I've Applied To Attend Driver Training At Swift Academy Phoenix

Reality check…

Once you are solo, unless there is a pressing need to enter a terminal , like for service, don’t.

Don’t believe everything you hear; truth almost always sits in the middle of two stories, and you only heard one side. Truckers are notorious complainers. Tune it out! Don’t let any negativity penetrate your shell of positivity.

E-logs will go-down, as do GPS (Navigo), count on it. I’ve run paper at least once per year during my time with Swift. There was a huge outage a few years ago, we were running dark for over a week. Had to call-in macros (how most company drivers communicate with the mothership). Always be prepared to run paper.

Drug tests can be ordered randomly, any time, even for students. Weekend partying…etc. You are now in the world of zero tolerance for alcohol and drugs.

Enjoying your diary.

Terminals are a good, safe bet for many of the major cities. Swift has a bunch of terminals scattered around these tough-to-find-parking locales. You should be able to utilize Knight terminals, too.

Hi G-Town, any reality checks from you are encouraged and welcome. I will remind myself terminals are mostly for service or times I can not find parking.

I've done well tuning out the negativity of drivers, but I include it in the diary so new readers can see it's kinda prevalent and it can for the most part be dismissed. I'm happy you believe I have a shell of positivity. I believe it too!

We are practicing logs daily now, and getting in the habit of only logging what we've actually done. No "pre-logging" allowed. We log midnight to 8 am as off duty. Eight am to noon as on duty. Noon to 1 pm as off duty. One pm to 5 pm as on duty. And 5 pm to midnight as off duty. There are three flags during our day. The first is Phoenix, AZ/Classroom. The second is Phoenix, AZ/Lunch and the third is Phoenix, AZ/Off duty. We are also learning to keep our eight days rolling total, etc. It's all good practice I'm sure. Better to know what to do when called upon than not.

Yesterday's random drug test on a Monday morning has a few of us kinda freaked out. None of us did any drugs, but we did have beers, not together, but at our homes in and around Phoenix. Those beers were consumed over the weekend, including on an off-duty Sunday night. We found out today that even though the DOT limit for alcohol is 0.04, the Swift limit is ZERO. Apparently, the five-panel drug test does not specify alcohol testing, but if Swift does do that, and such tests really goes back 80 hours (into the weekend) as the internet seems to indicate, several of us will show alcohol-in-the-pee from the weekend. I really hope that does not mean any of us are dismissed. No one ever told us we could not drink when off duty. We've only received the guidance of not consuming alcohol "four hours before" reporting for duty. In real life, ignorance of a rule generally won't mean you dodge the consequence. I will be crushed if this results in anyone being ineligible to continue with training. Especially me. I have a whole new life ahead of me.

I'm happy you enjoy my diary, G-Town. I enjoy your candid posts and responses throughout the forum. You and others have built a valuable resource here. I appreciate you all.

Reality check…

Once you are solo, unless there is a pressing need to enter a terminal , like for service, don’t.

Don’t believe everything you hear; truth almost always sits in the middle of two stories, and you only heard one side. Truckers are notorious complainers. Tune it out! Don’t let any negativity penetrate your shell of positivity.

E-logs will go-down, as do GPS (Navigo), count on it. I’ve run paper at least once per year during my time with Swift. There was a huge outage a few years ago, we were running dark for over a week. Had to call-in macros (how most company drivers communicate with the mothership). Always be prepared to run paper.

Drug tests can be ordered randomly, any time, even for students. Weekend partying…etc. You are now in the world of zero tolerance for alcohol and drugs.

Enjoying your diary.

Hi PackRat, the array of terminals is one of the reasons I steered toward Swift for training and post-training employment. It's comforting to think I have 30 "homes" across the country if need be. Parking, or lack thereof, in the great wide open, is one of the reasons I'd like to get to know some of the Swift terminals. Unless parking at Swift is also a problem? Some of them may be pretty small. I'd never thought of that! The access to Knight terminals will come in handy in places where Swift has no terminal. Idaho Falls, Idaho, comes to mind. That is where I grew up and where my parents still live.

Thanks for following along.

Terminals are a good, safe bet for many of the major cities. Swift has a bunch of terminals scattered around these tough-to-find-parking locales. You should be able to utilize Knight terminals, too.

Monday 19 September 2022 Day six of 20 at Swift Driver Academy in Phoenix, Arizona.

The academy here in Phoenix is four weeks long, and today was day one of our second week. This morning we took a complete tour of the Swift compound. It included a stop at an on-campus medical office, where we all had a urine drug test. There was no advance warning, and it seemed odd to me the company would pay for another one of these after doing one a couple of weeks ago at my DOT physical. They must have their reasons. Maybe some students think since they cleared the initial drug test, another could not soon follow. Surprise!

Part of our tour was spent at the Driver Center or driver lounge. Inside is a semi truck set up as a coffee stand. I asked one of the drivers seated there if he likes to spend time at Swift terminals across the country. He was pretty blunt with his "not really." He likes the Phoenix terminal , and that's about it. Other drivers chimed in with high marks for Lancaster (near Dallas, Texas) and West Valley City (Near Salt Lake City, Utah). The ones they were especially critical of I will see for myself soon enough. No need to spread negativity about things I've not yet experienced. Suffice it to say for now, in the Swift universe, it may be hard to beat Phoenix for driver amenities.

As we made our way through the Driver Center, we encountered a couple of other drivers who recognized our trainer. He asked them how things were going, and the responses were not good. “There have been several times I’ve just about left the truck on the side of the road,” one said. Hmm… Not what I would say in front of a group of people I know are academy students. Another obviously had similar concerns but would not voice them in front of students. He told the trainer he’d just switched assignments at Swift, and will reach out to the trainer in a week or two to let him know how things are going. While I was surprised by the answers from those two drivers, I’m also kinda proud of them. Some days are diamonds, some days are coal. But they are still here, gutting it out for the diamond days. That will be me very soon. I’m glad they are hanging on. So many others just quit.

We spent much of the day learning about daily logs and how to fill them out, just in case our digital logs ever betray us. We were shown several examples of logs drivers tried to fudge. Not really smart considering all the ways the company has to track your movements. The takeaway here, is don’t try to cheat the systems that are in place. They are more consistently reliable that your subterfuge.

Toward the end of the day, we talked a little about the mentor matching process. That’s for the trainer truck we will be on for four to six weeks after graduation. We were told we get to specify whether we prefer a male or female trainer and whether that person is a smoker or a non-smoker. I don’t really have preferences based on gender or tobacco usage. I want a mentor who is the right blend of patient and pushy. Patient enough not to jump all over me for minor mistakes, but pushy enough to show me what running as hard as I can legally and safely looks like so I actually know it is possible. At least that’s what I THINK I want. We’ll see how much that changes if I actually get one!

For what my 3pence is worth; I think your outlook in the last paragraph above, speaks volumes. When Tom was in your shoes, his needs / requests were simple...just like yours. Basic, yet thorough. Not too chatty. Pushy, but not 'showy...' tolerable. He'd called it 'aggressively assertive.' Sure did pay off, too! Your approach to ALL above, sounds awesome.

Sounds like a plan, Stan! Ya won't have to Hop on the bus, Gus ! Ya don't even need to .. Discuss Much, NOR drop off the Key, ya see?!? (If anyone gets that ... I'm showing my hand, my age, my .... wits! (Yeah, that's it!) HAHA!)

Whether or not you've read these; or if you'll have time at this stage, maybe sneak in a minute. Excellent blogs on JUST THAT subject here for ya:

Trucking Blogs: Types of Trainers, and How To Deal with Them ! Epic Training Blogs, etc!

Best from us, good sir;

~ Anne & Tom ~

ps: All the accolades, kudos, and encouragement you're receiving... is solid.

Tuesday 20 September 2022 I was wrong about there being no more tests until we take our final CDL exams. Between now and Friday, we will receive Entry Level Driver Training as required by the US Department of Transportation. We must earn at least 80% on each chapter quiz to pass, and it looks like there are about 30 chapters. We covered the first 10 chapters today (everyone passed!), and the plan is to do 10 more tomorrow, and 11 more on Thursday. Most of the content sounds familiar. It’s actually good for me to hear the consistency of language because it will be central to my professional life very soon.

It’s interesting to see the change in the demeanor of the students who were in our shoes last week. They are far more serious now that they are on the pad, learning the specifics of the pre-trip inspection , the backing maneuvers, and the road test. It’s not that they no longer laugh and kid around, because they do. There’s just a lot less of it. Their focus is noticeably specific.

Watching students practice parallel parking is something I get to do a few times a day. It’s nice to have Charles, our week one instructor, out there giving commentary. He says students get caught up thinking they have to do every maneuver perfectly when in reality, all they have to do is put the truck in the designated spot. Good enough is good enough. If it’s in, it’s in. It does not have to be perfect.

Wednesday 21 September 2022 We got badges today! Now instead of clocking in and out using the bar code on the back of our state-issued driver's licenses, we can clock in and out using our Swift Academy badges.

It rained on and off most of the day. What a welcome change from sunny and hot. Even in September, daytime highs of 100 degrees are common in Phoenix, and it’s nice to have a break from that.

As planned, we covered 10 more Entry Level Driver Training chapters and chapter quizzes today. We all did well. Again, the content is familiar, and again, I am grateful. Even though it’s all book learning so far – not driving learning – it’s good to know there is guidance about how to do the job of a professional truck driver.

A few times during class today we heard air horns out on the pad. Another student just passed their tests and earned their CDL!

Yesterday I had forgotten my lunch at home, so bought a sandwich from the break room vending machine. One of my classmates saw that and felt bad for me. This morning, she told me she brought me lunch. A sandwich, a small bag of chips and a donut. What a nice surprise! She is so kind, and I thanked her. It’s nice to know people still look out for each other. I’ll find a way to repay the favor.

Wow, Michael !!!

Sounds like youu've got a really heckuva group going on, man!!!

Awh, what a sweet gal; I'd have done the same, for ya. Bring her a healthy treat, like a fruit & yogurt dealio ~!

I'm following, hun!!

~ Anne ~

Thursday 22 September 2022 Today we completed all the chapters and quizzes for Entry Level Driver Training. One was about trip planning, which I think is interesting. Route selection can sometimes offer many options, but other times, one. Our trainer told us about a resource I wasn’t really aware of, the 511 website of each state department of transportation. I used the Oregon site when I lived there so I could see when snow was hitting Mount Hood. Oregon’s road cam at Government Camp was an instant resource. Turns out, every state has a similar offering of live or nearly live cameras! In class, we took some time and looked at the 511 cameras in Wyoming. Man, that’s some wide-open country where I-90 meets I-25 in Buffalo, Wyoming!

Friday 23 September 2022 We started our last day in the classroom by leaving it, taking a van to a nearby health clinic for our pre-employment drug test. Three drug tests in three weeks seems a little excessive, but it makes sense for what Swift needs to do to keep drug users out of their academy and off their payroll. We spent the rest of the day doing Swift new hire orientation. It’s a lot of information to digest. After hearing about the compensation and benefits, I’m still confident I’ve made a good choice for me by going with Swift.

Monday 26 September 2022 Our first day on the pad! We’ve been reading the pretrip inspection for a couple of weeks, but what a difference seeing a truck and trailer up close makes! There are real leaf springs and U-bolts under there, not just words on a page!

We took turns pulling forward and straight backing. Throttle control takes some getting used to. The speed limit on the pad is two miles per hour. Most of us went faster than that because we weren’t yet familiar with the throttle, but it will come with time. Braking was choppy at first but we figured out how to smooth that out pretty quickly. We also got to try offset backing. Our instructor, April, told us one of her goals on the pad is to teach us how to fix whatever trouble we experience in backing so when we are out there on our own in a couple of months, we’re going to know what to do. We’re going to know how to fix it.

For offset backing, once we get the trailer close to being parallel with the parking spot, all we have to do is a straight back. Sounds simple but it’s gonna take practice, which I’m sure we’ll get a lot of. We also got to drive around the track. The track has a slightly higher speed limit of five miles per hour. I got reminded several times during my loop around to maintain five miles per hour, and it wasn’t because I was going too slow. I’m still learning the throttle. There’s a delay there and it’s taking me some time to get the feel for it.

There was lots of new learning today. More than ever, I can see myself doing this job, and having the confidence to “fix it” when things need fixing. It was a great day.

Great diary. It once again proves Swift runs an excellent training program. You definitely heeded the advice as to not join the negative naysayers. Best of luck before you know it you will be in your own truck scared $)&less at first praying your trainer/instructor was still there w you. Hammer down!

Micheal great thread. You have gotten some great advice from everyone in here so far. I may bump in to you early next week as I’ll probably be dropping into Pheonix for a load, groceries and a shower. I’m a swift flatbed mentor. Keep your spirits up focus on each step of the processes and don’t overthink things too much, before you know it we wil be running down the road together. Swift is a great company overall with a lot of great people working hard for the drivers in the background supporting us. One of the keys is building relationships with those you work with. For example I communicate well with my planners and driver leaders they know how I like to run, and I know what they expect. As you develop the relationships it makes it easier for you. If I can help or answer a question feel free to reach out.