met my first panther 2 driver

[hondaking38]

Well after reading and studying these posts for a couple of months...i have met my first panther 2 driver...i was cruising home to ionia mich Just getting home after being at ft lee viriginia for a month of army training.. and behold at the pilot gas station there he was. so i immediatly whipped the car around, to check it out....he was driving a new sprinter, after introducing myself and explaining, that i was interested in expediting. he warmed up like a best friend, that i have known for years..i got the personal tour of his vehicle.. we talked about dh which his was only 10%, how he liked working for this company since he was new to expediting in january.. he was a world of information... i asked what he would do different( meaning buying his own vehicle and jumping right in) and he stated nothing..i spent about 45 minutes with him..i coulda spent more time, but i was anxous to get home...his name was Frank Comtols...just wanted to say thanks Frank.. for taking the time to answer a few ???? and if all drivers were like you, surely it would be a greater place to be... brian lavictor

 

[davekc]

I think you will find most drivers will share all kinds of information with you. There is alot of great folks out there.

i asked what he would do different( meaning buying his own vehicle and jumping right in) and he stated nothing..

He stated nothing because there are so many factors to consider before jumping in. Everything from family,finances,business sense, ect.,ect.

Stick around, read posts and search the archives as both have a wealth of information.
Davekc

 

[merkurfan]

the 10% sounds about right, been with them for a month now. 12% deadhead, 9% of them where unpaid. Panther has it's problems but most are easy to deal with.

Should you sign with panther remember they allow a decent 96 or newer. So, if you have 3-5 grand laying around perhaps buying a used van would be more profitable for you. If you are really unsure how long you'll want to run and have never ran before it is probably best to drive someone elses truck for a while. Panther will fee you to death for decals and qualcomm install if you quit to soon. I think it is 9 months. Of course, you can always put a driver in your van. I might have bought myself a newer van, who knows, I might be looking for a driver

 

[hondaking38]

a freind of mine went to orientation last week..he bought a new van..signed on with panther and loves it...its only been a week so far.. but he said its a lot better then driving over the road in a 18 wheeler....mostly short runs so far.....i just dont get it why you need a class c license thats the only thing holding me up from going out and buying a new van tomorrow...we have class a schools around here but who wants to spend 4,000.00 for a class a licence in michigan to drive a van..

 

[Tennesseahawk]

You don't have to. Just study the cdl book and call a local testing place. It cost my co-driver $100 to get approved for his cdl, and I taught him myself.

 

[merkurfan]

It is probably a insurance thing. However you have to have a hazmat endorsement for panther (You can sign while they are doing the background check) and to get a hazmat, you need a comercial drivers license or CDL. You should be able to get a class C (26000 or less gvw) with hazmat no problems. Just take the road test in your van, or someones van.