Need Some Help Please

Hey guys what’s up well after 14 years out of the business I’ve decided it’s time to get back into it. Let me explain 14 years ago my father got sick and my mother was in no way able to care for him so I made the decision that he wasn’t going to be placed into a nursing home. So I gave up my career of 16 years I was an owner operator at the time. I didn’t even think twice So after my father passed I stayed with my mother until she did the same. Now that you know my back story I’ll get to the reason behind this post. I’m 58 years old I surrender my CDL about a year after I came off the road and sold my Tractor Big Mistake. So now I’m at square one. I’ve decided to go to Pam’s cdl school in Tontitown Arkansas. I’ve seen a bunch of nightmare posts about them but all I’ve seen are posts that are 5-9 years old does anyone have any current information on them like there pay, equipment, miles, stuff like that. I would really appreciate it and you would be doing an old hand a big favor thanks in advance

Hello Doug,

From my understanding you would be treated as new/inexperienced driver due to the amount of time away (not driving). Things have changed ALOT in the 15 years since you have been away taking care of family.

You are wise to look at becoming a Company Driver vs a OO this time around. The freight market and economy are REALLY challenging to navigate as a business owner driver (especially if you have truck payments).

As for Pam, I have no experience with PAM specifically so I can not comment. Keep in mind the big picture is to find the right company that will be the best fit for you, so that you can get the seat time needed to re-establish yourself in this career and thus earn more $$$.

My personal advice is to take the internet with a grain of salt. Most go online to do 1 thing and the word starts with a B…ahem. This website is different in that folks really do try to help others who are open to it etc (and it seems you are from what I can tell). Wishing all the best to you as you re-establish yourself and keep in touch!

Hey guys what’s up well after 14 years out of the business I’ve decided it’s time to get back into it. Let me explain 14 years ago my father got sick and my mother was in no way able to care for him so I made the decision that he wasn’t going to be placed into a nursing home. So I gave up my career of 16 years I was an owner operator at the time. I didn’t even think twice So after my father passed I stayed with my mother until she did the same. Now that you know my back story I’ll get to the reason behind this post. I’m 58 years old I surrender my CDL about a year after I came off the road and sold my Tractor Big Mistake. So now I’m at square one. I’ve decided to go to Pam’s cdl school in Tontitown Arkansas. I’ve seen a bunch of nightmare posts about them but all I’ve seen are posts that are 5-9 years old does anyone have any current information on them like there pay, equipment, miles, stuff like that. I would really appreciate it and you would be doing an old hand a big favor thanks in advance

Hey Moe I thank you for the reply and just from studying for the permit test I can tell allot of things have changed since I’ve been gone. It’s like a whole new world out there but from this site I can tell there’s still a few old hands like myself still beating the pavement and willing to lend a helping hand and that’s fantastic it’s just the way it should be. It reminds me of how it was when I first started in my granddaddy’s ole B-model Mac lol so yeah I have allot to learn like eld devices never heard of them I used to have to decide which book I was going to show Dot when they asked for it lol. Anyhow I’m sure you will be seeing allot of me on here asking questions as I ease back into the industry. Again thanks and maybe I’ll catch ya out there some place God Bless All Of You

Hello Doug,

From my understanding you would be treated as new/inexperienced driver due to the amount of time away (not driving). Things have changed ALOT in the 15 years since you have been away taking care of family.

You are wise to look at becoming a Company Driver vs a OO this time around. The freight market and economy are REALLY challenging to navigate as a business owner driver (especially if you have truck payments).

As for Pam, I have no experience with PAM specifically so I can not comment. Keep in mind the big picture is to find the right company that will be the best fit for you, so that you can get the seat time needed to re-establish yourself in this career and thus earn more $$$.

My personal advice is to take the internet with a grain of salt. Most go online to do 1 thing and the word starts with a B…ahem. This website is different in that folks really do try to help others who are open to it etc (and it seems you are from what I can tell). Wishing all the best to you as you re-establish yourself and keep in touch!

Hey guys what’s up well after 14 years out of the business I’ve decided it’s time to get back into it. Let me explain 14 years ago my father got sick and my mother was in no way able to care for him so I made the decision that he wasn’t going to be placed into a nursing home. So I gave up my career of 16 years I was an owner operator at the time. I didn’t even think twice So after my father passed I stayed with my mother until she did the same. Now that you know my back story I’ll get to the reason behind this post. I’m 58 years old I surrender my CDL about a year after I came off the road and sold my Tractor Big Mistake. So now I’m at square one. I’ve decided to go to Pam’s cdl school in Tontitown Arkansas. I’ve seen a bunch of nightmare posts about them but all I’ve seen are posts that are 5-9 years old does anyone have any current information on them like there pay, equipment, miles, stuff like that. I would really appreciate it and you would be doing an old hand a big favor thanks in advance

Doug, since you have experience driving big rigs, that skill will come back in a second. You can already float shift, but most big companies are moving to automatic. (That means you can drive a manual, but a manual shift truck may not be available when you hire on.)

Some companies may put you into a "refresher" class but as you have realized, that was then and this is now. You'll probably have to take the whole four week class.

But never fear, when your dispatcher realizes what they have, you get all the miles you can handle.

hi Errol thanks for your reply and yeah that’s what I was thinking I guess it’s like riding a bike right lol. I’m hoping to get a decent dispatcher I’ve had a few bad ones in my career of course who hasn’t, But I love to run hard and I don’t mind staying out 4-5 weeks at a time as long as I’m getting the miles to make it worth staying out. The problem starts when your spending more on the road then what your making and from what I’m hearing about Pam there pay isn’t the greatest. So I’m going to need a great dispatcher he will learn that one hand washes the other he does me right I’ll have no problem helping him out. So as I said I’m set up to start school on the 22nd and it can’t come fast enough. So with that I’m gonna close for now I’ll be sure to keep you guys posted on my progress you guys be safe out there and god bless all of ya

Doug, your new experience is going to be interesting from the perspective of your past experience. I hope you will keep us posted on how things work out for you. We don’t really get too many drivers like you here who can compare the new to the old after an extended absence.

I’ve heard that PAM is not the best pay, but if they give you the miles you will do okay. I try to be real frugal on the road, and so it would take a real concerted effort on my part to spend more on the road than I make. Drivers who like to eat out a lot can really spend more money than they realize. If you are used to carrying a food supply in your truck, it can be pretty economical.

The standard advice here is to stay at your first company for a year before thinking about any change. With you, you could probably jump to a better paying job after 6 months if the numbers weren’t working out at PAM. My company requires at least 6 months of recent experience and the pay is decent. But at least you got a job to start back with and in this economy that is a valuable thing. So, good luck with your new adventure. I really think you will be pleasantly surprised by improvements in the trucking industry.

Doug comes clean:

one hand washes the other

There is a phrase to keep in mind:

You can't go home again.

If you've been away from your hometown for maybe years, you expect the old digs will be almost unrecognizable.

The bike idea is right on, as far as driving the truck. The regulations have changed, the are computers everywhere now.

But one thing has not changed: The relationship between you and your dispatcher is one of teammates. I feel that both dispatch and driver are working for the same goal. Football QB and End, surgeon and nurse, driver and dispatcher should be focused on Getting The Job Done

I know the when you get in touch with your new dispatcher, you'll let on about your experience. After a few loads, you just might not stop rolling.

All, too true ! Having a good relationship with your DM/dispatcher makes all the difference..... My transfer to Gardner's lasted 2 months. Why? because my DM played favorites maybe, I told him our first meeting, "I am here to RUN, to make you and me money, not sit around"

Well, I got a lot of BS stuff, and the worst part was finding empties in the yard. They had 100+ trailers used for storing huge paper & cardboard bundles. Because they got paid storage fee's for it. So empties were hard to get, and without 1, you're chasing your tail. Transferred back to CRST after 2 months of that, were at least we got loads and tons of miles. Solo @ Gardners was not cutting it for me.

When I went to drive for Legends, my DM was a young guy. I told him the same thing, "keep me rollin' I don't need home time every week" He was ok and tried best he could to keep me running hard. Sometimes when I went home,if I wanted an extra day or 2 he was good with it.

Sometimes, I had to micro manage him, and tell him my plan & route etc for a load. He just kinda let me do my own thing, without any issues or complaints. He moved on, and I got the DM who sat right next to him in the Phoenix office lol. Another young guy, same scenario, he kept me rollin' and everything was good. Especially my weekly checks, more than I'd ever made before, pay doubled + the bonus's....

And if they had anything they wanted done, aside from the norm, "no problem, I got this for ya bud!, whatever ya need" .........If I hadn't retired early, I think I'd probably still be driving for them, I liked it there a lot.

hey BK good to hear from you to respond to your statement, yes I’m not really into truck stop food I love to fix my meals in the truck that way I know what goes into what I’m eating. There’s nothing like getting out of the truck on a beautiful day and fixing a meal in a pickle park somewhere in this great country of ours. It’s an awesome way to unwind from a day on the highway. And yes Pam’s got that 6 month contract deal and your right I’m sure I could find another job after the 6 month time line cause yeah I hear Pam is at the bottom of the barrel for pay. I’m really hoping that once my dispatcher finds out that I’m really an experienced driver getting back into the industry that he runs my butt off. It’s exactly how I like to run and as I said in my previous posts I have no problem staying out 4-6 weeks at a time as long as the miles are there. It would really be nice if I would get run by a military base once in a while so I could take advantage of the commissary as I’m an army veteran. Anyhow I will definitely keep you guys posted and as always keep safe out there and god bless you all

yeah guys 10-4 on you and the DM/Dispatchers being a team I’ve learned over the years if you make him or her look good to there bosses IE getting loads delivered there more than happy to keep those wheels turning. That’s exactly what I’m hoping for. Don’t get me wrong I’ve had my fair share of bad ones in the 16 years of pounding the pavement. I’ve also had super stars that I loved. So I got my fingers and toes crossed that once he or she realizes I’m not Pam’s average trainee and they can depend on me to go the extra mile that they run my butt off. I’m beyond excited to get that steering wheel back in my hands I promised my daddy before he passed that I would return to what I love and I’m doing just that so I’ll keep you guys posted as always be safe and god bless all of you