TMC and Maverick hires Grads and drivers get home weekly... also i hear alot of drivers on this board raves about Marten and i think they take students also and they get home not weekends but i think 2 days off during the week, might be wrong!!!

 

I thought that the Schneider OC in Indy would be a great selling point. I can see that we are talking about family types here and I know that the Schneider OC on Indy's east side is busier than a one legged man in an ass kicking contest. I run with 'em all night. They seem to do a pretty darn good job, if I may say so myself.

I think that would make it much easier to get home more. Just my 2 cents.
Wadda I know? :wink:

 

Hey,

First question for you is this. What State are you from? I ask this because Roehl has a 7/7, 7/3 and another program where lets say on the 7/7, he goes out for 7 days and then he is home for 7 days. Or out 7 home 3. You have to live within 50 miles from one of their main terminals and its slip seating.

I did my 14 months with Roehl when I got my license. I did the out 2 weeks deal and its not that horrible. I would not do it again though. I like to have a life. However, when you are first starting somewhere or something, you gotta put in your time.

I will say from what I have seen and heard about some OTR companies. I would not suggest Swift, Werner, Prime, I would be hesitant about Schneider also, however he is a new driver and will have to do his time.

One suggestion as far as local. Its a long shot but maybe look at UPS Freight. They are growing. The downside is being on the bottom of the list requires crap runs, layoff or lack of work in the winter, long hours during the summer. They are union however and the hourly wage is descent.

Back to Roehl a little bit to answer a few of your questions. They did supply some tuition reimbursement for me. I spent zero time at weigh stations. I got pulled in once and only had my logbook and license checked. Van is 90% of Roehl. They have a flatbed, Curtainside and just recently got into the reefer division. They have great trainers also. He will go out with a trainer for 3 weeks to make sure he can safely operate the truck. Neither one of my trainers slept while I was driving. They were in the seat next to me.

They also go thru and deliver in Canada, so the passport is good. I did alot of deliveries in Toronto. I live in NY, so I would go to Plattsburgh and then hammer down to Toronto for 2 deliveries at Costco the next day after I came out of the house.

Well I hope that helps a little. Money sucks for a beginning trucker unless you have connections. Benefits, depends on the company. Hometime will definitely depend on the company. Also, don't believe all the BS a recruiter feeds you. Read in between the lines and ask lots of questions!!!!!

GL

 

:wink:

 

Crete has a terminal in Indy

 

Kimmegoose;

Since you live in Indiana, I would encourage you to check out NDL, based out of Sellersburg.

I drove for them, and they were a perfect fit for me..... family owned, keenly focused upon safety, (which, IMHO. should be your #1 priority!!) excellent trainers, (should be another top priority; they do not allow their trainers to abuse their rookies!!) and very family friendly. Now, it's been several years since I worked for them, so naturally, things could have changed.

Can they grant every wish on your list?? No; it's very doubtfull that any company can. If they could, then industry-wide driver turnover rates would be a whole lot lower than they are. Given the fact that your D/H is a rookie, you are most likely going to have to look at your "wish list", and be ready to compromise; the nature of the industry is such that while there may be companies that offer what you desire, there is no shortage of experienced drivers to fill those seats.

BOL2U!!

 

Damm Blepre you are everywhere. I drove though Belpre Oh and when I worked for Schneider I often spent the night at the Indy terminal off of Shadeland. I sometimes stopped at the White Castles there. I also hauled gatorade from the Quaker Oats plant in Indy. I believe there was an old go cart track right by that terminal.

 

After reading the posts my husband is going to call Schneider tomorrow to see what they have to say. We know we probably can't get all the things on our list, that's why we listed them in the order of importance with #1 being hometime. If the hometime is there then we look at the rest of it. We have looked at TMC but I think they are all flatbed if I'm remembering right. My husband is 38 and doesn't really want to do all the tarping unless that is his only option. He is in good shape physically and wants to stay that way. lol. He feels tarping would be difficult especially in bad weather. Shoot if the wind caught the tarp just right it might sling him 100 ft. He might weigh 140 if he's soaking wet. :lol:

Edited to include: DH applied at NDL last week and hasn't heard back from them. Thanks for the info on them, Useless (I really hesitated putting your username there but you picked it ). We hadn't talked to anyone that drove for them.

 

I graduated from CDL school last May and in my opinion, I've wasted the whole summer trying to find a local job. I'm convinced that unless you know someone, no local carrier will hire you without at least 1 year's experience. I finally wised up and will start orientation next week with an OTR carrier and will simply pay my dues until I can go local. There is no question it will be tough on your family - the longest I was ever away from my family before was only a week for a business trip. If Hubby would consider regional or dedicated, I heard that JB Hunt will take you with only 3 months OTR experience - might be worth a look.

 

That is pretty accurate. It took me 1 year and 3 months to find a local job(3 long months!!) I looked pretty dam hard but it was difficult to look while OTR. There is not a huge demand for local drivers vs OTR. The local jobs in my area required 1 year experience but often would put the 1 yr people at the bottom of the pile and go after the people with 3,5 or 7 years.

Schneider was the only trucking company I worked for and they treated me pretty well. I spent 15 months there, and still get mail from them to come back and work. They will definately "break you in" to trucking.

OTR companies will ring your phone off the hook while local companies will take their time to call if they call at all.