For Those Considereing Driving For PAM As A New Driver (going Thru Driver Solutions)

Daniel, Not a bad move at all. I think that you are making the right decision to team drive, at least for the first year. It will also give you someone to talk to so when you are on those lonely stretches of interstate , especially 71 and 75 (being from Ohio I would presume you know what I am talking about), will make the experience more enjoyable. I was going to team up with a friend of mine before they dropped me. Just make sure that you find someone that you can stand to be with, because you will be with them all the time, except home time of course. Also, keep in mind that if you can't find someone within 50 miles, PAM has been going up to 100 miles. So, that is an option as well. Are they sending you to Indianapolis? If they are, that is where I was and I have a lot of info that I can provide and what to expect, if you should decide to go with DS.

Are they sending you to Indianapolis? If they are, that is where I was and I have a lot of info that I can provide and what to expect, if you should decide to go with DS.

They are actually proposing to send me to Ft. Wayne, IN. I haven't decided to go with Driver Solutions; I'm also talking to Prime (we've been playing phone tag, but he said my app looks good) and I have a call into Knight.

Yeah, that my only concern about teaming up with someone. It could be a long 6 months if we're not compatible. But I suppose if it got really bad, the company would allow a change.

Daniel, Prime, in my experience is a great company as well. They require you to team up as well. I forget how long it is, but they do. They have a lot to offer drivers. With teaming, what I have found is that there are some companies that will only pay you for what you drove, while most will pay you miles based on how many miles the truck ran all together. Obviously, you make more money under the second scenerio. Just a thought. Good luck in your search.

Not necessarily a bad thing, but good to know. Though I haven't decided yet, I'm considering going the team route during the first year (with PAM or whoever) for a couple of reasons:

1. Since the learning curve is so steep in the first year, there's always someone there to help out with the inevitable issues that will come up.

2. Since team drivers should put in more miles, there should be more money in that first year.

This is very similar then to CRST that does the team thing during the contract phase. From what I have learned through reading, yes, the miles are there, but you're splitting the mileage so the starting rate is 13cpm. That means as a team to earn $400 per week, the truck has to be on the road for 6153 miles. So, that means you are not only in the truck and doing double the miles, but you are living 24/7 in very confined space during a very stressful time of learning the industry for both of you. The realistic number will be less than that from what I've gathered, more like $375 per week, which equates to $1500 per month, before taxes and deductions. Take home pay is NOT going to do anything other than pay the cost of food, a phone, and some miscellaneous things.

They boast that during the first year you can make an average of $35000, but they warn you that most of that comes in the second half of the year, after the contract phase is done which frees the driver up to go solo and have better earning potential, whether he stays or goes.

Is this standard pay for companies that provide the training? Essentially it means you can have no cost of living during that time period.

I would love to hear someone tell the whole story of what they earned during the contract phase and how the earnings went after that.

Ignore the part about the math and the $375 per week because I was misinformed by someone. It appears to be 13cpm times the entire mileage which would make a 5000 week = $650.....with CRST. I also started looking at PRIME which pays 12cpm but they absorb more of the cost of training reducing the payroll deductions...and they guarantee $600 per week during training (40000 miles).

It seems CRST may provide more miles with less home time, but with PRIME it looks like a driver can be solo sooner and that their pay scale is better. It sounds like going solo with CRST is a harder thing to do.

I'm going to look into PRIME to see how it works for me as far as where I live....Alabama. Sounds like a good option.

Input from anyone on the comparison between them and other companies is greatly appreciated.

Ignore the part about the math and the $375 per week because I was misinformed by someone. It appears to be 13cpm times the entire mileage which would make a 5000 week = $650.....with CRST. I also started looking at PRIME which pays 12cpm but they absorb more of the cost of training reducing the payroll deductions...and they guarantee $600 per week during training (40000 miles).

It seems CRST may provide more miles with less home time, but with PRIME it looks like a driver can be solo sooner and that their pay scale is better. It sounds like going solo with CRST is a harder thing to do.

I'm going to look into PRIME to see how it works for me as far as where I live....Alabama. Sounds like a good option.

Input from anyone on the comparison between them and other companies is greatly appreciated.

Whatever you decide can only be made by you. Prime is a very good choice to start your career with and stay with afterwards and they also have the longest on average training time before releasing the rookie as a solo driver.

I am sure Daniel can give a better answer but last heard the training in a truck can last 4 to 5 months.

Drove for PAM for almost 4 years. Never had a problem with them, good miles if you were willing to run, etc. I was a trainer there for the last 2.5 years I worked there. They have been talking about this team driving for new drivers since 2009. It has a lot to do with how you perform during your training, they always asked us ( the trainer ) if we thought they could handle solo driving instead of teaming up.

Randy, you will find it nearly impossible to run solo with CRST. They run teams almost (but not quite) exclusively. So do not go with them hoping to run solo. They're a solid company, but team driving is pretty much a foregone conclusion there.

Prime Inc is an excellent company with a wide variety of opportunities, including flatbed, food grade tanker, and of course refrigerated. But they run OTR for the most part so there isn't a lot of home time with them.....a few days a month is about it. They also happen to have the longest training period I know of but the highest starting pay at the same time of Trucking Companies That Hire Inexperienced Drivers.

Hard to believe I've been looking through this site for information for myself and the first thing I'm going to post is information for someone else.

My room mate currently drives for PAM and I can tell you what I know. Yes they say that they require 6 months of Team Driving , however she didn't get along with her team mate ( he drove the truck home and got out) and she continued on solo. (personally I think he didn't like her work ethic, they were down for a couple days - would've been more but she hounded her DM untiil they found another truck for them...in the meantime he had disappeared and she had to wait for him to get back) They mentioned finding her a team mate a few times but it never happened.

While team driving she made 17.5 cpm and solo she started at 25 cpm...they deff seem to make it more desirable to team.

All I can say is that she loved solo driving and was at it for a long while and paid her dues. Now she just became a Mentor and has made a few raises in the meantime.

Just an outside look to the inside...hope this info helps

Ahbleza, glad to see you coming out of the shadows, welcome aboard!

Don't be a stranger, we don't bite! Thanks for contributing to this thread, but I want you to know that we will be more than glad to answer any questions you may have also. Again, welcome aboard.