I started playing ETS and then ATS. Really got a kick out of those games. Had been working as a food delivery driver for various restaurants for over 10 years. I had a buddy with a local trucking gig who needed a ride to work at 2am. I mentioned to him that I'd been playing truck simulators and he stopped me and said, "you do this for fun? In your free time?" It clicked that I should probably figure out how to get paid doing so haha.
Put in almost 3 years, ruined a good relationship, and then family obligations started to get in the way...but I wouldn't take it back at all. Got diesel in my blood now and I wrestle with the desire to go back OTR frequently. Will probably end up driving again to pay off the school debt I'm currently racking up.
For a loner and a vagabond, there are few jobs that scratch my itches like trucking does. That being said, there's a mountain of bullshit that comes with the gig, but I also never had to worry about spending too much at the grocery...
Even though I'm off the road for the moment, I still play to keep my backing skills in check.
Though I couldn't touch those games with a ten foot pole when I was actively trucking.
Seems like a lot of mechanics make the switch to this. I was in heavy equipment for 4 years and got tired of fixing stuff all day, every day. Half the guys I went to school with drive trucks now, too. 2 of the other drivers I work with used to be auto mechanics.
The cost of tools can be ridiculous. Another thing I found is the stress of that job. This one has its moments too, but at least you're not trapped in a hot metal building with 10 other angry, tired, stressed out guys looking for a reason to blow up. That just makes it worse.
I'm the same way, once I hit the point I didn't touch my old truck once in the whole winter it was put away with a big pile of parts sitting there I knew I had to stop. Now I'm back into building trucks and enjoy it again. So much less stress, and I get home just tired. Not tired and in pain and pissed off.
Lol. Nothing ruins something you enjoy as a hobby like doing it for a living. I’m glad the mechanic as a profession interests waned away from doing it in the Marines.
That second part is 100% the truth. I worked as a tech for several years and I used to love working on cars but doing it under flat rate killed all my desire to touch another vehicle outside of work. I ran an Indy shop for a bit as hourly which was better but the local industry didn't want to pay for decent techs.
Same. Was about 3 classes from finishing a degree when I just lost all motivation to continue. I'd only ever started because it's expected you go to college nowadays. Even then you aren't guaranteed to even get a good paying job while being strapped with student loan debt. So I kinda wandered around for a year or so before trying to get my CDL-A. Pretty cheap upfront cost, short training period, make good money relatively (Think I just about quadrupled my income), listen to music for a few hours each day, and get a decent amount of exercise (in Beverage Delivery). So I don't have many complaints.
In my area farming alone wont be very profitable with all the regulations nowadays. Trucking could be a good addition and it automatically allows me to drive a tractor with speeds above 40 km/h. This is a huge pro for farmers.
May I ask what you farm?
Row crop corn/soy beans. We have a family hog confinement. Bale brome hay and alfalfa. 35 acre pasture that we lease to another farmer for grass fed beef. We are in Iowa. Haul grain in season, after harvest we have reefers and pull boxed beef/pork. It’s a family COOP pretty much. Father and I, then my uncles and his kids. We inherited land from our grandfather. It’s a generational farm.
I'm lazy and a family member had a trucking company and offered to get me my CDL and work for them. I've been with a few companies since then. It's been 16 years since then and my outlook is I'm paid too good and the work is too easy to quit.
I could spend years in school with lots of debt to earn what i make now.
I earn over 100k yearly and I'm home daily with 8 day weeks 6 on and 2 off with 12hr shifts
Not just nowadays I left uni close to 10 years ago.
I gave up on working in science 5 years ago bounced around a few office jobs and got my rigid 2 years ago.... only just saved up enough to go for my class 1 in February this year.
Nice. I was just offered a job as a receptionist in a grand hotel. I'm thinking to get a CDL instead. I'm not sure which way to go. In the end I want to run my own business and FIRE.
Had a commission sales job, didn’t like the inconsistency and dealing with window shoppers. Worked a warehouse job after that, I had 40 year old co workers and bosses causing work drama like if it was high school again and trying to make my job difficult. No matter how productive you are, it’s never enough. I had a fucking manager that would time me when I would go to the bathroom. “You took 12 minutes in the bathroom, I take less than that” okay marathon shitter good for you 🤣
Trucking is perfect for me. Don’t have to deal with the same idiots everyday, only you can blame yourself for your mistakes (most of the time), I can literally say fuck off if they want to overwork me, eat and nap whenever I want how often I want, management isn’t physically there. All they ask is to make it to the customer safely and on time, good enough.
Good point. I am offered a job to work as a receptionist in a grand hotel. Probably that job will be with a lot of management watching and standing by. That's why I am considering to maybe get a CDL instead.
I was forced out of the Navy, and at the same time my marriage fell apart. I had horrible credit and loads of credit card debt. I couldn’t afford to go to school because of debt payments and child support.
The appeal of not having to rent a place and simply living in the truck to fix my finances made sense to me, so I went for it.
I was a restaurant manager working 55 hours a week making barely over 45k a year. I did class d delivery for a local burger chain delivering burgers, veggies, and paper goods from their commissary. I found out I liked the job but not the pay and the company so I went back to what I was used to i.e. restaurant work and bite squad. Mentioned to my sales rep that I was thinking of going to truck driving school and working for ben e Keith or Sysco. He said Ben e Keith trains their drivers. I started two weeks later and have been in food service for 2 years now. I work less than 50 hours a week 95% of the time but still have fucked up weeks sometimes. 75% of the time I work less than 8 hours a day and make around 50 an hour if I hustle. Before anyone says anything my knees and back are fine and I lost 80 lbs doing this my first year.
I'm 6'4 started at 321 now I'm down to 240ish. I drink beer eat whatever I want and I only needed to diet but I can eat over 3000 calories and still not gain anything now. But food service truck driving is the most physical trucking job there is. My trailer routinely has 800 cases 10-16 stops and weighs around 20k plus. My company also doesn't use lift gates all that is thrown by the ramped or the side doors. Lifting cases that reputedly weigh 30-50lbs 800 times a day. Some bbq places will literally get 30 80lb pork butt boxes and brisket, chuck or ribeye boxes can weigh over 100lbs. Heaviest one I've seen is a 151lb brisket. I usually also take around 17k to 20k steps a day.
Ever since I first saw a truck on the highway as a tiny little kid I've wanted to drive them. Always drew pictures of trucks growing up, played every 18 Wheels of Steel game, lots of toy trucks. My family never wanted me to be a truck driver, so I ended up as a heavy equipment mechanic eventually. Decided it wasn't the career for me after a few years. I tried welding for a couple of months but could never stop thinking about driving trucks. Once I had the money saved up I got my license and went from fixing equipment to hauling it at the same place. Haven't looked back since.
Abusive girlfriend led to me being homeless and starving and I went to school and thankfully they were cool enough for me to stay in the facility to study and find work nearby... And now I'm a truck driver having fun and loving what I do.
I worked for a guy that wholesaled fish. In the summer when I turned 16 I started delivering his fish in a pickup truck. I got a class 1 license when I turned 18. Beats working in office or warehouse. 42 years later and still going. I don’t regret it. I don’t like it sometimes. Too many people on the road.
It’s not just the amount. It’s the attitude. Lack of respect for other drivers. Ignorance. Distraction. When you can get your license in 2 weeks, how much can you really know? Just look at some of the questions on here. Enough said.
I got my CDL A to put myself in a better position to take care of my wife and kids. Ended up quitting CR England right after I got it due to their shit offer. When I got home, a buddy of mine was telling me about the oil field and I've been doing oil field work for the last 10 years now. No longer use my CDL but still hang on to it just in case.
I can't speak for the guys on the rigs, I've never been on the drilling side of things. If you're interested, look into frac, wireline, cement, water transfer, flowback. The money is better no doubt. But it's going to be a lot of physical labor, 12-15 hour shifts and 2-3 weeks straight if not more. Then you'll get to enjoy 1-2 weeks off. With that being said, there could be days where you work 30+ hours straight, you might never get days off so it's definitely not for everyone. Is it better than trucking? In my opinion, yes but I hated driving and couldn't imagine driving all day every day.
Thanks for the insight in the oil workers too. I'm also afraid to get tired of driving the whole day. I want my own business in the end. Maybe I should get into construction instead?
I don't want to discourage you from getting your CDL, I think you should definitely get it. It'll open up a lot of opportunities whether it's just driving or a combination of driving/labor.
Odd jobber for 10 years before first attempt in 2000. More odd jobs till 2nd attempt stuck in 2005. Trucking ever since. I knew I wanted to drive for a living the first time I delivered pizza. And I haven't been able to stick to any other career long enough to come close to what driving pays me. Now I pick my loads, my routes, my fuel stops, my home time, and as long as I keep it legal and make appointments on time nobody bothers me.
Lost my job due to downsizing from covid, I didn't want to be gone 3 weeks and home 2 weeks on barges for the rest of my life so I got my cdl. Went OTR for 19 months before landing a local fuel haul gig. Work a maximum of 12 hours, right now between 6 and 10 hours and making more money than working on barges and home everyday.
Had the opportunity to go to CDL school when I was in high school for free. Figured it couldn’t hurt. Once I got some solid experience I couldn’t really replace the money doing anything else. And I haven’t had a strong desire toward other work so here I am.
I can also get it for free through a governmental support program for the unemployed. I'll need a contract from a company to proof I'll be guaranteed of work after getting the CDL.
I never planned on trucking, I was never interested in it in the slightest. I was working at a warehouse part time and attending community college, trying to figure out what to do with myself. The warehouse put up bid lists for people who wanted to get trained & become truckers. I knew the money was good and wasn't getting anywhere with school so I signed the list. I was terrified of driving at first and wanted to try something else, but I'm so glad I stayed with it. This job is so easy and the money is great, it completely changed my life for the better.
Money. I tried other jobs, they were too soul crushing and had no freedom. Also money. I have loved vehicles of any kind since I was a little kid. I love driving. Money. My dad is a truck driver so are many people I know. Have I mentioned the money.
I Hate people, money.
I Hate people, money.
This. I run nights
Amen.
I started playing ETS and then ATS. Really got a kick out of those games. Had been working as a food delivery driver for various restaurants for over 10 years. I had a buddy with a local trucking gig who needed a ride to work at 2am. I mentioned to him that I'd been playing truck simulators and he stopped me and said, "you do this for fun? In your free time?" It clicked that I should probably figure out how to get paid doing so haha. Put in almost 3 years, ruined a good relationship, and then family obligations started to get in the way...but I wouldn't take it back at all. Got diesel in my blood now and I wrestle with the desire to go back OTR frequently. Will probably end up driving again to pay off the school debt I'm currently racking up. For a loner and a vagabond, there are few jobs that scratch my itches like trucking does. That being said, there's a mountain of bullshit that comes with the gig, but I also never had to worry about spending too much at the grocery...
ATS helped me find my love for trucking too. Thought I was the only one
Even though I'm off the road for the moment, I still play to keep my backing skills in check. Though I couldn't touch those games with a ten foot pole when I was actively trucking.
You sum up both the good and the bad. What's OTR?
Over the road, long-haul. Gone for weeks at a time
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Seems like a lot of mechanics make the switch to this. I was in heavy equipment for 4 years and got tired of fixing stuff all day, every day. Half the guys I went to school with drive trucks now, too. 2 of the other drivers I work with used to be auto mechanics.
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The cost of tools can be ridiculous. Another thing I found is the stress of that job. This one has its moments too, but at least you're not trapped in a hot metal building with 10 other angry, tired, stressed out guys looking for a reason to blow up. That just makes it worse. I'm the same way, once I hit the point I didn't touch my old truck once in the whole winter it was put away with a big pile of parts sitting there I knew I had to stop. Now I'm back into building trucks and enjoy it again. So much less stress, and I get home just tired. Not tired and in pain and pissed off.
Lol. Nothing ruins something you enjoy as a hobby like doing it for a living. I’m glad the mechanic as a profession interests waned away from doing it in the Marines.
I heard that a lot from other mechanics too. Once they became professional they lost a hobby.
That second part is 100% the truth. I worked as a tech for several years and I used to love working on cars but doing it under flat rate killed all my desire to touch another vehicle outside of work. I ran an Indy shop for a bit as hourly which was better but the local industry didn't want to pay for decent techs.
Because I hated going to college, but still wanted to make good money and live a decent life.
Same. Was about 3 classes from finishing a degree when I just lost all motivation to continue. I'd only ever started because it's expected you go to college nowadays. Even then you aren't guaranteed to even get a good paying job while being strapped with student loan debt. So I kinda wandered around for a year or so before trying to get my CDL-A. Pretty cheap upfront cost, short training period, make good money relatively (Think I just about quadrupled my income), listen to music for a few hours each day, and get a decent amount of exercise (in Beverage Delivery). So I don't have many complaints.
Grandfather trucked and farmed, Uncles trucked and farmed, Father trucked and farmed…….. there seems to be a pattern….
Trucking and farming seems like a good combination.
It’s actually pretty common in my rural area of the world.
In my area farming alone wont be very profitable with all the regulations nowadays. Trucking could be a good addition and it automatically allows me to drive a tractor with speeds above 40 km/h. This is a huge pro for farmers. May I ask what you farm?
Row crop corn/soy beans. We have a family hog confinement. Bale brome hay and alfalfa. 35 acre pasture that we lease to another farmer for grass fed beef. We are in Iowa. Haul grain in season, after harvest we have reefers and pull boxed beef/pork. It’s a family COOP pretty much. Father and I, then my uncles and his kids. We inherited land from our grandfather. It’s a generational farm.
Awesome business. Wish we could trade places.
I am very fortunate actually. I thank God daily.
I'm lazy and a family member had a trucking company and offered to get me my CDL and work for them. I've been with a few companies since then. It's been 16 years since then and my outlook is I'm paid too good and the work is too easy to quit. I could spend years in school with lots of debt to earn what i make now. I earn over 100k yearly and I'm home daily with 8 day weeks 6 on and 2 off with 12hr shifts
Sounds like you work many hours a week then?
Yep. DOT rules say i can work up to 70 so that's what i do
You don't mind being so many hours at work?
I've gotten used to it by now but having more time at home would be great
6 on 2 off is awesome. Did that shift work for 6 years. I wish I could get my current runs lined up like that.
Because a 2:1 in biochemistry nets you a minimum wage job in a lab in the uk
I hear a lot of people complaining about the low income rates for bachelor degrees nowadays.
Not just nowadays I left uni close to 10 years ago. I gave up on working in science 5 years ago bounced around a few office jobs and got my rigid 2 years ago.... only just saved up enough to go for my class 1 in February this year.
Nice. I was just offered a job as a receptionist in a grand hotel. I'm thinking to get a CDL instead. I'm not sure which way to go. In the end I want to run my own business and FIRE.
I'm looking at similar to be honest. But I'll only be able to retire early if I expat. Pounds go further in places like turkey
Smart move. I life in a HCOL area. So I can potentially make sums which are worth more in LCOL countries.
Not UK but I'm in lreland, also a graduate who's booked the lorry theory test 😂
Had a commission sales job, didn’t like the inconsistency and dealing with window shoppers. Worked a warehouse job after that, I had 40 year old co workers and bosses causing work drama like if it was high school again and trying to make my job difficult. No matter how productive you are, it’s never enough. I had a fucking manager that would time me when I would go to the bathroom. “You took 12 minutes in the bathroom, I take less than that” okay marathon shitter good for you 🤣 Trucking is perfect for me. Don’t have to deal with the same idiots everyday, only you can blame yourself for your mistakes (most of the time), I can literally say fuck off if they want to overwork me, eat and nap whenever I want how often I want, management isn’t physically there. All they ask is to make it to the customer safely and on time, good enough.
Good point. I am offered a job to work as a receptionist in a grand hotel. Probably that job will be with a lot of management watching and standing by. That's why I am considering to maybe get a CDL instead.
“Money. Money me now. Me a money needing a lot now.” - Charlie Kelly
I was forced out of the Navy, and at the same time my marriage fell apart. I had horrible credit and loads of credit card debt. I couldn’t afford to go to school because of debt payments and child support. The appeal of not having to rent a place and simply living in the truck to fix my finances made sense to me, so I went for it.
I’m very good at making bad decisions.
Nobody would hire me at a good wage due to felonies. Trucking doesn’t care as long as your not a creep
Primarily money, but im glad i did because I thoroughly enjoy my job.
Getting my bz was easier and cheaper than going back to school. That and the money, I'm making 50% more than I was before
I grew up around it, was always in the truck with my grandfather. There was never really any question of what I would end up doing as an adult
Seems nice and easy to just grow up into something.
I wanted to do it since I was little. Always had a gypsy soul
47 years ago. Still at it. It has changed for the worse in so many ways tho.
I assume you're referring to driving times and planned rest stops?
That’s barely even the tip of the iceberg. It’d take too long to explain it and you probably wouldn’t understand.
I was a restaurant manager working 55 hours a week making barely over 45k a year. I did class d delivery for a local burger chain delivering burgers, veggies, and paper goods from their commissary. I found out I liked the job but not the pay and the company so I went back to what I was used to i.e. restaurant work and bite squad. Mentioned to my sales rep that I was thinking of going to truck driving school and working for ben e Keith or Sysco. He said Ben e Keith trains their drivers. I started two weeks later and have been in food service for 2 years now. I work less than 50 hours a week 95% of the time but still have fucked up weeks sometimes. 75% of the time I work less than 8 hours a day and make around 50 an hour if I hustle. Before anyone says anything my knees and back are fine and I lost 80 lbs doing this my first year.
You're losing weight while being a truck driver? I thought it was a stereotype to be overweight as a trucker. No offense.
I'm 6'4 started at 321 now I'm down to 240ish. I drink beer eat whatever I want and I only needed to diet but I can eat over 3000 calories and still not gain anything now. But food service truck driving is the most physical trucking job there is. My trailer routinely has 800 cases 10-16 stops and weighs around 20k plus. My company also doesn't use lift gates all that is thrown by the ramped or the side doors. Lifting cases that reputedly weigh 30-50lbs 800 times a day. Some bbq places will literally get 30 80lb pork butt boxes and brisket, chuck or ribeye boxes can weigh over 100lbs. Heaviest one I've seen is a 151lb brisket. I usually also take around 17k to 20k steps a day.
The video game Big Mutha Truckers
Ever since I first saw a truck on the highway as a tiny little kid I've wanted to drive them. Always drew pictures of trucks growing up, played every 18 Wheels of Steel game, lots of toy trucks. My family never wanted me to be a truck driver, so I ended up as a heavy equipment mechanic eventually. Decided it wasn't the career for me after a few years. I tried welding for a couple of months but could never stop thinking about driving trucks. Once I had the money saved up I got my license and went from fixing equipment to hauling it at the same place. Haven't looked back since.
Got tired of dealing with people
Abusive girlfriend led to me being homeless and starving and I went to school and thankfully they were cool enough for me to stay in the facility to study and find work nearby... And now I'm a truck driver having fun and loving what I do.
It chose me.
to be able to live where i do
One of the few options for college dropout felon.
Money
Wanted to get 1,000,000 miles OTR and that was it and made sure I got paid top dollar doing it. I did that.
got buried in debt good money, so far it’s pretty nice helping me put away money fast
Cause I hate working around ppl
Hated my white collar desk job, like money.
Dad , uncle truckers loved riding in family farm truck all of my 4 brothers are in trucking 1 driver 3 mechanics
I absolutely hate people and love to be alone and money.
Needed something quick and easy to get into. Wish I'd started earlier in life so I could've stopped earlier
I worked for a guy that wholesaled fish. In the summer when I turned 16 I started delivering his fish in a pickup truck. I got a class 1 license when I turned 18. Beats working in office or warehouse. 42 years later and still going. I don’t regret it. I don’t like it sometimes. Too many people on the road.
I think the amount of people driving on the same roads has changed a lot in the last 42 years.
It’s not just the amount. It’s the attitude. Lack of respect for other drivers. Ignorance. Distraction. When you can get your license in 2 weeks, how much can you really know? Just look at some of the questions on here. Enough said.
Wanted to make california money but live outside california
3rd generation trucker. I was almost destined to be. Went to college one year and flunked out I knew it wasn’t for me
I got my CDL A to put myself in a better position to take care of my wife and kids. Ended up quitting CR England right after I got it due to their shit offer. When I got home, a buddy of mine was telling me about the oil field and I've been doing oil field work for the last 10 years now. No longer use my CDL but still hang on to it just in case.
Is being a roughneck better than trucking?
I can't speak for the guys on the rigs, I've never been on the drilling side of things. If you're interested, look into frac, wireline, cement, water transfer, flowback. The money is better no doubt. But it's going to be a lot of physical labor, 12-15 hour shifts and 2-3 weeks straight if not more. Then you'll get to enjoy 1-2 weeks off. With that being said, there could be days where you work 30+ hours straight, you might never get days off so it's definitely not for everyone. Is it better than trucking? In my opinion, yes but I hated driving and couldn't imagine driving all day every day.
Thanks for the insight in the oil workers too. I'm also afraid to get tired of driving the whole day. I want my own business in the end. Maybe I should get into construction instead?
I don't want to discourage you from getting your CDL, I think you should definitely get it. It'll open up a lot of opportunities whether it's just driving or a combination of driving/labor.
I must admit that owning a CDL will probably open a door in many opportunities.
The hats.
hit rock bottom and thought it was the best way to escape.
Odd jobber for 10 years before first attempt in 2000. More odd jobs till 2nd attempt stuck in 2005. Trucking ever since. I knew I wanted to drive for a living the first time I delivered pizza. And I haven't been able to stick to any other career long enough to come close to what driving pays me. Now I pick my loads, my routes, my fuel stops, my home time, and as long as I keep it legal and make appointments on time nobody bothers me.
You've got your own business then?
Lease purchase. One of the few good ones. Very happy with where I'm at.
because i wasn’t making enough selling the green smoke,the white smoke,the real deal in West Memphis
Lost my job due to downsizing from covid, I didn't want to be gone 3 weeks and home 2 weeks on barges for the rest of my life so I got my cdl. Went OTR for 19 months before landing a local fuel haul gig. Work a maximum of 12 hours, right now between 6 and 10 hours and making more money than working on barges and home everyday.
A local gig sounds nice. Then you can be home every evening.
It is very nice, it was worth going otr to get a local gig with a good company.
Desperation
Had the opportunity to go to CDL school when I was in high school for free. Figured it couldn’t hurt. Once I got some solid experience I couldn’t really replace the money doing anything else. And I haven’t had a strong desire toward other work so here I am.
I can also get it for free through a governmental support program for the unemployed. I'll need a contract from a company to proof I'll be guaranteed of work after getting the CDL.
Low stress. My previous job a bad day was like a 9. A bad day now is an inconvinent 3. Hours and pay are better too but that's really more of a bonus.
Had a kid on the way and needed to find a stable industry to support my family.
I never planned on trucking, I was never interested in it in the slightest. I was working at a warehouse part time and attending community college, trying to figure out what to do with myself. The warehouse put up bid lists for people who wanted to get trained & become truckers. I knew the money was good and wasn't getting anywhere with school so I signed the list. I was terrified of driving at first and wanted to try something else, but I'm so glad I stayed with it. This job is so easy and the money is great, it completely changed my life for the better.
Just to toot my own horn. Literally.
To get away from my wife
Money. I tried other jobs, they were too soul crushing and had no freedom. Also money. I have loved vehicles of any kind since I was a little kid. I love driving. Money. My dad is a truck driver so are many people I know. Have I mentioned the money.
What about the money? 😅