Feeder School

[olroadbeech]

My trainer did.
I did a pretrip before we left the hub, every day. Most of the time, it was 2 per day and I had to have all the terms correct. I was stuck on remembering brake 'chambers.' For whatever reason, I could not remember 'chamber.' We talked about that quite a bit during one of the trips we did and I did a pretrip after that, including the correct terms.

Like I said we had exceptional trainers. 2 of them were offered positions in Chicago to teach managers to become feeder on roads.

I already had 14 years of truck driving experience when I got on at UPS and went thru the 2 week training. There was so much I learned .
All my previous training was an 8 week truck driving school and the rest was just experience and what I learned from other drivers along the way.

UPS training was heads and tails above all that.

Very good. I guess it depends on your trainers. Sparks NV Hub has the best feeder drivers on the west coast. Our drivers usually win or come close at the national truck driving competitions and most truck drivers on the west coast call us the "Kings of the Hill" on Donner pass for running in the snow in the mountains. We can put a full set of chains on in 20-30 minutes or less while most of the other drivers are still trying to sort their chains out. And we very rarely got into accidents in snow and ice conditions.

sorry if some of you guys have had mediocre training .

 

[Mack37]

Like I said we had exceptional trainers. 2 of them were offered positions in Chicago to teach managers to become feeder on roads.

I already had 14 years of truck driving experience when I got on at UPS and went thru the 2 week training. There was so much I learned .
All my previous training was an 8 week truck driving school and the rest was just experience and what I learned from other drivers along the way.

UPS training was heads and tails above all that.

Very good. I guess it depends on your trainers. Sparks NV Hub has the best feeder drivers on the west coast. Our drivers usually win or come close at the national truck driving competitions and most truck drivers on the west coast call us the "Kings of the Hill" on Donner pass for running in the snow in the mountains. We can put a full set of chains on in 20-30 minutes or less while most of the other drivers are still trying to sort their chains out. And we very rarely got into accidents in snow and ice conditions.

sorry if some of you guys have had mediocre training .

Your on your own on that one. I had fifteen years driving experience and UPS training didn’t teach me anything that I didn’t already know. Aside from the way they like things done but every company has ways they like things done.

Pulling tankers and hazmat so many years is what made me safety minded, definitely wasn’t ups.

 

[MN-Kid]

I know why you're stressing but you have a solid foundation with your experience . The training at our hub was excellent.
The majority of field training is repetition repetition repetition. pre trips over and over and over.
making and breaking up sets over and over and over. ( if you hub has doubles and/or triples like ours )
backing, backing , and more backing.

after awhile , everything will be second nature.

Most trainees will say that the memorizing of seeing habits and the commentary ( gee , how would I know this? ) was the hardest part and the actual driving not so bad. It's just bigger equipment.

the best thing about feeder is that there is no rush. safety is so HUGE the trainers want you to succeed. as long as you take your time and stay focused you should be alright.

check back when you have passed.

Thanks. I appreciate the input. One thing I have found when talking to seasoned feeder drivers is that it is a slower pace and safety is emphasized. Thanks again.

 

[Poop Head]

Lol, wut?
They didn't really go over pre trip at all. Gave us a handout on it and said you're on your own if you want to pass the cdl test.

I think I built like three sets during my first week and maybe two my production week.

She took the Kill Bill version of feeder training.

 

[MrFeeder]

Unrelated but why do UPS feeder tractors not have air horns? It's always funny to hear ours come into the yard sounding like an 80s Toyota.

I heard they don’t wana be liable for blowing someone’s ear out.

 

[Wally]

Afternoon,
If I can get some honest answers, I would appreciate it. Going to be starting feeder school soon, and wondering how difficult it is. Coming to school with 25years as a driver and a little nervous about training. Not so much the driving as I am about the pre-trip stuff and testing. Would anyone be willing to share helpful information?

Thanks

Listen and learn. You will be fine.

 

[Bud Dog]

Quote”We can put a full set of chains on in 20-30 minutes or less while most of the other drivers are still trying to sort their chains out.”Quote

What the heck you guys doing for 20-30 putting chains on. Colorado mountain drivers can put full set of chains on in 12 minutes and that includes a piss between the trailers !!!

 

[MrFeeder]

Ever seen a feeder driver in a rental with an air horn? We just blow the horn all the time just for the hell of it... we're a bunch of children.

Ahahahahahahhahahaha Im guilty!!!!

 

[MrFeeder]

Quote”We can put a full set of chains on in 20-30 minutes or less while most of the other drivers are still trying to sort their chains out.”Quote

What the heck you guys doing for 20-30 putting chains on. Colorado mountain drivers can put full set of chains on in 12 minutes and that includes a piss between the trailers !!!

What are we doingtaking 20-30 minutes putting chains on? We’re actually getting paid $60 an hour on OT. No rush here! Safety first!

 

[Indecisi0n]

Like I said we had exceptional trainers. 2 of them were offered positions in Chicago to teach managers to become feeder on roads.

I already had 14 years of truck driving experience when I got on at UPS and went thru the 2 week training. There was so much I learned .
All my previous training was an 8 week truck driving school and the rest was just experience and what I learned from other drivers along the way.

UPS training was heads and tails above all that.

Very good. I guess it depends on your trainers. Sparks NV Hub has the best feeder drivers on the west coast. Our drivers usually win or come close at the national truck driving competitions and most truck drivers on the west coast call us the "Kings of the Hill" on Donner pass for running in the snow in the mountains. We can put a full set of chains on in 20-30 minutes or less while most of the other drivers are still trying to sort their chains out. And we very rarely got into accidents in snow and ice conditions.

sorry if some of you guys have had mediocre training .

The trainers here for the most part suck. The bad ones have been rushed into the position so they have zero experience. Thankfully I had a 20 year guy who gave me a lot of tips. A few of his tips have saved me a few times. No better training than experience

 

[Johney]

Thankfully I had a 20 year guy who gave me a lot of tips. A few of his tips have saved me a few times. No better training than experience

Just the tips? You must've been very disappointed.

 

[Indecisi0n]

Just the tips? You must've been very disappointed.

No, the tips got the job done.

 

[MrFeeder]

The trainers here for the most part suck. The bad ones have been rushed into the position so they have zero experience. Thankfully I had a 20 year guy who gave me a lot of tips. A few of his tips have saved me a few times. No better training than experience

My trainer adviced me to carry adjustable wrench and duct tape at all times. It saved me a few times. Dolly blew a hose line and locked up the rear trailer on a busy intersection. I hopped out duct taped that summma bich quick and it was enough to release brakes to pull me to the shoulder.

 

[olroadbeech]

Quote”We can put a full set of chains on in 20-30 minutes or less while most of the other drivers are still trying to sort their chains out.”Quote

What the heck you guys doing for 20-30 putting chains on. Colorado mountain drivers can put full set of chains on in 12 minutes and that includes a piss between the trailers !!!

okay buddy. really doubt that.

I'm talking about a full set with 3 railers on a set of doubles.

on a single if you have to put 4 chains on. 2 on drives and 2 drags. yes i can see 15 minutes or less.

 

[olroadbeech]

What are we doingtaking 20-30 minutes putting chains on? We’re actually getting paid $60 an hour on OT. No rush here! Safety first!

It is done safely. we have just done it so much we are fast. and we don't like to run out of hours and get picked up by some on road who has little or no snow and ice driving experience.

unless you have done this why even comment???

 

[burrheadd]

It is done safely. we have just done it so much we are fast. and we don't like to run out of hours and get picked up by some on road who has little or no snow and ice driving experience.

unless you have done this why even comment???

why do you always type in the 3rd person

 

[542thruNthru]

why do you always type in the 3rd person

All the great ones do

 

[MN-Kid]

Hey Everyone, I’m out of the airport (MSP) and going to feeder school. Since it is hard to get a hold of some feeder drivers at St Paul, wanted to put this out there. Kind of just looking as to what to expect at school. Things I should know before going, things I would need and just some if the seasoned drivers have had good experiences in feeders...etc. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

Tried to put this in the right discussions, but did not happen. Apologies

 

[burrheadd]

Keep the rubber side down

 

[Indecisi0n]

Always poop before heading out. Crapping off the deck on the side of the road is not fun in the winter.