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Meet Miguel Corral of UPS: Your 2026 NTDC Grand Champion
On Friday, the National Truck Driving and National Step Van Driving Championships crowned the 30th Grand Champion since the inception of the competition’s top trophy in 1987. After earning the 4-Axle National title earlier in the evening, Miguel Corral of UPS heard...
FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs Making The Most Of His Week At NTDC 2026
For our 80th episode of the NTDC 2026 Series, PodWheels has the distinct privilege and honor of welcoming Derek Barrs, the Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Administration, to join us for our onsite coverage in Pittsburgh. During an interview with PodWheels...
Placing Our Spotlight On The North American Inspector’s Championship
Just a little more than 25 years ago, the American Trucking Associations and the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance began holding Trucking’s National Championships concurrently with the North American Inspector’s Championship. NAIC is law enforcement’s equivalent to...
Honoring Rick Cates: Forever ‘The Senator’ Of NTDC
As we release the 78th episode of our series this year, we are on the eve of Finals Friday, the day all the State Champions are honored and the National Championships will be decided. One of the most personal parts of Championship morning is watching all the State...
Roland With Jim Kohr: Looking Back, Looking Ahead and Talking About The Heart Of NTDC
Recorded a few weeks before the onsite start of NTDC 2026, we held this special edition Rollin’ With Roland until the driving days of the competition began during NTDC Week. Two-Time National Grand Champion Roland Bolduc sits down with New York TDC Titan Jim Kohr, who...
Day One of NTDC 2026: Semifinal Driving Course Revealed
The Road To Pittsburgh has reached its final destination as the NTDC 2026 Podcast is onsite at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in the heart of the Steel City. PodWheels Executive Producer Greg Thompson talked with the first person to navigate the semifinal...
PMTA’s Rebecca Oyler Is Ready For NTDC’s Return To Pittsburgh
In this episode of the podcast, we visit with Rebecca Olyer, who is the President and CEO of the Pennsylvania Motor Truck Association. As you will hear, NTDC 2026 will be the first edition of the National Championships that Rebecca has attended since she took her post...
No Bull: South Dakota’s Terry Luthy Riding To NTDC 2026 As Rookie State Grand Champion
Terry Luthy from FedEx Freight will have two very unique experiences in tow when he arrives at NTDC 2026 this week in Pittsburgh. First of all, Terry will have the honor of representing South Dakota as the State’s Grand Champion, winning that title and the 5-Axle...
Driving Course Chairman Wes Herek Is Following Some Big Footsteps
On Sunday morning, two days before the August 11th official start of NTDC 2026, Old Dominion’s Wes Herek will lead the Driving Course Committee out to the floor of the David L. Lawrence Center in Pittsburgh. The months of planning, discussion and reviewing design...
XPO’s Steve Iburg Cherishes Return To NTDCs As Iowa Grand Champ
As a professional driver with more than two million safe miles to his credit, XPO’s Steve Iburg understands the important roles that patience and persistence play in his success on the road. As he shares with us in this episode of the podcast, Steve continued to be...
NTDC Veteran Volunteer Carlos Ortiz Embraces Pre-Trip Lead Role
As a veteran volunteer at the NTDCs, Carlos Ortiz was ready when the opportunity arrived for the New Jersey-based Safety Professional with NFI Industries to lead the 2026 Pre-Trip competition that will take place in Pittsburgh. In this edition of the podcast, we take...
Driving for Excellence Award Coverage Launches With In-Depth Look At The Program
With this episode of Destinations, PodWheels begins our coverage for the 2026 edition of the Transition Trucking: Driving For Excellence Award. Launched in 2015 as a collaborative initiative from Kenworth, Fastport and the US Chamber of Commerce's Hiring Our Heroes...
Final Countdown: NTDC 2026 Chair Heath Arnold Placing Spotlight On 429 State Champions
As the Chairman of NTDC 2026 National Organizing Committee, Heath Arnold is greatly appreciative of all the work that has been done by the committee, the volunteers, ATA staff and everyone involved in the preparation for this year’s National Truck Driving and National...
Final Countdown: ATA’s Jacob Pierce Checking His List Twice
What is involved in being ready to welcome State Champions from across the country to the National Truck Driving & National Step Van Driving Championships? Our podcast asked that question and discussed a range of topics with Jacob Pierce, the Executive Director of...
First Vice Chair Scott Dewey Counting The Days Until NTDC 2026
By Tuesday evening of next week, NTDC 2026 will be officially underway as the state champions from across the country will have gathered for the initial driver meeting and orientation, the written test will be in the books and the walk-through of the semifinal course...
Don Jones’ Big TDC Run Now Includes Montana’s Grand Championship
Once Don Jones got a taste of winning vehicle class championships and going to Nationals for the first time back in 2022, the FedEx Freight veteran from Montana has not stopped winning. In this episode of the podcast, Don takes some time to look back at a run that now...
Florida’s Miguel Sanchez of UPS Returns To Nationals In Grand Fashion
In early June, Miguel Sanchez completed the circle on what has been an incredibly successful 12-month run for the veteran UPS driver. Competing in the Florida State TDCs, Miguel made a successful defense of his Twins Class title and he also brought home the Sunshine...
8-Time State Grand Champ Joe Hicks of XPO Looks Ahead To NTDC 2026
XPO Million Miler Joe Hicks is incredibly humble given all that he has accomplished over his career on the road and while driving at the State TDCs and in the Nationals. He’s quietly becoming a legend in his home state of Rhode Island, and Joe is one of the top...
Returning To A Calling: Julie Dillon’s Journey Back To SCF To Lead Health Initiatives
For this episode of the Highway To Hope, Julie Dillon is our special guest. As you will hear, Jule shares her inspiring return to the Saint Christopher Trucker’s Relief Fund after a personal family journey. In her second tour of duty as SCF’s Health & Wellness...
From Competitor to Champion: Eric Ramsdell’s Road to the NTDC and Beyond
When veteran Walmart driver Eric Ramsdell won the Tanker Class title at the Arizona State TDC earlier this year, he did not take another trip to the NTDCs for granted. Instead, as he has done every year since he first qualified for his first Nationals in 2000, he...
Is Your Operation Ready For Opportunities In The Months Ahead?
As Q3 for 2026 begins to get rolling, the Grawe Pod places a spotlight on the opportunities and challenges ahead for trucking and logistics companies in the second half of the year as well as being prepared for 2027. Grawe Group Founder and CEO Doug Grawe is joined by...




















