Training Days On The Road

Thanks brett and mr D2 That makes me feel better.

I'll just hop on what others have mentioned. You're in a completely new environment, nerves get frazzled, you're paying attention to every little single thing around you and then having to endure new environments (mountains). The good thing is that both you and your trainer know when you need to stop and keep safety first and foremost. In regards to mountain driving, it's pretty simple. You can go slow and easy down time and time again but you'll only go down fast and out of control once.

Yesterday was a long day, my trainer asked if I was going to be ok getting to the receiver since it was getting late but we only had about an hour to go. I told him I was the type that once I realize I'm tired, I'm not afraid to shut down, I have a family to go home to and he does to, safety comes first. He really appreciated that answer. On the plus side, I got some experiences on my mountain driving and at night, nothing like killing two birds with one stone lol. I got the right gear, used the Jake brake and service brakes when needed and took a nice easy (what seemed like forever ride) down a somewhat long grade.

You just hang in there, your body will start to adapt and your nerves will ease up with experience. Just remember though, as you start to get more comfortable and become one with the truck, don't get complacent. That's when you can make a crucial mistake.

Once again your comments are making me feel alot better. Today was nothing exciting. Trainer D drove to Jersey City, we waited 6 hours to get unloaded. So i did my reset and i hate New Jersey.

When I first started, I hit a wall at 2 1/2 hours. Didn't matter how much sleep I had the night before, day or night, 2.5 hours and I'd start yawning and stretching. My trainer would say, "Man, what are you going to do when you're solo and you have to get to the receiver in seven hours and 50 minutes and you can't stop?"

I would recover at around the 3 hour mark, but sometimes it was too much and I'd pull over and run around the truck to revive. I caught crap for that too sometimes, but better safe than sorry.

I'm only seven months in now, but it rarely happens that I hit a wall while driving, usually only if I didn't get enough sleep. I still pull over if I need to, but it's a lot less often now, and on long trips I'll drive close to a full 11 with only one stop, and a few times I've driven 8 hours straight without stopping when I had to. So yeah, it gets better. Hang in there!

Thats awesome bud it feels good to know that im not alone in this boat. So today i drove from NY to Somerset PA in 6.25 hours. That was about 350 miles according to people net. I beat my record. I could have gone farther but by the time we would have shut down the truck stops would have been full so. Here we are at a sunoco rest stop.

That's great! Today I drove 5 1/2 hours to a receiver, got all my straps off and got unloaded fast (I love loads of shingles, so easy), drove to the other side of the plant where they loaded me fast, strapped it down, and drove 5 1/2 hours back to the exact same parking space I started from this morning. I stopped for 30 minutes for some food on the way back, but that was it for breaks. I didn't really think about it till just now. I'm sure you'll be doing similar things before you know it.

Yesterday we had to shut down at on the on ramp to the freeway from a rest area. I was afraid i wouldnt be able to sleep. This whole time training i havent had any issues sleeping in the truck. Well today was First night drive on a Hot amazon load from TN had to be in Hebron Kentucky by 4 in the morning delivered it at 1:00am not bad for me and trainer D considering we pick up the load on the opposite side of nashville in rush hour after dropping 2 other loads. I did hit two curbs and still havinng trouble shifting and watching my trailer at the end of my drive. Its like my brain turns to mush and i forget about everything. I know I will get better. If it wasnt for yalls training testimonies on here i would have already thrown in the towel. You guys are a life saver.

And now you know the rest of the story.

Mike, sounds like you are doing well. You will build up some endurance for the road as time goes by. I remember running with my "crazy" trainer we ran the wheels off that truck. Much of the time that I was driving he was sleeping. We were running very close to 6,000 mile weeks with three out of our first five loads that literally criss-crossed the country from New York to Los Angeles then back up to the North east corridor, and then right back to California. I remember that I was strictly running on adrenaline. I lost about ten pounds during that time because I just was too tired to eat after I had driven my tail off. I would just crash in the sleeper until my next turn.

Once I started running solo it was still an adrenaline rush. Now days it's nothing for me to run in excess of 3,000 miles, but I have at least figured out how to pace myself and manage my hours so that I can at least get a decent meal every now and then. Keep hanging in there, you are actually getting a good introduction to what it means to "run hard". It will benefit you in the end.

Cant may be a better words than dont. Any thoughts.

Either you've been drinking or your keyboard is upside down. Or that's simply not English. Not sure......

Yes, it's totally normal for new drivers to fatigue early. You're so overwhelmed by the amount of information you have to process that you wear yourself out with it. Many of the things you're having to concentrate on right now will become second nature before long and you won't spend much time and energy thinking about them. You'll learn to relax more, keep your mind clear, and enjoy the ride. That's when you'll be able to put in longer days.

Just take it one day at a time and don't push yourself beyond your limits. Your trainer might think you're making slow progress, but that's a heck of a lot better than falling asleep and making a fast trip to the bottom of a ravine.

The biggest surprise in trucking to me was how physically exhausted being mentally drained made you feel. I kept thinking "Man, I shouldn't be this tired, ask I did was drive." But Brett is right, it'll click for you.

I must be special. I haven't felt tired or exhausted or fatigued or anything, and I smoke!! Hahahaha. I drove all my hours today. I was up 3hrs before driving, and have been up since my co-driver took over 3hrs ago.

Idaho's pretty! :)

Cant may be a better words than dont. Any thoughts.

Either you've been drinking or your keyboard is upside down. Or that's simply not English. Not sure......

Yes, it's totally normal for new drivers to fatigue early. You're so overwhelmed by the amount of information you have to process that you wear yourself out with it. Many of the things you're having to concentrate on right now will become second nature before long and you won't spend much time and energy thinking about them. You'll learn to relax more, keep your mind clear, and enjoy the ride. That's when you'll be able to put in longer days.

Just take it one day at a time and don't push yourself beyond your limits. Your trainer might think you're making slow progress, but that's a heck of a lot better than falling asleep and making a fast trip to the bottom of a ravine.

The biggest surprise in trucking to me was how physically exhausted being mentally drained made you feel. I kept thinking "Man, I shouldn't be this tired, ask I did was drive." But Brett is right, it'll click for you.

I must be special. I haven't felt tired or exhausted or fatigued or anything, and I smoke!! Hahahaha. I drove all my hours today. I was up 3hrs before driving, and have been up since my co-driver took over 3hrs ago.

Idaho's pretty! :)

Well Daniel i wouldt be able to sleep either after a big can of wolf brand chili 😀

Today we delivered to kenosha amazon then had to shut at around noon. Its now easy sleeping durring the day. Anyways i drove through the night again its about 530 here in thorton town Indiana . I started in ILLINOIS around 10 not a bad day on my book.

And now you know the rest of the story.