The first day of any job can make the most confident person a little apprehensive. Just imagine being responsible for a 13,000+ lb. truck, not counting the trailer or what the driver may be hauling, on your first day. To get more insight on helpful tips for those starting out, I sat down with Mr. Reese. He has been driving trucks for 14 years and has been instructing for almost 11 years. Even with efficient and knowledgeable schooling; Mr. Reese explains that it is still difficult to anticipate what you may encounter or what you may need to know before you get started.

Scale houses

Mr. Reese explained that he had wonderful training and felt comfortable behind the wheel. But he wished he knew how scale houses worked. When pulling up to his first scale house, there was an officer waiting for him as he pulled on to the scale. He explains that they watch you to ensure you are in the truck and that they make sure you have your seatbelt on. They are looking at the condition of the truck.  Your logbooks must be correct, the weight must be correct, and the bridge law must be correct based on the state. Mr. Reese added that newer scales are even equipped with heat sensors that can check the brakes on the truck to determine if brakes are in adjustment or not along with the ability to x ray your load. This kind of technology was not out when he first started driving trucks, so even now “you have to adapt to the new regulations, laws, and all of the new technology that is coming out. It’s a constant learning game and you have to stay on top of it” says Mr. Reese.

Secure your load

Another thing that Mr. Reese highlighted was getting used to carrying loads. While in school, you do not haul anything in the trailer. He was able to share a story where he took 10,000 lbs. up north for his first load, but came back with 45,000 lbs. The load consisted of baskets of clutch parts. The shippers were supposed to put a board down and didn’t (chock his load) between the five baskets in the front and the five they loaded in the very back. Well, since this was his first trip and he had never really hauled anything before he didn’t know it was supposed to be chocked. As he approached the scale house, he had to put the brakes on suddenly and the baskets in the back of the trailer came flying to the front of the trailer. It hit so hard, he thought he got hit by a car. As he looked in his mirror, he could see some of the basket sticking out. Then once he pulled upon the scale his truck, itself, weighed 54000 lbs. due to the load shifting all the way to the front. “As a rookie you may not know what to look for but luckily the officer at the scale was understanding. I spoke to an older driver that helped talk me through chocking a load and I never made that mistake again” explains Mr. Reese. He went on to explain that since the occurrence of that incident he ensures he always has a hammer and some nails; possibly some extra boards. But if not, he will find a hardware store and buy lumber in order to chock his load.

Knowledge is key.

Getting used to living in the truck.

Getting used to living out of the truck can take a little time. It was a learning curve figuring out how to prepare food, so you are not spending a lot of money. At first, his wife would make him casseroles or something he could warm up in this small heater box he had. But that didn’t work because sometimes it would sour. The cooler worked well, but he would get tired of eating cold food. So, he did what he would typically do when he needed some guidance and talked to a seasoned driver. The driver was able to show him how to install and hook up a microwave, which solved a lot of the food problems. Another key to learning how to live out of a truck is being prepared. You may not always have access to showers, so its important to keep hygiene items in the truck as spares. Also, you should always have some type of food incase of inclement weather (i.e. you get snowed in somewhere). Mr. Reese went on to elaborate on boredom and not knowing how to unwind after spending all day on the road. He recommends what he did: have a TV/DVD player or some type of entertainment (i.e. book). Mr. Reese said, “It’s good to forget about driving for a while and relax. Set your truck up dependent on you and not anyone else, because at the end of the day you are the one living out of it and working in its daily.”

Mr. Reese explains the best thing to remember when starting out is what an older truck driver who had driven for 20+ years told him, “Look ….if you will just listen to your truck, it will tell you everything you need to know”.