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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...
XPO’s Ernie Budlowski Looks Back At His Fourth State Grand Championship
Even though Ernie Budlowski ventured into some new territory within a familiar place during the 2026 Connecticut State TDCs, the veteran XPO driver still found the route to a championship result. As you’ll hear in this edition of the podcast, Ernie has been a part of...
FedEx Freight’s Kevin Lemar Achieves Rare Three-Peat In Delaware
There’s no question that Kevin Lemar of FedEx Freight has established an impressive track record for winning at the Delaware State TDC. As you’ll hear in this episode of the podcast, Kevin has won a Vehicle Division title and qualified for Nationals in each of the...
Perseverance Pays Off At Oklahoma’s TDC For ABF’s Darrin Kirby
A few years ago, ABF Freight veteran Darrin Kirby encountered some moments of doubt as he found himself falling back with his finishes in the Oklahoma TDC. At one point as Darrin shares with us in this episode of the podcast, he thought about stepping aside from the...
FedEx Freight’s Terry Covey Shines Again As Kansas Grand Champion
Terry Covey from FedEx Freight seems to shift into a special competitive gear when the Kansas TDC is held in even-numbered years. The State Grand Championship trophy Terry earned during the 2026 TDC can now find a place in his house next to the Kansas Grand...
Ohio’s Tom Congrove Of UPS Pleasantly Surprised By Return Trip To Nationals
To say that Tom Congrove’s first Ohio TDC State Grand Championship was a surprise would be one of the biggest understatements of the 2026 State TDC Season. A 42-year veteran professional driver who has called UPS his home for the past seven years, Tom didn’t even...
Grand Champion Mike Chatterton Tops Purple Wave At Missouri’s TDC
As one of six competitors from FedEx Freight to qualify for NTDC 2026 during the Missouri TDC, Mike Chatterton was not expecting to hear his name called as the Show-Me State’s Grand Champion. As he details to us in this episode of the podcast, Mike was still...
Road To NTDC 2026: All Your State-By-State TDC Results
Since the first State TDC was completed in Arizona in late March, our PodWheels Team has been working to collect the results from the State Associations across the country. As we did in 2025, we are listing the first-, second- and third-place finishers in all the...
ABF’s Nick Saverino Enjoys ‘Straight’ Sweep With First Grand Championship
First entering the Virginia TDC in 2017, Nick Saverino from ABF Freight thought it might be fun to compete while sharpening his skills to become a better driver. As he shares with us in this episode of the podcast, Nick viewed the accomplishment of staying safe all...
He Now Goes To 11: Latest State Title For XPO’s Curt McMellon Is Grand
Like so many TDC veterans with vehicle division titles to their credit, Curt McMellon from XPO had found the Grand Championship of his home state of Louisiana quite elusive over the years. Prior to 2026, Curt had won 10 Vehicle Class crowns and, as he shares with us...