Dreamed Of Trucking For Years

Avoid any dedicated accounts with the word "Dollar" in the title. With Swift, you may be able to get onto a dedicated Walmart account, which I would highly recommend after successfully completing your road training.

Avoid any dedicated accounts with the word "Dollar" in the title. With Swift, you may be able to get onto a dedicated Walmart account, which I would highly recommend after successfully completing your road training.

Good to know! Thank you.

Justin, does that 34hr reset each week work for you? I mean, do you think it will be a schedule you'd like to be on long-term?

I only ask bc I did not like the short "weekend" at all. I did something similar for 6 months and that 34 hour reset felt more like a tease. It was difficult to get things done, see friends, and plan when to sleep during that 34hr period. I honestly preferred staying out over the road for a month and having 4 days off in a row. Obviously your home situation might limit your options, so staying out for a month at a time might not work for you.

I'm certainly not trying to discourage you from accepting the offer from Swift. You might find it easier to adjust to that schedule than I did. Also, if you decide it is not a good schedule for you, you can ask Swift if there are other options available after you've gained some experience and proven yourself to be a reliable driver. Whatever you choose, I hope your dream of driving becomes your reality!

12 to 18 hours of that "34" could end up being sleep, so actual "doing things" may be only be one action-packed day in reality.

This is VERY valuable advice from Real Diehl. I drive regionally and am home every weekend. 34 sucks as I have seen a few times due to the W.T.F. factor that gets me home Saturday instead of Friday (Weather, Traffic, Freight) As PackRat mentioned, by the time you feel fresh to do something, its time to get back on the road.

Take it from a married man that is 5 months in the industry, get that weekend break as close to 48 hours as possible if you go regional. If that's the path you take, it should get easier to manage your schedule with getting home Friday night and leaving either Sunday night or Monday AM while getting the miles you need. As stated, after you prove yourself a safe and reliable team player, your fleet leader should work with you on a more consistent and balanced schedule. Work hard, be a team player, but make sure to manage your home time as best you can. Just remember if dispatch will not be flexible and run a hard 34 on your hometime provide you a divorce attorney if you don't respectfully and assertively state your expectations for home time and balance time with your spouse.

Lastly, beware of what recruiters tell you. It's their job to bring warm bodies to the table and critical items should be verified in writing before you make a decision.

Best of success buddy!!!

Justin, does that 34hr reset each week work for you? I mean, do you think it will be a schedule you'd like to be on long-term?

I only ask bc I did not like the short "weekend" at all. I did something similar for 6 months and that 34 hour reset felt more like a tease. It was difficult to get things done, see friends, and plan when to sleep during that 34hr period. I honestly preferred staying out over the road for a month and having 4 days off in a row. Obviously your home situation might limit your options, so staying out for a month at a time might not work for you.

I'm certainly not trying to discourage you from accepting the offer from Swift. You might find it easier to adjust to that schedule than I did. Also, if you decide it is not a good schedule for you, you can ask Swift if there are other options available after you've gained some experience and proven yourself to be a reliable driver. Whatever you choose, I hope your dream of driving becomes your reality!

Don't listen to idiots like that knuckle dragging inbred moron that runs the YouTube channel "Bonehead Truckers" and somehow galvanized like minded idiots to stick cameras in people's faces at truck stops that really does more harm than good. Swift is just another OTR company like any other. I can't say if they are any better or worse than what I experienced, but like others have said, they are one of the biggest if not THE biggest carrier in the country. And with that comes more opportunity for incidents to occur. I am alittle sour on the 34 hour reset at home thing personally. I just left a company that has it's main terminal 4 hours from my house. They assured me that I would be able to park the truck near my home for resets and home time only to slowly walk it back to the point where it was "whenever we get a load out there" or "only if it's a day or two otherwise the truck must come back" which was not what we agreed upon. So whatever carrier you interview with, make sure you ask very specific questions and hold their feet to the fire if they try to honey**** you into signing only to fail on the follow through once the honeymoon phase is over. I would say the biggest piece of personal advice I can offer is make sure the terminal is a reasonable driving distance from your house. DO NOT let them talk you into taking the truck home several hours away from the terminal. You will only get home if there just happens to be a load near your house and even then, I've seen load planner and DMs do really shady stuff just to save a buck on fuel.

Drew there's many members that live absolutely no where near their terminal and have zero issues getting home frequently. In fact many drivers try to stay as far away from the terminals as they can. The unfortunate circumstances that have rubbed you the wrong way at your previous company do not exist everywhere. Freight is not a perfect science and things can, and do go wrong that affect getting home on time. You can't fault a carrier for not wanting to burn fuel running you 200 miles out of route to get you home. I may not agree with aspects of the industry as a whole but what I view as a big deal may be a minor inconvenience or even a benefit to the next person.

You've developed this thinking that local is the only way to go in this industry. I'm glad you've found something that fits what you're looking for. With a young family at home I've also found something that has the hours and pay I desire. Personally I hate being labeled a trucker. It's nothing against my fellow drivers I'm simply a man wanting to make a living to support my family. After I hit the time clock the only thing I do or think about involving trucking is pop into this forum. Not everybody has the same circumstances. I personally know a couple guys that intentionally take jobs or loads that will keep them out overnight. They tell me they are madly in love with their wife but if they had to see each other every day it'd cause them to get a divorce. After a couple days together they're at each other throats and they're ready to hit the road again. I don't understand it but it works for them.

The beer gig you have has its pros/cons just like every other job out there. You're physically unloading in the elements risking injury. In my area they're only paying those guys about 60k a year. That type of work isn't worth if for that low pay in my opinion when there's less physical jobs out there paying higher. I got my start in food service and after seeing the toll it's taken on the older guys I knew I needed something less physical. In my area, the beer guys are all younger and in relatively good shape.

Thats what makes this industry so great. There's so many different things that require a CDL you're going to find exactly what it is you desire if you keep your license clean. Unfortunately there's some people that don't have the local work available in their area that pays what they feel they're worth. I commute 45 minutes in good weather and no traffic one way. That all eats away at my 10 hour break. Fortunately I have enough seniority now I'm working 9 to 10 hours a day usually but if I put in a 14 my break is now really an 8 hour break I need to shower, eat, spend time with my kids and wife, and somehow hope I have enough to sleep to be ready to do it again. If I wanted a job closer there are plenty hiring but only in the $20/hr range. My wife just finished schooling so once she gets her career started we may be able to financially swing it. I'm actually considering getting on with the state DOT but it pays about $15/hr less than I average now but benefits are much better and I'd shave off 35 miles one way and have a set schedule 7a to 3p m-f except on call for snow removal in winter.

This is VERY valuable advice from Real Diehl. I drive regionally and am home every weekend. 34 sucks as I have seen a few times due to the W.T.F. factor that gets me home Saturday instead of Friday (Weather, Traffic, Freight) As PackRat mentioned, by the time you feel fresh to do something, its time to get back on the road.

Take it from a married man that is 5 months in the industry, get that weekend break as close to 48 hours as possible if you go regional. If that's the path you take, it should get easier to manage your schedule with getting home Friday night and leaving either Sunday night or Monday AM while getting the miles you need. As stated, after you prove yourself a safe and reliable team player, your fleet leader should work with you on a more consistent and balanced schedule. Work hard, be a team player, but make sure to manage your home time as best you can. Just remember if dispatch will not be flexible and run a hard 34 on your hometime provide you a divorce attorney if you don't respectfully and assertively state your expectations for home time and balance time with your spouse.

Lastly, beware of what recruiters tell you. It's their job to bring warm bodies to the table and critical items should be verified in writing before you make a decision.

Best of success buddy!!!

Justin, does that 34hr reset each week work for you? I mean, do you think it will be a schedule you'd like to be on long-term?

I only ask bc I did not like the short "weekend" at all. I did something similar for 6 months and that 34 hour reset felt more like a tease. It was difficult to get things done, see friends, and plan when to sleep during that 34hr period. I honestly preferred staying out over the road for a month and having 4 days off in a row. Obviously your home situation might limit your options, so staying out for a month at a time might not work for you.

I'm certainly not trying to discourage you from accepting the offer from Swift. You might find it easier to adjust to that schedule than I did. Also, if you decide it is not a good schedule for you, you can ask Swift if there are other options available after you've gained some experience and proven yourself to be a reliable driver. Whatever you choose, I hope your dream of driving becomes your reality!

Thank you for cautioning me. I could see this potentially causing some strain if I can't manage the 34 hr weekend's. I understand this is a challenge but rewarding career. Without a doubt some sacrifices will have to be made. I'm going to be talking to the recruiter again soon so I'll get some more clarity on exactly what my schedule might be like and what accounts may open up.

Justin, does that 34hr reset each week work for you? I mean, do you think it will be a schedule you'd like to be on long-term?

Well this is a thought provoking question... My gut feeling is that I will adapt,. But I would be lying if I said I wasn't concerned at that small window of home time.

My experiences are anecdotal, sure, but having been with two mid sized carriers, I grew tired of the lip service. Besides, I was just cautioning based on my experiences. Sure maybe there are carriers out there that follow through on their word, but from my experience, I wasn't willing to flip a coin on if there was a load going to near my house or not. And doing a hard 34 with a 9 hour round trip in my personal vehicle wasn't something I agreed on. I understand there are people here that have been doing this longer than I've been alive and thats cool. I just got incredibly burnt out on the dragon chase. Deliberately not getting paid to do things that were clearly work related like fixing poorly maintained equipment and literally being told by weekend dispatch that I needed to do it after my 10 hours but before going on duty so they don't have to pay me breakdown pay etc. I'm sure there are people that are cool with unpaid layovers due to weather and fixing garbage equipment among other things that don't pay, but if I am doing anything work related (or living at work) I expect to be fairly compensated. That didn't happen. I'll take my overtime and leave my work at work from now on. But regardless, yeah, I do advise to be careful about the terminal location because the lip service is very real. And if a company uses the god awful phase of "we treat our drivers like family" run for the hills and don't look back.

Drew there's many members that live absolutely no where near their terminal and have zero issues getting home frequently. In fact many drivers try to stay as far away from the terminals as they can. The unfortunate circumstances that have rubbed you the wrong way at your previous company do not exist everywhere. Freight is not a perfect science and things can, and do go wrong that affect getting home on time. You can't fault a carrier for not wanting to burn fuel running you 200 miles out of route to get you home. I may not agree with aspects of the industry as a whole but what I view as a big deal may be a minor inconvenience or even a benefit to the next person.

You've developed this thinking that local is the only way to go in this industry. I'm glad you've found something that fits what you're looking for. With a young family at home I've also found something that has the hours and pay I desire. Personally I hate being labeled a trucker. It's nothing against my fellow drivers I'm simply a man wanting to make a living to support my family. After I hit the time clock the only thing I do or think about involving trucking is pop into this forum. Not everybody has the same circumstances. I personally know a couple guys that intentionally take jobs or loads that will keep them out overnight. They tell me they are madly in love with their wife but if they had to see each other every day it'd cause them to get a divorce. After a couple days together they're at each other throats and they're ready to hit the road again. I don't understand it but it works for them.

The beer gig you have has its pros/cons just like every other job out there. You're physically unloading in the elements risking injury. In my area they're only paying those guys about 60k a year. That type of work isn't worth if for that low pay in my opinion when there's less physical jobs out there paying higher. I got my start in food service and after seeing the toll it's taken on the older guys I knew I needed something less physical. In my area, the beer guys are all younger and in relatively good shape.

Thats what makes this industry so great. There's so many different things that require a CDL you're going to find exactly what it is you desire if you keep your license clean. Unfortunately there's some people that don't have the local work available in their area that pays what they feel they're worth. I commute 45 minutes in good weather and no traffic one way. That all eats away at my 10 hour break. Fortunately I have enough seniority now I'm working 9 to 10 hours a day usually but if I put in a 14 my break is now really an 8 hour break I need to shower, eat, spend time with my kids and wife, and somehow hope I have enough to sleep to be ready to do it again. If I wanted a job closer there are plenty hiring but only in the $20/hr range. My wife just finished schooling so once she gets her career started we may be able to financially swing it. I'm actually considering getting on with the state DOT but it pays about $15/hr less than I average now but benefits are much better and I'd shave off 35 miles one way and have a set schedule 7a to 3p m-f except on call for snow removal in winter.