trucking career

09 arctic cat m8

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Well I have been wanting to truck ever since a young man once I get my airbrakes and class 1 and some training, just wondering if anybody will hire me without driving for a fews years woukd like to do over the road trucking thanks
 

zeebs

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Well I have been wanting to truck ever since a young man once I get my airbrakes and class 1 and some training, just wondering if anybody will hire me without driving for a fews years woukd like to do over the road trucking thanks

Itll be tough to get hired without over the road driving experience. Thats one thing ive never understood. Everybody wants over the road driving experience but nobody wants to hire ya. The way it looks to me is hopefully the old semi-retired people that are driving truck never die and always want to work.

Sent while not working too hard
 

GYMBRAT

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Dependes on what type of trucking your interested in? Halliburton, Baker Hughes, Trican, Sanjel, Calfrac, Gasfrac, Canyon, S.T.E.P etc etc etc LOL....theyd be willing to get you your experience..
 

magnet

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Yup like brat said easy to get a job with a class 1 anyone will hire you pretty much. Lack of drivers out there so guys take anyone they can

As for they won't hire without exp. lots of times that is the companies insur. Policy controlling that let's face it it is one of the biggest costs to a company by hiring. More experienced drivers they get a better rate. Companies have to keep every penny they can to stay alive so they make these pre hire rules
Good luck
 

zeebs

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Truckin is a long slow death........ some like it that way thou.lol

Unless you own your own trucking company and get a long term contract related directly to the government. Then like any government situation you're set for life.

Sent while not working too hard
 

zeebs

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One thing i will say though is haul something of value that nobody else wants or can haul. Take for example anhydrous, very hazardous and if you get in an accident your life an many others are in extreme danger. Road salt.......nobody wants to haul road salt as it will destroy your equipment, but wait.........thats a government contract also. Heavy haulers..........and im not talking about your truckers that just and a wide load sign or oversize load sign on the truck and trailer. Haul big, heavy, dangerous stuff. Risk VS reward. Nobody ever got rich hauling a reefer load of cardboard boxes.

Sent while not working too hard
 

Shadam

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in ozyland I was getting 42c per km, not mile. around town clown rate was $23.50 per hour flat rate. flaunt the law and clear $2000 per week.
not even the round town clowns get out of bed for less than $1000 per week in the hand.
sea cans local on arvo shift $30 an hour. buddy clears $1500 a week for 60 hours seas cans local day shift.

over here I'm thinking vac truck.
the highway makes you fat and angry!
and you have no life,
living on the road can get expensive
 

Pinner

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Well I have been wanting to truck ever since a young man once I get my airbrakes and class 1 and some training, just wondering if anybody will hire me without driving for a fews years would like to do over the road trucking thanks


If this means long-haul, run kid run! Highway haulers don't get paid for large amounts of their time, waiting time, loading and unloading...layovers, waiting for loads etc. Pay per mile/km should be outlawed, some drivers make less than minimum wage, especially in the States.

Oilfield trucking pays very well. ;)
 

Mike270412

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If this means long-haul, run kid run! Highway haulers don't get paid for large amounts of their time, waiting time, loading and unloading...layovers, waiting for loads etc. Pay per mile/km should be outlawed, some drivers make less than minimum wage, especially in the States.

Oilfield trucking pays very well. ;)
Great way to see N.America though.
 

GYMBRAT

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Oilfield is where the moneys at in this business as a driver. AND you get to move up to the point of MAYBE being a heavy hauler like I was when moving rigs ;)

It can be a dogs life either way bud, highway OR short hauls etc.......
 

medler

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i would get a job as a swamper.,,pay aint great but its a start..and ya gotta start somewhere. .you get to see the country and if the driver is nice he will let you drive and get some experience. i did it for a while with Jo Ann outta ponoka
 

Crazy8

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Being a professional driver can open up a lot of doors that you didn't know existed. Company's like to hire from within and getting in as a driver can be a good first step.
I started out years ago as a vac truck driver, right out of truck driving school. Got a ton of experience driving off road and used that to get a good paying job in the city hauling concrete. Took a few years but worked my way up to Operations manager and now life is good.
I had all intentions of being a career driver but one never knows what opportunities may come about.
 

RMK Junky

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Diesel fuel runs through my veins. Born and raised in the industry with 27yrs of experience from moving drilling rigs to hauling toilet paper. Ive been an O/O since 1993. The sky is the limit on choices for OTR truckin'. You'll make a little money but the freedom of the open road is priceless. If your a family man this can be a sacrifice in its self. There are many good carriers that will train and mold you to be a professional driver. But there are also some bad ones so choose carefully. I don't know what part of Canada you are in but you can search online the top 50 Canadian carriers who have achieved awards in excellence for business management. My first taste of this was with N. Yanke Transfer out of Saskatoon some 20 yrs ago. My first daughter was born and life on the road was hard being gone for a month at a time. Team driving was a really big thing then and that was strike #2. Living in grande prairie was another issue because its out of the freight lanes and I had to commute out of Edmonton. I lasted 6months and that was that. Mind you I've scratched that OTR itch a time or two since :) Oilfield has been my main bread and butter, it's been a good life :beer:
 
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Toro

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Not sure where your located but there's city delivery work in Edmonton with a few company's and maybe that would help with eventually getting long haul work (gather that's what your looking for). The stuff I've seen advertised is mainly single axel body job work.
 

catmando

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Wow,its unusual for the younger generation to want to get into trucking ,let alone long haul.All I can say is it aint what you think it is.I think I have hauled everything except swingin beef and apparently they put the kabosh on that for good reason.
Good Luck,you have been warned!
catmando!
 

Stompin Tom

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Come on out to BC and haul some logs, that will make a man out of you :)

On second thought, stay in Alberta and get 5 or 6 years under your belt before giving logging a shot.
 

250mark1

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Should be that hard to get a long haul job with no experience they hire all the east Indians that can barley drive forward let alone back up
 
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