Bad Day On The Road !!

So we left the yard today and I was having a pretty good drive I made a couple little bonehead mistakes but recovered quickly and after an hour of driving we took our break . When we got back on the truck and I started driving again I did ok for about 15 minutes then we got to shifting uphill and I could not get my shifting right I had to stop twice because I could not recover after my mistake . At this point I was so flustered and down on myself that I continued to make mistakes the rest of my drive ( forgetting the range selector , wrong gear ) and at the end of my drive I was exhausted ! Then we did backing in the yard and I was having a lot of trouble there but I got it by the end of class ( those 28 ft trailers suck ) The instructor say's I show improvement every day but today was not my best day ! Tomorrow the adventure continues !

So we left the yard today and I was having a pretty good drive I made a couple little bonehead mistakes but recovered quickly and after an hour of driving we took our break . When we got back on the truck and I started driving again I did ok for about 15 minutes then we got to shifting uphill and I could not get my shifting right I had to stop twice because I could not recover after my mistake . At this point I was so flustered and down on myself that I continued to make mistakes the rest of my drive ( forgetting the range selector , wrong gear ) and at the end of my drive I was exhausted ! Then we did backing in the yard and I was having a lot of trouble there but I got it by the end of class ( those 28 ft trailers suck ) The instructor say's I show improvement every day but today was not my best day ! Tomorrow the adventure continues !

When I was in phoenix doing training at Swift, we didnt have hills, so I wasn't able to practice there, but when I got with my trainer, the first hill we had was Donor Summit. That was a hell of an experience to learn on. Trainer through me straight in the drive seat and told me to do it.. Took alot to figure out when to shift on hills... After about an hr of trying that, I finally got the hang of it... It comes down to timing.. not sure if your trailer has stuff in it, but when you have 80,000LBS, you feel it pull you back wards..

Keep practicing. It will come to you and you'll be better at it each day.. You may make some ground beef, but its all gravy.. I still make mistakes when It comes to shifting.. I'll go from driving a 2013 KW Box truck with automatic, to a 2007 Volvo rig with a manual.. Really a gear change there...

Practice, Practice Practice.

So we left the yard today and I was having a pretty good drive I made a couple little bonehead mistakes but recovered quickly and after an hour of driving we took our break . When we got back on the truck and I started driving again I did ok for about 15 minutes then we got to shifting uphill and I could not get my shifting right I had to stop twice because I could not recover after my mistake . At this point I was so flustered and down on myself that I continued to make mistakes the rest of my drive ( forgetting the range selector , wrong gear ) and at the end of my drive I was exhausted ! Then we did backing in the yard and I was having a lot of trouble there but I got it by the end of class ( those 28 ft trailers suck ) The instructor say's I show improvement every day but today was not my best day ! Tomorrow the adventure continues !

That reminds me of my climb up Mont Eagle in Tennessee during my time in school. I was first in seat and told to drive to the top and down the other side. I about s**t myself the whole time. I was soooo nervous. I made a ton of mistakes throughout all of my training, heck, we all do. You just have to laugh it off at the end of the day and show up tomorrow ready for more. Oh, by the way, your instructors and future trainer will try to rattle you. Fake it til you make it. Good luck Jimmy.

We've all been there. When it goes bad, just slow down and take a deep breath. Put it in the past and start again. It does get better.

Thanks guy's makes me feel better to know that I'm not alone !!