Day One on the Yard

Today was my first day out on the yard. We worked on practicing our pre-trip inspection. It is a lot to learn but with practice I will get it memorized. I have a buddy who I am partnered with to help each other out with the memorization.

Today I also got to start learning to perform straight truck backing. I had to back up in a straight line in between cones without running them over. It is very different than backing a car. In a car, when you want to back to your left then you turn the wheel to your left. With trucking, when you want to back to your left than you turn the wheel to your right. I was able to back about 8-10 times. At first, I was running over the cones. But, then I started to get the hang of it.

It was extremely hot outside (in the 90s). We are standing outside for about 10 hrs out on the hot asphalt. I had bought something that is called "Frog Legs". You wet it with cold water and wrap it around your neck. It was a life saver at helping me to stay cool. It lasted for a long time. My buddy, Larry says he is going to buy him one tonight. I forgot to bring sunscreen but I did go get some during my lunch break. I ended up with a sunburn but nothing compared to what it would have been if I hadn't gone to go get some sunscreen. Here is a pic of me right after lunch.