A driver from Ohio repeated as the Bendix Grand Champion of the 2019 National Truck Driving Championships last week.
Scott Woodrome, a 56-year-old driver from Middletown, Ohio representing team FedEx Freight, won the title at the American Trucking Associations’ competition held in Pittsburgh. It was Woodrome’s second consecutive year of winning the Bendix Grand Champion trophy. A total of 427 drivers competed in the contest.
Scott Woodrome won the Bendix Grand Champion title at the 2019 National Truck Driving Championships (ATA photo by John Sommers II)“Congratulations to Scott and his great team at FedEx Freight, as well as the entire Ohio trucking industry, for repeating as this year’s Bendix Grand Champion Award winner,” said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear. “This process began with thousands of drivers competing at the state level, but only one driver can emerge as overall grand champion. It’s a true reflection of Scott’s commitment to safety and the trucking industry as a whole that he was able to take home top honors again this year.”
Woodrome, a longtime competitor in truck driving championships with more than 1.8 million lifetime safe driving miles, competed in the Twins division. He has been in the trucking industry for 25 years, spending 13 of those years with his current employer, FedEx Freight. Woodrome also took home the Twins class national title.
This is the second straight Bendix Grand Champion award for Woodrome, who previously took home the 2018 Bendix Grand Champion Award for his performance in the Tanker class, as well as the 2017 National Champion Award in the Tanker class and six Ohio state championships.
ATA also recognized John Sanderson as the 2019 Rookie of the Year. Sanderson claimed the title after an outstanding performance in the 3-axle division. To be a “rookie,” drivers must be first-time competitors at the state level who advanced to nationals. This year, there were 32 rookies competing at the National Truck Driving Championships. Sanderson was the only rookie who advanced to the championship round of the competition.
Drivers from Pennsylvania won the Team ChampionshipIn addition to the individual awards, the team of drivers from Pennsylvania won the Team Championship. Pennsylvania hosted this week’s competition and had three drivers advance to the championship round. The state of North Carolina took home second place honors, with Virginia came in third.
Several individuals excelled outside the driving course throughout this week’s competition, demonstrating their professionalism, knowledge and dedication to the trucking industry. Professional truck driver Robert Dolan of XPO Logistics was recognized with the Professional Excellence award. Jason Imhoff of Walmart Transportation took home the Vehicle Condition Award for his outstanding performance during the pre-trip inspections.
Nine drivers achieved perfect scores on the written exam phase of the championships and are receiving the Highest Written Exam Award for their efforts. The nine drivers were: Paul Brandon, Miguel Corral, Ina Daly, Brent Glasenapp, Julie Hjelle, Barry Kraemer, Jottyn Santos, Jimmie Wisley, and Scott Woodrome.
ACT 1 served as a premier sponsor of the 2019 National Truck Driving Championships and National Step Van Driving Championships. Since 2011, Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems has been the sole sponsor of the National Truck Driving Championships Grand Champion award.
Champions from each of the nine vehicle classes were also announced. Joining Woodrome on the list of national champions are:
3-Axle
1 Brian Walker UPS Freight North Carolina
2 Jeffrey Slaten YRC Freight Florida
3 John Sanderson FedEx Express Oregon
4-Axle
1 Adam Heim FedEx Freight Idaho
2 David Rohman FedEx Express North Carolina
3 James Plaxco Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. Oregon
5-Axle
1 David Hall, ABF Freight, Arkansas
2 Ina Daly, XPO Logistics, Arizona
3 Alphonso Lewis, YRC Freight , Alabama
Flatbed
1 Basher Pierce, FedEx Freight, North Carolina
2 Scott Osborne, FedEx Freight, Mississippi
3 Eric Flick, FedEx Freight, Nevada
Sleeper Berth
1 Mike White, Walmart Transportation, LLC, Indiana
2 Terry Wood, Walmart Transportation, LLC, Pennsylvania
3 Michael Barnes, Walmart Transportation, LLC, Virginia
Straight Truck
1 Jason Imhoff, Walmart Transportation, LLC, Ohio
2 Robert Dolan, XPO Logistics, Pennsylvania
3 Matthew Hart, FedEx Freight, Nevada
Tank Truck
1 Paul Brandon, FedEx Freight, Connecticut
2 George Wells, Shamrock Foods Company, Arizona
3 Cecil Hicks, FedEx Freight, North Carolina
Twins
1 Scott Woodrome, FedEx Freight, Ohio
2 David Mogler, FedEx Freight, Colorado
3 Shannon Lynch, United Parcel Service, Inc., Indiana
Step Van
1 Adam Stroup, FedEx Express, Nebraska
2 Gregory Long, FedEx Express, Virginia
3 Eric Damon, FedEx Express, Colorado
