The final week of my five-week course in learning how to drive a big rig was a week of soaring highs and crashing lows. At the start of the week, I was presented with the “Top Of The Class” award, which meant that I had done the best on all of the tests we had taken. It was a small class, but it was a good feeling to be at the top of it. However, I missed out on the second award.
The school has us do what they call a “rodeo”, where each of us must do a series of maneuvers – straight backing, offset backing, parallel parking and finally alley docking. But instead of being careful to do everything the way the BMV tester will want it done, this is all about speed, with the object to go through all maneuvers in the least time. The only thing that will kill you is if you go outside of the cones. I was up first, and was doing great, but made a bad bet. On the parallel parking, I figured that I could take the time to get out and look at a boundary line once, on the theory that the other guys would rush and hit a cone. I was wrong, and came in 2nd. Oh well, we were all friends and I felt good that one of the other guys had something to be proud of.
The day before the test, the plan was for the instructor to take each of us out for an hour of brush-up. Partly, this was to get us used to another truck. It seems that truck No. 197 experienced an air brake issue that made the instructor fear that it might cause some or all of us to fail the road test, so we all agreed to go back to truck no. 208, with its less forgiving transmission and touchy brakes. Bob was out for two hours with the first guy and was in a foul mood upon his return. I don’t know what caused that, but he was clearly not happy with the prior guy’s drive.
Road construction was everywhere, and he decided to take me out to an unfamiliar area rather than on the routes we would be driving for the test. Lots of traffic, road construction and railroad tracks. Lots and lots of railroad tracks. One of the no-no’s for the test was shifting while going over a railroad track, and I committed that one a couple of times, which did not improve the mood in the cab (for either of us). After a highly stressed 1.5 hours, I was back and the third guy didn’t get to go at all.
Test day was Thursday. The format was that we would start on the pre-trip and air brake check, then what we called “the range” with the backing and parking, and then on to the road test. Things started off well, except that the guy doing my testing started looking for things on the pre-trip inspection that we had not covered. They were minor items and only cost me a point or two, but they were a surprise I wasn’t expecting. Things were going great through the inspection, the straight backing and the right offset backing. Then I started a right parallel parking maneuver — something that I had done successfully probably 20 times. This time, things went horribly wrong.
We had the ability to lose a total of 9 points for all 3 of those maneuvers and still pass. The parallel park can burn up 5 or 6 points even when everything starts out right. Mine did not start out right, so I burned up maybe 3 or 4 points trying to recover from my initial screwup, and everything went downhill from there. If you don’t successfully complete the three parking/backing maneuvers, you don’t get to proceed to the road test. So it was a short day that ended with good ol’ Bob disgustedly muttering “Who in the f*** fails on the range?” It was actually a pretty good question. What happened? A case of nerves that held over from the day before? Probably. Or maybe I was thinking ahead to the road test and was not concentrating on the task at hand. But now I had gotten to experience the setup and the way they work at the test site, so I would be better prepared for the second attempt.
There was a built-in provision for re-takes, and I got scheduled again for the following Wednesday (six days hence). The pressure, however, was far higher. We had been told multiple times that in the entire history of the school there were maybe three students who had not passed the test on either the first or second time. I did not want to become the fourth, so I spent 2.5 hours at the school on the following Saturday working on those maneuvers (again) and was scheduled for another road session with the instructor on Tuesday morning. I was not looking forward to this added instructor interaction, but the extra drive time couldn’t hurt. Sooooo, my five week course got extended to six weeks. Hopefully that would be it.
Here’s wishing you success in your next week’s testing! Looking forward to the POSITIVE result! It’s always amazing how well one can be prepared, and then it only takes a little something to flush it down the tubes. I nearly flunked a final exam (through overconfidence) after having aced all sections/labs in my military A.E. school. The instructor gave me a “Bob” look and comment. Since grading was done on the curve, for the remainder of the course, I bounced in and out of required remedials according to my score. Good Luck!! 🙂
Bummer about the “down” on your first attempt. Your description is bringing back vivid memories of my private pilot check ride, now nearly thirty years ago. I passed, but it was definitely a high-pressure flight, especially when the instructor pulled power for a simulated engine-out setup. I was flying into a stiff headwind and it became obvious I wasn’t going to make the runway. I pointed this out to the instructor and said I would instead attempt a landing in a pasture within gliding distance. He didn’t really like that as an answer and I probably got the same glare you did. Thankfully was proficient on everything else and lost my shirt tail when I got us back to the home field.
I still remember when I soloed 52 years ago, the most vivid memory was looking at the radio mic laying on the seat where the instructor had been until then. It was a wonderful, & a little terrifying.
Thanks for dredging up the memory.
Best of luck JP, I know you will pass.
Dave
While I’ve only gone up a few times, and only one official hour with an instructor I could log, being an experienced Flight Simulator pilot, I asked my instructor several questions like, “What’s the engine out procedure when you’ve only got one?” In your defense Ed, my instructor showed me by cutting the throttle to simulate this and said you look for a clear farmer’s field to set down and make your approach. We lined up on one, and when at about 1000 feet AGL, he pushed the throttle back in and said take us back up to 3000 feet. So, at least according to my instructor, you did the right thing!
But as far as stress on the check ride goes, try taking your test with a bunch of ones and zeros instead of a real person… yeah, no mercy there. The steep turn was a real b!tch… one foot outside of your altitude, or one knot below or above the proper speed, and instant fail. It was probably 15 times before I was allowed to proceed to the destination airport.
When I finally got that real flying lesson in a real Cessna 172, I asked if I could do the steep turn. My instructor said it was way too soon for that, but compromised and let me do 360 degrees around the compass at a 20 degree bank angle.
Flying is so cool, but alas, I really didn’t have the money to take it all the way except for virtually. Now I fear I’m too old to go there.
I was kind of chagrined at blowing a previously great record, with both a pilot’s license and a bar exam being passed on the first tries.
I remember my check ride too – there was an easy tester (nicknamed Santa Claus) and a hard grader – I did not get Santa. But I passed, despite a crosswind landing that wasn’t the cleanest I had ever done.
Always being a guy who looks on the bright side of things, even setbacks, we get another installment of this excellent series!
I didn’t get to comment last week, as I figured it was too late to comment as it was already Monday, but the week 4 discussions below the post were excellent. Having always been careful around trucks, one of my pet peeves are drivers that are afraid to pass and hang off of the back corner of a rig while in the left lane, rather than make the pass quickly and get it over with, making it better for the truck driver, and the cars stacking up behind…
…leading me to my second peeve… the drivers stacking up and get impatient and then change lanes and pass that truck on the right, invariably cutting it too close when the change lanes in front of the truck to get back into the left lane.
I see these missteps in rush hour every day, and now with the Key Bridge gone, the I-95/I-895 corridor is only going to get worse.
Sorry: End Rant…. But…
This series should be required reading for new drivers so they understand proper protocol driving around vehicles weighing 80,000 pounds!
You remind me of another peeve – I move over one lane to make room for slower traffic merging onto the highway. Then that guy finally speeds up and a bunch of other cars start passing me on the right before I can get back over. My instructor told me that it is often better to just stay in my lane and let the merging vehicles deal with me, either getting out in front or slipping in behind. I am coming to the conclusion that he is right, though it messes with my “midwestern nice-guy” upbringing.
JP, your level of patience and determination is more than commendable. Don’t be discouraged. I was the director of the largest commercial driving schools in NJ for 3 months. I’m not bragging as it was not a good experience and student drivers were treated like cattle. Don’t believe them when they say only their were “maybe three students who had not passed the test on either the first or second time.” Our first time pass rate was 10%, second go 25%. They push you to a pass quickly to make room for new paying students. Instructors are all retired drivers, many of which are tired, grouchy, folks who hate doing the yard work -standing all day and nearly getting run over by new drivers. Your efforts will pay off. Proficiency with the manual trans is good and no one wants the “CDL automatic restriction” but my current fleet of 125 tractors are all automatic.Few if any fleets run manuals.
Thanks for the encouragement, especially from someone who has been there!
As the saying goes… “short-term pain for (hopeful) long-term gain”. You are very bright, and well-prepared. You will succeed, where others will not make the extra effort. I do hope the industry still allows you the ability to succeed individually. Via hard work, preparedness, and putting that additional effort in.
Thank you for sharing so much personal experience, and reflection. Not easy to do, but it really does humanize your experience. And will help others.
Thanks! And so far, so good. 🙂
Wow – I can’t imagine those six days between the first and second tests were all that pleasant. Looking way back to having failed my drivers license test when I was 16, I spent the week (figuratively) kicking myself… but had no instructor or anyone else to give me added pressure.
I’m looking forward to hearing better news from the bonus Week 6 update.
Oh, and tomorrow, I’ll be driving through Indiana on I-74 and I-70, so I’ll be thinking of you!
Haha, I was on I-69 all day, except for about a 10 mile stretch of I-70 through downtown, so I almost certainly missed you.
It’s interesting that parallel parking is also apparently the most common failure point for automobile driver’s licenses…at least if I go by what my son told me (he being the last person I know who took a driver’s licensing test) and frankly if I recall from my own licensing 47 years ago.
(Well, that’s if you don’t count the legendary stop sign at the end of the driving test at the Rockville, MD DMV area which was right AFTER the examiner told you “Alright son, you did good!”…the idea being that you’d be so relieved that you’d drive to the starting point, right through the stop sign and receive an immediate fail for driving through a stop sign. I know more than one peer who got nailed on that.)
I have never understood the parallel parking thing because I have never found it difficult in anything with 4 wheels (all bets are off with more than 4 wheels though) AND frankly I’ve seldom needed to parallel park in nearly 50 years of driving. It’s always seemed to be more of a challenge than a practical thing.
So, how often does one need to parallel park an 18-wheeler?
“So, how often does one need to parallel park an 18-wheeler?”
It has not come up yet, at least not for me. Funny thing though – just this afternoon I had to do a right offset backing job, just like in my test. Only today, it wasn’t lines and cones but a bunch of trailers and another tractor I had to keep from hitting. Mission successful!
Railroad tracks present lots of problems. We saw the aftermath of a semi trailer that had been hit just north of Tucumcari, NM about two weeks ago. My guess is the driver missed his turn and got off on a farm road and the trailer bottom out on the tracks.
Lots of rail crossings down in that area are to high for any trailers.
My 1st wife failed her drivers test twice before she passed. She used my 68 Cougar, 428, auto trans, My other car was stick and she hadn’t mastered that yet.
She had the same State Patrol officer all three times. I was within earshot as the officer got in the car for the third test. “OK, are we going to get it right this time?”
I didn’t mention it, but we had a guy come in from the Federal division that deals with railroad crossings. He told us that there is a phone number on the equipment at every crossing, and if we ever get hung up on a crossing, do 2 things – get out of the truck and call the phone number. He said that with a call, they can often either re-route or at least notify trains of the problem in time to avoid disaster.
You’re going to do fine and be a good, competent and safe driver to boot .
My ex wife took _8_ tests before she got her license, she’d run stop signs use curbs to make Y turns etc. then get really pissed off and argue with the tester…. DUH .
Loving reading this articles .
-Nate
Thanks, Nate. Wow – 8 tests. That’s something!
Test day is never fun, I did my trailer license in a 18 speed Isuzu 370 6 wheeler rigid pulling a 4 wheel drawbar trailer cruise around town with the trafffic then reverse into a drive way blind side then do it again open side followed by reversing straight between lines in a car park and passed, Ive rarely towed or backed a 4 wheel trailer since six eighht and ten wheel trailers 2,3 & 4 axle semis and quads and 5 and 6 axle Btrains,
A wheel is either twin tyred or single tyred, tyres arent counted, just wheels
I am amazed at the variety in both equipment and training in different parts of the world. Here, our world is almost totally 48 and 53 foot trailers that have 2 axles at the rear.