A Whole New World & Sim City

Orientation is over and it's a whole new world. I'm officially a truck driver and now I'm just waiting to meet up with my Driver Trainer. As mentioned before, I asked for a non-smoker, so that will take a little longer to match me up since so many drivers either smoke or Vape.

There I am, the company man sporting my Werner hat taking a selfie in front of the administrative/driver building. The place has just about everything. There's a lounge, showers, laundry, a Werner store for swag and other important driver-related items. There's dozens of computer terminals for drivers to do their Computer Based Training (CBT) or E-Trainers, 2 or 3 classrooms of various sizes. There's a clinic, a small 'gym' and a couple of 'quiet' or resting areas.

In the picture above, I've just turned a 180 from the prior picture outside the Admin building. There are two or three roads of so-called "Bobtails" which are truck tractors, awaiting a call to pick up their trailers. Many of the drivers are actually snoozing in the back 'sleeper berths' of their trucks right there in the parking lot. By law, they have to sleep or at least be in the berth for between 8 and ten hours before getting behind the wheel. We can only drive a max of 11 hours in a day, which includes breaks, and ALL work related to driving, loading/unloading, fueling, and any pre- or post-inspections must be completed during an uninterrupted 14-hour period. After that, you've got ten hours of uninterrupted rest, including sleep time.

In between completing all of the online E-Trainers and some other classroom requirements, I headed out on the driving range to practice some of the backing maneuvers that I talked about in many previous posts when I was still over at Roadmaster. We spent one day practicing in the trailer 'drop yard,' but that got nuts because there were so many drivers picking up and dropping off trailers, along with 'yard jockeys' moving many of the empty trailers to other parts of the yard for inventory checks. On subsequent days, we went out to practice at this relatively empty yard a few miles away. We were able to set up a few cones and drive around with relative impunity, getting in several reps each. Some people who went on this little sojourn were actually there completing a 'safety upgrade,' in which they might have made a minor 'Boo-boo' out on the road during a pick-up or drop-off. 

They have to successfully complete a few maneuvers before they can be cleared to go back out. There are also some folks who have been out on the road with a trainer for several weeks, so this serves as their final 'promoting out' exam before they're allowed to go Solo on the road. I just enjoyed getting back into the truck because I hadn't been behind the wheel in over a week since taking my CDL exam. On one of the days, it was my turn to go to the Driver Simulator in a small building next to the Admin building. They are exactly like they sound- it's like being in a giant video game. There's a big flat screen TV in front of you, and two other large screens - one on each side. It gives you this virtual reality sort of feeling, almost 3-D. The cockpit is outfitted exactly like the inside of a tractor trailer, but I must say that my stomach didn't agree with the effect that the VR had on my inner ear. It gives many people a sort of motion sickness effect. That's one reason they keep small buckets right next to the driver's seats. I really needed one badly. The result is below... yeah, that's a Firehouse Sub inside that bag. What a waste of $7.99! From now on, I'll refer to the Simulator as "Sim City!"

As I mentioned in the previous post, the instructor named Jason was in charge of the simulators where three other drivers and myself were put through the paces of rural, city and small town, and Interstate driving. I will say that the gas and brake pedals were NOT quite as responsive as a real truck, and the steering wheel was a little TOO responsive. That was one reason for the motion sickness. The other three people in our session all said that they experienced motion sickness as well, just not to the extreme that I did. As far as the actual simulated driving events went, I was the only person in the group that passed all FIVE scenarios that Jason set up for us. He intentionally made them very difficult, since in reality, there was nothing 'at risk.' They just want to see how we could handle intense, out of the ordinary situations. Everyone in the group but me failed on one particular incident, in which a sports car was following a fuel tanker in the other lanes heading toward us, and then passed the tanker at the very last moment. I was the only person who saw the driver getting antsy behind the tanker early enough to stop so he could pass and get around everyone. The others all died in a brutal fiery crash. Lesson learned - slow down and expect the worst! Well, I'm still waiting for my Driver Trainer, so I'll be sure to post when that assignment comes down.

Welcome To Werner!

I visited the Georgia DDS (called DMV in many other states) and gave them my temporary paper CDL, so I should be getting my plastic 'hard copy' license in about a week to 10 days. The big task at hand is to get ready for my orientation at Werner which begins on Friday, July 19th. I got this pre-training checklist below, which is pretty intensive. I should add that many of the items are directed at drivers who are coming from outside of the Atlanta area and have to stay for over a week at a hotel. Get this, Werner has so many drivers who come through here for on-boarding training and also drivers who must stay a day or two for a variety of administrative reasons, that they actually own a chain of small hotels called "My Place." Apparently the hotel is pretty full most of the time, too.

The more you know...

Friday, July 19th has arrived and I showed up at the Werner Terminal, which is right next door to the Roadmaster Drivers School, or as they would say at the school - "Up the hill." It's located off Blairs Bridge Road in Lithia Springs, right off the Thornton Road exit of I-20. The closest landmark for you ATLiens is Sweetwater Creek State Park. Our family has gone to that park with our dogs dozens of times. In fact, I went there to just chill by the lake and enjoy my lunch one day during school. Anyhow, orientation is what you might expect- a lot of filling out paperwork, presentations and videos talking about all of the benefits and programs that Werner has available. There ARE a lot! The guy in the light aqua-colored shirt to the left of the picture below is Jason. He'll come into one my stories soon, because he's an instructor and runs the Driving Simulator.

I had about a dozen people in my class. It's a good mixture of "Newbies" like myself, who are completely new to the profession, along with some folks with a little experience, and then there were a couple people who have driven for a long time and have just decided to come over to Werner from another company. There is a guy named Mitchell in my group who was also at Roadmaster with me, but was in a class two weeks ahead of me. Good dude and really smart - he has a pilot's license!

We have to set up an account in the Werner website and Driver Portal because we can do just about all of our everyday business through the portal. We get alerts and emails from corporate (in Omaha, NE) and can even look at our paychecks, access online practice/educational modules known as "E-Trainers" and much more. It's pretty handy and relatively easy to navigate.

By the end of the first day, we're basically worn out from filling out all the paperwork. We also had to take a follow-up drug screening. The 'highlight' of the day was getting our picture taken for our key card, which grants us access to getting on the Werner Terminal lot and into the driver administration building. We actually got the physical card when we showed up for class on Saturday. 

We have to show up at the "My Place" hotel on Monday morning for our drivers meeting, which will discuss "Dwell Time" -that's basically the period we spend waiting for our Driver/Trainer. I've been told mine could take a little while to match up, since I requested a non-smoking driver- the majority of drivers either smoke or Vape. During dwell time we have to stay busy and complete E-Trainers and perform several practice classes to hone our skills in the interim. More next time!

Judgment Day - CDL Style

In the previous post, I showed you the schedule for when I'd be testing. I am very pleased to announce that three of the four classmates who tested on Monday, all passed the CDL exam. Spoiler alert - the 4th person eventually re-took the test a couple weeks later and also passed!

So, it was up to me to keep this Group 24 mystique alive! We had become close and were all pulling for each other to pass the test. I arrived shortly after 7 am, a bit early, and the state examiner asked me into his office. He told me, "Mr. Fors, I hope you brought your 'A game' today. If you don't pass this morning, I'm not sure I can get you back in for a re-test until August."  Ooops. As if I needed more pressure. LOL
Anyway, we went out to the testing pad and I did my pre-trip inspection or PTI and knocked it out of the park. Just a couple points off for minor things. I then went inside the cab and performed my inspection and LAB or air brakes leakage test and that went as planned. The pad maneuvers went well, but heading into my third 'wild card' maneuver, I didn't have any points accumulated, so I felt like I could breathe a little easier. Well, I got sight side parallel, which is the easier of the three options (Blind parallel or 90 degree alley). Here's the thing- the test pad isn't marked the same way as the practice pad we have at the school. You're sort of left to your own devices to find your landmarks and 'imaginary lines' to make your turns, etc. Well, long story short, I had to use a couple "Get Out and Looks" and pull ups to reset my turns, but I got it "in the box" with only about 3 or 4 points.
After that, it was onto the road test and that went swimmingly. The examiner actually told me that I was probably one of the most thorough and prepared students that he'd tested in the past weeks/month, so that was a good thing. He said he thought I'd make a solid, safe truck driver.

So, I got my coveted Blue Folder from Roadmaster Driving School after we returned from the road. The folder contains the state examiner's official test document with his signature, which I have to take to the state DMV to get my temporary permit converted to my final CDL. The folder also contains my final grades and completed course work from the school, along with my medical forms/tests, etc. and some forms for my tuition reimbursement. One of the best parts about passing the test, is that when you're all done and that giant gorilla is off your back, you get to take the Blue Folder around and have your classmates and instructors sign it. It's just like yearbook day back in high school. Everyone wants to sign it and wish you good luck in going out and getting that money!

I had spoken with a few different trucking firms over the previous weeks and decided to sign on with Werner Enterprises. Werner will be reimbursing me for the Roadmaster tuition over the next couple years of my employment, so that's a good thing. Well, no rest for the weary- now that I've got my CDL, I begin orientation at Werner on Friday (just three days later!) and begin my new life/career as a legit truck driver. Whodathunkit?! I'll be posting some pics from orientation soon!

On The Road...Again!

Simply getting behind the wheel of one of these trucks is a thrill. You have to have the utmost respect for the engineering and the power that is hiding beneath the hoods of these monsters. All of our instructors have told us and reiterated that you have to have a healthy amount of respect and fear of the trucks, because as soon as you relax or get too comfortable with them, they'll bite you. Book it!

After we'd spent a couple days out on the maneuver pad, the instructors started to take handfuls of the classmates who were in my "group" out on the road. These trucks are specially outfitted so that there are three extra seats in the bunk area, instead of the bed racks. It's actually pretty amazing how much room there is behind the driver and passenger seats in these trucks. It's like having a small efficiency apartment back there. LOL  Anyway, the first time behind the wheel on the open road is a butt-clencher. I think I was basically white-knuckling the steering wheel the entire time and all I could think about was not hitting anyone else and not running over a curb. That's a big No-No in these big rigs. You have to take all of your turns VERY wide so you're not running over a curb, which could disturb or damage your freight, or cause the trailer to overturn. You also have to make sure that you're not hitting cars who have stopped too far out in the intersection when you're making those wide right and left-hand turns. Remember that! Always stop BEHIND those solid white lines at intersections. 

Each of the four students get around 45 minutes to an hour behind the wheel, and the instructor would make sure that we got plenty of time on a variety of driving conditions. Rural, city, small town, interstate, busy industrial park, gas station or truck stop parking lots- you name it. Each place has its own hazards and challenges, so you've got to be focused and basically look out for everything!

Here's what's amazing. Once I finally start working, actually driving on the road, 45 minutes to an hour will be just getting started! I'll be spending from 10-11 hours driving each day, possibly putting in between 500 and 550 miles. The cab of my truck is literally my office and I have to be sure that I'm not only comfortable there, but not TOO comfortable that I can't be 100% focused on the task at hand. I'm basically in control of a nearly 40-ton missile driving 60+mph down the highway. It's 'heavy' to think about it in those terms, but that's why the education, instruction, and testing process to get a CDL is so thorough and intense. Not just anybody can do it, nor should they be able to do it.

Speaking of testing, the school put out its testing schedule for my class, "Group 24" a couple of weeks ago. My test date is scheduled for first thing in the morning (7:30 am) on Tuesday, July 16th. My four weeks of intense preparation will come down to a two-hour time slot, where I'll get to show that I know how to inspect my truck, test my brake system before driving, pull off various backing and parking maneuvers, and then complete a perfect road driving test.

I'll have at least two or three of the classmates that I've become close friends with taking the exam the day before I do, so that will provide me with some inspiration and confidence to be ready for my own exam. I've worked every day with these guys, and I know we've prepared ourselves for this moment.

Wish us all luck!

Launching Pad

Okay, so the title of this post may be a bit dramatic, but in a way, I am launching my new truck driving career - and the next step in this journey takes me to the maneuvers "pad."
Let me set the stage for you here. I'm talking about what amounts to a 3 or 4 acre parking lot, with 5 or 6 sections lined off with a series of industrial-sized traffic cones. As I showed in a previous post, the day starts with 9 or 10 of the Werner/Roadmaster 18-wheelers lined up like pretty maids all in a row. Then, around 7:30-7:45-ish each morning, the entire class is split up into various groups. 

Two or three groups of students, usually four at a time, head out with an instructor and get in some serious 'road time.' Each student gets about 45 minutes to navigate the local rural roads, city/town streets, an industrial park or two, and a few miles of Interstate 20. The rest of the students are divided up in groups of around 7 or 8 and they spend the day in the sweltering heat, waiting for their opportunity to learn and practice the primary tractor-trailer backing and parking maneuvers.

You have your basic 'straight back' which is exactly what it sounds like. You're driving this behemoth vehicle forward a couple hundred feet, and then you have to carefully back it up into and through "the box." In truck driving it's always about getting the trailer "into the box" safely. That just means getting it into the loading dock without damaging other trucks or equipment, a building, or whatever is in the immediate area. The straight back is relatively easy, but you still need to focus, because even small movements in the steering wheel can mess up your line and then you're chasing your tail the rest of the maneuver, trying to get it in safely.

Also, because you have a 53-foot long trailer that's pivoting or articulating on the drive wheels behind the truck's cab, all of your movements are thrown off because they're the opposite of driving a regular car or SUV. While backing a trailer, when you move right, the trailer's tail goes left. When you go left, the trailer moves right. Got it? Yeah, so a big part of all of this training is re-wiring your brain to understand that what you're seeing in the 6 different mirrors (no 'rear-view' mirror in the cab!) is going to react much differently than you're used to.

After the straight back, you learn "Offset" backing. That means pulling forward out of one spot, straight ahead, and then backing into the space directly next to where you just were. I liken it to parallel parking the truck into the adjacent space, and then backing it in from there. You have to be able to do it from left to right (blind side) and from right to left (sight side). Generally speaking, blind side backing and parking is always more difficult because that means that you're moving the entire truck in a direction in which you can't use your passenger side mirrors to help you. If you're doing a 'sight side' maneuver, that means that in addition to using your mirrors, you can always just turn your head and look out the window and see what the tail of the truck is doing while you're backing up.
The next maneuvers, which are also very tough, are the parallel parking back-ups. Apparently, according to the pros, these maneuvers aren't used a whole lot, but just enough that you really need to know how to do them. They also fall into the sight side and blind side versions. I will say that improvements made in these maneuvers definitely help you get better at both of the offset backing options. They use the very same steps to accomplish their goal.

The final, lethal maneuver on the practice pad is the "90 degree Alley dock". It's brutal and will put a beginner or novice driver to the test. You are basically driving all the way past the parking spot or alley where you want to park, then you' have to be able to back the truck at a 90 degree angle, into the spot. Fortunately, it's nearly always done on the sight side, but because of the precarious angle you're taking, you have to be very careful about what's happening on the blind side. It takes 8-10 feet of movement by the cab before you truly can tell exactly what the tandem wheels in back or the tail of the trailer is doing - this is your "trailer or tandem lag time." A lot of doubt can creep into your mind in those 8-10 feet, like "Did I even turn the wheel in the right direction to make it in there?"
I can safely say that the first couple of times attempting this torturous task, I broke out into a full-on sweat - and that was with the A/C absolutely blasting inside the cab. And let me tell you, I was going through my training in late June through early July in Georgia!

It was freaking hotter than Hades nearly every day. I'm talking like 95 degrees and 75% humidity just about daily. Many people brought umbrellas to class to use as parasols and create their own shade, while others would site down in the shadows of nearby parked trucks. The alley dock area actually had a small covered tent-like thing, so as hard as that maneuver is, folks liked to be assigned there to beat the heat. LOL

The hardest part of all this is the waiting. Some days we'd have eight or more people in a group, and on occasion we'd have a classmate who was more advanced than us come through to practice once prior to taking their state CDL exam, or someone would be sent to 'evaluate out' which meant they had to pass the school's final test, before they'd be allowed to take the state examination.

This was my life for four weeks during the Summer of 2019 - from 7am until 6pm, Monday through Saturday, with an hour for lunch and two 15 minute breaks- one in the morning session and again in the afternoon. Brutal. It reminded me of Hell Week or Christmas training while I was swimming in college, only hotter - and outside. Oh, and I'm old as dirt, so that didn't help.
We're really just getting started, but I'll have more next time!

Back to Basics

That's a pretty impressive sight, Amirite? That's ten 70-foot-long semi tractor-trailers all lined up and ready for action at the Roadmaster Driving School in Lithia Springs. I took this shot at the end of the day this week after spending over ten hours on-site, working on pre-trip inspection, practicing parking maneuvers on the pad, and getting in a little drive time out on the open road.

I have to tell you, going 'Back to School' after more than 25 years out of the educational grind has been an eye-opening experience.

As I have mentioned to many of my friends and even some of my classmates at driving school, getting the hang of all of this new information is like trying to drink water from a firehose. The facts and figures are coming at you fast and furious and at some point it's just hitting you in the face and splashing off without absorbing into your brain.

I took Auto Tech as a class in high school and it was great, as far as being able to learn how to service your car's engine, do minor repairs and maintenance, or take apart and rebuild a lawn mower engine. But that didn't completely prepare me for dealing with these monsters!

The semis are hiding more than double the horsepower of our usual cars under those massive hoods. We're basically learning a new language when dealing with these incredible machines. For the first week, we spent at least 75%  of our time in the classroom learning the rules of the road, basic premises and formulas for figuring out how to manage your truck on hills, curves, intersections, traffic, open road, etc. We also spent dozens of hours outside, looking under the hood and walking around, crawling under, and hopping up inside the cab of these trucks.

Our goal? To learn pretty much what EVERY part of the truck is, what it does, and how we can inspect it in a way that allows us to get things repaired or replaced before we ever get on the road, so that we can drive this potentially 40-ton truck on the open road among all of the 2-ton vehicles that 'regular folks' like you are driving in each day.

It can be pretty darn intimidating to lift the hood up on this truck and look at the all of the hoses, wires, fluid reservoirs, metal shafts and rods, brake parts, and tires. However, the more you look at them, talk about them and put 2 & 2 together, they all begin to make sense and work together logically in your head. For the state's CDL (Commercial Drivers License) exam, we will have to do a front-to-back pre-trip inspection for the State Examiner, name each part, what it does, and how we'll inspect it. The examiner actually decides which section of the truck and trailer you'll be inspecting.

After the outside inspection, we'll have to do an in-cab inspection and perform what is known as an air brakes leakage (LAB) test and also the air tank 'build up' test. Then we have to perform a 'tug test' which tells examiner that you know how to test both the brakes of the trailer and the tractor once the two sections are 'coupled' or joined at the back via the 5th wheel assembly (seen in the picture above) and the air hoses at the back of the truck.

Above is the culmination of several days of hard work, studying, and practice tests. I received my CDL Learner's Permit. It's basically like the learner's permit you get when you're 15 to drive a regular car, but for people driving massive 18-Wheelers. The test is much more difficult, but at the very least it allows us to move to the next phase of drivers school and begin practicing in the trucks on the parking pad and out on the open road. I received 95% on the test which is nearly 100 questions covering three separate areas: General knowledge, Air Brakes, and Combination Vehicles. If you don't receive above 80% on General knowledge, you're not even allowed to move on to the next section, and so on. Once you get 80% you can move on, but if you get the first two sections banged out, but not the third, you have to come back in a couple days and re-take the part in which you were deficient. It was a good feeling being able to knock this out in one day. Out of our original class of 18 people, only six of us were able to pass all three parts on our first visit and receive our permit. The rest of the class returned a couple days later. A couple people had to return a couple days after that to get the final part. Also, 3 people ultimately had to drop out of the class because they were simply unable to complete the core work of the class.

So, now that I have my permit and I've passed the Roadmaster School's teachers' evaluation of my pre-trip inspection process (I received 86 of a possible 90 points!), which is NOT the same as the state's CDL exam, what's next? We get to move on down to the parking and maneuvers pad. That means for the first time, we'll actually be driving these beasts and trying to squeeze them into tight spaces at the most ungodly angles. Hilarity ensues. Until next time! (Honk, Honk!)

Catching Up On The House

Greetings!
After looking back at previous posts and how I ended them so abruptly prior to us moving back into 713 East Paces Ferry (EPF), I realized that I never provided the satisfaction of a finished product for all of my fans and followers! (Snark)
I'll start with a couple pictures from earlier this year, which give you a good idea of what the house looks like under normal circumstances.

This wide shot gives you a decent look at the house when the lawn is mowed and the front privet shrubs are pruned relatively well. It's a much different look than before and a whole lot more room!

Here's a close up look at Chez Fors. The spacious front porch is obviously a wonderful addition aesthetically and we do enjoy hanging out there with friends and family on occasion. Especially in the morning on weekends or in the evening after dinner with a "mild libation." Another one of my favorite activities is to go out and sit in one of our rocking chairs with our dog Charlie and enjoy a good Summer thunderstorm. Just the other day we were out there during a rocker of a storm when a bolt of lighting hit really close to the house, so the thunder was immediate. Charlie took one look at me, got up and walked inside. He'd seen and heard enough on that day. LOL!

Here are a few images of the Fors' Folly on EPF during the splendor of a snowy winter wonderland. The above picture was taken in December of 2017, just days before we were to head to Australia for a few weeks. Atlanta got hit with an earlier-than-usual snowfall that year and it provided for a wonderful backdrop for us to "Get the Hell out of Dodge" and head Down Under.

Grace and our former neighbors, of course, took the rare opportunity to enjoy the cold and wet snowfall to have the obligatory snowball fight and then get down to business to build a snowman. Cue the Frozen movie soundtrack ("Do you want to build a snowman?"). That's the next door neighbors' house in the background, not ours.

Finally, a quiet and serene vista of Chez 713 with its fresh blanket of snow on the ground. I snuck this photo before the kids got to it and shredded up the snow with sleds and out-of-control, frantic gloved hands trying to pack snowballs together.
I know it's ONLY been 4 1/2 years to get these pictures of the finished product up there, so I hope the wait wasn't TOO anticlimactic. :-)