National Truck Driving Championships

With the State TDC Season officially underway, our podcast wanted to share a recent conversation we had with the previous NTDC Grand Champions from the past two years. PodWheels Executive Producer Greg Thompson had the unique opportunity to visit in person with 2024 Grand Champion Jackie Reed and 2025 Grand Champion David Comings in person while they were both at this year’s Safety Drive For A Cure.

As you will hear, both Jackie and David share a mutual respect for doing the work and following the process to be prepared for competition while staying safe with ev...

As we continue to share our collection of interviews from Safety Drive For A Cure, we wanted to highlight one noticeable arrival that was new to Safety Drive this year. That was none other than the red, white and blue covering the ATA’s Image Trailer, complete with its Big Rig Driving simulator inside. The Image Trailer, which has been a presence at NTDC for many years now, was onsite for the first time at Safety Drive, and it proved to be a perfect fit for the day.

Regular listeners to the NTDC Podcast know th...

How did UPS send 40 State Champions to Minneapolis to compete at NTDC 2025? One of the building blocks in last year’s run can be traced back to the annual Safety Drive For A Cure charity event. And while the 2026 State TDC season is just beginning, Team UPS capped off the NTDC “pre-season” by assembling another large group to participate in this year’s Safety Drive, which was once again held at the UPS Smart Hub in Atlanta.

In this edition of the podcast, PodWheels Executive Producer Greg Thompson wrapped up his day onsite by chatting with Eri...

Seeing both Tim Blair from Tennessee and Mark McLean from New York at Safety Drive 2026 is perfect confirmation that TDC Champions and National Title holders make the trip to Atlanta from near and far to sharpen their competitive driving skills at Safety Drive. In this episode of the podcast (at the 19:20 mark), we’ll hear from Tim and Mark, who are part of a FedEx Freight Team that brought another large contingent from across the country to the NTDCs last year.

For Mark, his trip from the Empire State represented his first visit to Safety Dr...

While Safety Drive 2026 featured a collection of past National Champions, State TDC Champions and no less than four past NTDC Grand Champions testing their knowledge and skills, the competition that took place at the UPS Smart Hub in Atlanta was a distant second to the primary mission of Safety Drive. The record field of competitors, with over 250 professional drivers, joined with the volunteers, the sponsors and other friends of Safety Drive to raise $75,548 that goes directly to support the work of the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation. The money raised to date for Safety Drive 2026 represents a single-year...

Safety Drive For A Cure 2026 became a memorable trip to Atlanta for Paul Barnes of UPS. The reigning Illinois State Sleeper Division Champion who finished sixth at NTDC 2025, Paul was part of a record field of over 250 professional drivers who helped Safety Drive exceed the organizers’ fundraising goal by delivering $75,548 to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation. Now, in its 15th year, Safety Drive For A Cure has raised over $491,000 with a charity-benefit driving competition modeled after the NTDC that regularly draws State and National champions from across the country.

With his combined efforts on the co...

In honor of International Women’s Day that was celebrated on March 8th, our podcast shines the spotlight on Ina Daly, the veteran XPO driver and the only woman to win a National Championship in the history of NTDC. With the Arizona State TDC just around the corner on March 28th, the timing is perfect to look back at Ina’s career accomplishments as she has become a regular at NTDC over the past two decades. In 2023, the NTDC Organizing Committee honored Ina with the Neill Darmstadter Professional Excellence Award.

For this episode, we will be f...

When the 15th edition of Safety Drive For A Cure opens its NTDC-style competition this Saturday, Brent and Laura Darnell will have already been onsite at the UPS Smart Hub in Atlanta before the sun rises. For Brent and Laura, along with a legion of volunteers led by chief organizer Herschel Evans, Saturday’s charity benefit for the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation, will represent a coordinated effort that has been almost a year in the planning and execution.

In this edition of the podcast, we talk with Brent and Laura as they entered the final we...

For Atlanta-based XPO veteran driver Tim Vogt, the 15th edition of the Safety Drive For A Cure Benefit scheduled to run this coming Saturday is one of the most important dates on the calendar. In addition to getting a highly competitive test of his TDC skills ahead of Georgia’s Championship this April, Tim is part of the lead group of volunteers who will be working to ensure the Safety Drive record field of 265 professional drivers, their families, friends, supporters and Star Families will have a memorable time at Safety Drive 2026. This NTDC-style competition benefits the Pediatric Br...

How would you respond if you landed one point short of reaching the runoff in your vehicle division at Nationals? Zack Bourque, the two-time reigning Tanker State Champion from New York, was forced to look squarely into that very challenge the moment he got his envelope following the call of the runoff finalists at NTDC 2025. As you’ll hear in this episode of the podcast, Zack refused to get eaten up by disappointment. Instead, he continued to work to make the most of his time onsite with all the driving professionals who were gathered in Minneapolis last su...

With a record that was highlighted by five National Championships, one Grand Championship and the Professional Excellence Award during his NTDC days, Bob Dolan put together a hall-of-fame driving career and remains a legend in his home state of Pennsylvania. In this edition of the podcast, we will be featuring Eugene Mulero’s 2025 interview with Bob that was part of Eugene’s work on the second edition of the NTDC History Book that he co-authored with Jacob Pierce. As you will hear, Bob closed out his NTDC career in 2019 in Pittsburgh by helping Pennsylvania secure the State Team...

During this episode of the podcast, Darius Uible takes us behind the scenes with Team UPS. A finalist to serve as an America’s Road Team Captain for 2026-27 and a veteran driver for UPS, Darius has become a fixture at the NTDC in recent years with his video work. Darius, an accomplished videographer who is a regular competitor at the State TDC in Kentucky, was asked by UPS a few years ago to photograph and video the efforts of the members of Team UPS as they compete at the Nationals.

As you will hear, Da...

This episode of the series is highlighted by our feature interview with Heath Arnold, the Chairman of the Organizing Committee for NTDC 2026. Heath joins the podcast about 26 minutes into the episode, providing us an update on the onsite visit that the NTDC Organizing Committee made earlier this month to Pittsburgh’s David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

Heath talks to us about the meticulous planning and hundreds of details that must be covered in preparation for this August and NTDC 2026. For instance, the committee measures the distance between the bullpens and the driving course as part of...

For this episode of the show, we open the vault once again to feature the interview that Eugene Mulero had with Carl Krites, the Grand Champion of NTDC 2010. Last year, as Eugene was developing the second edition of the From Roadeo To TDC history book with co-author Jacob Pierce, he caught up with Carl to look back on what even Carl admits was an unexpected run to a national championship in his vehicle class and the Grand Championship.

In the closing portion of this episode (at 32:51), PodWheels Executive Producer Greg Thompson also spends some time...

Our NTDC Podcast closes out our series of conversations with the 2025 Vehicle Class National Champions by sharing the inspiring story of Merle Ashbaugh. In winning the Sleeper Class Division at NTDC 2025, Merle not only earned his first National title, but he also wrote his name into the history books at DHL – becoming the carrier’s first-ever National Champion.

As you’ll hear in this episode of the podcast, it was quite poetic that Merle became the first to claim a first-place trophy at NTDC for DHL. Having enjoyed his experience in state TDCs and having qualif...

To highlight the return of the NTDC to Pittsburgh this year, we continue our look back at NTDC 2019, the first time that PodWheels had the opportunity to cover the National Truck Driving and National Step Van Driving Championships. This edition of the podcast revisits the 2019 retrospective that we produced from our time at NTDC 2019. The rewind portion of the show opens with PodWheels Executive Producer Greg Thompson recalling the contributions that John Lex made to the coverage by the podcast in Pittsburgh. This section of the show is highlighted by the interview that Greg did with John...

As we countdown the days to the first State TDC that serve as the first miles on this year’s Road To Pittsburgh, our series would like to take our listeners back to NTDC 2019, the last time the NTDC was held in the Steel City. NTDC 2019 also marked the first time that PodWheels Executive Producer Greg Thompson attended and covered the National Championships.

In this episode of our series, Greg brings us the retrospective the PodWheels Team put together from seven years ago. You’ll also hear the story of how Greg was first introduced to t...

To commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Super Bowl and to get into the championship spirit, our podcast is doing a bit of a rewind with this episode. Greg Thompson and Eugene Mulero will be taking listeners back to the day of the Championship Runoff at NTDC 2025. We will be sharing a collection of the interviews that Eugene did just as the “Top Guns” of 2025 were exiting their trucks on the floor of the Minneapolis Convention Center.

Among the featured drivers in this rewind are Ernie Budlowski, Robert Crowder, Todd Flippin, Glen Kirk, David Hall, Adam...

We are honored to welcome back America’s Road Team Captain and TA Citizen Driver Herschel Evans to the podcast. The driving force behind the annual Safety Drive For A Cure, Herschel takes us inside what it takes to bring together a premiere “preseason” TDC-level event that has now raised over $400,000 to support the work of the Pediatric Brain Cancer Foundation.

As the calendar turned to February, Safety Drive had reached its capacity for entries with 250 registrations and Safety Drive now has a waiting list for competitors. As you’ll hear in this episode of the podc...

In his work on the second edition of the From Roadeo To TDC history book on NTDC last year, Transport Topics Senior Reporter Eugene Mulero had the opportunity to conduct an extended interview with Mike Alpine, the 2004 National Champion in the Auto Hauler Vehicle Class. Now, as you’ll hear beginning at the 19-minute mark of this episode, Mike holds the distinction of being the final Auto Hauler National Champ as that vehicle class was not offered as part of the competition beginning in 2005.

What makes Mike’s accomplishment in 2004 even more impressive and memorable is t...

As part of our 2025 National Champions Series, Ed Hill from FedEx Freight joins the podcast to look back at winning his first career National Championship last August in Minneapolis. The pride of Delaware, Ed first entered his state TDC in 2022 and he came away with the Rookie of the Year, a state title and a trip to the Nationals. As you will hear, Ed returned to be a part of the elite NTDC field in 2023 and 2024 before making his fourth consecutive Nationals last year. It was at NTDC 2025 in the Flatbed Division that Ed heard his name...

Greg Thompson and Eugene Mulero are back on the show together for the first time in a few weeks, and their first topic of 2026 is the upcoming Safety Drive For A Cure. For those who may not know, Safety Drive is the annual charity event led by America’s Road Team Captain Herschel Evans. This event brings together NTDC hopefuls from across the country in an annual campaign that raises money for Pediatric Brain Cancer Research while also providing professional drivers the opportunity to get some high-level “Spring Training” competition prior to the State TDC Season.

In t...

For this National Champions’ edition of the podcast, we look back at NTDC 2025 and Jeff Langenhahn’s run to the title in the Tanker Class. All things considered, it was clear Jeff was poised to have a great week last August. After all, Minneapolis was relatively close to his home in Wisconsin and that meant it was easy for members of Jeff’s family to make the trip.

While Jeff, the 2014 NTDC Grand Champion, had the NTDC Grand Champs from 2023 and 2024 with him in Tanker, he also had his daughter, son-in-law and young grandson in the cr...

To open our fifth season of the NTDC Podcast Series, we have pulled an unreleased interview from our vault that two-time National Grand Champion Roland Bolduc did last year with John Greene. As you will hear, the conversation takes us back to 2023 when Roland and John made the trip to Columbus as fellow members of Team Connecticut. John brought home the National Championship in the 5-Axle Van Division, while Roland earned the top trophy in the 5-Axle Sleeper Class. Those 2023 championship performances, along with contributions from other NTDC stalwarts (including Tony Spero in his final year at...

To say that 2025 was an unforgettable year for FedEx Freight’s David Comings would be one of the grandest understatements of the past 12 months. At NTDC 2025 in Minneapolis, David earned his first vehicle class National Championship before hearing his name called as the 2025 National Grand Champion. To make these first-in-his-life experiences even more memorable, David’s six children – ranging from college to high school ages – were onsite during the competition and they were all gathered at the annual NTDC banquet as he accepted his awards with his wife Judy at his side on the eve of their wedding...

As we prepare for the calendar to turn to a new year on the podcast, we wanted to share this Rollin’ With Roland edition of the series that we recorded a few weeks after the close of NTDC 2025. At that time, we caught up with two-time National Grand Champion Roland Bolduc, who has graciously contributed a collection of competitor-to-competitor interviews to this podcast throughout 2025.

Following a run in Minneapolis that saw Roland return to the Final Five runoff and finish second in 5-Axle Vehicle to David Comings (also the 2025 National Grand Champion), we wanted to ge...

As we approach Christmas Day, our podcast wanted to find a way to celebrate this season of giving and the gifts that are found by serving those in your community. We decided to reach out to Emily Crane, the Vice President of Safety and Engagement for the Georgia Trucking Association, to give her an opportunity to look back at what has been a memorable year. In 2025, Emily was part of the NTDC Organizing Committee for the first time in her 20-year career in trucking. To hear the joy in Emily’s voice as she talks about the St...

Mark Carver from FedEx Freight made the most of his second consecutive year at the Nationals, taking what he learned in Indianapolis in 2024 and turning it into NTDC gold in Minneapolis this past August. Returning as the Straight Truck Champion from Missouri, Mark put it all together to navigate the course, the written test and the pre-trip to ultimately hear his name called on Championship Saturday night as a National Champion at NTDC 2025. Looking back on his journey to his first national title, Mark credits the continued encouragement he received from his training partner at his home...

To say that Miguel Sanchez of UPS savored and valued every moment of the journey that brought him to the reality of winning the Twins Division National title at NTDC 2025 would be one of the understatements of the year. PodWheels caught up with Miguel a few weeks after he had brought the top trophy in Twins for his first National Championship back to his home terminal in the Jacksonville area. As you’ll hear, he was still wrapped in the total joy of his experience in Minneapolis. Miguel wanted the trophy to first come to the terminal to...

For the next installment in our 2025 National Champions’ Series, we place Mississippi’s Stephen Johnson in the spotlight. Recorded in mid-October, Stephen reflects on the experience of winning the NTDC 2025 title in the 4-Axle Class. A veteran driver with FedEx Freight, Stephen called upon his initial experience at the Nationals in 2023 to help prepare him for success in Minneapolis this past summer. Cheered on by his wife and daughter while also enjoying the support of Team FedEx, which included 2024 National Grand Champion Jackie Reed (who is his training partner from Mississippi), Stephen put it all together to real...

Would you like to hear how the fire hydrant became part of the semifinal driving course at NTDC 2025? Would you like to go inside some of the processes involved when it comes to deciding the challenges that are included for the driving courses at the Nationals? Frank Ems, who oversees the work of the NTDC committee responsible for the driving course layout, joins PodWheels Executive Producer Greg Thompson as we look back at NTDC 2025. It’s a fun conversation that highlights the thought and care Frank and the Driving Course Committee take in doing their work over ma...

We are thrilled to launch our NTDC 2025 Champions Series by welcoming Dan Shamrell, who met the challenge of winning a National Championship in his final appearance at an NTDC. Prior to arriving in Minneapolis for NTDC 2025, Dan had shared his plans to retire before the end of 2025 after 38 years on the road with FedEx Freight.

Dan, an 11-time State Grand Champion from Oregon, had reached the Nationals 19 times over his career. He knew the 3-Axle field would once again be a gauntlet just to make it to Championship Saturday and driving in the...

David Crocker, the Tanker State Champion from Maine, had just finished his first-ever run on the driving course when our podcast caught up with him in Minneapolis during the second day of NTDC Week. David’s interview is part of the collection of chats that we recorded onsite at NTDC 2025, and it’s one we decided to save to close out our Rewind Series that is part of our ongoing post-event coverage that will extend through the end of the year.

David, part of a large rookie class at NTDC 2025, was in a vehicle class that...

Almost one month to the day that the NTDC 2025 Organizing Committee began its onsite work to prepare for the Opening Day of this year’s Championships, PodWheels caught up with NTDC 2025 Chairman Robert Foskey. In this episode of the podcast, PodWheels Executive Producer Greg Thompson asks Bob to reflect on what took place in Minneapolis during the third week of August.

As you will hear, Bob shares notes of praise for everyone who came together to make NTDC 2025 a memorable event for all who were part of this year’s National Championships. As a past Stat...

The NTDC 2025 Podcast dedicates this episode to spotlighting the importance of National Truck Driver Appreciation Week by looking back at the achievements at NTDC 2025 and on the highways by the 425 state champions who gathered in Minneapolis for this year’s edition of the National Championships. PodWheels Executive Producer Greg Thompson and Transport Topics Senior Reporter Eugene Mulero also discuss the contributions that members of this year’s NTDC field made within their communities, their states and across the country.

In this edition of the podcast, you will hear the reading of the proclamation presented on the...

As we continue to celebrate National Truck Driver Appreciation Week on the NTDC 2025 Podcast, we are thrilled to bring you a Champions Appreciation edition with a special Rollin’ With Roland episode of the series. About one month prior to the NTDC 2025 competition in Minneapolis, two-time National Grand Champion Roland Bolduc had an opportunity to sit down with Dan Shamrell, a highly accomplished previous national champion who has claimed the State Grand Championship of Oregon 11 times during his storied career.

Before they both competed in their respective vehicle divisions in Minneapolis, Roland wanted a chance to in...

As this year’s celebration of National Truck Driver Appreciation Week begins, the NTDC 2025 Podcast dedicates our 80th episode release of the year to take an initial look back at a number of the top performances across the nine vehicle divisions in the competition that brought together 425 state champions from across the country. Recorded on September 3, PodWheels Executive Producer Greg Thompson and Transport Topics Senior Reporter Eugene Mulero spend some time going inside the final results from NTDC 2025 in Minneapolis.

You’ll hear Eugene and Greg share some tidbits that they learned while talking with some...

As we continue our NTDC 2025 Rewind Series from our time onsite in Minneapolis, PodWheels is rolling it back to Wednesday of NTDC Week when we caught up with a friend we met in Columbus two years ago. In 2023, PodWheels Executive Producer was introduced to Alex Ayala, who serves as a Safety Consultant for H-E-B Grocery. As you will hear in this edition of the podcast, Alex works with the H-E-B drivers who qualify for the NTDCs. And, in 2025, while competing in the state of Texas, Alex and H-E-B experienced the joy of seeing six of their drivers...

Not long after the finalists had been announced and the vehicle parade ended on Championship Saturday in Minneapolis, PodWheels witnessed a moment that we will be featuring with this rewind episode which truly embodies the full spectrum of competition and respect that takes place each year at the NTDCs. Wilbert Vano, a six-time State Grand Champion and true legend from New Jersey with XPO, had struck up a conversation with Matt Lamielle, a General Manager with DHL Supply Chain. Matt is part of the DHL Team looking to grow his company’s participation and success in both th...

Recorded four days after the closing night of NTDC 2025, PodWheels Executive Producer Greg Thompson and Transport Topics Senior Reporter Eugene Mulero sit down for an extended look at what took place in Minneapolis during NTDC Week for 2025. As you will hear, Greg is actually still onsite in the Twin Cities at the time of the recording. This episode touches on many topics and a number of award winners from the competition, including going behind the scenes to hear about Eugene’s conversations with the participants in the championship round after they had finished their drives.

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