A record 74 drivers representing operating companies belonging to the FedEx Corp. will be competing in the National Truck Driving Championships in New Orleans on Aug. 15-19.
The drivers earned the right to compete at the national championship by capturing first-place honors on the state level. The FedEx drivers, who represent 38 states, have nearly 1,300 years of professional driving experience among them and have safely driven more than 68 million miles collectively during their careers. Thirty of the FedEx competitors have driven for 20 years or more, and 31 of them have each accumulated at least one million miles of safe driving.
At the NTDC, the FedEx drivers will compete against nearly 400 others for national titles in eight different classes of vehicles and for the National Grand Champion title. The drivers accumulate points by demonstrating their driving skills and knowledge of the industry through a written exam, personal interview, pre-trip inspection and field test. In 2005, the company sent 68 drivers to the competition. A FedEx Freight driver captured the National Champion title in the Twins class, and four other FedEx drivers earned top-three finishes in their respective vehicle classes.
The 2006 team includes:
3-Axle Class:
Tony Allen
Dewell Barnard
David Behrer
Reese Butler
Brian Clark
Tim Cohen
Bobby Cross
Tom Dake
Pat Delp
Jim Emerine
Mike Gwin
David Fountain
Milton Hebert
Ryan Kelley
Everett Macmaster
Joe Mangiaracino
Mark McLean
Ron Pease
Randy Reed
Dan Shamrell
Jeff Thompson
4-Axle Class:
Richard Bailey
Dan Bruch
Robert Hargrove
Les Paine
Ray Ramsey
Brian Walton
John Willinger
5-Axle Class:
Ron Ackerland
Roland Bolduc
Mike Clark
Cody Dangel
Paul Frisby
Toby Kort
Dan Ledbetter
Mark Leino
5-Axle Sleeper Class:
Jim Hall
Tim James
Flatbed Class:
Fred Jones
John Smith
Troy Swenson
Straight Truck Class:
Matt Alberts
Carroll Bean
Angelo Bernal
Travis Boardman
Andy Bryant
Mark Dietsche
James Fisher
Brent Glasenapp
Chuck Jensen
Bernard Llave
Chris Morgan
Nick Nunley
Bill Pudney
Porter Robinson
Sergio Romero
Niel Smith
Jeff Steele
Scott Watts
Tank Truck Class:
Tim Banasiak
Tim Danehy
Jere Rions
Twins Class:
Jim Butler
Randy Byrd
Brian Gardner
Joe Jackson
John Janousek
Darrell Kimbrell
Jerry Lambert
Don Logan
Charlie Lovato
Pat McGovern
Omar Talavera
Manuel Trevino
