PodWheels POWERED BY Partnerships
News & Blog
Keep up with the latest company news and updates from the trucking industry.
11-Time Oregon Grand Champion Dan Shamrell Ready For His 19th NTDC Trip
How do you become a living legend within the NTDC Community? That’s the one question we did not ask Dan Shamrell, who is our featured guest on this episode of the podcast. First of all, Dan is far too humble to try to attempt to answer that question. As you will hear...
2014 Grand Champion Jeff Langenhahn Part Of Stacked NTDC 2025 Tanker Field
When the competitors in the Tanker Class gather at NTDC 2025 in Minneapolis, this division will feature three National Grand Champions. Tanker includes the past two NTDC Grand Champions with Jackie Reed in 2024 and Gragg Wilson in 2023. The third member of the Grand...
NTDC 2025 Organizing Committee Member Heath Arnold Inspired By Example of Champions
Much in the same way that professional drivers from across the country prepare for their State TDC that will give them a shot at qualifying for the National Championships, Heath Arnold is drawn to serve as a volunteer at the state and national levels of the...
Back-To-Back NY State Grand Champ Mark McLean Continues To Excel
How do you top winning the State Grand Championship in New York in 2024? Mark McLean of FedEx Freight provided that answer in 2025 when he became the back-to-back Grand Champion from the Empire State. For Mark, who is a veteran of TDC competitions dating back some 20...
Discussing Latest Nuclear Verdict News & Growing Role Of Mediation In Catastrophic Cases
Cedar Abadie, the founder of Iron Resolution Services, is our featured guest on the Grawe Pod as we discuss a host of timely topics, including nuclear verdicts, the growing role of mediation and the increased liability that brokers have with the capacity they utilize....
Florida Grand Champion Miguel Sanchez Dedicated To Staying Prepared
Miguel Sanchez of UPS believes in preparation. Like countless professional drivers on the road today, Miguel stays prepared for the unexpected. In the hours before the Florida Trucking Association held its awards dinner for this year’s Sunshine State Truck Driving...
Family Support Helps To Fuel Ritch Fundell’s Continued Excellence
In early June, Ritch Fundell brought home his fifth Grand Championship for the state of Illinois. One of the many people in the crowd cheering Ritch as he won the Tanker Class Championship en route to the day’s top trophy was his son, who had driven five hours from...
National Championship Driving Course Design: NTDC 2025 Committee Member Frank Ems Takes Us Inside
What goes into developing the driving courses for the National Truck Driving and National Step Van Driving Championships? During this episode of the podcast, we asked that question and touched on a number of related topics with Frank Ems, the member of the NTDC 2025...
‘Rhode Warriors’ Chris Maxwell And Al D’Angelo Celebrate Joe Hicks In TDC Look Back
In the days prior to winning what would be his 7th career Rhode Island State TDC Grand Championship, Joe Hicks of XPO was being honored on the floor of the Rhode Island State House. Joe heard a proclamation from the Rhode Island Speaker of the House being read to...
Providing Essential Insights For Surviving FMCSA Audits
Would your trucking company be prepared if the Federal Motor Carrier Administration notified you that FMCSA would be conducting an audit of your operation? In this episode of the podcast, Mark Barlar and Daniel Vega from the Reliance Partners Safety Impact Team offer...
Video Podcast: Looking Back At California’s Championships With CTA CEO Eric Sauer
In our first-ever video edition of the NTDC 2025 Podcast from PodWheels, we talk with California Trucking Association CEO Eric Sauer about his state's Truck Driving Championships, which included a regional competition and concluded with the finals during the last...
Rigs Without Cigs: Kevin Hightower’s Inspiring Journey to Quit Smoking
Rigs Without Cigs holds the distinction of being the first health and wellness program created by the St. Christopher Truckers Relief Fund. Over the years, SCF has helped nearly 1,000 professional drivers put out smoking for good and kick the habit. In this episode of...
Conference Recap: Insights On What’s Happening With Cross-Border Trade
The Eighth Annual Modernization of Cross Border Trade Conference, which is hosted by Reliance Partners, took place in mid-June and it offered a number of valuable insights on what’s happening with cross-border trade between the U.S. and Mexico. Mark Vickers, the...
NTDC 2025 Organizing Committee Chair Bob Foskey Ready For Final Countdown
Recorded on June 20 when the start of NTDC 2025 was just 60 days away, this episode of the podcast gave us the opportunity to catch up with Bob Foskey, who is serving as the Chairman of the Organizing Committee for NTDC 2025. We talked with Bob on a range of topics,...
Picture Perfect Early Birthday Gift: Ramon Guzman Returning To Nationals
Ramon Guzman of FedEx Freight has become a fixture at the California Truck Driving Championships and he is a true testament to perseverance. Until breaking through in 2025 winning the title in the Flatbed Division, Ramon had claimed his first and only state...
MMTA President & CEO Louis Campion Looks Back At Maryland & Delaware TDCs
What does it take to host a pair of State TDCs at the same location for the first time? We asked this question and many more during our recent conversation with Louis Campion, the President & CEO of the Maryland Motor Truck Association. As you’ll hear, Louis and...
Celebrating The Grand Championship 3-Peat of Kentucky’s John Willinger
How do you win three State TDC Grand Championships in a row? That’s the question we asked Kentucky’s John Willinger a few weeks after he took home the top trophy in the Bluegrass State for a third straight year. A proud member of Team FedEx, John will be making his...
Optimism And Realism: Navigating The Current Challenges Within The Trucking Market
For the decision makers at trucking and logistics companies, the freight market we are experiencing in 2025 requires the ability to be nimble while still staying true to your strengths as a company. And, as we hear in this episode of the Grawe Pod, today’s market...
Dan Istre’s Journey Back To NTDC Made Sweeter By Idaho Grand Championship
Over the past 25 years or so, Dan Istre had become a fixture at the Idaho TDC and a regular presence at NTDC, with 23 State TDCs and seven national appearances prior to 2025. Dan was one of the stalwarts on the Yellow Freight Team, but he had to find a new ride...
Answering Important Questions On Updates To ELP Enforcement
Reliance Partners Safety Impact Team Members Mark Barlar and Daniel Vega return to the podcast to continue the discussion on the guidance related to the decision by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance to make English language proficiency an out-of-service...
Tim Stanga Captures Grand Champion’s Gold In Silver State TDC
For 2025 Nevada TDC Grand Champion Tim Stanga, the journey back to the NTDC took a little more than a decade and included a move to Las Vegas. The last time Tim was part of the Nationals field was in 2014 when he qualified as part of Team Arizona as a state champion....