Michael "Wingnut" Vervaecke

by Mike Vervaecke
(Merriam, KS)

Got my CDL in August of 2009 and went to work for Transam Trucking pulling a reefer. In 3 months I went to or through 42 states, yet couldn't make enough money to pay my rent, so I took a local job driving a bus for a senior center. It was a good job and I enjoyed it but I missed driving a big truck.

Six months into the job I got a call from my truck driving instructor about a job for a local company that sounded too good to be true. Skeptical, I went for an interview and got a call to do a road test the following day. Trans Services has turned out to be as close to a dream job as you can get in this business. They have delivered every promise they made during the interview.

I run to Chicago or Dallas/Ft Worth 2 or 3 times a week, so I'm gone 2 days, home overnight, and then back out for 2 days. Some weeks this happens twice a week and other weeks three times a week, but I'm always home for at least 34 hours on the weekends. Pay is good, trucks are decent but very well maintained.

I worked in printing for 25 years and if you had asked me 5 years ago to learn how to drive a big truck, I would have told you that you were crazy! The recession and 11 months out of work have a funny way of changing things. Now, I can't imagine doing anything else.

With only months under my belt I can already say that this career is not for everyone, but even with some bad days and a bad experience with Transam, I truly enjoy driving the big trucks.