National Truck Driving Championships

In the second segment of our three-part series with Transport Topics Senior Reporter Eugene Mulero, we discuss the incredible accomplishments and dedication to professional excellence by the competitors who were a part of the National Truck Driving and National Step Van Driving Championships. With this episode, we place a particular focus on Ina Daly, who earned the event’s Professional Exce...

Eugene Mulero, Senior Reporter for Transport Topics, joins us for Part 1 of our NTDC Rewind as we look back on the memorable moments and performances during the 2023 National Truck Driving & National Step Van Driving Championships. In this episode, we spend some time discussing Tony Spero, a two-time national champion from Connecticut who is retiring from trucking later this year. As you&#8217...

As we round the corner toward the final episodes of our NTDC 2023 Series, we wanted to provide our listeners with an episode that takes you inside Championship Saturday, which includes the traditional Walk Of Champions. In this segment, you’ll hear from some of the participants as they prepared for the start of the event’s parade make the Walk Of Champions. Another high point of Champi...

Roland Bolduc and Tony Spero have become living legends with their repeated appearances in the National Truck Driving and National Step Van Driving Championships. Both these veteran professional drivers have collected a truckload of state championships en route to each winning multiple national titles over their careers. Roland is a two-time winner of the National Grand Championship, and Tony has...

Prior to NTDC 2023, Gragg Wilson, a veteran driver from UPS, had made 13 trips to the National Championships as a state champion from Nevada. But, in all those runs to the NTDC, Gragg had never made it beyond the preliminary round of the national competition. NTDC 2023 became a memorable breakout year for Gragg. First, he heard his name called as a finalist in the Tanker Division. Gragg’s in...

Barry Kraemer knows that all the miles he covers each week as a a professional driver would be much tougher to navigate without the support of his family. Winning his first National Championship this year at NTDC 2023, Barry was thrilled to be able to celebrate his achievement with his family members who made the trip to Columbus. During this interview that took place in the days following the con...

Lisa Steed has a unique perspective when it comes to the road and the opportunities that you can find behind the wheel. After spending a decade as a State Trooper in Utah, Lisa took her career in a new direction when she discovered an opportunity to start a Step Van business where she and her business partner could serve as contract service providers for FedEx Ground in the Salt Lake area. In 2023...

Ina Daly is a true pioneer in the trucking industry, hitting the road over 40 years ago at a time when few women were behind the wheel. Ina excelled in her job, striving for the highest levels of professional excellence as she compiled decade-upon-decade of safe driving. Ina has become a fixture at the Arizona State Truck Driving Championships, with 16 state titles that made Ina a regular at the N...

Mike Barnes is a 34-year veteran professional driver who has been competing through the state of Arkansas to reach the NTDCs for the past few years. Following a third-place finish in his classification this year at the Arkansas Truck Driving Championships, Mike decided to make the trip to NTDC 2023 as spectator and he brought his notebook, looking for tips that will help him break through to reach...

Ron Round and Ken Duncan have made multiple trips to the National Truck Driving and National Step Van Driving Championships, earning State Championships in their respective classifications in the state of Maine. For NTDC 2023, Ron and Ken returned to the national stage in Columbus having joined the newest class of Captains for America’s Road Team. As you’ll hear in this episode, Ron an...

2023 marks 50 years in the trucking industry for Kevin Burch, and one the highlights of this golden anniversary year for Kevin happened at NTDC 2023. On the final day of the competition, Kevin part of the ATA’s dignitary group that shook the hands of the 419 state champions as they were announced on stage. As you’ll hear in this episode, each handshake and those moments with the entire...

Last year, Antoine Sadler posted the high score on the NTDC 2022 driving course with a 220. At NTDC 2023, Antoine focused his dedication to excellence to champion the important work of Truckers Against Trafficking (TAT). Antoine, who is a member of the Board of Directors with TAT, served as an information resource at the TAT trailer. Antoine was just yards away from this year’s road course i...

Mindy Rathjens had worked hard through the years to break through the highly competitive field in her home state of Iowa, always seeking to reach the National Championships. In 2023, Mindy not only won the state championship in her classification, but she also claimed the title of Grand Champion for Iowa. In this episode, Mindy discusses her career and what she experienced with her first trip to t...

As the second day of the driving competition began rolling, ATA Chairman Dan Van Alstine sat down with Jimmy Mac. Dan, who is the President and Chief Operating Officer at Ruan Transportation Management Systems, will be concluding his one-year term as ATA Chairman in October. While celebrating the accomplishments and driving excellence of all the competitors at NTDC 2023, Dan took this opportunity...

For more than 50 years now, Rick Cates has been involved in working on the National Truck Driving & National Step Van Driving Championships. Known as the “Senator,” because of this long tenure with the NTDCs, Rick takes some time with Jimmy Mac to look back at his involvement with the national championships over the years. The post Rick Cates Looks Back at His 51 Years Of NTDC Work...

Byron and Bob Bramwell are one of the greatest father-and-son acts in the trucking industry. Not only did Bob follow in his father’s footsteps as a multiple state champion to join Byron as a competitor at the NTDCs over the years, but Bob also joined his dad as an industry ambassador when he became the second America’s Road Team Captain in the family. Byron. who is no longer competing...

Considered by his fellow competitors as one of the greats in the history of NTDCs, Tony Spero talks with Jimmy Mac about his upcoming retirement from truck driving and the emotional ride he has experienced on his road back to the NTDCs. While looking back at his time in the industry, Tony also tells Jimmy about the opportunity to spend time with his family after his retirement. The post Connecticu...

Eugene Mulero, who co-authored a book on the history of the National Truck Driving & National Step Van Driving Championships, took a few minutes to step away from his reporter’s position in a safe area within the driving course to give Jimmy Mac and our listeners the scoop on what took place during the event’s preliminary rounds. Jimmy also talks to Eugene about the storied history of the even...

As he looked out over the road course one day before he would be driving on it, Tim Blair, a State Champion from Tennessee, was all smiles. Tim, who first competed at the state level in 2019, tells Greg Thompson from PodWheels about his journey to reach the NTDCs. Tim, who also became a Captain for the Tennessee Road Team this year, also shares his thoughts on the opportunity to be a part of what...

A trailblazer who became the first woman to claim a National Title at the NTDCs with her trophy run in 2013, Ina Daly talks with Jimmy Mac about her trucking career that now spans more than 40 years. As you’ll hear, Ina shares the important role her father played to get her to pursue a career behind the wheel. The post Ina Daly Looks Back At Her 40-Plus Years In Trucking With Jimmy Mac appeared fi...

On the day before he would get behind wheel at NTDC 2023, defending Grand Champion Roland Bolduc talks with Jimmy Mac on what he observed during the competition’s walkthrough of this year’s road course. Roland and Jimmy also touch on other topics related to the week and the journey that all the competitors have made to reach the Super Bowl of Safety. The post Defending NTDC Grand Champ Roland Bold...

Richard Gillespie is considered by most who know the history of the NTDCs as the G-O-A-T, the Greatest of All Time. From his first NTDC trip in 1965 through 1991, Richard claimed two Grand Championships and he won National Championships in seven different divisions during his long run at the NTDCs. Following his retirement from competition when he won his second Grand Championship in 1991, Richard...

While ATA President & CEO Chris Spear joins Jimmy Mac in the celebration of safety and driving excellence that are seen through the annual NTDC event, Chris also shares how the national championships have become a yearly trip that he has taken with his son, Thomas. During this episode, Jimmy also talks to Chris about what’s happening with the industry’s efforts to secure more truck parking nat...

Some 22 years after Eddie Pennington began his trucking career in 1976, he won his first of 12 State Championships in Florida. The 2023 edition of the NTDCs will be his last run at the nationals as Eddie plans to retire at some point in the next year. Tim Taylor, a Captain with America’s Road Team and a friend of Eddie’s, asked PodWheels to spend some time talking with Eddie and looking back a car...

Dan Horvath, Vice President of Safety Policy at ATA, discusses the deep roots that he has established through the years serving as a volunteer at the NTDCs. Dan tells Jimmy Mac how he got involved with the NTDC event, and he also shares how the excellence displayed by the professional drivers who compete annually at the state level and at the NTDCs continue to serve as an inspiration with their de...