training

[truckermanitoba]

weekfour here i come one more week of booklearning than get to use it when drive.

[Admin]

I KNOW IT IS BORING, BUT IN A SHORT TIME YOU WILL HIT THE STREETS AND THEN THE REAL LEARNING STARTS.
I HOPE YOU FIND ENOUGH HELP HERE WHEN YOU NEED IT :cheers:

[truckermanitoba]

well i learned in the sim have to watch everything, I was doing a buttonhook into a narrow street with a bus parked on the right side was watching right side and i was missing bus but a cab ran in to me i seem him comming but all i could do was stop.

[White Dog]

I was doing a buttonhook into a narrow street with a bus parked on the right side was watching right side and i was missing bus but a cab ran in to me

Let me get this straight.

You were making a right hand turn, using the button-hook method to keep four wheelers from sneaking in between you and the curb.

Parked on the corner on your right hand side was a city bus that you were required to miss (on the road you were turning onto).

In order to miss the parked bus with your trailer prior to the completion of your turn, you had to further swing the tractor out wide into on-comming traffic.

An experienced cab driver (assuming) whos job it is to drive and nothing else just didn't see a great big, hughmungus, tractor-trailer and just smacked right into you huh? :wtf:


If indeed this is correct (the cab hit you), that cab driver diserves to lose his job.

If in fact you hit him, you are in trainning and some times accidents happen---if nobody was hurt.......no big deal.

But you need to be honest with us AND YOURSELF!

Now; once again sir......who hit who?

[Big_Dave]

White Dog, I think he was talking that it happened in the simulator. He said 'sim' in the post above.

[truckermanitoba]

sorry if i misled anybody it was a computer controled not real..I learned have to watch in frount better use in real driving soon.. The autos sure take some of the stress off no shifting to worry about.

[White Dog]

Sorry; my bad. I saw the word "sim" but did not associate it with any thing.

Some times people accidentaly hit a couple keys and up pops a series of letters that don't belong and/or make absolutely no sence----that is what I thought may have happened.

Maybe we should stop getting in a hurry with all these stupid abbreviations and just type the entire word.

p.s.- even in a simulator, the above situation still doesn't make any sence. I would have challenged it with the Instructor.

[truckermanitoba]

well school part of course is done. I passed with a 93% average. On monday start at the track. The track is were they set up for backing turns alleydocking. they will instuct us on hooking and unhooking a trailer. putting on chains. ect. Than we spend two weeks driving on highway and city streets.
The vans are loaded. they have bales of paper and cans on them. We go over a scale and are showen how to weigh our trucks and are inpected at the scale.I got my eye perscription as i have to carry when i go to states. WE each get three hours aday for driving instruction we end up with about 60 hours of instruction. IT is not cheap the cost is about 3400.00 dollars so out tution of seven grand was not to bad.

[truckermanitoba]

well my instructor has been driving longer than i have been alive,I am learning lots from him, backing is comming i learned to let trailer drift in direction i want it to go, turning a little does it most times, i learned to turn while moving i switch hands use left to turn left right to turn right.when backing up works for me. I am trying to improve everday, 19 more days to exam.I can shift the mack I am even getting the double down shifting but i forget to use the clutch to put back into gear i hold in frount of were i want it and when rpms are right in it goes.I have to get the speed to match the gear i have to think about it first than do it.

[truckermanitoba]

well instructor evaluated me, My attitude is good my shifting is good when i do not use clutch, I am scanning when driving my backing needs work , highway driving is good but i take foot off of throttle when car pulls in frount of me until i know what they are doing. Habit from driving fiveton in city,I got bonus marks lol i was touching hubs and back drivers was warmer than others, it was low on oil . pretrip and air are good, have to work on telling what i am doing as i do it,On to weekseven. On the sixteenth of june they do evaluation than on 20th i go for my test. Hope i keep improving so i can get on first try.

[Jimbo]

I've been driving for 15 years, and my backing still needs work too. The most important part of backing is getting out and getting a better look when you need to. I still get out sometimes. It's not a sign of bad skill, but rather good safety.

[truckermanitoba]

thanks jimbo will try that getting out and lookingsee if getting a different eye on things helps

[Foxfire]

TM, it's called GOAL in most training facilities here in the States.
Get
Out
And
Look
I've been driving for many years also and I still have trouble backing. Mostly when there are no other trucks at the dock for me to line up on......lol

[allikat]

Backing troubles can be the fault of the trailer you know. I had one with a nasty dogleg, backing it onto a building at a wierd angle. 14 shunts later it was more-or-less on the dock...
Funnily enough, the one I put next to it took only 2... Messed up trailers are a nightmare.

[truckermanitoba]

well found out that trailer are different, we switched i could not back up, I had to watch trailer corner could not follow what i had just done. Took me about five minutes to figure it out. well good news drove on street never hit anything hope it continues. WE drive all week so will get time to get familar with shifting up and down.

[magicman]

TM, it's called GOAL in most training facilities here in the States.
Get
Out
And
Look
I've been driving for many years also and I still have trouble backing. Mostly when there are no other trucks at the dock for me to line up on......lol


It's OK, FF. We expect that out of you FLATBEDDERS. :xbounce: :xbounce: :xbounce:

[saddletramp]

Well, I'll be the "ol guy" and tell ya that even after 34 years of driving, when it comes to backing up a trailer, some days are diamonds and some are stones! I pull 28's in triple combination some days, 48's with a 28' pup other days. Go to back up a 48' on the door, then go grab our pup and you are all over the place with it! :rofl:
I had an audience the other night at the terminal watching me get all screwed up, and finally had to stop and get out and have a good laugh with the rest of them!
:rofl:

[truckermanitoba]

well i had trouble with the throttle today i could not control it, so when i switched and it was my turn to drive i took off my shoe worked.I got the feel back for the throttle and i was able to downshift better, I forgot twice to move the splitter back but getting better.My backing i am getting better today i purposely stopped so trailer was to far one way or other was still able to get it straight and back up to cones so if i do it at test hope i can get it in without hitting any of them.

[saddletramp]

I think it's pretty neat that you have the desire to learn this way through a school that is intent on teaching its students more than just the "basics".

I feel you are going to be a real asset to a company, mainly because you seem to have the determination to do a good job.

Just remember that we never stop learning something new every day! :)

[truckermanitoba]

well did better than day before, throttle control still needs work. I backed up twice perfect never went over the cones.Well i got an offer to go drive with an owner opperator that is putting his truck on with reimer express. The owner is driving it and me. I would be paid by reimer express for all the miles the truck drives. get a raise and benifits after 90 days.I am thinking this might be a better fit than my sponser as my sponser has only to put me with a driver for three weeks and he does not have to pay me until i complete the three weeks as my unemployment would pay me.There is no guarentee of a job afterwards. I was straight with the man who phoned me i told him i had only what they taught me at school,he is willing to work with me. He will not push me he said we will go as hard as i can drive. Have to stay within the hours of service anyway. Very little handling of freight mostly pin to pin. The handling of the truck will be similar as he has a newer mac than what i am using to train. If i drive for a year with him i would have240,000 miles on the truck and at least half would be mine. Than i could
move at that time if i did not like it.

[saddletramp]

Theres nothing like good on the job experience. How well do you know this guy with the truck? Has he been an o/o for awhile? Check out the details so you don't get "burned".
If Reimer is paying your wages then that is a good thing. Helps with the documentation of the work and miles you will be running.

[truckermanitoba]

I asked at the school, he got his licience there. Told me he was a good guy.
He worked at reimer once before, Reimer has to check on him so i will have to hope his truck is up to their specs and well looked after.His record would have to be good or they would not hire him. They are supose to be big on safty. I am going to submit my app on monday.

[truckermanitoba]

well had my eval today i am doing good. hope to do good on thursday.The job with owneropperator has gone south, he has to get his equipment checked out and get his fast card checked out. My app is in sothey can check me out and see if i can meet there standards.

[truckermanitoba]

well reimer looked at resume said 15 minutes later that i was not qualified. the lady in charge of the program is trying to find out what is wrong. The resume covered 10 years of work history, drivers abstract, criminal search. there is no way could have checked with all of my employers in that short of time.

[truckermanitoba]

well i failed the evaluation, I apealed it because it is for drivers who havethere licience,it is a way for them to evaluate there skills.The test took 60 minutes the test for licience is 20 minutes long.I get to redo it in an automatic truck so i can talk more about what i see and not have to worry about shifting.The bad thing is i can not go for licience until i pass this test.Not even my class three, so i have to find a class one driver who i can drive with so i do not lose my skills i have learned. find out tommorow when i get to do test.

[truckermanitoba]

I have good news i passed my evaluation get to go for road test on monday

[truckermanitoba]

well on monday th 4th I went for my road test.I was given a different truck and trailer than i trailed on.I did good until 2nd last turn i missed a gear and
instructor said i had came to stop I did not but it was close wheels were barely turning he failed me for impeding traffic.There is no apeal i had to go again,My rotten luck continues when backing a car came into the area were i was backing I watched him stepped on clutch and brake but because i took my atention away from back of trailer i encroached a cone instructor failed me i was 6 inchs away from cone but i was told could not touch cone anything under 12 inchs is called encroachment.They do not tell you that,I did get to go on my drive i passed that, have to go back again this time costs me 50.00 .canadian lol. Hopefully third time is a charm.

[truckermanitoba]

well i went for my road test i failed the backing this time i hit a cone a car drove in the lot and distracted me.But i passed the road test part.What sucks
is have to do everything over again even though it was just the backing i failed.It is posted trucks and buses only but as a driver i have to be aware of what is around me at all times.I could not get another apointment till this friday.I will try again go slow and i will do it this time.