Off To Melton Transportation...

Yep, I'll be leaving either this Friday or early Saturday for Tulsa, OK for orientation with Melton's (Flatbed). It's weird how things work out. In short, I was tempted with other companies ...guess I had the "kid in the candy store" syndrome. But ultimately I stayed with Melton's. Now, as the time gets closer for me to leave I'm getting more and more nervous, mostly because of all the unknowns. Guess all I can do is put on my big boy undies and hit it head on, and see where things end up at the end of each day. Just an FYI, the peeps on this site are great, as is the vast and seemingly never ending Information to be had. Thanks to everyone, I appreciate you's!

And NO, I'm not going anywhere without ya's! You're coming with me...

Congratulations Ynkedad!

I don't know if I can ease your apprehensions, but you are in good hands over there at Melton. They have got a great operation in my opinion, and they will provide you with the training and tools for success. It's no cake walk, nothing is in this business, but if you hang tough and stick it out you will soon realize that you are getting a great start with one of the really solid flat-bed companies out there.

I wish you the best, and please, whenever you can, let us know how it's going for you. Of course, if you need a little assistance, or maybe a shoulder to cry on, we are always here.

Congratulations Ynkedad!

I don't know if I can ease your apprehensions, but you are in good hands over there at Melton. They have got a great operation in my opinion, and they will provide you with the training and tools for success. It's no cake walk, nothing is in this business, but if you hang tough and stick it out you will soon realize that you are getting a great start with one of the really solid flat-bed companies out there.

I wish you the best, and please, whenever you can, let us know how it's going for you. Of course, if you need a little assistance, or maybe a shoulder to cry on, we are always here.

One thing no one ever answers that is asked a lot . . What happens during the melton agility test ? Do you really have to pick up a tarp and put it on and off trailer 4 times ? Seems like a bad idea for a lot of people who are not large and muscular . Not to mention that I find it hard to believe that 5' 3 " 120 pound girls could actually lift that tarp . " work smarter not harder " is the smart thing to do . Do they care HOW you do this ? Can you say , unroll it and put it up there basically section at a time ? Seems to me they would prefer someone to do it in a smarter way if they are not actually physically capable of lifting that much dead weight without risking being injured .

so what is the real story ?

I also am planning on going to Melton soon .

Marcus, I don't seem to recall seeing that question "asked a lot", but I will try and help you with an answer even though I've never been to a Melton orientation.

Every flat-bed company I know of wants to see you lift the tarps - it is strenuous work, and they want to make sure you don't get out there and hurt yourself. Now if you think you are gonna be rolling your tarps out first and then dragging them up on your load you are in for a rude awakening when it comes to your paychecks. That will waste a lot of your time, and time is a commodity to be managed with care in this line of work. One thing I am aware of at Melton is that they use a three section tarping system which makes the tarp sections considerably lighter than the traditional two piece lumber tarps with eight foot drops.

Technique in lifting is much more crucial than brute strength. I saw a girl who couldn't have weighed but around 120 pounds flat-bedding at Western Express. She struggled with some of it, but she had what my grandparents used to call "grit". She did what she needed to get the job done. She would take her tarps and lean it up against the trailer's tire, then sort of bring the bottom end upward so that most of the weight was now resting on the top edge of the tire. Then she would push the top of the tarp over onto the trailer so that it pivoted on the rub-rail of the trailer and there it was, laying up on the trailer!

Now Marcus, for the most part, at many of the shippers you encounter in flat-bedding you can get the forklift operator to set your tarps up on top of your load for you. It's not always the case but nine times out of ten if you ask they will gladly do it for you. Some of the places i have frequented even insist on tarping the load themselves because they are concerned about the liability of you falling off your trailer on their property. Many of the places that I would go to get sheetrock loads had their own crew of tarping personnel.

When you go to Melton keep this in mind. They have been doing this a long time, and they are very successful at it. They know what works. Once you have listened and learned their way of doing things then give it a good try for a while and don't be trying to change their system - this is one of the many contributing factors to the high rookie failure rates in trucking - people thinking they have a better way of doing things. Now, having said that by the time they give you the keys to your own truck, and you are out there on your own, then you can experiment with some of your own methods, and you may prefer your own ideas, but I have a feeling you will eventually gravitate back to what they taught you at the beginning for the efficiency of it all.

Melton is a great place to start.

If you will put Melton into the search bar at the top of this page I think you will find some topics discussed in the past about their training program. Good luck, you've made a great choice.

Old School ; thanks for the reply . I did not mean that I wanted to unroll the tarp first and then try and toss it up on a truck .i know that would be very hard and slow indeed . I was just referring to actually picking it up off the ground and putting it on the trailer . Unfolding partially and putting one end up and then the middle and the end . As opposed to just picking up the entire tarp and setting it up there . I saw a post somewhere about agility test where they said it did not matter how you put it up there as long as you could do it . Like the girl who put it on tire and then flipped up . Seems like a good idea instead of risking injury if you can not lift the whole thing . Now I know for a fact I can not dead lift 100 pounds in front of me and set it up on trailer which I am almost sure is not the proper method anyway . I have watched video of test and they did that sort of but with a milk crate and a weight in it that looked to be maybe 25 pounds . Swift used 75 I think it was , could have been a little less . I know it was heavy but I did it . I would think that it would involve placing it on your shoulder and lifting from there as that is far safer and the method I see a lot of people use when carrying around sacks of feed and such .

I have seen a lot of posts , not here, about agility tests and not much info on what they actually had to do to pass it . Just interested as I have been doing some exercise since I have sitting on my arse for years now not doing any hard work . Not much lifting involved in end dump work . Some hard shoveling now and then !

Yeah, you always want to get your tarp up on your shoulder like a feed sack. If you do it right, it makes a huge difference in the strain your back experiences. Once you've got it on your shoulder, you can walk around and roll it off on to your trailer wherever you are needing to set it.

Yes I have read a lot of good things about them and some bad things . how ever I tend to think they are a good company . Sometimes things just do not go right for whatever reason . Kind of like buying a new product . You get the bad one and others love theirs . Nothing works perfect all the time . I am trying to hold out for Melton . Out of work at the moment and that is a real scary thing for me . Not used to that . Am going in Monday to apply for the hazmat endorsement .Then wait for the results I guess. Been waiting on a grain hauling job but so far the guy has not fixed the truck that blew a head gasket last week . Was going to work for him for a while because I told him I would , just before finding Melton . I really like to keep my word if possible . I did tell him it would only be until good weather rolled around and then I was going to try for a Melton job . Figured by then I would have hazmat and a TWIC . Just in case they are needed . Can't hurt none . It is hard to find a flatbed company that will hire someone with no experience and OTR on top of that .

Congrats Ynkedad! I too remember the kid in the candy store syndrome. In fact, I still look at trucking companies' websites. I don't know why. I love working for my company and will more than likely be one and done for my entire career. I think what's fun about trucking jobs is that it's entirely different from any other industry in that companies line up to bring YOU on board. I wouldn't go as far as saying that the driver gets to interview the company - there's a little too much entitlement amongst drivers if you ask me - but it's nice to be wanted, especially in this economy!

I wish the best for you! It's worth the ball of nerves and trying experiences. It's not just tough work at times, it's also fun and rewarding.

Just thought I would add in that I was turned down for the same reason as most turn me down . Everything going great until they ask that same old question that I always waste my time answering ..." So what happened ?" Referring to a 32 year old felony . Get over it ! I have no idea why I even answer these people when they ask about it . If they are asking then their mind is already made up and they just want to justify their ridiculous decision that has no merit . Next time I get asked I will either tell them if they have to ask about something that happened when I had just turned 18 then our interview is over or perhaps if I really want the job I might just tell them the truth instead of what I told the court since other party is long dead and can not be punished . As I really did nothing but take the fall for my brother who would have done many many years if I had not .

I cant comment on any other agility test but I did primes, it was basically a few simple streches, lunges etc. then you had to pick up a crate with 40lbs pick it up to your chin set it down, then again with 60lbs, then 80lbs to your waist. Then you picked up a crate with 60lbs ( I believe) and walk a few feet turn around walk back and set it down. Then you go over to a shelf thats a little higher than most trailers Ive been arouund ( or so it seemed at the time) take rolled tarp and set it on the floor, then pick it up and put it back. Then you go over to a ladder climb 3 steps or so (wherever your head hits the ceiling) back down and up again 6 times.

Once you finish that you sign a paper they sign a paper and your clear for the flatbed division if thats what you so choose, This may not help answer your specific questions but it is a good description of what another company does if you were curious.