The Lifestyle Lane
Podcasts
Trucking is more than just one loading dock to another. Conferences, championships, rodeos, legendary musicians, trucking legends, and spooky stories can all be found here. These podcasts represent a wide variety of both ongoing and limited series from Podwheels.
The Exit Ramp
The Exit Ramp takes us to exciting destinations and allows our team the opportunity to share short stories from inside and around the trucking industry.
Liner Notes
Liner Notes is the audio version of the notes that musicians leave on the record album’s back cover or CD booklet. Liner Notes takes the time to go in-depth with musical artists to learn more about them, their music, and what they find noteworthy.
Snake Pontchartrain
Snake Pontchartrain’s Places You Wouldn’t Want to Go Unless You’re With Snake Pontchartrain follows a super trucker and ghost hunter investigating the haunted legends of the road at the request of fellow drivers.
The National Truck Driving and National Step Van Championships
NTDC prides itself in being the Super Bowl of Safety. Joined by PodWheels, RadioNemo was on the scene with live coverage and interviews.
Latest Episodes
Episode 13: Hurry Up and Waite
At the end of an eventful vacation, ghost hunting over-the-road trucker Snake Pontchartrain receives an email from an old friend that tells of a terrifying night at a mysterious truck stop. Certain details bare an uncanny resemblance to a fateful encounter Snake had...
Final NTDC 2023 Rewind: Observations From Eugene Mulero of Transport Topics
As we bring our coverage of NTDC 2023 to a conclusion, we asked Eugene Mulero to give us his final thoughts on this year's national championships. A Senior Reporter with Transport Topics, Eugene is also the co-author of a book covering the 86-year history of the NTDC....
NTDC 2023 Rewind Part 2: Celebrating Professional Excellence
In the second segment of our three-part series with Transport Topics Senior Reporter Eugene Mulero, we discuss the incredible accomplishments and dedication to professional excellence by the competitors who were a part of the National Truck Driving and National Step...
NTDC 2023 Rewind Part 1: Looking Back With Eugene Mulero
Eugene Mulero, Senior Reporter for Transport Topics, joins us for Part 1 of our NTDC Rewind as we look back on the memorable moments and performances during the 2023 National Truck Driving & National Step Van Driving Championships. In this episode, we spend some...
Instant Flashback: Championship Saturday Remains Memorable
As we round the corner toward the final episodes of our NTDC 2023 Series, we wanted to provide our listeners with an episode that takes you inside Championship Saturday, which includes the traditional Walk Of Champions. In this segment, you'll hear from some of the...
Pride of Connecticut: Bolduc & Spero Reflect On NTDC Run
Roland Bolduc and Tony Spero have become living legends with their repeated appearances in the National Truck Driving and National Step Van Driving Championships. Both these veteran professional drivers have collected a truckload of state championships en route to...
NTDC Grand Champion Gragg Wilson Model of Perseverance
Prior to NTDC 2023, Gragg Wilson, a veteran driver from UPS, had made 13 trips to the National Championships as a state champion from Nevada. But, in all those runs to the NTDC, Gragg had never made it beyond the preliminary round of the national competition. NTDC...
Family Remains Key To Barry Kraemer’s Trucking Success
Barry Kraemer knows that all the miles he covers each week as a a professional driver would be much tougher to navigate without the support of his family. Winning his first National Championship this year at NTDC 2023, Barry was thrilled to be able to celebrate his...
Lisa Steed Appreciates Opportunities Delivered By Trucking
Lisa Steed has a unique perspective when it comes to the road and the opportunities that you can find behind the wheel. After spending a decade as a State Trooper in Utah, Lisa took her career in a new direction when she discovered an opportunity to start a Step Van...
Ina Daly Defines Professional Excellence With Her Career In Trucking
Ina Daly is a true pioneer in the trucking industry, hitting the road over 40 years ago at a time when few women were behind the wheel. Ina excelled in her job, striving for the highest levels of professional excellence as she compiled decade-upon-decade of safe...
Mike Barnes Admires Champs, Now Focused On NTDC 2024
Mike Barnes is a 34-year veteran professional driver who has been competing through the state of Arkansas to reach the NTDCs for the past few years. Following a third-place finish in his classification this year at the Arkansas Truck Driving Championships, Mike...
Maine Connection: Ron Round & Ken Duncan Love Competition and the Ability To Serve The Industry
Ron Round and Ken Duncan have made multiple trips to the National Truck Driving and National Step Van Driving Championships, earning State Championships in their respective classifications in the state of Maine. For NTDC 2023, Ron and Ken returned to the national...
Handshakes With State Champs Priceless Moment For Kevin Burch
2023 marks 50 years in the trucking industry for Kevin Burch, and one the highlights of this golden anniversary year for Kevin happened at NTDC 2023. On the final day of the competition, Kevin part of the ATA's dignitary group that shook the hands of the 419 state...
Walmart’s Antoine Sadler & Rickey Oliver Working To Make a Difference
Last year, Antoine Sadler posted the high score on the NTDC 2022 driving course with a 220. At NTDC 2023, Antoine focused his dedication to excellence to champion the important work of Truckers Against Trafficking (TAT). Antoine, who is a member of the Board of...
Iowa Grand Champ Mindy Rathjens Savored Her First Trip To The NTDC
Mindy Rathjens had worked hard through the years to break through the highly competitive field in her home state of Iowa, always seeking to reach the National Championships. In 2023, Mindy not only won the state championship in her classification, but she also claimed...
Dan Van Alstine Looks Back On His Term As ATA Chairman
As the second day of the driving competition began rolling, ATA Chairman Dan Van Alstine sat down with Jimmy Mac. Dan, who is the President and Chief Operating Officer at Ruan Transportation Management Systems, will be concluding his one-year term as ATA Chairman in...
Rick Cates Looks Back at His 51 Years Of NTDC Work
For more than 50 years now, Rick Cates has been involved in working on the National Truck Driving & National Step Van Driving Championships. Known as the "Senator," because of this long tenure with the NTDCs, Rick takes some time with Jimmy Mac to look back at his...
Bob and Byron Bramwell Continue Family Tradition at NTDCs
Byron and Bob Bramwell are one of the greatest father-and-son acts in the trucking industry. Not only did Bob follow in his father's footsteps as a multiple state champion to join Byron as a competitor at the NTDCs over the years, but Bob also joined his dad as an...
Connecticut Grand Champion Tony Spero Looks Back At His Long Run At The NTDCs
Considered by his fellow competitors as one of the greats in the history of NTDCs, Tony Spero talks with Jimmy Mac about his upcoming retirement from truck driving and the emotional ride he has experienced on his road back to the NTDCs. While looking back at his time...
Transport Topics Reporter Eugene Mulero Takes Us Inside The Preliminary Rounds of NTDC 2023
Eugene Mulero, who co-authored a book on the history of the National Truck Driving & National Step Van Driving Championships, took a few minutes to step away from his reporter’s position in a safe area within the driving course to give Jimmy Mac and our listeners...
NTDC Rookie Tim Blair Taking The Time To Savor His First Trip To The Nationals
As he looked out over the road course one day before he would be driving on it, Tim Blair, a State Champion from Tennessee, was all smiles. Tim, who first competed at the state level in 2019, tells Greg Thompson from PodWheels about his journey to reach the NTDCs....
Ina Daly Looks Back At Her 40-Plus Years In Trucking With Jimmy Mac
A trailblazer who became the first woman to claim a National Title at the NTDCs with her trophy run in 2013, Ina Daly talks with Jimmy Mac about her trucking career that now spans more than 40 years. As you’ll hear, Ina shares the important role her father played to...
Defending NTDC Grand Champ Roland Bolduc Talks About This Year’s Road Course
On the day before he would get behind wheel at NTDC 2023, defending Grand Champion Roland Bolduc talks with Jimmy Mac on what he observed during the competition’s walkthrough of this year’s road course. Roland and Jimmy also touch on other topics related to the week...
Meet Richard Gillespie & How He Earned The Title of G-O-A-T at the NTDCs
Richard Gillespie is considered by most who know the history of the NTDCs as the G-O-A-T, the Greatest of All Time. From his first NTDC trip in 1965 through 1991, Richard claimed two Grand Championships and he won National Championships in seven different divisions...
The NTDCs Have Become A Family Tradition For ATA President & CEO Chris Spear
While ATA President & CEO Chris Spear joins Jimmy Mac in the celebration of safety and driving excellence that are seen through the annual NTDC event, Chris also shares how the national championships have become a yearly trip that he has taken with his son,...
Eddie Pennington Capping 47-Year Trucking Career With 12th Trip To NTDCs
Some 22 years after Eddie Pennington began his trucking career in 1976, he won his first of 12 State Championships in Florida. The 2023 edition of the NTDCs will be his last run at the nationals as Eddie plans to retire at some point in the next year. Tim Taylor, a...
ATA Vice President of Safety Policy Dan Horvath Continues To Draw Inspiration From The NTDCs
Dan Horvath, Vice President of Safety Policy at ATA, discusses the deep roots that he has established through the years serving as a volunteer at the NTDCs. Dan tells Jimmy Mac how he got involved with the NTDC event, and he also shares how the excellence displayed by...
2004 Grand Champion Wayne Crowder Shares His Perspective On The NTDCs
Wayne Crowder, who won the 2004 NTDC Grand Championship in his first-ever trip to the nationals, looks back with Jimmy Mac on how he was encouraged to enter the Kentucky State Championships in 19 years ago, which was also his first entry at the state level. Wayne and...
Highlighting The Jobs That ‘Den Mothers ‘ Do At The National Championships
On the first day of NTDC 2023, we spent some time with Charity Marsh, who serves as the Den Mother for the Step Van Division at the National Championships. A trucking industry veteran who has worked at previous NTDC events, Charity provides insights on not only what a...
Meet Alex Ayala: A Safety Professional Who Carries The Banner In Support of His Drivers
Alex Ayala started making the trip the National Championships in 1965. On the first day of NTDC 2023, Alex was the first in the line of folks who had lined up to hang banners inside the arena in support of their drivers. While Alex has been retired from as a safety...