Looking For Training And Need Answer For If A Fit For Lease Would Work For My Wife And Me

I am wanting to train and get with a company that would allow my wife and cat to go with me full time. I have been on here before I am 58 in Phoenix Az. I am not a large man 5ft 8 170 but would love to have my wife and pet travel full time with me. What I am wondering is even thou most shy or run you say from lease opportunities are any of them worth it at all if the situation fits? I mean my wife and me with our pet would be fine with living full time in the truck and on time off staying in a nice hotel and from what I read the lease owner programs offer better trucks with more ameneties in them like fridges etc. Just wondered what you all think.

thank you Ron

Ron, you're asking us a question of which you seem to already know our answer, but yet you still want to ask us. I'm going to be real frank with you. There is nothing glamorous about life in a truck. If it were all peaches and cream you wouldn't have a bunch of people doing this who seem like they haven't bathed or brushed their teeth in a few weeks. I don't care if you have leather seats, a refrigerator, an APU , and an automatic ice maker in there with you - it's still life in a truck, and when you have two people and a pet that needs a litter box in there you've got a very cramped living arrangement that any wife and cat no matter how faithful they are is going to get frustrated with in a short amount of time. And the fact that you are losing the shirt off your back at the same time because you were so headstrong that this (leasing) was the best way to make it work for your "situation" is only going to make it worse.

Ron, you don't even know if you can make it as a truck driver yet. Are you aware that the turnover rate is 100%? This is a tough career to break into for the rookies, mostly because people get into it with some sort of romantic ideas about how great it is going to be cruising the countryside like a bunch of well paid tourists, and then getting completely blind-sided with reality about three months into it.

You need to try and do this for at least a year as a company driver before you go getting yourself into a ridiculously steep financial commitment with outrageous lease payments on a big truck. Seriously, you could buy a nice house for your wife and cat to live in for much less money than you would be paying for that lease, and they would have a lot more amenities than you could ever cram into a truck, plus they could stretch their legs and walk around a little if they wanted to.

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.

I am wanting to train and get with a company that would allow my wife and cat to go with me full time. I have been on here before I am 58 in Phoenix Az. I am not a large man 5ft 8 170 but would love to have my wife and pet travel full time with me.

thank you Ron

Ron; I'm right there with you budded. As to the desire to take a rider and a pet. I'm here looking for almost the same answerer's.

For us it's a little dog. Company truck, No lease.

As to living in a small box with just the three of you, I can say this. We have lived full time in our dumpy old 30 foot rv for years as I have worked all over the country. We love it. For us home is where we park it.

We love the travel. Not the places we stay. Living full time on the road is Not like a full time vacation. It's hard, Scary and awesome all at the same time.

I will try to PM you so we can keep in touch. I am hopeful to get on with a company as a company driver.

Thank you Tramp

1) There's really no such thing as a good leasing program, but one that's survivable usually requires team driving to make the truck payments consistently which is why most lease drivers are team drivers or trainers.

2) You absolutely do not want to get into leasing a truck as a brand new driver. Trucking is difficult enough in the beginning. But to have to learn the trade and learn to run a business at the same time? Recipe for disaster.

And you definitely don't want to take the risk of starting a business with huge overhead and a high failure rate so you can have your wife and a cat with you. You can have them with you as a company driver and eliminate the risk and difficulty of running a business.

Jim P, I just have to say, great beard bro.

I have to agree with Old School and Brett. I know a few of the big name company's Will get a Driver fresh out of school and put them in the Lease program. Sure, it looks great, Your own truck. That Percentage of load....oh wait no, See that is where they get you. A lot of company's you lease a truck from and pull their freight pay you a set amount. something like 90 CPM or something. Lets see, In Florida Fuel is roughly $4 a gallon, it bounces around a bit but you get the picture. Leasing a truck from a company, You have to make that truck payment EVERY week, Doesn't if you're on home time or in the shop. And they control you, Remember, they are the ones controlling the mileage you get.

Before I actually set my cheeks on that seat, I thought trucking was straight forward. It isn't. It has all these nicks and loop holes round abouts. I mean I have just under two years pulling Flatbeds and in all honesty, I think I know this game but in truth. I am still a newbie and not ready to jump in that part of trucking. I do know that when I am ready I wont lease from a company. I will lease from a dealer type and sign on that company as a O/O and make my payments to a third party. And still they control my Mileage unless it's a company where I book my loads via load board or what not. This life has its high sides, but it also has it's dark sides to go along with it. Long periods of time living in a small living space, I have a dog he's been riding with me from the start. It is wonderful, but a cat? remember, you live in a small air tight space, that litter box is going to whew, I can't imagine. Research Research Research, The company you are interested in, Going through a company sponsored school or a private school? Talk to drivers of the companies. Not just one. If you ask me about my carrier, I will tell you it's great, But I have also talk to other drivers of the company and they are miserable here. I got lucky with my DM , Sure a DM is just that person in the first line of when you start calling the carrier but if you and your DM but heads you will suffer. Go talk to multiple drivers. Ask questions. It is a huge choice and It is hard on relationships and family. You will live through either phone calls or Skype. Just starting out as a company driver is tough. As a lease driver you are swamped. You are responsible for the cost. Most the time you don't get lay over or break down pay. and if you don't go into it with a healthy bank account it can destroy you financially. I don't mean to sound like I am a super trucker and anti owner op. Trust me, my long term goal is to own my own tractor and trailer and run under my own authority. Be my own broker and pick my own loads. Go home when I want and not have to worry about that truck payment or being side lined by some desk jockey who won't work with me and get with the load planner to give me the miles I can run. But I also know I'm not ready for that part of this business.

Put in a year as a company driver. that will give you a little more of an understanding of the REALITY part of trucking. Sure those ads about leasing your own truck with a company and being your own boss does sound mighty good. When you lease from a company there's a high chance its a stupid or trainer company, meaning the trucks have been driven hard by and maybe the team drivers were new and just ran through the mud. Don't get me wrong I've heard of trucks with high mileage and still having a great clutch because the driver floated the gears. I use a clutch to get rolling from a stop and when I stop. That's just me, some people prefer to double clutch. Anyway You will be getting a high mileage truck not knowing anything about how it was driven. They preach about it being your truck and your own boss, but you are very limited in what you can do to that truck. Remember most companies don't ever plan for that truck to actually be yours. When the lease is nearing it's either buy off date or release a "newer" truck they can and have forced drivers to go into debt but making them sit. As a company driver having to sit means you aren't making ANY money. as a lease driver if they make you sit, You still have that truck payment, insurance payment and so forth. Leasing is a whole different ball game make sure you are ready and have a cushion to fall back on.

Hope this helps and sorry for the length, as always, Stay safe out there.