Good News for Me

[RogueWign]

For those that don't know me well, I am 32. I have been driving tractor trailers since I was 18.

About a month ago, my company held a truck driving competition. Out of the 300+ drivers in my state, only a few us qualified to compete.

I placed 1st in the state.

I just got a phone call from my company that my score was high enough that I have been invited to participate in the National Food Service Truck Rodeo that is held each year.

My company is flying my wife and myself out to San Antonio, Texas in 2 weeks so that I can compete with the best truck drivers in America on a national level.

I'm slightly stoked about this!!!

[CamMan]

congrats, but they seriously have a "National Food Service Truck Rodeo" in the US?

anyways good luck mate,

Cheers,
Cam

[wizzard66]

wooot!!!!!
Let your wife make pictures please!!!

[Theo]

Well done RogueWign

[RogueWign]

congrats,e US?

To put it into perspective:

There are approx. 13,000 professional tractor trailers in the U.S. involved in the Food Service Industry (delivering food/food products to stores, bars, schools, ect.)

In the class that I am in (the 28ft trailer class), there are approx. 7,000 trucks currently on the road in the food service industry.

50 of us qualified for the nationals.

50 out of 7,000.

So I get to compete against the best truck drivers in the U.S......

...

...

God, I'm screwed.

[Ashrah Kitano]

Congrats man, awesome to seeing someone get chances like this let us know how you finish in this competition

[Treelox]

Thats pretty cool.

..but could ya clue a noob in. What exactly does a Truck Rodeo entail?


some how I dont see you riding a bucking rig, or lassoing a loose trailer.

[Drahl]

sweet, nice work!
pics!

[RogueWign]

..but could ya clue a noob in. What exactly does a Truck Rodeo entail?

3 different parts:

Part 1: Written test of 100 questions dealing with anything/everything a truck driver needs to know. The questions can range from dealing with hazmat loads (hazardous materials), laws dealing with accidents, emergency braking procedures, ect.

Part 2: A truck and trailer are set up with 6 things wrong with them. It could be loose lug nuts, no oil in the engine, fire extinguisher being empty, air hoses hooked up backward, improper paperwork in the cab, ect. You have 2 minutes to find all 6 things that are wrong and point them out to a Judge.

Part 3: An obstacle course is setup with various obstacles. Drivers are judged on how well they navigate the course. One example of an obstacle is 5 sets of 2 tennis balls set up in a line. The balls are close enough that they form a trail that you drive one set of tires through.....BUT....they are close enough that when your tires are inbetween them, you have 1.5 inches on each side of your tire. Knock any balls over and you don't get any points. You're also tasked with parallel parking your truck/trailer in between a set of cones without hitting them. Once you are completely in the cones, you have 2 feet on the front and back of your truck and 6 inches on the sides.

That's a basic overview.

[CamMan]

Ah thats pretty cool then, I was thinking 50 guys racing around a speedway track in food delivery trucks

[RogueWign]

Update:

We were told at the awards ceremony that 12,000 people took place in the original competition. 53 of us made it to the Nationals.

They announced the top 5 and I was not in them, so I'm not sure where I was ranked because they would not release the other scores. Their view is that the top 5 matters, and everyone else got 6th place.

The total points possible was 700 points, and the difference in score between the #1 driver and the #53 driver was 43 points. It was the closest competition they have ever had.

On the plus side, my wife and I got a free vacation in a VERY swanky hotel, we got to see a lot of new sites (we toured the Alamo), and got to meet a lot of interesting people.

Next year I WILL go back....and I WILL kick their arses.