Knight A Good Company??

My kids’ dad will take them for the duration of my training so they’ll be ok. The training is 3 weeks, if that’s the route we go. If they can train me locally I’m sure I’ll train for at least 4+ weeks.

A big commitment for sure but this is what I have to do to provide the life my kids deserve. It’ll be hard but I’ll make it, I had my kids with their dad during my schooling to get my CDL as well and it was really hard not seeing them but my training will be in Utah most likely and if I’m in Utah then I can visit my kids while they’re with their dad.

My sweet girls are ages 6 & 3, my youngest is about to be 4 in March. They are a handful, but worth the headache as all children are ❤️

And yes I’ve got back up plans! Thank you for all the great leads and ideas!

Take it! Knight is a great company with great training. Personally I’d say take it. Weekends off while local? Rare.

Indeed, it is. Took Tom awhile to find his great opportunity with FAB. Bringing rig home is a plus for us, as well. (Are you still w/ current company?)

Thank you guys!! I’m actually really excited! My only concern is that I don’t know yet what start and end times I’ll have, I just know it’s 10hr shifts so I’m hoping to be able to work something out where I’ll at least be able to take kids to school and have someone pick them up. That would be ideal, this company seems to be honestly family oriented and the recruiter even told me she would talk about me being trained by a local driver as well to possibly not have to do the OTR training so I can be with my kids.

I guess all of this sounds too good to be true so that’s why I posted, but you guys seem to think it’sa great opportunity! Hopefully I can hear from people who have worked or currently work for Knight! Thank you guys!!

Shantiwa, it sounds like they really DO want you, if they're going to try to accommodate training you locally. If that doesn't come to fruition, will you be able to have your kids taken care of, for 30K miles OTR? Girl, I sure hope so . . . that's a HUGE commitment, but if that's what it takes, I sure pray you've got a family member or somebody, that can enable you to successfully DO just that, with NO hiccups or distractions! :) That's important, girl. If you mentioned it, I missed it... but how old are the kiddos? Just curious. Mine were 4 and 'zero' when my hubby got into OTR!! LoL..

Best wishes, m'lady! I'm excited for you, and this rare opportunity! (Did you ever inquire into the leads that I and Banks supplied you, in the other thread, JIC? (Just in Case?)

I'm pulling for THIS one, to work, tho!

~ Anne ~

I have been with knight 3.5 years and this is where i will make my final stand

I actually just got off the phone with the recruiter and unfortunately because of how far I live from Denver her manager said I actually can’t take the truck home every night 😞 I’m not really sure what to do about this hiccup in the process. Should I still take the job??

I have been with knight 3.5 years and this is where i will make my final stand

How long will the commute be?

How long will the commute be?

Exactly. The round trip commute will add to those 10-hour days. You'll have to decide if that is worth it or not. Pros and cons, ya know.

70 miles in Denver type traffic 😬 It can easily turn into 2 hours just to get home. In traffic In the morning out can be around 1.5 hours

How long will the commute be?

Seen you mentioned 30,000 miles training? If so, that's like maybe 6 weeks @ 5k a week but it sounds like a great first job, as long as it ain't a dollar general or such type gig lol

Hopefully, THIS or something will pan out and get you on the road !!

I kept telling the recruiter that I couldn’t do this position unless I could bring the rig home and she promised up and down that I could, then called and said I couldn’t bring the rig home 😞

How long will the commute be?

Exactly. The round trip commute will add to those 10-hour days. You'll have to decide if that is worth it or not. Pros and cons, ya know.

I don't think I have made any comment on Shantiwa's problems with landing a job. She has obviously been shaking the bushes pretty heavily and coming up empty handed repeatedly. I have been following along silently. I have wanted to comment several times, but have just been hoping something would turn up for her.

For those other newbies who may be wondering why a person could have such a hard time getting a trucking job when there is an obvious demand for truck drivers, I want to point out some things that are working against Shantiwa. This industry is obviously male dominated. That has nothing to do with men being better at the job. It has to do with their availability. Women who have children at home are seriously limited in the availability needed for this job. I actually chuckled when the recruiter from Knight claimed the job was a 10 hour shift. That is not how trucking works. We don't have a start time and an end time that stays consistent each day. We stick with the job until it is done. There is no way for Shantiwa to know this. They could say anything to her. She is less likely to understand this career than the recruiter.

I always recommend folks start out as OTR drivers. There are a lot of sound reasons for that. Unfortunately Shantiwa simply cannot do that. I wish she could. She would already be out there earning a great paycheck and she would be learning to operate a big rig as a professional. She is stuck trying to find a needle in a haystack job that rarely exists for inexperienced drivers. What's worse is that if she finds it she is likely to make a few mistakes that will get her fired. That is not a criticism of her abilities. They are fine I'm sure. It is the reality of why these type jobs are reserved for experienced drivers. A local job in Denver is going to be super challenging and have a whole set of difficulties that are best faced by someone who knows what they are doing.

I keep trying to come up with ways I could suggest something that would be helpful, but I am at a loss. Personally I think the best thing for you Shantiwa would be to check with your local city or county. They might have a driving job that would have somewhat regular hours. Think about a garbage truck, or maybe looking into your county maintenance department. I just don't know what to tell you. Have you looked up Waste Management in the Denver area? They sometimes hire new drivers for Class A and Class B jobs. They will likely have something with a little bit of a schedule to it. I would give that a try.

I feel for you. I know you have put so much effort into this, and probably had no idea it would be this tough to find employment. You are just in a difficult situation. I am sure you would make a great driver, but you have other demands on yourself. As a father, I didn't start this career until my children were grown. I was a busy business owner, but I was able to be home a lot when my children were young. As a professional driver, I am gone most of the time. My wife and I manage it in a way that works for us, but this is a demanding career. It is not ideal on any level for a young mother who has the main responsibility of taking care of her children.

I wish you the best, and I am still following along hoping to see you catch a break somehow. Just remember, when you do get that first job, you have got to be extra careful. Do your best to have zero accidents and be as productive as you can while being as safe as you can.

. I actually chuckled when the recruiter from Knight claimed the job was a 10 hour shift. That is not how trucking works. We don't have a start time and an end time that stays consistent each day. We stick with the job until it is done. There is no way for Shantiwa to know this. They could say anything to her. She is less likely to understand this career than the recruiter.

I'm perplexed as to why you continue to believe no trucker has a set start time? Most local jobs do. End times can very based on thousands of circumstances but depending on the company and run can be semi predictable. Most of the P&D drivers in my region average 10 hour days and start at the same time everyday.

Unfortunately, not everyone can or wants to go OTR that doesn't mean they should give up as you always imply. She has had offers and leads unfortunately location seems to be be the biggest hang up right now. The closer you are to a major city the more options one has.

Shantiwa a 3 hour commute after what could end up being a 14 hour work day will be killer. OD is a great company and it seems like your best option now in my unbiased opinion. We have several P&D who are older and not in the best shape it wouldn't hurt to see what they offer.