FedEx Drivers Snag Top Honors at National Truck Driving Championships

FedEx Corp. delivered once again.  The company announced that nine of its drivers took home top honors at the 2017 National Truck Driving Championships (NTDC) in Orlando August 8-12.

The American Trucking Associations (ATA) sponsors the annual championships, known as the “Super Bowl of Safety,” to recognize industry leadership in safety and to promote professionalism among truck drivers. Each driver is required to demonstrate his or her driving skills and knowledge of the industry through a series of tests, including a written exam, vehicle pre-trip inspection and driving-skills challenge.

Six were crowned National Champions in their respective driving classes and Roland Buldoc of FedEx Express, was named the Bendix National Truck Driving Championships Grand Champion, the most prestigious award.

Four other FedEx drivers received awards recognizing excellence in the written test, professionalism and best first-time performance.

Along with the Champions of each class and the individual awards winners, 16 drivers were top finishers in their respective driving class.

Three drivers representing FedEx took home awards as follows:

• Neil Darmstadter Professional Excellence Award: Dan Shamrell, FedEx Freight (Portland, Ore.)
• Rookie of the Year: Bryce Neilson, FedEx Freight (Butte, Mont.)
• Best Written Score: Paul Brandon, FedEx Freight and Don Logan, FedEx Freight (New Haven, Conn.)

Along with the Champions of each class and the individual awards winners, 16 drivers were top finishers in their respective driving class:

• Kailen Bronson, FedEx Ground (Portland, Ore.), 5^th Place, Step Van
• Randy Byrd, FedEx Freight (Jackson, Miss.), 3^rd place, Twins
• Lalo Fernandez, FedEx Freight (Portland, Ore.), 2^nd place, 5-Axle Sleeper
• Todd Flippin, FedEx Freight (Springfield, Colo.), 4^th place, Twins
• Ross Garner, FedEx Freight (Decatur, Ala.), 2^nd place, Tank Truck
• Brent Glasenapp, FedEx Express (Milwaukee, Wis.), 2^nd place, Straight Truck
• David Hawk, FedEx Freight (Birmingham, Ala.), 5^th place, Straight Truck
• Nick Jones, FedEx Freight (Portland, Ore.), 4^th place, 5-Axle
• Artur Lesniowski, FedEx Ground (Secaucus, N.J.), 3^rd place, 5-Axle
• Don Logan, FedEx Freight (Topeka, Kan.), 4^th place, Flatbed
• Bart Masciulli, FedEx Express (Philadelphia, Pa.), 4^th place, Step Van
• Dave Rohman, FedEx Express (Charlotte, N.C.), 2^nd place, 3-Axle
• Dan Shamrell, FedEx Freight (Portland, Ore.), 3^rd place, 4-Axle
• Chris Shaw, FedEx Express (Albuquerque, N.M.), 4^th place, Straight Truck
• Darrell Shelton, FedEx Freight (Pasco, Wash.), 5^th place, 4-Axle
• Scott Ward, FedEx Express, (Greer, S.C.), 4^th place, 4-Axle

“We are proud of all the men and women who competed in the National Truck Driving Championships,” said Frederick W. Smith, chairman and CEO, FedEx Corp. “All of these skilled professionals represent the FedEx value of Safety Above All.”

For the second consecutive year, drivers from all the 50 states represented Team FedEx. Collectively the FedEx team of 173 individuals has 3,800 years professional driving experience and has driven 246 million accident-free miles.

Team FedEx has now won 50 National Champion, four National Grand Champion and seven Rookie of the Year titles since the inception of the Chairman’s Challenge in 2003.

Tags: Bendix National Truck Driving Championships Grand Champion, FedEx Corp., FedEx Express, National Champion, Roland Buldoc

Category: General Update, News