The (first) Finish Line!!! (part 1)

Hey everyone!!

So, by now, most of you should know that I passed my CDL exams, and am now a licensed commercial driver!!!  I am beyond elated.  I can't describe just how good it feels to have made it all this way from where I started <3 .  I'll take this opportunity to share my insights as to how my testing went.

There are 3 tests: pre-trip/in-cab (a verbal explanation of all the components of the tractor and trailer that need to be inspected every day prior to driving + a test of the brake systems); maneuvers (straight line backing, offset backing, and parallel parking); and the road test.  If you think about it, getting your CDL is 3x as hard as getting your normal Class C (regular license for cars and light duty trucks).  I had to take 3 tests to get my permit, and then 3 tests to get my license LOL.

I passed the pre-trip/in-cab the first time I attempted it.  I named 88/90 components accurately.  My examiner said that I gave a thoughtful, knowledgeable, confident explanation, and that I was best pre-trip he had seen in the last 2 months of testing he conducted!!!  Pretty doggone good for someone who couldn't identify the shocks and didn't know that a wheel was composed of a rim and tire when I first started learning back in March!!!!!  I'm so proud of myself for nailing that!

I also passed the maneuvers on my first try.  During practice, I did them very, very well.  On the test, I struggled for some reason.  It could have been nerves, I guess, but even the day before the test, I was struggling.  It's like I got out of the groove or something, and ended up with something to correct each time, instead of making one small adjustment and then getting right to the final parking location.  Whatever the reason, I passed, and that was good enough for me!!!

So, on to the road test!  The last week or 2 prior to testing was really the first time I felt I actually had a shot at passing the exams and getting my license.  I was beyond remedial when I started.  I had never driven a vehicle with a manual transmission before, and starting out my stick shift lessons in a 35,000-lb vehicle was daunting to say the least!  And, driving with a 20-inch wheel means I had to turn the wheel twice as much to either side to make the tires respond.  It was extremely difficult to get my brain to adjust to the exponential jump in size.  When I first started driving, I could not drive forward in a straight line. I always veered off to the right.  Oddly enough, I was able to drive backwards fairly straight right from the get-go bahaha.  I joked to my instructor that as long as the road test was done completely in reverse, I should have no trouble passing!

So, like I said, it wasn't really until that last week or so that I felt I had even a chance of passing.  Things were finally starting to click, and I was finally starting to relax enough to drive safely, consistently, and notice what my errors were.  I still trouble figuring out what I did wrong to create the error, but I could at least see what the error was.  That was a big step!  As I neared the exams, I became more and more aware of what I was doing wrong, but I didn't know how to fix it.  Then, I started to understand how to fix it, but I couldn't fix it!!!  I lacked the hand-eye-foot coordination to actually fix the problem before I lost too much speed, and stalled the truck (which btw, happened many more times than I care to admit bahaha).  You really haven't lived until you've stalled an 18-wheeler on the highway.  Fun.