DOT physical, was worried for a bit.

[alfadan]

It’s ridiculous over the top. Teenagers ride around in the same truck chewing bubble gum (or tobacco) and it’s fine. But you’re getting a paycheck so now you fall under DOT.

And any Joe Schmo can get an RV bigger than my house or tow a 50ft high fifth wheel and all is well.

[white eagle]

Yeah I am fighting with the doc on the sleep apnea thing as well
asked about the implant for S.A. but he said I was to fat for it
well bust my buttons.....

[Barry54]

Pretty soon they are going to run out of people to pay taxes and work. Maybe that’s the goal?

[flyer1]

My boss and I are going to get a class a cdl. First time for both of us. Need it to haul our sky tracks around. Both of us also fly and get FAA flight physicals. Neither of us have done the dot physical. What are we in for?

[john.k]

It pays to check around before getting a medical .........here ,if you get an adverse medical,the doctor is required to notify the licence people by law ......and there is no second try ,you have to front specialists in the field you were failed at ........a consultation starts at around $500............I may be banned for saying this.....but there is a very good reason you see so many drivers with turbans ............there was a truck back ender outside my house ,and before the cops came ,a car turned up with a different driver ,and took the crash driver away.............more recently ,a truck forced a car over and thru my front fence ,the car driver simply got out and ran off .......when the cops came the truck driver made a statement ...I told him to shut up....there was no contact with the car ,he should have stayed quiet.

[Iron369]

I had to get a physical for my class b cdl every year. Had to get printed copies of the usage on my cpap. Real pita.

[Barry54]

I had to get a physical for my class b cdl every year. Had to get printed copies of the usage on my cpap. Real pita.

Thanks. I was wondering if they could tell if you used it somehow.

[Iron369]

Thanks. I was wondering if they could tell if you used it somehow.

Mine had a sd card in it that I had to take to the respiratory therapist to get a print out. Some of the fancier machines have an app on your phone that you can use to have compliance statements emailed to your doctor or whoever does the physical.

[Remmy4477]

It pays to check around before getting a medical .........here ,if you get an adverse medical,the doctor is required to notify the licence people by law ......and there is no second try ,you have to front specialists in the field you were failed at ........a consultation starts at around $500............I may be banned for saying this.....but there is a very good reason you see so many drivers with turbans ............there was a truck back ender outside my house ,and before the cops came ,a car turned up with a different driver ,and took the crash driver away.............more recently ,a truck forced a car over and thru my front fence ,the car driver simply got out and ran off .......when the cops came the truck driver made a statement ...I told him to shut up....there was no contact with the car ,he should have stayed quiet.

Been seeing some of that here in the Denver area. Lots of foreign truck drivers along with lots of accidents happening, almost always a tractor trailer involved.
The industry has been hit with a so called driver shortage these last few years, personally think it's due to the DOT. So some company's are importing drivers, The company's pay for there stay here, help getting them the CDL, give them a job contingent on one to two years of them working just for them. I'm guessing 65-75% of those folks should not be even behind the wheel of a bicycle!

Two local CDL training facility's have just recently been shut down by the DOT, they were caught just selling the paperwork required to get your license. 300 graduates at one center had there licenses suspended and are now required to retest at a state approved training center.

The trucking industry is upside down and butay backwards than it's ever been.

[Barry54]

Mine had a sd card in it that I had to take to the respiratory therapist to get a print out. Some of the fancier machines have an app on your phone that you can use to have compliance statements emailed to your doctor or whoever does the physical.

I’m glad I escaped all that nonsense! I sleep all over the place. I bet it would look like a one man wrestling match if someone took a time-lapse video of me sleeping.

[Remmy4477]

Mine had a sd card in it that I had to take to the respiratory therapist to get a print out. Some of the fancier machines have an app on your phone that you can use to have compliance statements emailed to your doctor or whoever does the physical.

Have one driver at work who goes through the same as you, he says it's a pia to get it turned in.

[2TM101]

Class A Flight Physicals can be scary too. But even Sully Sullenberger (guy who landed in the Hudson river after birds took out both engines) had to stop flying airliners when he was my age.

I *almost* became a trucker - but thats was right when the Oil Embargo hit and cars were doing the alternate license plate to buy gas BS

[Alstep]

All the regs today are enough to give anybody hypertension and sleep apnea.

Glad I'm not driving any more, gave it up almost 40 years ago. Between the regs, log books, ICC/DOT inspections, physicals, hazmat, unions, and crazys on the road, all the aggravation just not worth it.

[panhed65]

the whole cdl thing has been out of hand for years. I still have my cdl, but put it to sleep, as I no longer drive. mostly drove cranes, but also anything that needed to be done. years ago I dropped the hazmat when they wanted to fingerprint me and make me pay for it. last physical, I could not pass the hearing test. here in pa, they get behind you and whisper at you. I can hear it, but after what I did in the army, and what I did since that for fun (loud motorcycles, and even louder guns) I cannot tell what they are whispering. not sure why that keeps you from driving, where is the ada? anyhow at 75, no desire to drive a big rig again so will give it up at next renewal.
Barry

[fatelk]

I don't drive a truck or have a CDL, but I was told I have sleep apnea a few years ago and the doctor seemed happy when he prescribed a cpap. I tried one and it was the most miserable week of my life. I know they've been great for a lot of people who really need them, probably saved a lot of lives, but I absolutely hated it. Our chiropractor chewed me out for not using it if the doctor prescribed it. I'm not heavy or unhealthy.

I finally went to another doctor, who referred me to another specialist who determined that I had "positional" sleep apnea, that it's a structural thing that I've probably had all my life, and when I roll onto my back in my sleep, my tongue relaxes and blocks my breathing. He also said that some people simply can't tolerate a cpap machine. He pointed me towards a special hard pillow that I strap to my back every night that prevents me from rolling onto my back. It works amazingly well. It wasn't easy to find the right doctor with the right knowledge, but it was worth it.

Part of my problem with a cpap was probably psychological, a revulsion at being hooked up to a machine, and I do suspect that there's BIG money in these machine since they seem to want to get everyone attached to them. Again, I realize that many people really do need them, and for them they're a lifesaver, but I'm sure glad I don't have to mess with one.

[Thundarstick]

This is an interesting thread. Almost all the farmers here bouts have gone to using semi trucks to haul grain. NONE are required to have truck inspections or a CDL! Most don't run on interstate highways, but do run state highways. Know anything about that?

[Barry54]

This is an interesting thread. Almost all the farmers here bouts have gone to using semi trucks to haul grain. NONE are required to have truck inspections or a CDL! Most don't run on interstate highways, but do run state highways. Know anything about that?

I think they are allowed 100 or 50 miles as the crow flies. Farm tags are way cheaper than commercial tags too.

[truckerdave397]

My boss and I are going to get a class a cdl. First time for both of us. Need it to haul our sky tracks around. Both of us also fly and get FAA flight physicals. Neither of us have done the dot physical. What are we in for?

Blood pressure test, hearing test, probably a sugar test. Make sure your arms and hands work as they should. Vision test, hernia test. If you can pass a flight physical you are probably good. Dot physicals are good for 2 years unless you are on blood pressure medication then only good for a year. Cost for me in my area is $70-100. My biggest issue is they take my clothes off and stick me in a cold room for about an hour just to put me in a foul mood. Good luck.

[BrassMagnet]

Not that I would attempt sleeping hooked to their dreaded breathing machines, but if one were to be prescribed, how would the DOT physical test facility know if you used the thing?

Or as long as the billing is occurring, all is well?

My wife and I went camping one weekend last spring. We were giggling quietly at the group of dads and their city kids setting up camp and attempting to build a fire and cook on the disaster. Later overheard one of the whiny kids asking the dad if he remembered to bring his sleep apnea machine. Don’t they need 120 volt ac?

Because it REPORTS you usage and results to them!

[Barry54]

Because it REPORTS you usage and results to them!

That’s exactly what I needed to know! I’m disappointed in myself for not suspecting that initially.