I'm Considering Driving

I'm looking into a career in Trucking and was wondering if doing a ride along with an experienced driver for a week or two wouldn't be a good idea before going to school. I can pay my own expenses and personnel needs. I would just like experience what the trucking lifestyle is all about before I make a commitment of time and money.

Hey Larry - I'm in the exact same situation as you! Hopefully someone has some thoughts on this cause I'd be interested to hear them too.

Doing a ride along WOULD be a good idea, provided you can convince someone to let you ride with them. I don't know of ANY company that would just let someone go on a ride along on just a request. If you know someone in the industry, that would be your best bet, but even then, don't think it's a sure thing. Most all companies have a "rider" policy of some sort, either the driver has to pay a fee to cover the additional insurance expense or you have to be a "Close" relative and there are age usually age restrictions as well...so, yes, in theory it's a good idea, practically it's a little more difficult to pull off...

The only company I've heard of that did allow a ride along was Schneider. I don't know how often they do that, but I know someone that came through our site was given a chance to ride along with one of their drivers.

Honestly, I'm not sure a ride along would give a true picture of what it's like for a few reasons....you don't have any pressure on you, you're not having to make any difficult decisions, you have company with you as opposed to being isolated almost constantly, you're not having to deal with dispatch & DOT & crazy drivers, and it's only temporary so it's going to feel like a vacation. It would definitely teach you a lot - no question. But I'm not sure how well it would help you decide on trucking as a career.

We do have tons and tons of information and stories about life on the road. Go through our entire Trucker's Career Guide and it will talk about it quite a bit. It will also point you to a lot of articles on the subject, including categories like Great stories, Hard lesssons learned, and The trucking lifestyle.

Brett,

I understand that a ride along wouldn't be exactly like driving myself but I would get a close hand look at the situation and see what it's like to be in a truck pretty much 24/7 which is my main concern. I'm a loner by heart but I still need company from time to time and I want to make money, so I would be driving a lot if they let me. Just not sure if I can got it alone 3-6 weeks at a time.

The isolation and the time away from home & family & friends are the two toughest aspects of trucking for most people to deal with. The driving part is always challenging, but it's not often that someone fails to make it in trucking because they couldn't learn to drive. The overwhelming majority of people that don't make it in trucking get out because of the lifestyle. Living in the truck isn't that bad most of the time, but the isolation and time away really gets to people. There are also a lot of other challenges like the erratic sleep schedule, the constant grind of poor traffic and weather, the risk & pressures associated with the job, the tight schedules, and things like that.

That's why I don't think a ride along would really help you decide if that was the life for you or not. You're not going to experience any of the most difficult challenges you'll face as a driver and you're not going to be out there for long. It would amount to a fantastic vacation, but not really a taste of the true hardships you'll endure out there.

Another way to look at it is this....even if you go to a pricey private school you're usually looking at $5,000 or so in tuition. But there are a lot of ways to find cheaper training than that. Regardless, your first year in trucking you'll make around $35,000. I can absolutely guarantee you that if you got into trucking and stayed in it even for a few months, not only could you pay off your tuition but you would have an incredible experience and a lifetime of stories and memories. If you decide trucking isn't for you, then walk away. No harm done. If you love it, then you're all set.

Now I'm certainly not trying to talk you into trucking. I never do that. I try to help people understand what the job and lifestyle is all about so they can decide for themselves. But for those who are sitting on the fence, my feeling is that there is very little risk in giving it a shot and you're definitely going to walk away with tons of great experiences. You may find a great new career, you may not. But driving a rig is one of the coolest things you can do and even a few months of it really adds something special to your list of life experiences.