Fleet insider

Trucker Buddy of the Month
Brenda Meacham, who hauls for Carolina Southern Trucking, has been named Trucker Buddy Driver of the Month for April 2007.

In 2006, Meacham celebrated her own birthday by giving bicycles to her “buddies” at Latham Elementary in Winston-Salem, N.C. In 2007, with the help of her fleet, Meacham gave the students laptop computers. Meacham also has donated dictionaries, thesauruses, notebooks, pencils and erasers to her adopted classroom.

A Trucker Buddy since 2004, Meacham credits her good works to lessons learned from her father, a Baptist minister.

Each Trucker Buddy Driver of the Month receives a personalized jacket, a $300 check to spend on the class and $200 in Trucker Buddy merchandise, compliments of program sponsor ACS MultiMedia. Drivers of the Month also receive an IdleAire adapter, a Koolatron cooler and a complete set of Airtabs for their tractor or trailer, while owner-operators receive a set of steer tires from Continental. The driver’s class also receives a CrossCountry USA game from Ingenuity Works to help them learn more about how trucks move freight across the continent.

For more information on Trucker Buddy, visit the Trucker Buddy website or call (800) MY-BUDDY.


March Driver
Warren Transport Inc. has selected owner-operator Roger Hilgerson as its March Driver of the Month. Hilgerson has been an owner-operator for nearly 34 years, logging more than a million miles.


Fleet Award
Barnett Transportation Inc. recently won a Gold Award from Great West Casualty Co. as part of the insurer’s 2006 National Fleet Safety Awards Program. It was the fourth consecutive year for an award to Barnett. Barnett is headquartered in Tuscaloosa, Ala., with terminals in Savannah, Ga., and Jacksonville and Tampa, Fla.


Bull Dog Award Winner
CTL Transportation LLC named Jim Probstas its April 2007 Bull Dog. Probstas is a professional tractor technician based at CTL’s East St. Louis, Ill., terminal. The Bull Dog Award, which is presented to acknowledge an employee’s character, integrity and performance or improvement in performance, is the most prestigious honor given to CTL employees.


25-Year Safe Driver Award
Jim Kuczynski recently received Beverage Distributors Co.’s first 25-year Safe Driver Award. BDC and MHC Truck Leasing-Denver jointly presented the award to Kuczynski. To qualify for the award, Kuczynski had to have no preventable accidents. John Slater, transportation manager, says Kuczynski – who has been employed with BDC since 1965 – is an asset to the company. “His experience is what sets him apart,” Slater says. “Jim is able to recognize hazards due to years of experience, and he is able to navigate those hazards and make it through each and every day safely.”

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KLLM Drivers
Four drivers from KLLM Transport Services won top awards at the Mississippi Trucking Association’s Truck Driving Championships, the 37th annual for the Mississippi Trucking Association.

Drivers Bill Fambro, Tim Gillette, Steve Jones and Kevin Lavespere won awards in their respective categories. Fambro won first place in the tanker division. Gillette won first place in the three-axle division. Jones won first place in the five-axle sleeper division. Lavespere placed third in the flatbed division.

The Mississippi Truck Driving Championship was held at the Lee County Agricultural Complex in Tupelo. More than 100 drivers from companies and transportation carriers across the state participated in the event.

Individual winners advanced to the National Truck Driving Championship, Aug. 21-25 in Minneapolis.


Decker Drivers of the Month
Decker Truck Line selected Dale Leman as its April 2007 Driver of the Month for the company’s flatbed division. Stephen Abbott was selected as the April 2007 Driver of the Month in the reefer/van division.

Leman has been with Decker Truck Line for seven years, working mostly in the flatbed division but also helping out in the reefer/van division. He and his wife, Lezlee, live in West Bend, Iowa.

Abbott and his wife, Debra, live in Mabank, Texas, with their two children, Jessica and Christopher.


TMTA Driver of the Year
Texas Motor Transportation Association has named Wayne Lowe of FFE Transportation Services 2007 Driver of the Year. Lowe was one of 27 drivers nominated. TMTA’s Driver of the Year award is an annual program with a 20-year history.

Lowe, who has driven a truck for more than 39 years, began hauling to Shreveport, La., while he was still in high school. When he was 21, Lowe was drafted into the U.S. Army, bringing his transportation experience to his assigned Anchorage, Alaska, duty station during the Vietnam War. From transporting active-duty military members’ children back and forth to school to driving officers in the presidential convoy for President Lyndon Johnson, Lowe drove every kind of ground vehicle the Army had to offer.

“I never held a gun after boot camp. I was a road soldier driving green berets to their transport planes headed out to Vietnam or bringing soldiers up to Lake Louise for R&R,” says Lowe. Ten days after being discharged from the armed forces, Lowe took a driving test to work for FFE Transportation Services and was hired on the spot. Four decades and 4 million miles later, Lowe is still driving for FEE at the age of 63.


Averitt Honored
Averitt Express recently was honored with the 2006 Carrier of the Year award from Nestle Waters during an annual carrier meeting held in Atlanta.

Nestle Waters presented the award to only one out of more than 40 of its carriers in its Tennessee region. Based on criteria such as cost-effectiveness, flexibility and creativity, this award recognizes Averitt for its accomplishments in providing transportation solutions.


Bonus Increase
Barr-Nunn Transportation recently increased its pay package for owner-operators. Every time an owner-operator runs 60,000 paid miles, he or she will now receive a $750 appreciation bonus, the company says, an increase from $600.


CFI Drivers of the Month
CFI recently announced the monthly driver award recipients for April 2007:

Company Driver of the Month: Wayne Herrington started driving for CFI in 1994. He lives in Fort Smith, Ark.

Company Team of the Month: Grant and Joyce Blevins began driving for CFI in 2000 and 2003, respectively. They live in Houston and have driven more than 1 million miles together.

Contractor Driver of the Month: Roberto Silva began his career with CFI in 2000. He lives in Brownsville, Texas.

Contractor Team of the Month: Randy and Diana Cross began their careers at CFI in 1999 and 2002, respectively. They live in Hallett, Okla.