My Swift Training

I meant to update a long time ago but been really busy so I'm sorry. I attended the Swift/Central training academy in West Valley City, Utah. It was a 3 week training program and then 3 days of orientation. Also with the new resident state laws you now have to get your CDL permit from your home state before you can attend training. When you get off at the Greyhound Bus terminal in Salt Lake City you will have a shuttle that will pick you up an take you to your hotel. You'll be in 1 of 4 hotels that Swift has accounts with, it'll either be Crystal Inn, Ramada Inn, Sleep Inn, or Country Inn. You want to get Crystal Inn if at all possible, it's the nicest one, its a 4 star hotel. It has nice pool, hot tub, you can rent DVD player for $4 and they have movies in the lobby you can watch in your room. They also have DirecTV in the rooms with like a million channels. They also have a fridge/cooler in the lobby with shopping area you can buy drinks and food, detergent, toothpaste, Tylenol you name it. It's also in a good area with plenty of places to eat. Applebees in across the street along with Cracker Barrel and there is Mexican place next door. That's if you have the money. My advice would be to bring at least $400 with you if you can. The training sheet they send you says bring at least $200 but that's way off. If your a smoker the ciggs are $8 a pack there so keep that in mind. My advice would be get you some food at Walmart or next door there is a Wynco Foods, I went there and spent $25 and got shopping cart full of food.

The first 3 days you'll be in the classroom, be prepared to take another test in class but its open book and take home test, you'll need to get 80 percent on it. Also on first 3 days you'll do your drug screen, and get copies of your permit and DOT physical, and fill out your emergency contact forms, and also sign your training contract.

Day 4 you'll go out to training pad and practice your pre-trip inspection and also do some straight line backing. After day 4 your schedule could be doing anything. You could be doing offset and parallel parking or going out to rookie road. Rookie road is a 10 mile frontage road that will be where you practice your shifting. If you do good then that will be only time you'll go to Rookie Road. After that you'll be doing a lot of Industrial Park driving and Highway/City driving and if your class is lucky they will take you on the mountains to practice mountain driving. If your not out on the road driving you'll be in the yard doing parallel and offset backing it just depends on the other classes. Remember there are 2 other classes that will also be in the yard training also, they will be 1 and 2 weeks ahead of you. I got lucky with my class, we only started out with 15 people, we ended up with 14 going out on the pad due to failed drug screen. The class ahead of me ahead of me had 35 people in it and class behind me had 60 people in it. Smaller the better, we usually only had 4 students per truck.

So basically for 2 1/2 weeks you'll be doing those things. At one point I had 4 straight days of parallel and offset backing out on the training pad, and it gets hot out there. Remember to bring sunscreen and plenty of fluids. You'll be off on sundays and also there will be days when the training pad is full and they send your class home. I had gotten Friday, Saturday and Sunday off on one weekend and a few guys and myself went to Park City and stayed the night camping, it was cool. If you can find a guy in your class that's from Salt Lake City area and drives, get with him and ride to and from terminal with them, it' a lot better than taking shuttle back to hotel after school because there are 2 shuttles and all these classes let out at same time and they stampede to these shuttles, and could cause you to sit at terminal for couple hours trying to get back to your room. The terminal is pretty cool though, in the main building where you spend your first 3 days of class there is a cafeteria that has good menu and plenty of food and drinks. Out by the training pad in building 2 is the Swift store, you can go in there and get food and drinks, also Swift hats, shirts, briefcases, you name it.

So the 3rd week is important, it'll be the last time to practice your skills before taking your test. Test days are Thursdays and Fridays. You'll get 3 strikes during your testing phase, If you get your 3rd strike you get sent home. Your first test will be pre-trip, good part will be that you don't have to do the whole truck. For example I only got engine compartment and coupling system, some guys only got 5th wheel and trailer, but they will pick 2 people from every class to do the whole truck so its good to be prepared. Your 2nd test will be parallel/offset/straight line backing. Your 3rd test is very important and its automatic fail if you don't get it right, and that's your A.L.E test, you cant mess this up, then your tug, tug, roll test. After that you'll do your road test, you can miss up to 30 points on it and you must do a total of 65 intersection and mirror checks.

If you pass your test on Thursday and Friday then Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday will be orientation. Your first day will involve another drug screen and a lot of videos. Your second day you will become and official Swift driver and get your training and employee handbooks.

Also on 2nd day they will put you on the computer and have you sign all your employee documents, your application, your contract, training papers. Your 3rd day is the best day, they bring in maintenance department and he will go over how to maintain your truck. And they will bring in Student Driver Training Coordinator and let you know what your going to be doing and what you have to do when your out with your mentor. The last hour of the day you will receive your driver code and comdata card and you'll also receive your Driver Training Coordinator and you'll get a piece of paper that has your mentors name and number. You will call him after class and he will let you know when you will be leaving. I left an hour after class with my mentor but there were some guys who didn't leave for couple days. When you leave with your mentor you'll do a total of 200 driving hours with mentor, 50 hours of driving with him in front seat, after that its 150 driving team. You also have to complete 42 backs, half night time backs and half daytime backs. You'll have training book that the mentor will fill out and turn in for your upgrade. After you complete your 200 hours you will go back to terminal and do your upgrade test, which is a 60 question test about training, and do one last road test, if you pass both you will be assigned your own truck. And that's that folks. I had fun, and trainers were awesome and did a good job. Please feel free to ask any questions.

How is the upgrade test like? Is it multiple choice or written and is it open notes?

How is the upgrade test like? Is it multiple choice or written and is it open notes?

I took my test in February. Multiple choice (no notes). If you've paid attention in this class, with your mentor (assuming he at least tried to go over stuff), you'll pass.

Its easy, only like 60 questions, need to get 80 percent on it, if your mentor don't go over the stuff with you that he should be just read your training manual when your off duty or when your in passenger seat for your 2 hours On Duty-Not Driving and you should do fine. Driving test is just like your CDL Road Test, actually mine was shorter, you'll just do road test and some backing maneuvers and couple the truck and it's done. Important thing about your mentor is to make sure you guys talk before you leave on road, make sure your compatible and your not going to have any issues before you leave on the road. And not every mentor will be perfect either, but just get through those first 50 hours with him riding shotgun and then you won't have to deal with them that much because you'll be running team.