Episodes

David Comings of FedEx Freight has been looking forward to making a family trip to neighboring Minnesota ever since he qualified for NTDC 2025 in Minneapolis by winning the 5-Axle vehicle class at the North Dakota Truck Driving Championships on June 21. The fourth career vehicle class state title for David opened the door to position him to earn his first State TDC Grand Championship. A father with a family of six children, David had quite the cheering section back in June, and, as he shares wi...

A veteran of North Carolina Truck Driving Championships since 2011, Michael Bills of FedEx has become a regular qualifier for a trip to the Nationals. In 2025, Michael navigated his way to his ninth state vehicle class title while also claiming his third Grand Championship crown competing in the Tar Heel State. In this edition of the podcast, Michael talks about his TDC and NTDC experiences with Transport Topics Senior Reporter Eugene Mulero. In the closing section of this episode, PodWheels Ex...

While Bret Woodring from Groendyke Transport was pleasantly surprised to hear his name called as the Tanker Division State Champion at the Oklahoma Truck Driving Championships in June, he was so stunned by the next announcement that a friend had to tell Bret, “It’s you, dude!” In this episode of the podcast, Bret shares the moment he realized that he had earned the Grand Championship for the state of Oklahoma, an honor Bret accomplished in only his second year of competing at the state TDC. Tra...

You can understand why Scott Lorio of FedEx Freight put a special circle around the dates for NTDC 2025 in Minneapolis. Of course, Scott who has become a regular within the NTDC by winning four state titles and two State Grand Championships while competing in Montana wanted to go back to NTDC this year. But, as Scott shares with us, his victory in the Twins Class en route to securing his third Montana State Grand Championship meant he had punched his ticket to Minneapolis, which also happens to ...

There is a part of Pete Dreisbach who must still see his journey to his fourth consecutive NTDC as quite the incredible trip. In this edition of the podcast, Pete tells us how he made the most out of his full-ride NCAA Division I scholarship at VMI earning two graduate degrees. One of the degrees was in German Literature, and Pete took advantage of an opportunity to study in Germany, where he met his wife. Now, while he was in Germany, Pete also found his first job in transportation as a package...

While he was optimistic about his chances for success at the Colorado TDC in early June, Nick Gaudette from FedEx knew from experience that he would have his hands full during all phases of the competition. Ironically, as he shares with us in this edition of the podcast, Nick’s hands were so full from the awards he claimed on his best day ever at a TDC that he almost needed a barrow trailer at the event to bring everything home. In winning the Flatbed Division and qualifying for his third caree...

Randy DeVault has never lost the perspective of what it means to go to the nationals as part of his work on the NTDC Organizing Committee and coordinating the Pre-Trip portion of the competition. A previous champion in his NTDC vehicle class, Randy valued every trip he made to the nationals from his home state of Maine. As you will hear in this edition of the podcast, Randy knows what it takes and what it means to compete at an NTDC. As he transitioned several years ago to his current position ...

Robbie Roth’s trip to the NTDC the last time the Championships were held in Minneapolis sparked a number of lasting memories. First of all, the 2007 NTDC marked the first time that Robbie had qualified for the Nationals at a State Champion, representing Missouri as part of the FedEx Freight Team. As you’ll hear in this edition of the podcast, it was also during his trip to Minneapolis in 2007 that Robbie first experienced the warmth and caring spirit that are a part of the NTDC Community. Durin...

As our series is just two episodes away from our 50th release of 2025, we wanted to take a moment to step back from our spotlight interviews to share some fun facts and insights from your NTDC 2025 Podcast co-hosts, Eugene Mulero and Greg Thompson. As you’ll hear, this episode was inspired by Eugene, who wanted to provide our audience with the opportunity to get to know the people behind the microphone asking the majority of the questions you hear in this series. While Eugene and Greg do touch ...

If you have ever had the opportunity to spend five minutes with Roland Bolduc, you would see that it’s very clear safety has remained as a constant and a motivator throughout what has been an amazing career that now spans 41 years. As you will hear in this episode of the podcast, safety and a desire to challenge himself and those around him to be the best have fueled Roland’s drive to win 20 state championships, earning two decades worth of trips to the NTDCs. In 2017 and in 2022, Roland brought...

Seven months and 45 episodes ago, Jacob Pierce from the American Trucking Associations was the first featured guest on this podcast just three days into the start of the New Year. Now, as we stand less than three weeks away from the start of NTDC 2025, Jacob returns to the show to talk to us about the months-long preparations and what we can expect in Minneapolis when the competition begins on August 20th. For those new to the podcast, Jacob is an Executive Director for ATA overseeing the Safety...

When FedEx’s Chris Buswell heard his name called for the first time as the Grand Champion of Massachusetts, it just happened to be the voice of the same person who shared some important advice with Chris several years ago. Brian Singelais, the 2015 National Champ in 5-Axle who had taken the time to become a mentor to Chris prior to the 2018 State TDC, had the honor of calling Chris to the stage to receive a trophy that undoubtedly represented years of hard work. As you will hear in this episode...

How do you become a living legend within the NTDC Community? That’s the one question we did not ask Dan Shamrell, who is our featured guest on this episode of the podcast. First of all, Dan is far too humble to try to attempt to answer that question. As you will hear in this episode, Dan would much rather talk about his family, the friends he’s made through his experience in state and national competitions and, most importantly, his focus on staying safe on the road. Dan’s record is the stuff o...

When the competitors in the Tanker Class gather at NTDC 2025 in Minneapolis, this division will feature three National Grand Champions. Tanker includes the past two NTDC Grand Champions with Jackie Reed in 2024 and Gragg Wilson in 2023. The third member of the Grand Champion trio in the Tanker Class is XPO’s Jeff Langenhahn, who brought home the coveted title in 2014. And, as we’ll hear in this edition of the podcast, Jeff talks to us about his 12th career trip to the Nationals. As a veteran of ...

Much in the same way that professional drivers from across the country prepare for their State TDC that will give them a shot at qualifying for the National Championships, Heath Arnold is drawn to serve as a volunteer at the state and national levels of the competition. Heath, who is Director of Safety and Compliance at ABF Freight, has the deepest respect for the men and women behind the wheel who move the nation’s economy mile after mile. As you will hear in this episode of the podcast, Heath...

How do you top winning the State Grand Championship in New York in 2024? Mark McLean of FedEx Freight provided that answer in 2025 when he became the back-to-back Grand Champion from the Empire State. For Mark, who is a veteran of TDC competitions dating back some 20 years, the opportunity to bring home the day’s top trophy from the New York State Truck Driving Championships moved his career total of Grand Champion titles to three. As you will hear during his visit with us on the podcast, Mark ...

Miguel Sanchez of UPS believes in preparation. Like countless professional drivers on the road today, Miguel stays prepared for the unexpected. In the hours before the Florida Trucking Association held its awards dinner for this year’s Sunshine State Truck Driving Championships, Miguel considered the possibility of winning the Grand Championship. He took a few minutes to be prepared for the unexpected by making some notes for a just-in-case speech. As you will hear in this edition of the podcas...

In early June, Ritch Fundell brought home his fifth Grand Championship for the state of Illinois. One of the many people in the crowd cheering Ritch as he won the Tanker Class Championship en route to the day’s top trophy was his son, who had driven five hours from Iowa State to support his Dad at the competition. In this episode of the podcast, we spend some time talking to Ritch about the support he has received over the years from his family and we also talk about his dedication to safety, wh...

What goes into developing the driving courses for the National Truck Driving and National Step Van Driving Championships? During this episode of the podcast, we asked that question and touched on a number of related topics with Frank Ems, the member of the NTDC 2025 Organizing Committee who has headed up the course design at the national championships for the past few years. In this extensive interview, you will hear how Frank got involved with the TDCs as a competitor and, most importantly, how...

In the days prior to winning what would be his 7th career Rhode Island State TDC Grand Championship, Joe Hicks of XPO was being honored on the floor of the Rhode Island State House. Joe heard a proclamation from the Rhode Island Speaker of the House being read to commemorate his National Championship victory in 4-Axle at NTDC 2024. Alongside Joe at the State Capitol that day was his XPO Service Center Manager Al D’Angelo, who also serves as the Chairman of the Rhode Island Trucking Association....

Recorded on June 20 when the start of NTDC 2025 was just 60 days away, this episode of the podcast gave us the opportunity to catch up with Bob Foskey, who is serving as the Chairman of the Organizing Committee for NTDC 2025. We talked with Bob on a range of topics, including the planning and preparation for welcoming the competitors, their families, friends and fans of the event to what has become a true celebration of safety by the trucking industry. You will also hear Bob discuss how he is ab...

Ramon Guzman of FedEx Freight has become a fixture at the California Truck Driving Championships and he is a true testament to perseverance. Until breaking through in 2025 winning the title in the Flatbed Division, Ramon had claimed his first and only state championship 17 years ago. Yet, in always returning to the TDCs in California, which has regional competition to qualify for state finals, Ramon maintained an excellent safe driving record and a positive attitude, thinking each year could be ...

What does it take to host a pair of State TDCs at the same location for the first time? We asked this question and many more during our recent conversation with Louis Campion, the President & CEO of the Maryland Motor Truck Association. As you’ll hear, Louis and his MMTA Team always have the State TDCs circled on their calendars. In 2025, that day was Saturday, June 7. And this year, Maryland answered the call and filled a need when the MMTA agreed to host competitors from Delaware, overseeing t...

How do you win three State TDC Grand Championships in a row? That’s the question we asked Kentucky’s John Willinger a few weeks after he took home the top trophy in the Bluegrass State for a third straight year. A proud member of Team FedEx, John will be making his 15th trip to the Nationals when he arrives in Minneapolis this August. We talked with John about his success in the state championships, what it means to be a part of the TDC program and what he’s looking forward to experiencing at NT...