Beyond the Bulldog

Dennis Valverde, lead hauler driver with 23XI Racing, joins Beyond the Bulldog to explain what it takes to move race cars, tools, safety equipment, and team support from the shop to the track. He shares how he found his way from refrigerated freight and owner-operator trucking into NASCAR transportation. Valverde also discusses the culture at 23XI Racing, the many responsibilities hauler drivers h...

We sit down with the Last Alarm Foundation in Tucson, Arizona, to talk about their mission, their 1954 Mack L-Series fire truck, and the powerful way they honor fallen first responders. The foundation uses a restored Mack fire apparatus, retrofitted as a ceremonial hearse, to carry first responders to their final resting place at no cost to their families. Sarah Barcelo, Gary Bynum, Daniel Matlick...

We sit down with John Lynch, senior vice president of Federation Relations with the American Trucking Associations and president of the Trucking Cares Foundation, to talk about advocacy, public awareness, charitable impact, and the essential role trucking plays in American life.  John shares how his career path led from transportation work at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics to Capitol Hill, government a...

We sit down with Tom Menges, owner of Sweet-Smooth & Sassy, his restored 1986 Mack Superliner show truck, to talk about classic Mack power, truck restoration, and a lifetime spent in the trucking industry. Tom shares how he found the Superliner after it had been sitting in a field for years, brought it home, and worked with his family and trusted craftsmen to bring it back to life while preser...

We sit down with Tina Klein and Allen Boyd, professional truck drivers with the American Trucking Associations’ Share the Road program, to talk about highway safety, accident-free trucking careers, and the life-saving lessons every driver should understand. Tina and Allen share how they each found their way into trucking, what keeps them passionate about the industry, and why they volunteer their...

We sit down with Elizabeth Overmann, defense litigation attorney with Ragsdale Liggett in Raleigh, North Carolina, to talk about nuclear verdicts and the growing legal pressure facing the trucking industry. These multi-million-dollar judgments are driving up insurance costs, threatening smaller carriers, and creating ripple effects that reach far beyond the courtroom. Elizabeth explains how her wo...

We sit down with Jeremy Whatley, social influence manager with 4 State Trucks, home of the Chrome Shop Mafia, to talk about custom truck parts, social media, trucker culture, and the community behind one of the most recognizable names in chrome. Jeremy shares how 4 State Trucks grew from an International parts business into a major aftermarket truck parts supplier, how Chrome Shop Mafia became a n...

We sit down with Harish Kapur, president and co-owner of Across America Insurance, to talk about one of the biggest pressure points facing truckers and fleets today: rising insurance costs. From owner operators to larger carriers, insurance premiums continue to climb, but Harish explains why the conversation should not start and end with price. It should start with coverage, claims support, and th...

We sit down with Dan Boeke, secretary and treasurer with Cookie Carriers in Butler, Indiana, to talk about driver recruitment, retention, family business culture, and why professional drivers are the foundation of a reliable trucking company. Dan shares the story of Cookie Carriers, from its unusual name to the company’s work hauling prefab steel buildings, job site deliveries, dry van freight, an...

We sit down with Stephanie Davis, also known as Red, a truck driver with SME, to talk about the world of experiential marketing and the trucking that makes major events possible. From NFL activations and racetracks to golf courses, military bases, pop-up structures, and large-scale event builds, Stephanie explains what it takes to deliver more than freight. She delivers experiences. Stephanie shar...

We sit down with Matt Balazs, Director of On-Highway National Accounts at Mack Trucks, to talk about growing Mack’s presence in the highway market, supporting large fleet customers, and answering one of the biggest questions in trucking: Why Mack? Matt explains how national accounts work with large fleets, why the long haul market matters, and how the Mack Pioneer gives Mack a purpose-built produc...

We sit down with Phillip Atwood, principal of Vessel, a branding and marketing agency, to break down what a brand actually is, why owner-operators need one even if they never set out to build one, and how a consistent brand becomes the engine that drives new business through the door. Phillip shares how his agency pulls a tagline out of an owner's head with what he calls a "friendly interrogation,...

We sit down with JJ Owen, Executive Director of Skills Jam, a non-profit built to reach Gen Z where they already are and show them what a reaal career in the trades looks like. JJ spent seven years inside a major foundation from 2011 to 2017, learning what storytelling can do when it comes to galvanizing a community, changing hearts and minds, and reframing the trades as a first-choice career, not...

We sit down with Tony O'Connell, vice president of sales and marketing for Mack Trucks Australia, to go behind the scenes of what makes the Australian market fundamentally different from North America, from right-hand-drive manufacturing to road trains, tipper and dog configurations, and the MP11 platform pushing 780 horsepower. Tony shares his day-to-day leading the Australian Mack business, expl...

We sit down with Tom Bryant, vice president of racing operations with NASCAR, to go behind the scenes of what it takes to deliver a race weekend. From security and medical support to credentialing, rule enforcement, transportation, catering, and broadcast coordination, Tom explains the massive operation that fans rarely see but every race depends on. Tom shares how 21 years in the U.S. Army, inclu...

We sit down with Adam Knight, vice president of sales and marketing at First Gear Inc., to explore how detailed diecast trucks go from full-size CAD data to collectible models that capture the identity, history, and personality of a brand. Adam shares how he grew up around the family business, pursued a career in art and animation, then returned to First Gear and gradually took on responsibilities...

In this episode, we sit down with Averell Laird, better known as Mr. TrashMan, owner of Mr. TrashMan Dumpster Rental in the Houston area, along with "MackDaddy Mike" Sandifer from Vanguard Truck Centers. This conversation is all about business, hustle, and what happens when the right relationship turns a big dream into real equipment on the street. Mr. TrashMan shares how he started in 2021 with a...

We sit down with Mike Morgan, also known as “88 Mike,” a Mack Trucks elite technician and the driver of Mackvader, a Class 8 race truck competing in the American Big Rig Racing series. Mike has spent nearly three decades turning wrenches at McMahon Truck Group, and he has spent the last 12 years proving what Mack power can do when you put it on a dirt oval and let it eat.   Mike shares how motorsp...

This episode brings a different kind of guest to Beyond the Bulldog. We sit down with Nadine and Walter the Bulldog, the official Mack Trucks mascot, to talk about how a skateboarding bulldog went from weekend workouts to a movie role, then into the Mack family as a fan-favorite part of the show experience. Nadine shares her lifelong love for bulldogs and the unique personality that makes them fee...

We sit down with Grant Aschenbeck, salesman with Bruckner’s Truck and Equipment in Odessa, Texas, to talk about two sides of the same coin: how owner operators can grow their business through relationships and consistency, and how to show up prepared when it is time to buy a truck. Grant shares how he went from coaching football with no trucking background to becoming a top-performing salesman, ea...

This episode is dedicated to helping truckers who are involved in a crash learn how to protect themselves, handle the claims process, and get back to business faster. We sit down with Kelsea Eckert, attorney with Downtime Claims, a firm focused on recovering compensation when a crash was not the trucker’s fault, including lost revenue from downtime, not just repairs. Kelsea breaks down why many tr...

We sit down with Trace Plaugher, owner of Buckeye Floridian Materials in northwest Ohio, to talk about an unexpected career pivot and the real-world grind of building a small fleet in the vocational hauling space. Trace shares how he went from pursuing a future in medicine to hauling asphalt and aggregate, and why hands-on work, freedom, and long-term stability mattered more than spending decades...

We are celebrating one full year of Beyond the Bulldog, and this episode is a highlight reel of the moments that defined the first season. Over the past year, the show has featured 44 guests and more than 38 hours of conversations across trucking, safety, maintenance, business leadership, history, and the people who keep the industry moving. Mile Marker 52 is a compilation of standout clips and qu...

Following the launch of the all new Mack Granite and Mack Keystone, we sit down with Lukas Yates, Chief Designer at Mack Trucks, to go behind the scenes of what it takes to design a truck from the ground up. Lukas explains how Mack design is built around real world function, not styling for styling’s sake, and how every exterior decision has to deliver on visibility, durability, cooling performanc...

We sit down with Alexander Long, CEO and co-founder of Topia, a post-industrial plastics recycling company building a major operation in Burlington, North Carolina. Alexander explains what post-industrial recycling really means, why manufacturing waste is far larger than most people realize, and how Topia helps companies turn material that used to go to a landfill into something valuable again. Al...