Cowpens Resident is State Truck Driving Champion
June 11, 2009
Nine Drivers Continue on to National Competition
COLUMBIA, SC – June 11, 2009 – Steven Newsome, of Cowpens, was named the best professional truck driver in South Carolina after winning the tank truck competition and receiving the highest overall score in the nine competing categories at the 2009 South Carolina Truck Driving Championships. The annual event is sponsored by the South Carolina Trucking Association, Inc.
Newsome, who drives for UPS Freight, now qualifies to compete in the American Trucking Associations’ National Truck Driving Championships August 18-22, 2009 in Pittsburgh, Penn. — also known as the Super Bowl of Safety. The winners from each of the eight other categories are also eligible to compete in the national championship.
Nearly 400 drivers from all 50 states will compete in Pittsburgh for four days, challenging their driving skills, and knowledge of safety, equipment and the industry. From 18-wheeler five axle sleepers to tank trucks to twin trailers — they will drive a course that recreates situations truck drivers face daily. These maneuvers may include: an alley dock, a rear line stop, a side park, a scale stop, a right turn, a front line stop, and straight line driving through a diminishing clearance.
On Saturday night, August 22, one contestant will drive away as the 2009 National Grand Champion Truck Driver.
The Truck Driving Championships represent the culmination of the industry’s dedication to safety, said South Carolina Trucking Association President Rick Todd. I congratulate all the contestants and I hope South Carolina roots for our drivers as they move on to Nationals in Pittsburgh.
South Carolina participants at National for each category include:
James Belcher, UPS Freight, Spartanburg, S.C. (Straight Truck)
John Cook, UPS Freight, Gaffney, S.C. (Three-Axle)
Jimmy Randy Merritt, C&S Wholesale, Piedmont, S.C. (Four-Axle)
Marty Knopf, Wal-Mart Transportation, Sumter, S.C. (Five-Axle)
John Hummel, UPS Freight, Gaffney, S.C. (Five-Axle Sleeper)
Steven Newsome, UPS Freight, Cowpens, S.C. (Tankers)
James Roberts, Eutawville, S.C. (Flatbed)
Jimmy McAlister, Con-way Freight, Inman, S.C. (Twins)
Jonathan Morgan, Con-way Freight, Chapin, S.C. (Step Van)
ATA’s Truck Driving Championships include top professional truck drivers from around the nation competing at state and regional levels to make it to the national competition Aug. 18-22 in Pittsburgh, Penn. The NTDC annually attracts over 2,000 cheering friends, family, colleagues and spectators. For more information, visit the 2009 National Truck Driving Championships website: www.truckline.com/Federation/Councils/slpmc/NTDC/Pages/Default.aspx
The American Trucking Associations is the largest national trade association for the trucking industry. Through a federation of other trucking groups, industry-related conferences, and its 50 affiliated state trucking associations, ATA represents more than 37,000 members covering every type of motor carrier in the United States.
The American Trucking Associations
The American Trucking Associations leads the effort for safer highways, focusing on greater education, enforcement and enhancement of traffic safety laws for all drivers. ATA also supports slowing down traffic through a reinstatement of a national maximum speed limit of 65 mph for all vehicles and limiting truck speeds at the time of manufacture. www.truckline.com
