I have zero experience with operating a commercial vehicle. There are only so many discussions and videos I can watch as it pertains to things like entering & exiting ‘tight’ areas and types of backing. It gives me a general idea of what to do, but without actually sitting behind a wheel, there’s no way to even get a gist of the process and geometry of what’s going on from the drivers’ viewpoint.
Short of going to a training school of some sort, I (and probably most) have no way to dip myself into that experience short of going to a school which entails days, if not weeks, of time and several thousand dollars. The only thing I can come up with is something like “American Truck Simulator” which would at least get me on the path of wrapping my head around how it’ll all work. Anybody else delve into this?
I’m not saying or implying that a simulator will replace any sort of real-world training, but surly it’ll help with getting familiarity with approaches, set ups, and the effect of steering actions. It certainly doesn’t supply any sort of feedback or real depth perceptions. I used flight sim for years, and though I don’t consider it training as such, I did pick up lots of useful info such as the purpose of some procedures, weight & fuel planning, instrument navigation, and stuff like that.
I know that some will probably go on about “it’s not real, get real training” and “that’s not how it’s done”. Understandable. I intend to get training. Actually have to, but I’d prefer to use any advantage I can get. I’ve got a couple of months before I’m open to get a CDL, so that gives me time. I can do exam prep through apps and whatnot, and for under $200, I can get the simulator and a wheel & pedal set.
I used ATS while I was waiting to go to school. It helps mentally. We did a lot of simulation work in Top Gun, again it helps mentally but isn’t a substitute for real world experience.
I have a nice dual monitor setup. It was fun and helps get you in a mindset.
The thing to realize though is that the maneuvers and driving you do in school is designed to get you to pass your cdl. Its scripted and done step by step in progressions. Enjoy the process.
Mark simulators are a good tool to teach mental awarness. I don’t know anything about the setup you mentioned. Years ago I taught a driving sim course for law enforcement but that was on big sim’s. I know these days they make big sim’s for trucks. The biggest issue has always been a depth perception issue. It couldn’t hurt you to do it in my opinion.
CDL school is only designed to teach you the bare minimum to pass the CDL test. Actual training will begin during a company training program. Alot of folks don’t have realistic expectations because they don’t know how things work.
The biggest thing I hear all the time is the phrase “they didn’t teach me that in cdl school”. Remember school is only bsre minimum the rest you learn on the job.
Thanks, guys. I’m not really sure it’s worth the effort and cost which is why I’m asking. $200 is a decent amount of beer and bacon.
I’ve got 10 years of hockey growing up and another 10 years driving a motorcycle so my general awareness is on tap. To this day I’m always counting the gap in seconds and glancing in the mirrors like I’m being followed out of Mexico by ICE.
No broken bones or crashes. Had an eventful slushy hydroplane when I was 17 and somebodys cow jump the fence in front of me (decent reflexes = bonked quarter panel only), but nothing otherwise. I’ve had several people hit me while sitting at a stop. Once parked with the engine off. SMDH. Friggin’ Houston.
I get the whole idea of having to actually get behind a wheel and I wouldn’t not want to do it any other way. I just wish the schools would have the option to not only do the cookie-cutter testing, but also real-world docking and such (45, 90, etc.).
I guess I’ll just continue to watch vids and see about getting some study materials.
I wouldn’t go through the trouble of doing a whole setup if you don’t feel like spending the coin but I can’t see it hurting to download ATS and fool around with it even just with keyboard and mouse. I’ve always wanted to play it but I’m always playing ATS in real life too much to have time lol.
Do you have any experience pulling a trailer? Getting used to backing up a trailer is the biggest hurdle in cdl school since you only have a very short amount of time to get used to it before you have to start passing tests
We have a truck driving simulator downstairs for the new guys to learn how to push snow. It’s basically a full cab setup for a dump truck with a 10 speed shifter, a full dash with working gauges, etc,. I’d love to try it out but I won’t be pushing snow so I probably can’t. Unfortunately it’s not open to the public. Back when I was in driving school way back in 2008, the community college had one but we never got to use it because actually being behind the wheel was a better learning experience. If you’ve never been in a truck before and want to get a good feel of its size and what it’s like to drive one, I know it sounds cheesy but go somewhere where they’re having a touch a truck event. At least you’d be able to get in and see what it’s like. Up home they used to have a truck rodeo every year at the Mack truck plant where the general public could go in and drive the big trucks around a closed course. Do some research and see if there’s anything like that in your area.
It’s available on Steam gaming for under 20 bucks. I don’t have game controllers or anything, just typical keyboard and mouse. I’d invested in flight sim stuff in the past (yoke/throttles/radio/switches) and it was a whole lot better as I’d been running MS Flight sim and X-sim for years.
A lot of games/sims work just fine with keyboard and mouse setups. If I were to do it for truck sim, I’d not be investing much of anything outside of the $20 on the software which is a direct download from the Steam site.
I have little experience towing. FWIW, we had a 19 ft camping trailer about 10 years ago that we hauled around Texas for about 3 years (2 - 3 trips a year) and that was about it. I eventually Installed decent towing mirrors that I could extend when I had this behind me. Had a really good blue rhino brand hitch with tensioned sway bars that really kept everything tight and stable. I would always take 2 or 3 attempts to back in places, either at the park or at home. Eventually stopped trailering as dingbats started showing up with all the noise/light pollution and BS that we’d been trying to get away from.
So, yes I’ve towed, but nothing substantial or commercial. Was never more than 9,000 lbs fully laden, so not convinced that really counts for much.
Prime spent $10 milliom on simulators. It was good to learn how to shift the manuals. Perhaps itnis good to get you accustomed to reading signs and using mirrord constsntly. I am guessing most companies will put u in a simulator at orientation.
Be forewarned… some students suffered serious physical issues from the SIMS. Mostly women got dizzy and nauseous.
That is called simulator adapation syndrome. Any good instructor knows how to minimize it. Some folks suffer from it, but if the instructor starts students off slow and progressionaly it isn’t an issue. In 12 years I only had 2 students that could not complete my class. I also consulted for the manufacturer, Doron Precison Systems for several years.
I used keyboard and mouse as well, it does help mentally. And its pretty cheap.
I cant speak for other schools, but when I went through Knight, I was very fortunate there were only 3 of us in my class and one dropped out, so I got considerable time to practice maneuvers each day. The maneuvers were designed simply to get the students to pass the test.
Its very similar to cooking instructions, its very scripted and if you follow the instructions to the letter, it will virtually guarantee that the trailer will go to where its supposed to.
Mark, my observation is that you might be over thinking things, which is probably perfectly normal for a man with your background. When I went through training at Schneider, they had simulators. My opinion now is that they were virtually worthless. Perhaps all simulators are not created equal, but you needn’t worry about getting a big advantage with a simulator. You will get to where you need to get to regardless of simulator practice.
My US Trucking skills app on the playstore helped me a lot first starting out. It gave a top down view of what the truck does when doing certain maneuvers. Everything outside of your PoV when backing or turning while being in a truck doing it. Check it out, might help you as well.
Whenever you get into the field, or for anyone else interested. I can’t express enough how much Google Earth has helped me with knowing the layout of a place before I get there. I can have my route planned out, what type of backing I’m going to be doing. All before I get there, it’s a lot easier than trying to figure it out before you get there.
I wish smart phones and GPS unit’s would have existed back when I got my CDL and started out OTR but they didn’t. I had a Nokia brick analog phone and an atlas to find my way around the country. Our dispatch would only give us last mile directions over the Qualcomm to our destinations so it was up to me and my atlas to get me there. Kinda glad I didn’t have today’s tech to learn on and had to learn the hard way.
I went on Amazon and bought a steering wheel for $100. I haven’t tried ATS, but a driver made their own game to help others learn. It’s called My Trucking Skills and only $10. It’s does the physics good enough to help you visualize what’s going on. It was frustrating to see the offset works differently than it does in real life. Of course, remember it’s only a game.
Thanks for all the input. I think that I’m not going to bother as the general consensus is that there’s no real advantage.
I had a 19 ft camping trailer for a few years and usually got it backed into place without much fanfare. Funny how my thought process for doing that is similar to a YouTuber in that I treated the trailer like I was pushing it in the same way you push a wheelbarrow. You turn the wheels in the direction you push the forward corner which points/rotates the rear of the trailer in the opposite direction. So if you need to point the rear to the left, you have to push the front of the trailer to the right which means you turn the wheel to the right. Basically an opposite rule, but it doesn’t account for some things.
I’m sure there are other tricks and tips out there, so I think I’ll just delve into some videos and see if it clarifies some things for me, particularly as it pertains to the setup. Interesting stuff that is equal mind-numbing and confusing at times.
Just remember that when you get into a truck with a 53 ft trailer, it will be far easier to “drive it backward” than your camper. The shorter the trailer, the quicker it turns. People tend to make big moves with their steering wheel when backing a small trailer.
Never knew how to back when I got my chauffeur license in 1988. It took me over a year to become proficient. Then the husband wanted to be a cowboy on cattle ranches and we pulled a 16 ft bumper pull stock trailer. That shorter trailer took me a bunch of practice to learn to back it. Had to remember to make smaller movement with my steering wheel. Came back out after 22 yrs off the road and now we have 53 ft trailers….easy-peasy to back. Did do 3 years of pulling containers with 40 ft chassis and trailers. That took a few days getting used to shorter trailers. Now I’m back to pulling my 16 ft stock trailer hauling goats when buying them, going to shows, etc. Get a lot of owners asking me to back out their pickups/trailers at shows
