PR 2006 Sep 7
Shelton Truckers Hit the Road
(Tuscaloosa) - Students in SSCC Truck Driving Program hit the road on September 7 to pick up supplies for the West Alabama Food Bank. Truck Driving Instructors Mike Warren and Mike Tusic along with seven students took two SSCC big rigs to Mobile AL. There they took on a load of valuable supplies destined to help citizens of Tuscaloosa and West Alabama.
The truck driving program’s relationship with the Food Bank is long standing. Several times a year Shelton State Truckers are asked to hit the road to pick up loads of food and supplies donated to the non-profit organization. Instructor Mike Tusic put it this way, “It’s a win win situation for everyone. The Food Bank gets supplies at no extra cost and our students get valuable experience driving, docking, and dealing with various shippers and receivers”.
“The round trip was over 450 miles” said Mike Warren SSCC Truck Driving instructor. “We’re at a point in our eight week training program where students are ready for some windshield time”. During the course of the program students log over 800 miles primarily on secondary roads. Warren summed it up this way “If I can train my students to drive on a two lane highway, they will have no problem driving on the interstate”.
SSCC Truck Driving program trains students to get their Commercial Driver’s License or CDLs. In the eight weeks students are taught core competencies in pre and post trip inspections, how to correctly fill out log books, alley docking, backing and turning. Special emphasis is placed on Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations governing the trucking industry. Students learn proper shifting techniques, weight restrictions and concentrate on the overall safe operation of the rigs. Once they have mastered these competencies on the range they are now ready for road training.
The road training or “windshield time” normally involves the last two to three weeks of the program. The trucks leave early mornings and sometimes do not return until late at night. The routes are not predetermined so every day is a new adventure. “We try to throw something different at them each day we’re on the road” said Warren. One day we may go to Demopolis, travel thru Selma, go to Montgomery and come back on Highway 82. The next day we may not leave the city limits. My intent is to load them with multiple scenarios to see how they well they are able to multi task.
Driving an 18-wheeler that weighs eighty-thousand pounds is dangerous. But at the same time it’s challenging and rewarding. “When students graduate from our program we’re confident they have the skills to be competitive and successful in any trucking industry,” said Warren. “I like to say we stamp them on the forehead trained by SSCC TD Department. That’s why we stand behind our motto ‘Training Safe, Courteous, and Professional Driver’s for the Trucking Industry’.”
For additional information on Shelton State Community College’s truck driving program, contact Dave Rodgers at 205-391-3952 in the Training for Business and Industry office.
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