Christmas

Oh the holidays are coming, the holidays are coming. Its time to start thinking about those home times and preparing for Christmas. It can be the happiest and most frustrating time of the year for all of us truck drivers and families a like. Holiday shopping as a truck driver is near impossible.  Most of it comes from the internet, while other gifts come out of the truck stop. For the family it's tough too.  What do you get your truck driver for Christmas that he can use?  Well first you should ask what it is he might need because space is limited in the truck so we don't want to be buying to many trinkets or knick knacks for the truck that will only take up space in the truck needlessly. So take the time to ask. Movies are good for down times, but only if they have a TV and DVD player in the truck. Those only work if they can supply power to them.   Gps, an up to date atlas, book of truck stops, refrigerator or things to help provide more healthy food options are all good too.   In the next week or two were going to put some of those kinds of items up in the store for all of you, so please stop back by and check out our store.  For all of those truck drivers we will also be working on  having some great items up in there for the family at home so stop back by and take a look.   You may find just what your looking for in there.  Find it here: http://astore.amazon.com/trdratafale-20

Senior Moments in Truck Driving

You know I do a lot of talking on here and every week when I post we seems to get a decent amount of views. No one ever comments or ask a whole lot of questions, so this week I am interested in hearing from you - doesn't matter if you're a student, veteran truck driver or anywhere in between. Now we all have senior moments, as they've come to be known, where we forget something or do something completely foolish.  Just recently someone was telling me one such story.  They could not find the keys to their truck.  Come to find out they had left them in the door of their truck. What are  some of your stories?   I love a good story.   You can learn a lot from listening to other people's stories.  The only thing we ask is that you keep it kind and not judgmental if you comment on a story.  We've all made a mistake or two or more out there on the road. 

Handling the Home Front

Today we are going to talk about one of the big elephants in the room. Now I only train male students for the simple reason that sexual harassment is a huge issue in America and unfortunately there are people that use it to their advantage to get ahead or seek revenge. I have a family to support so I choose not to place myself in a bad situation.  I am not saying that all women are like this.  I have not found any women to be this way, but I choose to protect myself and my family and not take that risk. That being said I will move on to my next point. In my experience as a trainer, a huge problem I have come across is that wives and girlfriends do not handle separation from their boyfriends or husbands well. This is a huge problem that everyone tend to ignore. Why is it a problem that needs to be addressed?  Because it becomes a distraction that will very likely get yourselves and possibly someone else killed out on the road. Constantly being hounded about when you are coming home and hearing how things are going wrong at home are distractions taking away from your focus on driving. You cannot very well be safe out on the roads if your mind is constantly at home.  Not as students or as drivers. This is a high stress job already so hearing that its bull that you are not home every night or you have to be out longer then planned does not help. Far too many drivers and students are worrying about things at home instead of doing their jobs out there. If students are not focused on learning the job, they become another hazard out there on the road.  As a trainer, I witness this problem follow the same cycle pretty much every time.  It starts out small then escalates to the point that it's a daily phone call telling them to quit and that the student was lied to and the wife/girlfriend was lied to.  Divorce is high because wives get lonely and have to deal with all the stress of the home while your away then your focus is on her unhappiness instead of driving.
So how do we turn this into the best of a very difficult adjustment?  Trust me I remember the stresses of the adjustment period all to soon.  First, I made it very clear to my wife that if she wanted me home safe and sound I needed to be able to focus on my driving.  Be as honest as you can with them without fueling the fire.  For example, my wife knows that she has to wait for me to call her when I'm trying to drive through storms, tornadoes, rough traffic areas, etc.  I answer tell her "Not a good time, I'll call you back." and she knows to leave me alone until I call her back.   I also try not to increase her worry about me.  There are plenty of stories about me driving through areas with tornado warnings or other things that would keep her from sleeping a wink while I'm away.  So I don't tell her.  She knows things happened but she knows that it isn't a good idea that she knows what they are. Second, you have got to have a plan on how the household will be run.  My wife handles everything except the bills.  And she knows how to get the answers to questions she has about things like the cars if I'm not available.  Third, is handling when you are on your way home.  Everyone gets excited about going home and having their trucker home.  As a trucker's wife/girlfriend, she needs to learn that nothing is certain until you actually walk through that door.  It is extremely frustrating, but us drivers have no control over the weather, traffic, or the dispatchers.  My wife gets a general idea of when I'll be home in the morning so that she can plan accordingly.  She does NOT tell the kids at this point.  Later in the day, once I know that my day is done and I'm a few hours out from home she gets the first eta.  The kids are the last ones to find out because they are too little to understand if there is a delay.  No good comes from telling them early and then having something change.  That just makes them very upset and adds unnecessary aggravation to  my wife's day.  There's plenty of fuel folks to ignite the fire with.  Trust me, I do not take pleasure in telling students to keep information from their wives while they are training.  But I have both my family and theirs to think about and my life is in the hands of students when I put them behind the wheel. I do what i have to makes sure everyone gets to go home in the end. So as always folks be safe and safe travels to all of you.
How do you more experienced drivers and truckers wives/girlfriends handle these difficult areas?

Getting Sick While On the Road

Well it's good to be back after fighting off a cold last week.  Which brings me to this weeks post - getting sick while out on the road. Yea getting sick out on the road is one of the most miserable things that can happen to to you.  It is very important that you do not put yourself in a dangerous situation on the road so you need to be very careful. We all get sick at some point folks and it can take a lot out of you.  Proper rest and eating properly are especially important, even though they can be difficult on the road. A sick driver can very quickly become a fatigued driver which becomes a major hazard for others on the road.  By D.O.T. Law we can not have anything that contains alcohol in the trucks. Read the labels very carefully.  You will be surprised how by how many cold medicines you tend to take that contain alcohol.  Nyquil and Dayquil are very good examples.  Nyquil contains alcohol, while Dayquil is alcohol free.  The other thing you need to watch for is cold medicines that cause drowsiness, or any medicine that causes drowsiness.  Again folks we a can not have drivers falling asleep out there.  Just because it is a 4 hour medication does not mean that the drowsiness will wear off after 4 hours.   It's a good rule of thumb to check any medicine you may want to use out on the road or talk to a doctor about it.  In the end if your truly feeling terrible and need the rest then be smart, take the extra precaution and shutdown the truck. We have enough problems with the public image of truck driving, so drive smart and drive safe folks.  If you would like some ideas of medicines that actually work and are safe leave us a comment and we will do what we can to help.  For you experienced truck drivers out there what are your favorite medicines?? Until then folks as always be safe travels and keep them wheels turning. 

Busting Misconceptions About Trainers

Lets try to make sure we shoot down some of the misconceptions that you may have heard about training.  I have personally trained a great deal of students that seem to be under the impression that their training process will be far less then the actual time it will take. A lot of times this information comes from the recruiters or the salesman whose job it is to put students in the seats. They are willing to tell you whatever it takes to bring in drivers. Please heed my warning take what ever they tell you with a grain of salt. They are not all liars, but I would have to guess that if they all told the truth about things then there would be a lot less drivers coming in. Next trainers are not a dime a dozen. All companies have a hard time trying to find people to train their students.  Most people do not like to drive teams to begin with because it's difficult to trust a complete stranger with your life. Now some of you are just starting out and there are guys that just have to do refreshers for what ever reason that are a little rusty.  Be honest with yourselves would you really want either of these in your truck.  Let me tell you that there are far more students than trainers.  The reality is no one gets to pick who they get. Let's face it there are a portion of employees in any profession that are not top quality.  No different with trainers.   So that brings up my third point this week,  your trainer and the horror stories you will hear about him or her. Okay I will be honest.   There are some really rotten trainers out there and there are also rotten students. Not all trainers are the monsters that we are made out to be. A lot of trainers sleep very little.  They teach you the most they can and try to make sure you are safe. So with that in mind, they may be a little short tempered from time to time. Try to give them a little slack and the benefit of you doubt.   I cannot tell you how many students that expect me to yell and scream at them the entire ride.  It does not work that way.  Every trainer has there own way of teaching you to do the job and it may or may not work for you. That is why you will have a Student Driver Manager but that's a topic for another day so for now safe travels and be safe out there folks.

Getting Your Family Ready

In our last post we talked about getting you ready and what you should need to head out over the road well what about your family. Its real easy to get caught up in what you need to handle as you get ready to head out.  But it's important to make sure your home life is all ready too. Remember folks, life at home doesn't stop when you leave.  The families you leave behind still go on without you. So your going to need to talk about the bills. Who's going to pay them and how?  By phone, computer, or mail them in.  If you've done it all your spouse or significant other may not have a clue as to how you make it all work.  Prepare them because even if you plan to handle it all, you may not always have the time to get it all done.   You are about to leave a big gap in the daily routine that they have to adjust to so try to make it a little easier by making sure the house is in order and cleaned.   Then all they have to focus on is maintaining while your gone instead of full blown overhauls. We get to pick when we leave for orientation, so don't rush it unless you like ugly fights late at night while you drive or at inconvenient times.  They will happen.  Keep them happy at home and you will be happy on the road trust me. Last but not least prep your children for those of you that have them. There the one that take this hardest of all especially when they are little and don't understand why daddy or mommy has to go away. Spend extra time with them and talk to them about it.  You may find that it will help a lot more then you think in the long run. And don't forget to pack a photo of your family to keep with you on the road. These were hard lessons to learn while out there on the road so hopefully you will take this info and not repeat the mistakes of so many others out there including yours truly.

What Should I Bring With Me? Part 1

Time to talk about packing for the extended stay with a trainer.  I have see a lot of people that are unsure of what they need to bring with them to survive life on the road.  Well let me start by saying we are going to use the K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Silly) method on this one.  You need the basics folks.  That means toothpaste, toothbrush, razor, shaving cream, comb, shampoo, deodorant and mouthwash. Towels are not needed unless you do not trust others to have washed them properly or have sensitive skin that does not react well to certain laundry soaps.  The major Travel Centers will supply you with a bar of soap and towels, so again for those with sensitive skin you may choose to bring your own soap. Oh and sorry ladies but its showers only no tubs to relax in you will have to wait till its over or your trainer takes home time if you like a good soak in a tub. Now in the clothes department enough for four days should get you by.  You will not be constantly changing your clothes while your out there because as you will find out you will not be stopping everyday for a shower.  Unfortunately its not  always possible, so be ready for every other day.    Good shoes and proper attire are important.  Next would be what do you do about bedding? I recommend a sleeping bag, its simple and easy.  A cold weather bag would be ideal, especially with winter slowly approaching.   Trucks break down and when they go down completely and cannot run it can get quite cold out there.  I speak from experience.   My first winter out over the road my truck had an Auxiliary Power Unit (In English a generator) that was supposed to supply heat or A/C to the cab of the truck. Well, mine broke and the truck had a 5 minute idle shut off (Meaning every five minutes the truck shut off unless you hit the brake to over ride it. Then it would run for another 5 minutes and shut off). Well folks this happened during a 3 day storm that had crossed the country. The temp outside was 0 with a windchill of -20 and my airlines where frozen.  I was running on no sleep.  Keeping the truck idling was not an option and help wouldn't be coming until morning.  I sat out there for 10 hours fighting to stay warm and sleeping in short intervals.   Had I not been prepared for the weather I may not have walked away. Now with that story being told be prepared for the weather, winter isn't far around the corner folks so be prepared.  Remember you don't get to pick the part of the country where you will be doing your training.  Don't over pack because there is not a lot of room in these trucks.   This is your trainer's home and you're only a guest like all those that came before you. Snacks that will last are also a good idea.  You will not be able to stop whenever you want to.  Stops happen when there is time and at times that will be the middle of the night.
We will be covering a few more things that you will want to bring with you as well as helping set your family up for success while you are on the road in the next few posts.