Page 1 of 4 1 2 3 ... LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 32
  1. #1

    Default Smokes wild ride.....

    Featured Sponsor

    Well I am new to these forums, so not only is this my first thread I have created, but also my first post.....

    After reading about Stubs' journey and what he has done, I have decided to do the same. Hopefully by doing this, I can help some people out there that are looking to become a lineman, that maybe are/were in the same position that I am in at the beginning.

    Also, I am open to any and all advice that anybody has.

    Today, I'm just going to talk about who I am, what I've done before this, and why I would like to get into the trade and what I am doing to prepare myself. I'm going to warn you though, I have a tendency to run on, as my ADD is horrible when it comes to stories and whatnot, so sorry if it bothers you.

    For starters, I'm 25 years old. I'm single with no kids, no house and I'm working in a job field where no matter what, it always seems like I am extremely underemployed. I have worked for my families construction company, and a couple other builders as a laborer, Carpenters helper and a Carpenter for the past 12 years. I live North of Detroit, in one of the most economically depressed areas in the country. The metro Detroit area has taken a HUGE blow between the eyes the past 3 or 4 years, since the economy slumped. Many, many, many people have moved away and with that, building of new custom homes and even remodeling has almost come to a halt. When I was 19, I could build as much as I wanted to. 7-14 hour days were nothing in the middle of June, July and August. Nowadays, I couldn't find that kind of work to save my life. I'm lucky to get 15 hours in each week.

    When I graduated high school, while doing Carpentry, I decided to put myself through all the schooling to become a full time professional firefighter. I went to night school and got my Firefighting Certificates, as well as my EMT-Basic license, Haz Mat Operations certificate and a handful of other training certifications and licenses as well. I also took about 60 college credit hours of classes at the local community college. I really had my eyes set on doing firefighting as a career early on, as I grew up around it and found it to be one of the best jobs out there. My father and grandfather were firefighters and I grew up around the job. The tough, physical nature of the job attracted me to it, as well as the steady employment, the chance to work outside and to help people. I also liked that there was a degree of risk involved in it, and it was still fairly blue collar. Most of all, I liked the idea of the tight knit "got yur back" brotherhood that firefighting had. After school, when I was 20, I got on a Volunteer Fire Department, and am still on a paid-on-call fire department today.

    Long story short, after working in EMS for a year, I realized I liked the firefighting side of the job, but really couldn't stand EMS. Nothing against it, I just really can't see myself enjoying that line of work if I am going to be required to do EMS. The logical response to that would be, So why don't you just do firefighting and no EMS? Well, that would be fine, except just about every full time fire department in the United States that is full time does EMS and firefighting. And since EMS accounts for about 90% of the fire departments work, that's a huge portion of my job that I probably wouldn't enjoy.

    While working EMS, and going to Firefighting classes and college classes, I was still working part time as a carpenter. For the past 5 years or so, we have done a lot of work finishing off the basement for the owner of a powerline construction contracting company in the area I am from. In the beginning, when we started working on his stuff, I was gung ho on firefighting. He said if I was interested, he could offer me a groundman position if I got my CDL. I knew nothing about his line of work, and although I did get my Class A CDL with air brakes, I turned down the offer, since I was still gung ho on the firefighting career.

    For a long time since he made the job offer, we had still been doing carpentry work on his home, barns, deck and zipline pretty steadily. After work and on lunch somedays, he and I would sit on his deck a lot and talk about what was going on in our lives. A year and a half ago, int he Summer of 2009, I told him I liked working outside a lot, and wasn't thinking the firefighting thing was for me anymore after working EMS and hating it. I told him I kind of wished I had taken a chance and tried out the linework offer he made to me....

  2. #2

    Default

    continued from above...

    Subsequently, we started talking about linework again. I became more and more curious about what it was all about. He told me some of the things that lineman do, and talked about some of what the job was all about. His Dad was a lineman, just like mine was a firefighter, so he grew up around the job. The more I listened, the more interested I became in the trade. I knew nothing of linework, electricity, Amps, Volts, Watts, climbing or anything like that. I learned that not only do lineman climb poles, and work out of bucket trucks on the lines and the associated support structures, and run wire but they do underground work, drive trucks and operate many different types of heavy equipment to name a few of the other things. He also described how the field of utility construction is growing and that there will probably be fairly steady work, even in these bad economic times. This conversation sort of piqued my interest in it more than it ever had. He told me he really liked me work ethic, and would have loved to have me on his crew if he was a foreman. He offered me another chance, and this time I bit.

    I asked him if it would be alright if I could come and watch on a job what the lineman do. He offered to let me come out on a few jobs, and from a safe distance, be able to watch....So I did! And it looked like a blast. The outside work was definitely a big attraction, as well as it being extremely physically demanding. I liked the idea that it was still very blue collar, but traditional in some aspects. I liked that you would be helping people by providing a means for electricity to get to their homes, and that the training and apprenticeship appeared to be very good, not half assed. After talking with a couple of the guys (and honestly, I had no idea about this), I learned of the considerable amounts of money that are possible to be made in this trade as well. Plus, powerline construction and maintenance work looked like it offered good chances to travel if you would like, something firefighting rarely, if ever does. The more I thought about it, I realized that I really wanted to try and break into this field....but how?

    After discussing it with the powerline company owner I knew, and some of the lineman I began to meet, they all had the same 3 pieces of advice:
    -Get your CDL-Class A with Air Brake endosement license
    -Go sign the woodsman or groundman books at Local 17 Union Hall to get experience
    -Apply for the lineman apprenticeship when it opens up.

    I already had my CDL from a couple years prior.

    When I found out how the union groundman out of work books work, I had my name on the unions books for woodsman righ away, since there were a lot of tree trimming companies hiring at the time. This was in August of 2009. I switched over to the groundman books in June of 2010, since I had not received any phone calls. In September, I got called out for 5 days of storm work out east in New England in Cape Cod, Massachusetts for Hurricane Earl. It took us a day and a half to get there, and then we staged for a day. Then it took us another day and a half to get back home when it turned out that the storm did little to no damage.

    While on the trip, I learned a little bit about the materials that are used, about safety, handlines, knots, rope splicing and driving and operating the truck. I had good guys teaching me and working with me.

    I have since learned how important it is to keep your phone on you and by your side in case you do get a call. I got one about 2 weeks ago for some storm work that was local, and didn't answer on the 1st couple rings. I called back the union rep, and he had already called another grunt and got him working.

    In order to increase my chances of getting picked up for some groundman work, I have also driven to Locals 876, 71, 245, 9, 1393, 193 and 51 to sign their out-of-work groundman books in addition to my home Local 17. I did this right when I got back from the Storm work for Hurricane Earl in September.

    I have applied for the lineman apprenticeship for local 17 this past summer, but even though I mailed my application out, no earlier than the time and date that ALBAT requested, but still the earliest I could per their rules for Local 17s apprenticeship application process, from the post office in Michigan where all the mail gets hubbed into (Pontiac).......my application still got denied since I was not one of the 1st 60 white applicants to have their application arrive at ALBATs office out of the 100 total that they were accepting. I will continue to apply to the Local 17s apprenticeship through ALBAT in the years to come if required, as I think it would be really nice to be able to do my apprenticeship close to home. I also realize though, that it is one of the toughest in the country to get into, and will therefore continue applying all over. I think it would also be nice to see some of the country and to get to do some traveling while I am young without a lot of commitments.

    Speaking of traveling, I may be doing a lot of it as I have applied for apprenticeship positions with Missouri Valley Joint Apprenticeship Training (MOValley), SouthWest Line Constructors Apprenticeship Training, Mountain States Line Constructors Apprenticeship Training (MSLCAT), North East Apprenticeship Training (NEAT) and Southeast Line Constructors Apprenticeship Training (SELCAT).

    As far as ALBAT goes, I also have applied for the apprenticeships with Local 245 out of Toledo Ohio and Local 71 out of Columbus Ohio. I have not heard anything yet with any of these.

    I feel that I am so unprepared for this career and line of work. I am so eager to learn and continue on with this trade in any way I can though.

    I got this book and some others from a foreman friend of mine who is all about helping me in any way he can. I have been looking it over.

    I also ordered a copy of the book, SLIM by William Wister Haines and love it so far. I am on Part 3.

    In the meantime, I continue to keep my ACLS BLS AHA CPR certification up and go to the Local 17 union meetings.

  3. #3

    Default

    GOOD NEWS!

    I also have an interview scheduled for January 10, 2011 at 9AM in HELENA, MONTANA, with the Mountain States Line Constructors Apprenticeship Training that I was telling you about. Yes. HELENA, MONTANA, and yes, I live in Michigan. I really want to go to this, and would love to do my Apprenticeship out there, but not sure I'll be able to make it.

    This is short notice, as I only applied there about 2 weeks ago. I have not had a lot of carpentry work during the last month, so I'm not sure I'll have enough money to pay for the flight or econobox rental car for the trip. I actually would like to make the drive, so I could sign more groundman books along the way and increase my chances of getting called up.

    Might have to get a co-pilot who can throw down some cash for the trip, or clean gutter, de-icedam peoples roofs and whatnot to pay for this!
    Last edited by smoke_eater; 01-01-2011 at 12:22 AM.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Hartford, South Dakota
    Posts
    2,413

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by smoke_eater View Post
    GOOD NEWS!

    I also have an interview scheduled for January 10, 2011 at 9AM in HELENA, MONTANA, with the Mountain States Line Constructors Apprenticeship Training that I was telling you about. Yes. HELENA, MONTANA, and yes, I live in Michigan. I really want to go to this, and would love to do my Apprenticeship out there, but not sure I'll be able to make it.

    This is short notice, as I only applied there about 2 weeks ago. I have not had a lot of carpentry work during the last month, so I'm not sure I'll have enough money to pay for the flight or econobox rental car for the trip. I actually would like to make the drive, so I could sign more groundman books along the way and increase my chances of getting called up.

    Might have to get a co-pilot who can throw down some cash for the trip, or clean gutter, de-icedam peoples roofs and whatnot to pay for this!

    Don't be late......

  5. #5

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Highplains Drifter View Post
    Don't be late......
    Good advice. Definitely not planning on showing up late....

    Care to elaborate? Is there a story or something behind you telling me this?

  6. #6

    Default

    He means sleep'n in the car cuz you arrived the night before your interview!

  7. Default

    Good luck dude, Helena's a great place.

  8. #8

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by electric squirrel View Post
    He means sleep'n in the car cuz you arrived the night before your interview!
    I take it this might have happened to someone in the past on here?







    Just guessin.....

  9. #9

    Default

    good luck on your interview with mountain states, im from around Kalamazoo, MI and interviewed in helena just outa HS about 2 1/2 years ago and was hired the same day as my interview, should they hire you i know you will like it a lot so long as you dont get sent to colorado springs glueing conduit LOL. right now im working in sidny MT on the east side of the state got another week or two left here and will be going to work on a transmission line near great falls,
    Hemingray Insulators
    work smart, go home every night

  10. #10

    Default

    Featured Sponsorr

    Bad News......Sorta.

    Intake Manifold Gasket on my 96 Z-71 went out last week and started pouring coolant into the heads. Temp shot up waaay past 220, and I had to immediately shut the truck off. Good news is, I only need new intake manifold gaskets. Bad news is, the money I spent having the truck fixed, so I could make it to work still, and on EMS and fire runs for the fire dept is the money I was going to use for Montana.



    So yea, I was pretty bummed out. I thought I might be able to make it up this week. I did everything I could think of to come up with the cash to get out there. I plowed snow, cut and split and tried to sell some firewood and still worked my normal job, but in the end, I still didn't have the cash to come up with for the trip. I gave her hell, but just couldn't pull it off in a week.

    Flights are so damn expensive, and a rental car isn't much cheaper at all, even if you rent one of the 35mpg Toyotas.

    I really hate borrowing money, and don't really have anybody that would loan it to me, as most people in my neck of the woods are in the same situation as me....barely getting by and no extra $1000 just chillin around.

    But there is some good news in all of this....

    About an hour ago, I got a call from the guy who owns the powerline construction company that I know from the story on page 1.

    He told me to be in his yard, ready at 4AM to go out on storm as a Groundman!


    So maybe this won't turn out so bad after all. I called mountain states and left a message on their answering machine, letting them know that I won't be able to make it, but would love to be able to interview again, if at all possible.

    Stickin with it no matter what.....

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •