Stupidity at Work

[BrianR]

Oh yeah, I got a call yesterday from my last student.

Two days ago, he was issued his first truck, a Kenworth W900 (a really nice truck).

Yesterday, he took it out on his first solo load. And wrecked it. Turned it over on a highway ramp.

This after a record three months of training on my truck (normal is six weeks or so). And I TOLD him to take it easier than my truck, the KW is bigger and heavier than the truck I trained him on and turns much wider. So he went out and made one of the worst mistakes a trucker can make...taking a turn too fast.

We go around ramps so slowly so as not to turn the damn thing over and snarl traffic for a few hours. You know how frustrating it is to be behind a slow-moving truck on a ramp...imagine if it tips and you are stuck there for hours while DOT gets out a crane to remove the wreck. Not so bad anymore, is it?

So he goes and does the bad thing. And embarrasses me in the process as I just signed off on him a week ago. So I'm waiting for safety dept to call me and ask WHY I said he was good to go if he wasn't. As if *I* had an inkling of this.

Sigh.

This is a trainer's nightmare. This and the student wrecking MY truck, which fortunately hasn't happened (yet). Knock on wood.