Driving in New York is beautiful

If I have done this correctly, you should be seeing three different pictures at the beginning of this post.  I have been teaching myself how to create posts just using my smart phone. 
The first picture should be of Jason, my Mentor (Trainer) standing next to his tractor.  He is an owner operator so this vehicle is his baby.  He has had it for only a few months.  The next two pictures were taken while running down the interstate.  The pictures don't  come close to the beauty you see in this part of the country while running down the road.
Yesterday we delivered our load to Ononeta, NY.  We were able to get dispatched on another load that picks up in Boonsville, NY and delivers to a small town in southern, PA.
So far, I have enjoyed this endeavour thoroughly.  I will write more later.......Tom

First day on the road

My first day on the road was long.  It spanned two days and covered many states.  My first load is scheduled to be delivered to New York state.  My Mentor ( Jason Turpin ) and I drove 20 hours yesterday between the two of us. I ended up driving through most of Ohio, all of Pennsylvania and into New York.  We still have another 140 miles to go before we drop this load.
The state of New York is beautiful.  Lots of very green mountains. I will get to see more later this morning when we get underway.  I had lots of fun yesterday driving.  It has been a long time since I have been able to say that when I have been working.
OK......I have been in the bunk for almost seven hours now.  Time to.get up and moving to see what the day will bring.  I'll write more later.......

Tom

My first day as a Swift driver

Today started out nicely.  We didn't have to report to the terminal until 9:00am.  I spent most of the morning waiting to hear if I had been matched up with a Mentor (trainer).  There were four other people from our orientation class in the same situation.  We were able to get some of the online courses completed.  I was even able to set up my direct deposit. 

Lunch came and went and still mo match up with a mentor.......

2:30pm......I have been matched!  His name is Jason and he is based out of South Carolina.  He is on his way to drop a load in Ottowa, KS and then will be coming to the Edwardsville, KS terminal.  He tells me that he will get here sometime between three o'clock and four o'clock tomorrow morning.  So, I went ahead and got a "bunk room" here at the terminal.  I am going to try to get some sleep in anticipation of the early morning departure.

So the Big Adventure is finally about to begin in earnest...... I will post again whenever time and sleep permit.....

That's all for now.....Tom

Orientation - Day Three

Today started early.  We had to pack our bags and check out of the hotel.  Today we were scheduled to complete our orientation.  We met the safety Manager for the terminal.  We met the Terminal manager.  We received some additional instruction on how to keep the vehicle running by doing some minor repairs on our own. If we are unable to do the repairs by ourselves, we then have to contact the company.  The company then has to contact an outside repair firm and have them come to the truck to make the repair.  This all takes time.  We might have to wait up to four hours until the repair truck arrives.  Since we only have so much time to drive during each day, losing this time means loosing money.  If the truck isn't moving, we aren't making any money.   We get paid by the mile. 

We also spent time going over the Qualcom system.  The Qualcom system is a computerized communication system that is installed on every Swift vehicle.  This is how the company knows where we are.  It is how we let them know that we have delivered our loads.  This is how we receive our instructions on the next load to pick up.  The company is also upgrading the system, so we will be doing all our  logging electronically.

All in all it was another busy, busy day.  During the course of the day, someone would come into the room and announce that this driver or that driver had been officially hired and would receive their drivers code.  It was very tense for the drivers whose name wasn't called.  They were sitting there trying to concentrate on the information being presented to them while still wanting to find out that they had been hired.  By the end of the day, many of us still hadn't received their driver codes.  I was lucky.  I didn't have to wait all that long until my name was called.  They were able to match many of us with a trainer and we were told when they would be meeting with them.  Unfortunately I haven't been matched with a trainer as of yet.  I was told that I should know who my trainer will be sometime tomorrow or Friday.

My room mate Linzie got his driver code and was told the name of his trainer.  He doesn't know when he is supposed to meet up with him as of yet.  So Linzie and I are at the hotel again tonight.  Hopefully we will both be with our trainers soon.

That's all for today.....Tom

Orientation - Day Two

Another fun filled day at the Swift Terminal in Edwardsville, KS.  If Swift wanted to drill home just one thing during this orientation it would have to be compliance.  As the driver of a fully loaded 80,000 lb "Lethal Weapon" I have to be responsible for not only my safety, but the safety of the general public that I come into contact with during my travels.  Since this is such a great responsibility, the federal government (the Department of Transportation) has come up with some very stringent rules and guidelines that I have to learn and follow.

We were treated to some very scary statistics in regard to accidents and when they happen.  Most of the accidents that involved Tractor Trailers happened between the hours of Midnight and 6:00AM.   Most of these accidents are caused by some type of driver fatigue.  We spent several hours today going over how we can stay in compliance with these rules.  The rules have been put into place for our safety.  They also protect the driver from becoming a liability to themselves and the public traveling on the roads with them.

I have been given a federal license to drive a commercial vehicle.  If I don't follow the rules that go along with that license, I will be in violation of federal law.  Federal law violations result in federal prison time.

So here are some of the rules:

CDL holders have three key limits when it comes to time spent driving and working.  They are only allowed to drive 11 hours in one single 24 hour period.  They are only allowed to be on duty, driving and not driving for 14 hours during one 24 hour period.  They are only allowed to be on duty, driving and not driving for no more than 70 hours in an eight day period.  In order to reset the 14 hour clock, we have to spend ten consecutive hours off duty or in the sleeping bunk of the trailer.

We are required to keep a log of our time and how it is being spent.  We have to account for every minute of every day.  We have to log this time in four different categories.  1.) Off Duty  2.) Sleeping in the sleeper berth of our tractor  3.)  Driving  4.) On Duty not Driving   We have to account for our time not only on the days we are working, but also on the days we are not working.  We can and will have these logs audited at any time.  If we are found not to be in compliance with proper logging, we can be ticketed.  The fines associated with the tickets are not the companies responsibility, they are the drivers to pay.

One example of how to spend the day driving and stay in compliance would be to start your day driving at 6:00am.  Drive for four hours until 10:00am.  Go off duty for one hour.  Have something to eat.  Let your tires cool down.  Then start to drive again at 11:00am for four hours until 3:00pm.  Go off duty for two hours.  Eat some more food, go for a walk, get some other type of exercise. Start to drive again at 5:00pm for three hours.  Stop driving at 8:00pm. Go off duty for one hour. Relax, read a book, catch up on email.  Crawl into the sleeping bunk at 10:00pm for eight hours until 6:00am.  Stay off duty for another hour, eat breakfast get ready for the day.  Start the next day of driving at 7:00am.

All in all, I am glad that I ended up with Swift.  They are one of the largest training fleets in the country.  This is a good situation for someone like me.  New to the industry.  I am glad that I will have all the resources of the company to rely on while I am learning.

Thats all for now........Tom

Orientation Day One

The Swift Transportation company definitely has done this orientation thing more than once.  It is a process that must be followed in order to get their new drivers on the road safely.  The day starts with another DOT (Department of Transportation) physical.  I am still here, so I must have passed.  After the physical is completed we got to watch videos for the rest of the morning.  The main thrust of the information is make sure that the drivers are safe and courteous on the roads while representing the company.

The company bought our lunch.  Then back to the classroom for paperwork and lots and lots of informational handouts and manuals.  I expect that we will be going over all the manuals and handouts tomorrow and Wednesday.  The most difficult thing about the day was trying to stay warm.  The AC was turned down to combat the heat we have been having lately.  Today the high was only in the 80's.  It took all day for the AC units to react.  It finally warmed up a little later in the afternoon.

This is the first evening in about a month that I haven't had to do some type of homework or study for a test.  Nice to just kick back and rest.

I will see what the day brings tomorrow.....until then.........Tom

The "quick" bus ride to K.C.

I wasn't looking forward to today's trip.  The bus ride was supposed to be an "Express" from St. Louis to Kansas city.  I was scheduled to  leave St. Louis at 7:40AM and arrive around noon.  So much for the best laid plans.  Greyhound oversold the first bus.  We didn't get on that one, but not to worry....the next bus would come in from Indianapolis around 11:30AM and then we would be on our way..........11:30AM came and went....They announced that it should be in and out again by 1:00PM.  1:00PM came and went........  We finally got on the bus at 2:00PM.......One stop in Columbia, MO to drop off one passenger and then off to Kansas City.   I finally got checked into the hotel at 8:00PM......


You can really see a vast cross section of humanity while sitting in a bus terminal for six hours.  Many different languages, and cultures.   The best part of my day was when Shannon came to rescue me from the bus terminal.  She treated me to Sunday Brunch at Mocabees.  Shannon is a regular there. The food was excellent.  The company was even better.

I get to spend the next three days in orientation.  The Swift terminal I will be reporting to is in Edwardsville, KS.  I will  have a roommate for the next three days.  His name is Linzie and he is from Hazelwood, MO. He is a very likable guy and has had some trucking experience previously.  It will be good to have someone who has been around the block before to learn from.  We will start our day with another DOT physical.  Then we will get to learn more about Swift Transportation. Starting Thursday I should be hitting the road with my trainer.   Lots to learn and lots to look forward to.

I survived the trip on the bus.  We will see how the next few days work out.