backing, and drop test is administered. It is lengthy and challenging. There is one right turn that is impossible :-), but you must make that without curbing.
My trainer (Eric) prepared me very well for the tests and I passed easily (unlike last year with Roehl, in which I did poorly). The time on the trainer's truck was fabulous; I experienced none of the problems often described. Eric was very generous in sharing the space in the truck, was courteous, polite, and professional at all times, and was a joy to get to know and travel with...at least as much of a joy that it can be with two guys trapped in a box for several weeks. I began the orientation process on March 13 and tested out on April 28th. At that point, there was a load available going to Maryland that delivered about 45 miles from Baltimore - this was unexpected but fortunate for me - so they assigned that load to me and I delivered it yesterday, then proceeded to Baltimore, parked at the TA, and now I have five days home time. (I didn't ask for more)
The truck that I was assigned is a 2017 Freightliner in immaculate condition. It had about 65,000 miles on it when I pulled out of the terminal and looks brand new. Steve Schelin (Director of Recruiting and Retention) also assigns the trucks. He asked me what type of truck I wanted and I said, "all I ask is that it hasn't been smoked in". Steve replied, "no problem". Pride has all new equipment. They lease trucks from the sellers for 2 to 3 years. They have just the one terminal in SLC. Much of their freight goes to, from, or through SLC, but in the last six weeks I've been in at least 23 states. The whole experience has been wonderful.
Some other things I've learned at Pride thus far:
1) Mostly automatic transmissions. 2) Lots of Freightliners, Western Stars. Some Peterbilts. 3) Most of the vehicle computers are DriverTech. Some are PeopleNet. I trained on DriverTech, but my assigned truck has the PeopleNet. 4) The parts manager (Gregg) will issue an air pressure gauge, tread depth gauge, tire inflation hose with glad hand connector, spare fuses, spare glad hand seals and spacers, triangles. Upon request, he'll issue a memory-foam mattress that you can put on top of the basic mattress - the combination is fabulous; I couldn't ask for a more comfortable bed. 5) Trucks are equipped with refrigerators. They'll install an invertor upon request and payroll-deduct the cost of the equipment (no charge for installation). They'll install a director TV antenna/receiver/DVR all for free, and there is an incentive program to avoid the subscription charge. We have to provide the TV mounting bracket and the TV. They'll also install most other accessories if no drilling into the truck required. You supply the parts, they'll install for free. They'll move your stuff from truck to truck at no charge when you're upgraded to a newer truck which will happen every one to two years. 6) Pride pays daily! 7) No APUs.
If you have questions, let me know - there is more to tell but I'm out of space.
Dave Reid
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
Terminal:
A facility where trucking companies operate out of, or their "home base" if you will. A lot of major companies have multiple terminals around the country which usually consist of the main office building, a drop lot for trailers, and sometimes a repair shop and wash facilities.
Dispatcher:
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.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.Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.OWI:
Operating While Intoxicated
APU:
Auxiliary Power Unit
On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.
Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.
APUs:
Auxiliary Power Unit
On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.
Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.