Exemplification
Unlike a military CDL, or MCDL, civilian CDL seekers must undergo extensive Department of Transportation (DOT) examinations. In contrast, MCDL seekers are only required to show proficiency for a certain type of vehicle, and only then, must they complete a Department of Defense certification process. From the standpoint of a trainer, both MCDL and CDL students’ are the bane of both industries, largely due to the transition from no experience to acceptable knowledge, skill development, and ability demonstration. Trainers interview a student to ascertain the mindset and attitude, and rarely is this process straightforward. This interview begins long before the student sees the inside of the truck, let alone the classroom, and in lies the courting period between trainers and students. In my experience, this interview is plagued with agendas, by both the student and my own ideals of what is to be accomplished. For example, a student may seem fully qualified for long-haul operations and the meeting is a success. However, once the student is driving, mountainous driving becomes an issue since the student has lived on flat topography all their life. The thought of driving through the Sierra-Nevada divide is both daunting and scary. This example is more common and is probably the greatest reason many students fail to complete training. This frustration tends to wear on a trainer since the school from which these students came either did not prepare them for this challenge, or omitted the fact to simply graduate a potential student and pocket a fee. The trainer must now engage in a training curriculum that includes ‘pampering’ and ‘micro-managing’ certain routes that the student is uncomfortable with, nor has been acclimated to. For some trainers, this becomes a deal-breaker, wherein the student is unable to integrate onto the truck in a production capacity, and this leads to delayed deliveries and often less loads for the trainer. However, some trainers will adapt to the shortcomings and suffer lost loads all in an effort to provide the necessary ramping up of a student’s confidence on certain terrain. In one example, a student had a fear of chaining the tires. This fear stemmed from the students experience with a POV stuck in a snowstorm. After explaining when chains are used, I further demonstrated the process at a designated chaining stop. Trainers must be