Be Afraid.... Be Very, Very Afraid!!!!

Well, guys and gals, it seems that I have almost completed my training. As long as I pass my final test on Monday, I will be handed a set of keys to a truck of my very own. It has been a long journey. Yet, it went by so fast it seems like a blur. I have tried to gather as much information as possible from every instructor or trainer along the way. I talked with a guy today that has over 2 million miles without one accident or ticket. I was honored to be able to sit and talk with this man. I asked him ao many questions and he patiently answered them. He encouraged me and said stick with it, the first year is the hardest.

So, as I type this, I warn you that in a few short days, I will be on the road all alone with a BIG truck. The real learning is about to start. Just wanted to give a special thanks to some people on here for helping me along the way:

1. Brett.... this site is awesome and the High Road Training Program is awesome!

2. Old School.... the reason I went to flatbeds.

3. Pat Jerold... great information and one of the reasons I chose Roehl as my starting company.

4. Anchorman.... keeping me up with the latest news and making me laugh.

5. Starcar.... answered a lot of questions for me.

6. Guyjax...... insane hard worker and helpful all the time.

7. Daniel B........ a wealth of information.

8. Anybody and everybody else that I did not mention. I am sure I missed some of you that deserve recognition.

Thank you all for the amazing help. I have been trying to give back but I am not sure if I will ever have as much knowledge as all or you.

I am a hard worker? Nah. I guess if I considered this work then I might be considered a hard worker. This is my relaxation time. The hard work is when I go home for a week of home time.

I can honestly say I have never ever worked a easier job or one so well suited to me job in my life. Sure it's stressful. It's frustrating. People can be dumb and that's just the truck drivers.

But the best thing about it.....I can turn off my cb. Mute my qualcomm. Set cruise at 65 mph and open up a cherry coke and blast some 80 ' s and 90's country music or 90's hairband music and forget the rest of the world even exist.

No other job can you even come close to this.

I have seen mountain ranges so tall that while driving on roads through those mountains i could look over the side of the road and could see down hill for over a mile before the drop disappeared and continued down a few more thousand feet. I have seen the beauty of some of our nation's most harsh and hostile parts of the country (Mojave) and watched the sun play across the desert mountains watching the shadows dance in and out of each other until noon where the sun strangles those same shadows is a murderous rage.

I saw my first real buffalo because of driving. I have delivered to compounds in the high deserts of Montana and Idaho and every person was armed to the teeth. I have seen parties of nudist playing in rivers and lakes. I have seen lakes so still that they are a perfect reflection of the sky and surrounding mountains.

I could go on and on for days and still could not remember all the stuff I have forgotten that I have seen while on the road or some of the people I would rather forget cause god did not mean for humans to smell that way.......

So is this work? Nah. It's a privilege that I get to enjoy everyday of the year.

So, as I type this, I warn you that in a few short days, I will be on the road all alone with a BIG truck. The real learning is about to start.

Wine Taster, Congratulations! We all know what an emotional roller coaster ride it is to get started in this career. There are such ups and downs - days of excitement, and days you just wonder if you've made the right decision, days that are a pure adrenaline rush, and days that you are so tired you just want to fall in the bed and crash but you've got to push yourself on for another three hours. So far, you've always had someone there with you in the truck, but soon enough that feeling of loneliness may start creeping up on you and working against you. I'm not too proud to tell you that about three or four months into my solo career I had a day where I just burst out crying and sobbing while I was going down the road, it may sound silly to some, but I was feeling so lonely and missing my wife and my three girls so much that the feelings just sort of overtook me.

Dealing with this new lifestyle and getting adjusted to it is all part of the learning curve. You are right to realize that the "real learning is about to start", but I have every confidence you will manage it well. You've proven yourself this far, and you know you can always come in here if you've got a question. There is so much to master in this career, and much of it has nothing to do with actually driving the truck. I still learn stuff every day, I still find truck stops that weren't designed for backing that split axle 53' trailer into. I'm at one tonight that guys are having trouble getting their regular tandem trailers into, but somehow I got lucky and got er in there with only one pull-up.

I'm surprised that I was influential in your choice of pulling a flat-bed. Sometimes when I post stuff I think "man, this is gonna make people think twice before they want to be a flat-bedder", but it seems we've got quite a crowd of flat-bedders now. I remember not too long ago when StarCar was the only one here, and now it's a completely different landscape.

Best of luck to ya! Maybe we will run across each other one day, I see a lot of Roehl drivers at some of the places I frequent.

I am a hard worker? Nah. I guess if I considered this work then I might be considered a hard worker. This is my relaxation time. The hard work is when I go home for a week of home time.

I can honestly say I have never ever worked a easier job or one so well suited to me job in my life. Sure it's stressful. It's frustrating. People can be dumb and that's just the truck drivers.

But the best thing about it.....I can turn off my cb. Mute my qualcomm. Set cruise at 65 mph and open up a cherry coke and blast some 80 ' s and 90's country music or 90's hairband music and forget the rest of the world even exist.

No other job can you even come close to this.

I have seen mountain ranges so tall that while driving on roads through those mountains i could look over the side of the road and could see down hill for over a mile before the drop disappeared and continued down a few more thousand feet. I have seen the beauty of some of our nation's most harsh and hostile parts of the country (Mojave) and watched the sun play across the desert mountains watching the shadows dance in and out of each other until noon where the sun strangles those same shadows is a murderous rage.

I saw my first real buffalo because of driving. I have delivered to compounds in the high deserts of Montana and Idaho and every person was armed to the teeth. I have seen parties of nudist playing in rivers and lakes. I have seen lakes so still that they are a perfect reflection of the sky and surrounding mountains.

I could go on and on for days and still could not remember all the stuff I have forgotten that I have seen while on the road or some of the people I would rather forget cause god did not mean for humans to smell that way.......

So is this work? Nah. It's a privilege that I get to enjoy everyday of the year.

Hey Wine Taster that's awesome! Congrats!!!! It seems you've arrived in the big leagues. The biggest thing now is to just take your time, relax out there, and remember the Golden Rule - don't hit anything. Everything else is just temporary and will soon be a distant memory.

It's easy to get nervous and flustered, especially when you're trying to get backed in somewhere and you know you're holding people up and others are watching. Just ignore it completely. Relax, focus on what you're doing, and take all the time you need to get the job done safely. Every driver out there has held up traffic, including other trucks, a million times. So if they have to wait for you then so be it. That's life. We all take our turn waiting on others, we all take our turn holding people up. No biggie.

Keep us updated and best of luck!

I have seen the beauty of some of our nation's most harsh and hostile parts of the country (Mojave) and watched the sun play across the desert mountains watching the shadows dance in and out of each other until noon where the sun strangles those same shadows is a murderous rage.

My, my, that my friend is a poet's description. You've got a sensitive side to you Guy?

Congrats WT! Excited for you to get those keys.

So, as I type this, I warn you that in a few short days, I will be on the road all alone with a BIG truck. The real learning is about to start.

Wine Taster, Congratulations! We all know what an emotional roller coaster ride it is to get started in this career. There are such ups and downs - days of excitement, and days you just wonder if you've made the right decision, days that are a pure adrenaline rush, and days that you are so tired you just want to fall in the bed and crash but you've got to push yourself on for another three hours. So far, you've always had someone there with you in the truck, but soon enough that feeling of loneliness may start creeping up on you and working against you. I'm not too proud to tell you that about three or four months into my solo career I had a day where I just burst out crying and sobbing while I was going down the road, it may sound silly to some, but I was feeling so lonely and missing my wife and my three girls so much that the feelings just sort of overtook me.

Dealing with this new lifestyle and getting adjusted to it is all part of the learning curve. You are right to realize that the "real learning is about to start", but I have every confidence you will manage it well. You've proven yourself this far, and you know you can always come in here if you've got a question. There is so much to master in this career, and much of it has nothing to do with actually driving the truck. I still learn stuff every day, I still find truck stops that weren't designed for backing that split axle 53' trailer into. I'm at one tonight that guys are having trouble getting their regular tandem trailers into, but somehow I got lucky and got er in there with only one pull-up.

I'm surprised that I was influential in your choice of pulling a flat-bed. Sometimes when I post stuff I think "man, this is gonna make people think twice before they want to be a flat-bedder", but it seems we've got quite a crowd of flat-bedders now. I remember not too long ago when StarCar was the only one here, and now it's a completely different landscape.

Best of luck to ya! Maybe we will run across each other one day, I see a lot of Roehl drivers at some of the places I frequent.

It would be awesome to meet ya Old School. Guyjax.... I agree man, you are turning into a softie. You should start writing poems for trucker Halmark cards. ROFL! Brett, you said a lot in so little. Slow down and pay attention. My trainer warned me many times, pay attention and slow down once you are on your own. He said most new drivers start to get a little sloppy and hit stuff around their third month on the road. He said he was not sure why but they just start to get sloppy or over confident and forget to respect what they are doing. Thanks again guys and gals!

Sitting here waiting to test. It is snowing again. Hopefully, I get through it. Thanks agin to you all!

Well, it is official! Round up the kids and head into the bunker. They gave me keys to a 2014 Freightliner Cascadia today. My status will officially change from training to solo rookie. Have no doubt, I am still in training. There is some much to learn. Hope to see you guys and gals on the road soon!

Congratulations! You've given me one more reason to take some home time!