For the past five years, Abigail Potter has overseen the planning and onsite event coordination for the Washington State Truck Driving Championships. As the Director of Safety and Compliance for the Washington Trucking Associations, Abigail views the Evergreen State’s TDC as one of the most important dates on her calendar. Having started her career in trucking with the American Trucking Associations after working in the nation’s capitol as a staff member for two U.S. Senators, Abigail values the opportunity to spend time with professional drivers, learning about their lives on the road and the challenges they face.

As you will hear in this episode of the podcast, Abigail has the highest level of respect for the men and women behind the wheel who are working to move the nation’s economy. As part of that respect, she is always looking for ways to make each year’s Washington State TDC better than the previous one. PodWheels Executive Producer Greg Thompson caught up with Abigail just four days after the WTA had crowned its state champions, putting the 2026 TDC in the books.

During this in-depth conversation, Abigail takes listeners “behind the cones” for a look at the effort that goes into successfully hosting the WTA’s TDC, including what she has learned through the years. Greg also talks to Abigail about the experiences she gained while at ATA and how she has approached working in her role with the Washington Trucking Associations. As she shares with our listeners, the perspective and feedback that professional drivers provide, especially during the State TDC, have become invaluable to Abigail in role at the WTA.

OUR FRIEND OF THE PODCAST SPONSOR: Founded in 2007, the St. Christopher Truckers Relief Fund is the only nationwide nonprofit that provides short-term relief to Class A OTR drivers suffering from an illness or injury that took them out of work within the last 365 days. The St. Christopher Truckers Development and Relief Fund also provides several free prevention health and wellness programs for OTR drivers in an effort to keep them on the road, including nicotine and smoking cessation, diabetes prevention, chronic disease management, at-home cancer screenings, and vaccine vouchers. To learn more about the St. Christopher Truckers Relief Fund and all of the offerings available from SCF, including how you can support their important work to help professional drivers and their families, visit TruckersFund.org.

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