Eagle EST Program - Truck Driving School – Day One – Obtaining a CDL license
August 20th, 2022 by Kevin Collins
Eagle calls their program EST - Employee Sponsored Training. It is basically a program that will teach you to become a truck driver and get your CDL – Commercial Drivers License. The Employee Sponsored Training program is four weeks long. The program trains you to become an Over The Road truck driver.
They warned me about all the book work that was required to become a truck driver. I did not believe all of it until I showed up Day One in class. The book they handed me was well over 250 pages, with 30 tests to take. There were a lot of chapters covering topics I never thought of were relevant to driving an 18 wheeler. Truck driving is just not driving. The federal DOT requirements to get a CDL changed in February of 2022 and what a change it was.
When the federal government gets involved, it seems like things just get more complicated. To get your CDL now remember you are governed by federal law. Therefore, be aware of the laws that control your CDL license.
And the end of Day One we had covered 4 chapters of the book. This was just the federal book and not the state CDL manual book that is required for each state. If you combine both books to get your CDL in Arizona and certified by the government – maybe 450 pages to read. To go Over The Road (OTR), basically driving in all the states, it is necessary to do all this studying.
What I learned Day One was that Truck Driving School is not just learning to drive but knowing a lot more. There is more than I thought in coming a truck driver. Be prepared when you plan of attending a truck driving school and start early in your studies.
