Driver of The Month

January 2021 Driver of the Month –

Dan Murphy – Hill Bros Expressways Ltd

Dan Murphy was born in Camrose, Alberta and is a fourth generation Albertan in a large family. He graduated in Calgary in 1980 and married Gail in 1994, Dan and Gail have raised two special needs boys into adulthood and knowing Dan as we do, his strength, patience and caring were the reason for his family success.

Dan attended a truck driver training program at Mount Royal College in 1982. He then drove in the agricultural sector for two years giving him some valuable driving experience.  Then he became a leased owner operator from 1985-1997 hauling mostly flat deck loads. In March of 1997, Dan joined Hill Bros. Expressways Ltd. as a company driver. Dan continues to be a very hardworking, diligent, meticulous person after 23 years with our company.

For the ownership of Hill Bros. we feel Dan is a hero in just his record alone. He has zero claims and has driven 3.8 million miles (accident free), which equates to 131 times around the earth. Hill Bros. could not be any prouder of this extremely dependable, reliable team player. Dan is one of a kind and Hill Bros. is truly grateful to him for his continued dedication to our company, and his impeccable service to our industry.

Dan’s motto is to “always respect your fellow travelers on the road”. Great words to live by.

Thank you Dan.

Bob Hill, President, Hill Bros. Expressways

November driver of the month –

Jimmy Wabick – Encore Trucking and Transport Ltd.

Jimmy Wabick started his journey in trucking while growing up on the family farm in Manitoba.  He drove farm trucks and large machinery and grew to understand the equipment inside and out.  When he turned 18, Jimmy left the farm and took a summer job working on a paving crew in Saskatchewan hauling asphalt. He returned again the following summer and then joined the transportation industry and never looked back.

Jimmy moved to High River Alberta and hauled groceries, tools and construction material in both long-haul and local trucking.  Then in 1985, he began in the utility line construction industry, doing milk runs and shuttles and then started hauling power poles and running the grapple on a picker truck. Jimmy is not only a seasoned Class 1 Driver, but also a Journeyman Boom Truck Operator! He has been a part of numerous new and replacement powerline projects in Alberta and we can’t even begin to imagine the number of times he’s turned that ignition key.

Jimmy has seen many things on the highways and with his experience he always cautions, ”keep your eyes open, your head up and anticipate what other drivers on the road will do.”

Encore Trucking & Transport Ltd. was lucky to have him join the team in 2012.  Since that day, he has not had a single incident with product or truck damages. Nothing.  New Encore drivers are sent down to High River to ride along with Jimmy and learn about safe operation of a grapple unit and proper load securement. He’s become the mentor on this type of work.

Mechanics admire him for his knowledge on truck repairs and maintenance, Safety admires him because of his excellent attitude towards safety, Dispatch admires him because of his flexibility and get-it-done attitude, the customers admire him because of his proven reliability and service and managers admire him because he is a go-to guy and if things are chaotic, he brings stability and resolve.

His professional accomplishments include thousands of trailers loaded and delivered safety within his 55 years of commercial driving experience.  He has done so with a grin on his face and a contagious chuckle which stays with you long after.

October driver of the month –

Kevin Jewett – Central Carriers Ltd.

Hi, Im Kevin Jewett

I have been in the Trucking  Industry for 38 years. The first eight years I worked for Consolidated Gypsum Supply. I did deck work hauling construction materials all over Northern Alberta. The last 30 years I’ve been in van LTL.

I’ve been fortunate enough to work for some great companies like Yellow Freight, Canadian Freightways, Westfreight and Central Carriers LTD, where I have been employed for the last four years. My favorite thing about trucking is the amazing people I get to meet along the way.

I’ve been married for 31 years to my wife Lynn and we have a seven year old rescue dog named Hank. Our dream would be to spend our retirement years in a secluded cabin in the woods.

Trucking has afforded me some great opportunities in life, it’s a career I’ve been grateful to have.

September driver of the month –

Danny Dyck – Caveman Transport Ltd.

Danny has worked with Caveman Transport as an owner-operator since 2001 and has been a safe and professional operator that entire time.  Active on the Health and Safety Committee and always ready to offer his help, support and advice to those who need it, Danny has become part of the Caveman fabric.

When asked to elaborate on his driving career, Danny wrote:

“I started in the trucking industry in 1977 working with my dad hauling flat deck work. In 1980 I went to van work hauling sugar. In 1984 I hauled tankers for Trimac Transport, then in 1999 went back to flat deck work in Canada and all over the United States. In 2001 to the present I have been hauling flat deck freight for Caveman Transport. Throughout my career 90% has been as an owner operator.”

When asked about his life off the road, Danny wrote:

“I have been married for 30 years and have four children and 10 grandchildren. I love to spend time with my family. I enjoy spoiling the grandkids and spend most of my free time during the summer camping. Our fifth wheel is set up year-round so we are able to camp every weekend.

I have grown up around trucks, as my dad was a trucker and when he was home I spent every available minute with him. I picked rocks out of tires and helped grease. I went on road trips with him until I was old enough to get behind the wheel myself. Trucking is in my blood; my brothers are truckers as too.”

Caveman is proud to see Danny earn this well-deserved recognition: keep up the good work Danny!

April driver of the month –

Steve McKay – Triline Carriers LP

Hi! I’m Steve McKay!

I started swamping trailers in 1985 at Robyn’s Trucking. In no time, I was pulling everything from singles to pikes;  a very exciting four years.

From there, I ran local with Bonzi Trucking for a year followed by six years at Big Horn Transport where my first year was a garbage transfer run; then Canada Post into BC for six months, and 4 1/2 years of flat deck – if it fit on a deck, I hauled it. Guy and I both had a tear when I left. He was the father I never had.  From there, off to BFI transfer run, then roll-off, super B’s, tandem and front end for seven-plus years. Then, put in a few years with Alberta Processing, pulling a funky grease trailer.

Then my wife and I started our own business; Hammerdown Bobcat.  Back to trucking; a few months of pikes with Bison Transport, then Mueller, before I landed a season of end-dump with Standard General. It’s a small world; Brian Peppe my boss here and at Alberta Processing, can’t say enough good about this man.  Made enough cash to start McKay Tractor Service; contracted on with Federated Co-op for three-plus years; singles and pikes.

After that, my wife Kathy got her Class 1 and joined me. We contracted on to TransX for three years stateside hauling produce, and a year and a half; everything in Western Canada and Yukon. After 2.4 million kilometres, we retired the truck.

It was three years ago, April 11th, that I started at Tri-Line, once again pulling transfer trailers. Still can’t wipe the smile off my face.  Great bunch of guys and office staff. The moment I shook hands with Jason Nestor, I knew I was here to stay.  I plan on retiring here, but not anytime soon.

In my off time, from cars to houses…if it’s hurting, I’ll bring it back. If it’s not a Steve original, I don’t want it. I started playing guitar and writing songs last year; my goal is to have someone still sitting at the campfire after I play.

Trucking is more than just a job for me; it’s a life choice.

March driver of the month –

Sean Stephens – Canada Cartage

Sean Stephens started his commercial truck driving career over 20 years ago in Jamaica.  He started with Canada Cartage as a Class 1 driver in July 2013. Sean hauled single trailers across Western Canada before qualifying as a long combination vehicle (LCV) driver. He has been driving LCV for almost seven years and says safety is his first priority.  Sean would like to thank all the members involved who contributed to his recognition as the March AMTA Driver of the Month!

February driver of the month –

Dale Jackson – Cliffs Towing Ltd.

Long before most of us were even born, a young guy named Dale Jackson ventured out into the world as a Vehicle Recovery Expert.

It was July 1973, when Dale came on board with Cliffs Towing Ltd., and still, to this day, continues reporting to work with his infectious happiness and positivity.  With decades of on the job experiences, Dale heads up the Heavy Recovery Division, in charge of his fleet of highly trained and knowledgeable drivers.  Fortunately, for them, that knowledge was gained through their leader`s perseverance and attention to detail.

It certainly isn’t a simple career that Dale chose, always looking out for others, to make sure they got home safely to their families at the end of the day.  Dale has achieved the respect and admiration of all his co-workers, new and old; by showing the same politeness, kindness, and leadership to everybody he encounters.  Many long nights out on the frozen highways of Alberta, you will find Dale Jackson out there lending a helping hand to those in need.

Dale has a very patient wife, who tolerates his superhero antics; being that it takes him away from home for long hours on end.  He is always available 24/7 – just a phone call away.  Dale believes a good job is done only when it is done right the first time. Dale is a conscientious operator who has not had an accident or traffic violation in years. Dale doesn’t slow down much as he is always focusing on his next adventure. Whether it is operating his rotator or swinging a club on the golf course, Dale enjoys life to its fullest.  His skills and knowledge can never be duplicated, nor his fatherly reproach questioned; these are life skills gained by doing what he loves to do the most…and that would be- saving the day.

We all at Cliffs Towing are proud to have Dale as an operator, supervisor, mentor and friend. Dale has unknowingly set the bar to which all of us at Cliff’s strive to reach.

January 2020 driver of the month –

Jagjit Singh – Tri-Line Carriers LP

Jagjit Singh began his truck driving career in 2006 at his family owned company where he transported produce and electronics all over Alberta, Saskatchewan and BC.

In 2011, he joined Nugen Transport hauling bio-hazardous products across Alberta.  In 2014, Jagjit joined the Tri-Line Carriers family and holds an excellent safety and compliance record in his division.  Ever since joining Tri-Line carriers, Jagjit has had a vested interest in safety.  He has been an active member of the workplace safety committee and has also been involved in developing new safety policies and procedures.

His exemplary safety oriented attitude and persistence to details is unmatchable and remarkable.  Jagjit is a family man at heart and loves spending time with his 5-year-old daughter and 2-year-old son. He also enjoys working on unique sports cars whenever he finds free time.  Jagjit loves taking his own sports car for long drives during Alberta’s beautiful summers.  It is with great honor that he accepts this driver of the month award.

December 2019 driver of the month –

Russell Lattin, Seaboard Transport

Tractor operator, driver-trainer, father, grandfather, husband, Green Hills expert – which hat doesn’t Russell wear?

Russell Lattin has been a professional driver since February 2006. He started his career driving as an owner/operator of Caveman Transport. Despite the company name, his service was nothing short of cutting edge. It was during this time he grew to love the industry. After selling his truck and trailer, he carried on with his career as a mixer operator at Inland Concrete in Calgary then at Four Star Concrete. In August 2016, Russell started with Seaboard Transport as a fuel specialist. He was one of Seaboard’s seed drivers to the TECK business which Seaboard undertook in 2016. Russell has been a staple to the company ever since, quickly getting involved in safe fuel practices and moving his way up within the company. Russell is now a leader in the division and is involved in training new staff and involved in the development of new policies and procedures. His professionalism and persistence to ensure his job is done in the safest manner possible is unmatchable. His lead-by-example attitude is how Seaboard Transport coaches every driver to operate.

Russell is a family man and enjoys spending time with his grandchildren. He enjoys camping and has a lake lot in the Kootenays. He and his family also travel to the East Coast as much as possible to visit his step-daughter and their young family. In between work and family, Russell enjoys watching Dallas Cowboys football on Sundays.

November 2019 driver of the month –

Dave Prevost, Terroco Oilfield Service

Dave Prevost started his truck driving career in 1981 with Allied Van Lines, where he worked for 13 years hauling furniture and driving across all four western provinces.  In 1993, he started work in the oilfield.  Since 2002, Dave has worked for Terroco Industries, out of the Red Deer head office, where he operates a vacuum truck.

Dave is a conscientious driver who is always around to lend a helping hand.  He is a great example of a driver who believes that safety plays a very important part of what he does.  He is also a good teacher to new drivers or a driver just needing a helping hand.

Dave lives with his wife and two sons on a hobby farm near of Blackfalds, Alberta. The family are big hockey and camping fans.

October 2019 driver of the month –

Graham Bailey, Bison Transport

Graham has been a Professional Truck Driver for over 23 years, eight of which are with Bison Transport. In 2003, he joined the company’s turnpike division and soon after decided to expand his experience by becoming a Lease Operator. In 2008 Graham unfortunately needed to step away from Bison but soon returned three years later, once again to the turnpike and regional division.  Graham recently celebrated his 1 million consecutive miles with Bison.

In reviewing his file there are two things that clearly stand out. The first is he is certainly a family man, shown in him leaving Bison for a time to assist in looking after not only his own children but his newly adopted children. The second is how he assists others in their time of need. There are several notes in his files on situations where he assisted stranded motorist and accident victims.

The common theme in Graham’s notes is that he quickly assesses situations, provides guidance and through it all remains extremely calm. There are a couple of incidents where Bison leaned on him to assist a fellow driver in a difficult situation.

In asking people at Bison about Graham, everyone said one thing “He is just a great guy and always willing to assist”.

We are certainly proud to have Graham as a member of our team.

Congratulations Graham on this achievement!

September 2019 driver of the month –

Stephen Bygrave, Mantei’s Transport

Stephen Bygrave began his career as a professional truck driver in 2008. Since that time, he has operated a variety of equipment including five-tonne, gravel truck, tandem, tri-Axle, flatdeck, long-combination vehicles and b-trains. He has experience in hauling van freight and bulk liquids, among other commodities and goods.

Stephen has been transporting bulk fuel for Mantei’s Transport since 2015, and during this time has delivered dangerous goods incident-free. He has a proven track record of safe performance and his commitment and dedication to Mantei’s Transport is admirable. He is looked upon as a role model for other drivers within the organization.

Regardless of the type of equipment he is operating or the type of freight he transports, Stephen prides himself on his attention to what he feels are the most important aspects of his job – pre-trip inspections and planning his trip for safe transport. He also credits his success in the trucking industry to his ability to maintain a comfortable work-life balance. “Family and friends are the most important things for my mental and physical health”.

When Steven is not working, he enjoys the opportunity to stay active outdoors – working on his handicap on the golf course during the summer months and skiing in the winter.

June 2019 driver of the month –

Sharandeep Kang, Tri-Line

Sharandeep Kang moved to Canada 16 years ago and has lived in Calgary for the last 9 years.  While his parents always insisted that he become a mechanic, it was his passion for driving and desire to see all the US states and Canadian provinces that led him to pursue his Class 1.  Sharandeep began trucking in 2007 as a long haul/cross border driver and has now been with Tri-Line now for 5 years.  He loves to travel, spend his days off with his family and enjoys playing cricket with his friends.

Sharandeep constantly goes above and beyond the call of duty to ensure other drivers are following protocols and that safe operations are taking place – no matter what.  He believes that safety comes first, regardless of the job being completed and he strives to assist in ensuring everyone goes home unharmed and equipment returns undamaged. Sharandeep has expressed extreme honor and gratitude in receiving this award and his motto is “don’t take short cuts, do it right – always!”

May 2019 driver of the month –

Hal Balde, Bison Transport.

Hal Balde has been a professional truck driver for over 25 years and has worked at the Bison Transport City division since 1998.  Hal always takes safety very seriously, such that he has been accident free throughout his career with Bison Transport.  His safety motto is “always be patient and never be in a hurry. That way you and other motorists can get home safely”.  Great words to live by.

You can always count on Hal to be riding his bicycle to and from work every day.  That’s 12 kms to and from home and in all seasons, including winter, and he starts his shift at 5:00 AM.  Hal is a dedicated family man who loves travel with his wife, Audrey, and is always looking for that next great adventure.  His grandchildren are his greatest pride.  Whenever he has the opportunity to see them play baseball or swim, he is there to cheer them on.

Thank you Hal, for always representing Bison Transport and the industry in a positive and professional manner.

April 2019 driver of the month –

John Manases, Seaboard Transport

Originally from Romania, John  lives in Sherwood Park with his loving wife Melinda and eight year old son David. Ever since starting his career 28 years ago, John has been collision free.

Besides being a professional fuel driver who primarily delivers to Shell stations, John is also a certified driver trainer for our company.  We rely on John’s great attitude, spotless record, to ensure our customers are serviced on time and incident free.

John always attends our safety meetings and is an active participant in sharing his experience and ideas.  When we want to show a new employee the proper way to load at the rack, we often look for John’s video, as we know that his procedure would be 100% safe and accurate.

When he’s not at work, John enjoys reading, swimming, camping, and traveling.

March 2019 driver of the month –

Reg Moulding, Bison Transport.

Reg has been a Professional Truck Driver for over 29 years.  He started with Bison Transport in 1998 as a shunt driver.  He later moved to the Bison Transport City Division.   Safety is very important to Reg.  He does not take safety lightly and it shows in everything he does throughout his daily job.  Reg’s safety motto is “Expect the unexpected”.   He feels that safety starts with you!

In 2013, Reg was selected as a member of the ATMA Road Knight program.  This program was a great platform for Reg as an introduction to the public in the transportation industry.  He showed how we, as an industry, have grown and adapted over the years.

Just recently, Reg was awarded the 10 years of Consecutive Safe Driving award at Bison Transport’s Annual Gala.  He is the ultimate professional driver and Bison Transport considers it a privilege to have Reg representing both the company and the industry.  Congratulations to Reg on this achievement!

February 2019 driver of the month – Sukhdev Aulakh, Bison Transport.

Sukhdev has been a professional truck driver for 14 years.  He started with Bison Transport in 2007 as an Owner Operator.  He drives for our City division and has been for over 11 years.  He has a great working relationship with his customers, as well as his operations team.  He is known to help his fellow drivers or even the general public when situations come up.  He just recently received his 10 years of consecutive safe driving award with no preventable from Bison Transport this past January.  A few years ago, Bison asked Suhkdev for a safety quote, his quote was “Safety is important in everything you do”.  He has lived that way his entire career at Bison.  Congratulations Sukhdev on this achievement.

January 2019 driver of the month – Leonard Wurz, Gateway Carriers Ltd.

Leonard Wurz was born in 1982 in Lethbridge, Alberta. He was raised around farming and agriculture in the Carmangay area. Leonard currently lives in the Picture Butte area with his wife and 2 kids.

When Leonard was 18 years old he started his trucking career with Bert’s Lagoon Service where he drove around Southern Alberta hauling manure for 7 years. He took a short break from trucking and went back to farming. Six months later Leonard returned to the trucking industry, this time in the oil field driving vac truck, and then in 2007 he started his long-haul trucking career with Gateway Carriers Ltd. where he is currently employed today.

In a period of 1 year, throughout the USA and Canada, Leonard trucks about 200,000 kilometers, most of which are with his K9 companion Whiskey. To date he has hauled a variety of livestock including cattle, sheep, hogs, and even a load of mink! Leonard is a hard-working, reliable, and responsible driver.  He has driven over 2.5 million accident free miles!

December 2018 driver of the month – Denis Lachance, Mustang Freightways

Denis has been in the driving industry for 25 years, mostly in the Calgary area and he has been employed with Mustang Freightways since 2006. Denis started as local P&D and then decided to become LCV certified in 2008. Since then he has been a valued asset in the training of new LCV drivers. His attention to detail on his Pre and Post allows Mustang to have safe equipment travelling on our roads. Denis has been an excellent employee and big part in the successes at Mustang and we are proud that he has been accepted for driver of the month from the AMTA.

November 2018 driver of the month – Kevin Wipf – Bison Transport

Kevin started with Bison in January 2003, as a shunt driver at a customer facility after 15 years of driving commercial vehicles.  Kevin transitioned from the customer facility to hauling “B” trains to Northern Manitoba.  After a few months the service was discontinued. Kevin then moved into a Shunt Lead role at our Bison Calgary main yard.  In 2011, Kevin began to operate LCV’s east out of Calgary.  Kevin presently has over 1.25 million consecutive safe driving miles with Bison Transport.  Kevin has always done his job safely and expects others to do the same.  Kevin has no problem reporting unsafe actions and equipment defects to the proper departments.  Kevin has embraced the culture of safety and is the ultimate professional driver. We are privileged to have Kevin representing both our company and the industry.

October driver of the month – Todd Lusty – Tri-Line Carriers

You can say that Todd has trucking in his blood! He’s been a professional Class 1 driver for over 20 years and driving for Tri-Line Carriers for almost two years.

For Tri-Line, Todd also trains new drivers and sets a top notch precedent by taking great pride in his equipment. His number one message to all drivers is to avoid distracted driving – put your devices down and pay attention! Todd’s exemplary communication skills and dedication to safety and compliance make him one of our many top drivers.

In his spare time Todd enjoys fishing, boating and working on his old truck. Todd has two daughters and three grandchildren and loves spending time with his family.

September driver of the month – Mel Carlson – Withers LP

The success of Withers LP is in large part because of hard working employees like Mel Carlson.   Mel has been employed for over 20 years with Withers.

Mel has held many positions at Withers.   Mel has been a dispatcher supervisor but his true passion is driving.   He can operate any type of our equipment that our customers require.  He is a licensed picker operator as well as an expert winch and bed truck operator. Mel’s accomplishments include pulling the very first 48-wheel wheeler north of Edmonton, delivering hundreds of service rigs to locations thru out Northern Alberta incident free.

Withers recognizes Mel’s commitment to maintaining safe and fully operational equipment.    Mel’s maintenance costs are exceptional, with his being the lowest of all Withers drivers.

Mel humbly leads by example, providing guidance and mentoring to fellow employees.

Management and supervisors often rely on Mel’s wisdom to ensure the safety of not only Mel’s peers, but the safety of fellow contactors and general public.

We would like to personally congratulate Mel for this well-deserved industry recognition.

June driver of the month – Almir Okanovic – Westcan Bulk Transport

Almir began his Canadian trucking career in 1995. First, in Winnipeg, MB where he worked for two local trucking companies hauling a variety of products.

In 2000, Almir joined Paul’s Hauling where he worked for seven years hauling fuel. In 2003, he took a night shift position with Paul’s.  In 2007 he and his family had the opportunity to transfer to Calgary with Westcan Bulk Transport, where he continued as a full time night shift driver, delivering retail fuel in the city.

He puts his long and incident free professional driving career down to working at night: “The job is less stressful at night when the city is quiet.”

Almir keeps busy in his free time. He enjoys traveling and running, having recently completing a marathon in Calgary

May driver of the month – Thomas Dillon – Bison Transportation

Thomas got an interesting start to his trucking career. He had spent his career in an engineering department of a telecommunication company. He was tired of sitting behind a desk and the company was offering early retirement packages. So, he took them up on their offer and now had a bunch of free time. His son who was a long-haul driver, asked him to go on a trip with him to Whitehorse. After this trip, Thomas knew exactly want he wanted to do, be a professional long-haul driver.

So, his professional driving career began at the age of 52. Thomas has been with Bison Transport for 16 years and has 18.5 years of industry experience. He became the 45th driver to join our 2 Million Mile Club in March of this year which represents accumulating over 2 million consecutive safe driving miles.

Thomas started his career at Bison as a company driver and in late 2006 he became a lease operator. He gained a lot of business experience as a lease operator, so in 2012 he decides to purchase a tractor on his own and became an owner operator. He also uses his knowledge and experience in assisting Bison on our Driver Advisory Board. He has assisted us in implementing many changes to our operations and driver programs. He has always wanted to learn more about our business and understanding the impact of a decision or policy on our business and the industry.

The best part of Thomas’s story is that he got the driving bug on a trip with his son and he has spent many miles operating side by side with his son, sharing the open road at Bison.

April driver of the month – Marsh Duncanson – Bison Transportation

Following a decade-long career with London Drugs in a sales capacity, Marsh found himself seeking a change of scenery, and with that he began his trucking career with Reimer in 1999.  Now, rather than selling hard goods, Marsh found himself hauling them across our great continent. Six years after his start in the trucking industry, Marsh moved over to Bison, where he has been a stalwart driver to this day.

Marsh is an engaged individual and has connected with many of his dispatch and planning team who know him on a true first name basis.  His friends at Bison are proud and thankful of his daily contributions, and that Marsh has given back to the company and industry since 2012 as an In-Cab-Instructor. Over the years, Marsh has trained and mentored over 50 drivers, reminding them – and us – that as we grow, we should be sure to make our experience an asset and not a liability; for complacency is the home of unsafe work. Marsh’s lasting impact is spread across millions and millions of miles traveled across North America by his current and former students; not to mention the over one million consecutive miles that he himself has safely delivered – this achievement reaching its culmination in mid-2017. The best part about Marsh is he is as good of a person as he is a driver, as he’s been officially recognized with awards at Bison for lending emotional support to fellow drivers and, by the AMTA, as an official Road Knight in 2015-16.

When he isn’t behind the wheel, you need to be concerned that Marsh might shoot you – for he is a seasoned amateur photographer!  The feather in his cap is having photographed at the London Fashion Week, a world-renowned festival for some of the best designers in the world. Marsh has other work that can be followed on Twitter or Flickr, and it would be worth your while to see if you can track Marsh or his social media down and have a look at his photos of people and places.

With that, we congratulate Marsh on his well-deserved award. Remember as Marsh does, when backing up your trailer – as in life – if what you are doing isn’t working, maybe you should try doing the opposite!

March driver of the month – Kelly Farranto – Red Deer Catholic Transportation

Kelly Farranto started her career as a professional school bus operator when she was 18 years of age. Her father, mother and two brothers were in the industry, driving for Prairie Bus Lines Ltd., and she soon followed suit.

Shortly after, Kelly got married and started her family introducing a new generation to school buses.  Kelly worked for Prairie for 17 years and was one of the first women to train drivers to operate a Motor Coach. She wore many hats while with Prairie, from dispatching to routing to training. Over her impressive career she has had the opportunity to meet many people and to transport athletes and coaches to events such as the Brier Curling, and the World Juniors.  Kelly was also a part of a convoy to the Yukon to transport school buses back to Alberta. Kelly has attended many bus conventions to enhance and continue her professional school bus knowledge.

After 17 years of dedicated service with Prairie, Kelly made the difficult decision to move to Red Deer Catholic Transportation, where she remains today. Kelly has spared many runs over her years of service, and was an integral part of the training team.  With her extensive knowledge of school buses, she eventually took on the role as the parts manager where she remains today. Kelly also drives a full-time route.

Kelly is passionate about driving, she has obtained her Class 1 and has also driven a semi in her off-season from school busing. She has said that a goal for her is to one day operate a big earth mover. Kelly accredits her 33 years of a clean commercial driving record to big picture driving and her morals of working hard, honestly and respectfully. She still maintains those values and applies them to the “1,000’s” of student that have passed through her  door.

Kelly has made Red Deer her home for the past 40 years and has quoted, “There is nothing better than being in the public when a student that I transported in the past comes up to me and says ‘Thank you- you don’t know how much I needed your good morning and have a good day greetings’” She compares that feeling to now with another generation, her granddaughter who occasionally rides with her on her school bus and reminds her when she “hasn’t” checked her airbrakes!

Congratulations Kelly- we are very proud of your accomplishments in the Student Transportation Industry.

February driver of the month – Derek Farkash, Bushell Transport Company Ltd.

I lived in a small town in rural Alberta as a kid and spent as much time as I could out on my grandparents farm helping them, and my uncles, with farm work (which included getting taught how to operate equipment including trucks and tractors at an early age). If I remember correctly, I was able to drive a stick shift before I was 10 and was helping out silage crews before I had my learners license – on private property of course.

My dad was a truck driver when I was very young but came off the road to be a heavy duty agricultural mechanic to be closer to his family. I know how tough this can be with a family of my own. After my sister and I got into high school, my dad said he’d had enough of pulling wrenches and asked us if we’d mind if he went back driving. We supported him if it would make him happy. He said “there’s something about driving that gets into your blood”.

So I’ve somewhat followed the same course. Driving wasn’t my first career. I started my Automotive Service Apprenticeship in high school and after graduation walked right into a full-time job in the trade. I loved cars, but after getting my journeyman Red Seal certification plus a couple years of trying a couple different jobs I decided it wasn’t for me anymore.

I decided it was time to hit the road. I signed up for Cameron Driver Education in 2007 where the instructors were taking bets on me being the first driver from their school to get a perfect score on the Class 1 test. I didn’t, but came darn close with only 10 points, go figure, I was too patient on making a left turn crossing three lanes of traffic on 170th street in Edmonton.

Now with my fresh Class 1, my first job was local pickup and delivery with Purolator running dock to dock with a day cab and a 53-foot trailer. That was fun and fast-paced but I still wanted to hit the open highway. After getting about a year of experience I was able to follow my dad over to Trimac Transport pulling Super-B dry bulk tankers all over Western Canada for a few years.

The best time was running northern BC and Yukon in the winter supporting the mines. I remember thinking “I can’t believe I get paid to do this, being able to see the beautiful scenery out the ‘wide screen tv’ some call a windshield”.

That became tedious and I wanted to expand into a different part of the industry so I was able to get a job with T-Lane Transportation where I started operating a tri-drive winch truck with a scissor neck trailer hauling equipment, primarily being rail road service machinery. Then there was the heavy haul and oversize loads I got a taste of. That was a new challenge with the creativity of load securement, restrictions and conditions according to single trip permit loads.

Then an opportunity arose to work with the crew at Bushell Transport continuing my professional career primarily in heavy haul and oversize all over Canada and the USA. This was a great move with the company’s attention to detail and the ability to operate top-notch equipment with leadership that’s intuitive to the always changing industry and continues to stay
ahead of the curve.

As a professional driver with 10 years of experience, I’m loving what I do, I have found the right fit. I’m usually pulling 10-12 axles with the heaviest being 240,000lbs, widest 24’, highest, 25’, longest 125’ but couldn’t do any of it without the support of my beautiful, loving wife and two adorable little girls

January driver of the month – Jason Garskey, FKD Contracting (Alta) Ltd.

My name is Jason Garskey. I have been a professional driver for over 18 years. I am employed with FKD Contracting (Alta) Ltd. as company driver. FKD specializes in the transportation of dangerous goods to remote locations. This requires an elite class of drivers. I specifically haul mine-grade explosives. Without getting into regulations, and tickets/courses we are required to have, here is a brief look at my day-to-day operations.

When I arrive at work at FKD in High River, I go in to talk with my supervisor to find out the things going on that day, how the mines are and what the schedule might be for the day. My supervisor advises me of road conditions from information he has gathered from other drivers.

I go to my unit and complete a pre-trip inspection – then, go into the shop and complete my paperwork for the day. Then I drive half an hour to the Orica plant in Blackie. I put on my PPE and sign in at the plant. I go pick up the trailer at the back of the property and complete a pre-trip inspection on the trailer. I then have my Orica paperwork to complete; this consists of Bill of Lading, my personal driver information and certificates – this paperwork must be completed for each load. Then I head back to the gate and must sign out, take off my PPE, and update my logbook before departure. From Orica, it is 1,137 kilometres to my delivery point in Tumbler Ridge, BC at Perry Mine.

From here, I have five scales to cross:

• Aldersyde (not always manned)
• Balzac, Alberta
• Whitecourt, Alberta
• Demmitt, Alberta
• Pouce Coupe, BC
• Fuel in Dawson Creek, BC

Once I leave Dawson Creek, I am about 150 kilometres from the Perry Creek Mine. I drive onto Highway 97 and then turn onto Highway 52. This is not a road for novice drivers, this road has no shoulders and steep inclines and declines.

Once I am in Tumbler Ridge, I turn onto a logging road where a judgement call needs to be make whether to throw on a set or two of chains in order to proceed the 14 kilometres to the mine site. I must call each mile marker on the way to ensure safe passing of other vehicles. I have special permission to take the back way in to the Orica site, which saves about an hour driving time both directions.

Once I hit the second gate, I complete my post trip and my job is done for the night.

In the morning I open the gate, put on my PPE and go into the office to sign in. Then I call security to inform them that Jason Garskey, with FKD, is on site. Then I talk to the Orica supervisor to clarify that there is enough room in the silo to load off. Once I am cleared to offload, I pull around to the silo, do a walk around of the silo and pump shack, checking all hoses and connections, making sure all valves are in the right position. Once that is complete, I hook up the hose, open the value to the pump, and open up the external and internal valves on the trailer. Then I start the pump. Once the pump is started and product is flowing, I go the top of the trailer and open the hatch. It takes 45 minutes – one hour to offload. During this time, I clean and tidy the area around the pump house as this primarily FKD’s work area at this mine, therefore I take responsibility to keep this workplace clean. I also walk around to monitor that the offloading is continuing in a smooth and safe manner.

Once I am offloaded, I call security to sign out. Then I sign out in the office and head back the 14 kilometres on the logging road to the pavement. I then call my supervisor to let him know that the load was successfully delivered and I am safely back on the road heading home.

This is just a brief description of my most common trip, as I have been oriented at multiple locations, and I do work out of our FKD McLeese Lake, BC location as needed. As a driver with FKD, I have the ability to perform any task on any equipment that FKD may need or require.

December driver of the month – Wayne Arbic, Westcan Bulk Transport

Wayne began his driving career in 1994, working mainly in the city of Calgary as a pick-up and delivery driver. After a year with the same company, he moved to their flat deck division hauling pipe in Alberta and British Columbia.

In 1996 Wayne went to work for Lorenzo Russo, a lease operator hauling propane and fuel for Economy Carriers. With the acquisition of Economy Carriers by Westcan Bulk Transport, Wayne continued his professional driving career reaching 1.7 million accident and incident free miles.

Wayne has the support of  his wife and daughter, living south of High River, AB.  The family enjoys camping and fishing in their free time.

November driver of the month – Lawrence Reichert, Bushell Transport

I was born in Fairview, a small town in northern Alberta. Being raised on a farm, I was always exposed to large machinery and equipment. At the age of 10 I was constantly imitating truck noises and by Grade 7 my year book read “was last seen driving his desk in social class”.

I had family friends and an uncle that drove truck, so anytime day or night I had a chance to go on a run I went, in hopes that they would get tired and let me drive. It happened often and I was hooked. Until I was of age to get my Class 1 license I drove part time for local companies with a winch tractor hauling equipment and camp shacks, when they were busy.

Farming in the ’80’s was not a real strong future at the time so I decided to make a career driving and I wanted to get out on the highway doing it. I moved to Calgary in 1982, rented a truck and trailer and got my Class 1. Three days later I was working for Byers Transport. I started out making local deliveries then worked my way up to hauling turnpikes and triples about four years later making switches in Edmonton.

I then graduated to making switches in the mountain passes. I worked there for 15 years. The last two years I was there, I was the yard guy, dealing with 35 schedules a night. It was a choice I made because it was nights and I could look after my daughters during the day while my wife went to work. One night “the strong like bull, smart like tractor” attitude got me and I hurt my back. I was off work for five years. Got a chance to go back to school and received a diploma in computer engineering. However with Y2K myth I could not get a job doing that, so in 2002 I decided to go back driving to put food on the table. I started working for a local construction company hauling aggregates with super B’s, and moving around equipment. When construction was slow I would run oversized loads for another company across the border this went on for five or so years then I got an opportunity to get into hauling oversized full time pulling 10 and 13 axle, the largest combinations to date 240,000lbs., 142’ long , 20’wide and 24’ tall.

The bigger the loads or more trailers I can hook on behind, the more I enjoy it.

I get to travel all over North America to places that aren’t considered holiday destinations which is exciting because you generally don’t hear about them. I love driving truck. I can go to work each and every day and it is always something different. There is never a dull moment and it does not feel like a job! There is something to be said about -40c late at night, tires singing out a tune on the frozen asphalt, exhaust coming out of the stacks so thick you could cut with a knife, northern lights out, good tunes on the radio. Freedom!!

October driver of the month – Adrian Popovici, Tri-Line Carriers

Adrian Popovici started his professional driving career in 1997 in Romania, driving long-haul van freight across Europe up to Scotland.  Adrian moved to Canada in December 2010, securing employment driving long-haul van and reefer loads out of New Brunswick.  Adrian’s family joined him in Canada in August 2011.  Adrian’s cross-border travels down to Texas led him to consider other opportunities that would allow him to spend more time with his family.

Adrian had heard great things about Alberta and decided to move west, together with his family, in 2015 in search of a better quality of life.  We were fortunate to have him join Tri-Line Carriers LP as a driver in the Calgary Waste division in June 2015. Adrian quickly proved himself to be one of the division’s best drivers and has been a permanent fixture within the top 5 per cent in Weekly Fuel Economy (Moving MPG) in the Calgary Waste Fleet (45 drivers) and is best in class for his utilization of our PeopleNet satellite communications system.

Adrian is the first to offer help to anyone who needs it and, as one of Tri-Line’s two in-cab driver trainers, helps to instill proper operating and safety procedures with new drivers.  Adrian personifies Tri-Line’s corporate values and way of doing things-with courage, integrity, reliability and customer-focused practices. He consistently demonstrates a positive attitude in all of his interactions with internal and external customers and is always willing to go the extra mile and help out when required.  He truly is a team member and when told of this award his first words were, “Thank you for this honour, this is a great award for Tri-Line and for myself”.

Adrian is the consummate professional driver.  Thank you Adrian for all that you do!

September driver of the month – Tanya McNeill, Fenton Bus Lines

Tanya started her professional driving career with Cardinal Coach Lines (soon to become First Student Canada) in November, 2004.  As a driver for Cardinal Coach Lines and later First Student Canada, Tanya ran a school run in Calgary.  As the mom of a preschooler, the job was a perfect fit.

A few years after becoming a school bus driver, Tanya started working at a horse summer camp located west of Cochrane known as Horses R Cool in the months of July and August.  She worked as a leader teaching children how to ride a horse.  Fenton Bus Lines was contracted for the transportation of the clients to and from the camp on a daily basis.  This is where Kathy Fenton and Tanya met.  In July of 2011, Kathy was relaying to Tanya in conversation how busy she was with a packed summer of charters, struggling to keep up to all the requests and Tanya mentioned her full-time job during the school year as a bus driver.

Kathy started Tanya’s refresher training, which also included getting her Q endorsement, first aid and charter experience, and immediately and put her to work for the summer months.  Tanya then started driving the summers to and from the camps and for the next three years continued working for First Student Canada during the school year.

In January 2015, Tanya moved from southeast Calgary to Water Valley, Alberta and became a full-time driver with Fenton Bus Lines (their yard was only 15 minutes from her new place).  Tanya started as a floater for the three Westbrook School routes before moving onto a route as a full-time driver.  As well as doing a school run, Tanya began doing a few charters in between her school run and soon moved to full time charters and still is a floater on school runs.  In July of 2015 she had her second daughter, Shyla.

Tanya has driven 1000s of kilometers in Alberta transporting people from Lethbridge to Edmonton and many places in between.  She is the first to offer help to anyone who needs it and never complains about any bus she is given to drive.  She is truly a team member and when told of this award her first words wer, “We all won this, our team won this”, giving credit to the company structure and the seven other women that make up Team Fenton’s line-up of top professional drivers.  Her attention to customers and willingness to please makes her an often requested driver among clients.

June driver of the month – Brian Barnett, Westcan Bulk Transport

Brian has had a long and safe career in the trucking industry. He began driving with Cooney’s Farm Services out of High River hauling a variety of bulk chemicals across Canada and the US. He moved to RBS, hauling to the mines in southern BC.

In 2005 with an opportunity to join ECL Transportation hauling fuel, he continued to service the BC mines. In 2010 with the acquisition of ECL by Westcan Bulk Transport he continued fuel hauling to the mines and to other customers in Alberta and BC.

Brian lives in High River AB with his wife Judy.

May driver of the month – Mike Lefaivre, Bison Transport Inc.

Mike has been a company driver with Bison Transport for 10.5 years and has accumulated over 1.3 million consecutive safe driving miles. The most impressive part of his consecutive safe miles is 95 per cent of them are operating two trailers in a turnpike configuration.

The best way to sum up Mike’s tenure at Bison is one of teamwork and modesty. His approach is that the job needs to be completed safely but he also understand the uniqueness of our business, that cooperation needs to occur between operations and him, to deliver the customer freight safely. In a review of his file, Mike has received three Charging Ahead Awards in the past few years. This recognition is an internal Bison program which all starts from a coworker nomination for exceptional efforts that promote or reinforce Bison’s Core Values and go above and beyond what is expected from an employee or contractor. Every one of the nominations had the same theme, which highlights Mike assisting his fellow coworkers in difficult and challenging circumstance. Mike has the ability to connect and relate to his peers which gives him the ability to effectively handle all types of situation to a positive conclusion.

Mike has over 25 years of driving experience and believes that he should give back to both our company and the industry he is involved in. He is not looking for the recognition or the limelight, he is truly involved to make both our company and industry better by just simply going about help and assisting others. Safety is always a priority for Mike. He is not just concerned about himself; he is truly concerned about his coworkers, our industry, and those we share the roads with.

April driver of the month – Norm Hogge, Westcan Bulk Transport

Norm started with Westcan Bulk Transport as an ECL Transportation employee in November 1996. He was discovered to be very capable right away and worked on various products. Although most comfortable hauling fuel, he would take any challenge that was presented to him. Safety and equipment care are two things that Norm takes great pride in. In April 2010, Norm moved over to the Westcan fleet. With an actively caring attitude he is always watching out for others, as well as himself, to make sure tasks are completed correctly and safely. Supported by his wife Leah, he has become a great help to us supporting our other western branches. He travels to them,  staying there to do whatever the customer needs until the job is done. We wish Norm well in the next 20 years as well.

March driver of the month – Johan Peters, Willy’s Trucking Service

Johan started his career hauling wood chip. He fell in love with driving and bought a truck within a year. When the opportunity to haul containers presented itself, he welcomed it with open arms for the next two years.  In 2012, he signed on with Willy’s Tucking Service and hasn’t looked back since. His first run with Willy’s was hauling a 53-foot van from Peace River to Edmonton, and return, with stops in Slave Lake, High Prairie and eventually Grand Prairie. Three years ago Johan started pulling rockies on a round trip from Peace River to Edmonton and still does this nightly.

John loves to be on the road, he enjoys meeting people and says it’s fun to give a wave or hello to the other drivers he shares the road with. Every day there is something new to be learned and Johan has certainly learned a lot in the years he’s been driving and is always willing to pass on that knowledge to others. If there was one piece of advice Johan could pass on to everyone it would be “Don’t rush, don’t speed, it’s not a race”.

Driving is not Johans only love, he has a wonderful wife and three beautiful children; two daughters’ ages 13 and six and a son, age one.

February driver of the month – Ron Swartz, Westcan Bulk Transport

Ron Swartz has been employed by  Westcan for 12 Years. In that time Ron has become a valued and trusted fuel driver. As a senior trainer, Ron has built a reputation for a comprehensive and detailed approach to training. This ensures the drivers he has trained leave him with the best start possible in there new careers with Westcan.

Ron’s Million Mile Award and a dedication to safety are testament to an incident free career. Based in Lethbridge and supported by his wife and family, we look forward to many more years  working with Ron and his safe, actively caring attitude!

January driver of the month – Ralph Sirois, Bushell Transport

Ralph was born in Northern Quebec, his dad was a driver for 50 years. Ralph bets a lot of people back in that small town would say that he was raised in a truck.

Although, he always thought he would, and wanted to drive a truck, his first adult job was in the Canadian Armed Forces. As there was no opening for drivers, he joined as a supply technician until he could change trade and five years later became an MSR Op (Mobile Support Equipment Operator), a military driver.

After getting through driving school, which included BC’s extensive air brake requirements, he was qualified on straight trucks up to 10 tons. He was then sent to CFB Edmonton where he learned driving a tractor trailer combination would be five to 10 years ahead of him. A bit disappointed about that, he asked to be released from service after the end of his second -three-year contract and moved back to Quebec.

In May 1997, Ralph received a diploma from the heavy truck driving training center of Charlesbourg, a government directed driving school. The program was 615 hours, 120 hours of which were spent in trucks of all kinds of configurations and with really good in-class lectures on driving, mechanicals and air brake systems.

Ralph’s first driving job was on super B’s, hauling steel and aluminum in Canada and the US. For a couple years he was dispatched on uncommon loads more and more (oversize, weird destinations and everything that was out of the ordinary).

After seven years of Canada/US driving, Ralph took up off-road logging in northern QC, a home-every-night job, fun and challenging, hauling up to 380,000 lbs on seven axles.

A year and a half later, Ralph moved to Alberta, where he drove south of the border again, from five-axle combinations to self-steering 13 axles and basic training on winch and 48-64 wheelers. The largest load Ralph has been down the road with was 165-feet long, 21-feet wide and 18-feet high weighing 252,000 pounds.

Those who know Ralph best would probably say he is somewhat reserved, humble and loyal. He’s glad to answer any questions about work and his experiences, but is able to admit what he doesn’t know or that he is wrong. As if it wasn’t enough to spend his time working on the road, when Ralph takes time off, he goes on motorcycle trips, to destinations he might never see in a truck such Prudhoe Bay, AK or Cartwright, Labrador to St-John, NL.

December driver of the month – Curtis Mann, Bison Transport

Curtis Mann is a professional Driver with Bison Transport, based out of their Calgary terminal.  He joined Bison in 2009 shortly after switching to our Long Combination Vehicle Division.

Over the past eight years, Curtis has accumulated over 800,000 consecutive safe driving miles with Bison – that’s more than 100,000 safe consecutive miles each year!

Curtis is an Alberta Motor Transport Association Road Knight (since 2015), travelling to communities throughout Alberta to speak about how to safely share the roadway with trucks and to speak about all the transportation industry has to offer.

In addition to his dedication to speaking about safe driving practices, Curtis finds time to immerse himself in a number of other industry events. He has participated in the World’s Largest Truck Convoy for Special Olympics since Bison has been entering trucks.  He has also participated in the Alberta Professional Truck Driving Championships, where he won third place in the “B” Train Category.

Curtis is always willing to help out fellow drivers, Bison Transport staff, and those in his community, no matter what the cause.

The folks at Bison Transport say they’re proud to have Curtis on their team, and even prouder of all of his achievements. Keep up the hard work and dedication, Curtis, and congratulations on another achievement in being name Driver of the Month for AMTA.