TP Trucking Celebrates 2024 NTDAW with a Twist
From left to right, Company Driver of the Year, Randy Kernutt, George Wood congratulating Owner Operator of the Year, Luis Valenzuela, and East terminal Driver of the Year, Rowen Tunhira.
From September 15th to the 21st, TP Trucking and Logistics celebrated the 2024 National Truck Driver Appreciation Week in both East (Thomson, GA) and West (Central Point, OR) terminals.
On September 20, drivers had the chance to stop by the West terminal (Central Point) where the team had prepared a nice barbeque to congratulate them for their hard work. One of the chefs cooking on the grill had to be none other than West Driver Manager, George Wood: “It’s a day that we want to thank all of our drivers…all drivers all across the country for delivering the goods that we need and use every single day.”
West drivers from Central Point were also recognized for their achievements. Wood gave a shout-out to this year’s Company Driver of the Year, Randy Kernutt, as well as to the Owner Operator of the Year, Luis Valenzuela. East terminal Driver of the Year, Rowen Tunhira, was also congratulated for all of his contributions; The East terminal hosted a small event where they served cake in the shape of our iconic green TP Truck! These three drivers were awarded a trophy for their achievements.
However, the celebration of this year’s event greeted our drivers with a big surprise. Aside from all of the great food and bags of merch giveaway, the administration had prepared a Pre-trip Inspection Challenge for drivers who want to know what it’s like to compete in the annual Truck Driver Championship Challenge event. A vehicle was prepared with defects that went from overly worn straps to unplugged cables or improperly secured devices attached to the load. All of these were to be identified by the participant, which would then be graded accordingly adding to a final score.
“We have a truck set-up, we have certain defects, and the challenge is that the driver do their pre-trip inspection and see if they can locate any defects,” George elaborated “The person with the highest score is going to win a nice little prize.”
Many drivers happily volunteered to participate in the challenge, and ultimately the winner for this year’s Pre-trip Inspection challenge was Blaine Swanson, a former participant of the TDCC 2024 event.
TP Trucking and Logistics will continue to celebrate National Truck Driver Appreciation Week in the following years with more surprises ahead to celebrate the hard work and dedication of all drivers nationwide.
