This is my story!!!

Part One

I never planned on becoming a big rig driver, although when I was younger I thought wouldn’t it be nice to drive the biggest thing on the road, to have the freedom of the open road while listening to your favorite songs or audio books, to see new surroundings daily, to see the country while getting paid. I never actually thought it would happen, but it did.

Originally my plan was to become a commercial pilot; this mission began back in 1989 when I was 11. I was wowed by the size and the time I spent up in the air on my first flight (18 hours) when my family moved here to the US from the Philippines. I actually tried to learn as much about flying as possible, subscribing to flying magazines, reading books, and buying complete sets of home study guides for flying; from the single engine to commercial pilot ATP. I even went as far as becoming an aircraft mechanic for the US Navy, but I am not a pilot.

My journey to becoming a pilot made me become a better driver. I researched the qualifications of a quality pilot, flight schools, and their lifestyles, and came up with the conclusion that a pilot needs to be a road warrior, capable making split second life saving decisions while on flight. This is when I began thinking, what types of jobs are there that will help me understand the complexity of being a road warrior, then it came to me; over the road truck drivers are road warriors too, why not become one. It’s not as simple as I thought. I actually had to learn the easy stuff before I moved on to the fun stuff. I applied to a major truck driving company back in 2003, but was turned down because I lack the qualification, so I became a school bus driver instead. It was fun at first, but working part time wasn’t helping my financial goal, so I got another job as a full time parts clerk for an international airline. Six months later I applied again, and to my surprise they were happy and eager to train me as an over the road driver.

Part Two

Two years later class ABCD driver with HNPST endorsement. A lot of things happened with in this two years I got to see most of the Continental United States and Canada, became a certified Motor Coach Driver, I even tried driving for a local truck driving company. Fun times I will never regret, but things change and I have to move on. I am yet to use my educational benefits for my military service. This is why I’m writing this blog. I had so much fun driving that I want and need to be up dated on any changes going on in the road. So if you would like to tell your story, or have safe driving tips for others to learn from, please don’t hesitate to send me an email anything helps.