It’s easier for me to brag on him because he won’t tell you himself,” confides Helene Pedersen, girlfriend, co-driver and self-proclaimed “fan” of Butch Barnes, Overdrive‘s 2002 Trucker of the Year. Pedersen says Barnes is always modest about his success, saying “I’ve been lucky” or “I’m just fortunate.”
“He has a lot to brag about if he wanted to, but he doesn’t do it,” agrees Tom Oakley, owner of Atlas Transfer & Storage of San Diego, the agent Barnes has leased to for 12 years. Instead, Barnes chalks up his accomplishments – which include more than 2 million safe miles, a 17-year stint as an Allied Van Lines Master Mover and Allied’s youngest Driver of the Year ever – to fate and his father’s influence.
“I had a good teacher in my father,” the 50-year-old Cheyenne, Wyo., resident says. “Anything and everything I’ve achieved in this business is his doing.” Barnes’ father, Ray, followed in his own father’s footsteps and started driving for Allied in 1928. He was named Driver of the Year in 1968, an honor Butch received in 1985, making them the first Allied father and son to win the award.
What success he doesn’t attribute to his father’s example is just plain luck, Barnes says. “Anytime you’re recognized, there are so many people just as good,” he insists. “You’re just fortunate enough to be picked.”
As Trucker of the Year, Barnes was selected from among Overdrive‘s 12 Truckers of the Month, each of whom exemplifies the best qualities of successful owner-operators – safety, sound business practices and community service. Despite his many accomplishments, when the call came from Overdrive, Barnes couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “After we hung up I called back and said, ‘Did you really say what I thought you said?'”
The hard work and dedication that won Barnes his latest honor have been hallmarks of his career. For him, trucking is a lifelong passion that began when he started riding with his father at age 7. In the eighth grade he prepared a career plan in which he outlined two goals: join the Marine Corps and become a truck driver. At 16, he got his chauffeur’s license and began hauling intrastate for Interstate Moving and Storage, an Allied Van Lines agent. At 18, he entered the Marine Corps. Two years later, after serving a tour in Vietnam, he came out a sergeant and started driving a truck two weeks after he got home. He’s been driving ever since.
As 2002 Trucker of the Year, Butch barnes will receive:
