Newbie In Northern California With A Question For Experienced Truckers.

Hello, I've kind of gotten bit by the bug that's telling me that trucking could be the logical choice for a career change for me. So you have enough to go on, let me tell you a little about me then a question. I'm 39 years old, college educated, and have a spotless driving record. Got one ticked in 1994 and haven't even been pulled over since. I'm confident I would qualify to get into a trucking school.

After a layoff I am looking for work, but the idea of getting back into the rat race makes my stomach turn. As I go through the material and book on TruckingTruth.com the more I think this could be an good option for me. As exciting as it sounds to be a long haul trucker, I have a wife and son at home and being on the road for weeks at a time is not an option for me at this time. However, I could envision driving 3-5 days at a time on the west coast and being home a couple few days at a time or even just local driving. As a newbie, is this trucking lifestyle possible? Are there companies that are looking for just local and regional drivers who can lead a somewhat normal lifestyle for family? I don't know if in the trucking world that is more or less desirable than a long haul life and if all drivers are trying to get what I am describing. Also, if it is possible, can anyone give me an idea of what sort of income could be expected from driving local or just on the west coast? I really appreciate any input. This whole thing sounds very attractive to me but I need to know if this is possible before I make any final decisions on getting a CDL. Thank you in advance for your help and guidance.

Some of the more experienced people can give you better advice but I'll share what I've seen answered about this type of question. It can be difficult finding local or regional gigs right away. Most of those companies want a year or so of over the road experience. That doesn't mean its impossible by ant means, it just may require a little more searching or effort to find. Also, I believe the pay at local companies may be on the lower side, but I'm not sure.

You mention being laid off. Depending on your length of unemployment you may have difficulty landing a job in trucking. Again, it doesn't make it impossible but may make it difficult. Be sure to look into everything and do all the research you can before spending money on your cdl.

Best of luck to you.

Hello Ryan, and welcome to the forum! This same question comes up an awful lot here, and it's understandable because so many people that are raising families need to be home with them. I'm gonna say that it's not impossible for you to land a gig like you describe, but it sure can be challenging in most areas of the country. For the most part any local driving job is going to require a certain amount of experience. The large national fleets are more likely to hire someone without experience because they have their insurance coverage set up that way. It becomes cost prohibitive for the smaller local companies to be able to cover inexperienced drivers on their insurance policies. It isn't so much that the local companies don't want to hire you, but that they've got their insurance carrier dictating to them who they can or can't hire.

You may have a little better luck if you could get on at a company where someone knows you, or with a large national company delivering local freight in your area. You are definitely going to have your work cut out for you to get a local job without any experience, but start doing your research, and make some calls to various local companies and ask if they ever hire inexperienced drivers.

We stress here about getting one year in with your first over the road company, but I have seen some local companies in my area who advertise jobs for drivers with (3) months experience. If you could find something like that maybe you and your wife could come to some kind of an agreement where you take an over the road job for a short period of time then you start looking for that local job.

Best of luck to ya! Keep us posted on your progress in your new career choice.

Thank you both for your input. I really appreciate it.

I ordinarily prefer not to advocate for one company over another, but check out Roehl. Their home-time program is awesome. If you're looking to get into trucking without becoming a stranger to your family, it might be worth your time to give them a call and ask some questions.

Hey Ryan, first of all great to see another Northern California face on here. I'm from the Bay Area, and I don't see too many Northern California people on here. My family lives in Sacramento as well, it's practically my second home.

Secondly, I'll say this. Life in a truck is extremely hard, and putting a burden like being gone for weeks at a time and only having a few days to spend with them when you get back is, well a burden. It's hard for families. Not impossible, but hard. I definitely don't want to discourage you from trucking, but trucking is the king of unpredictable. You'll start the day out with nothing but sunshine, and the day will end with a thunderstorm, literally and figuratively. And most local companies want you to have experience of at least a year before you get a local job, and for good reason.

If I may make a suggestion, I would suggest maybe trying out at a distribution center (I know Safeway and Costco have huge ones in Tracy) and see if maybe you can be one of those guys that moves trailers all day. That way you can move trailers and still come home at night. Or even try the Campbells soup factory in the South area of Sac. Or who knows, you may be able to get on with a large carrier and get a regional fleet out the gate. Try Schneider or Knight, those two might work. Or even JB Hunt. Either option you choose, just make sure you don't have any regrets. Best of luck to you!