Inside Virginia's Truck Driving Championships in Petersburg: 'It's all about safety'

PETERSBURG, Va. — Ninety of Virginia's best professional truck drivers are competing this weekend in Petersburg at the annual Virginia Truck Driving Championships, where every competitor had to drive accident-free for an entire year just to qualify.

Winners in nine classes of competition will advance to represent Virginia at the national truck driving championships in August in Pittsburgh.

Dale Bennett, president and CEO of the Virginia Trucking Association, said the event is designed to test the real-world skills drivers use every day on the road.

"The problems that drivers are being tested on today are set up to simulate situations they encounter in everyday driving," Bennett said. "For example, backing up to a loading dock. If you can back up and be within 12 inches, you're going to score points. And obviously, the closer you get, or pulling up to a fire hydrant, or here behind us, a railroad grade crossing. By law, you're required to stop 15 feet short of that crossing... We're testing them on their skill and ability to comply with that law and stop at a railroad crossing in a safe manner."

Competitors are graded on a written test covering industry knowledge, firefighting and first aid, and safety regulations. They also undergo a vehicle inspection portion, where equipment defects are planted on the truck and drivers must identify them before hitting the road.

Bennett said the competition serves as both a retention tool for trucking companies and a safety incentive for drivers.

"It's a safety incentive because you have to go accident-free for a year," Bennett said. "You're hopefully having that extra thought when they're driving every day: 'Hey, I need to be safe because I want to compete in the competition this year.' For the family, it's pride, showing up and having pride in your profession as a professional truck driver, having pride in your family members and the job that they do serving Virginia and this country every day."

For many families, the event has become an annual tradition. Rebecca Cottrell traveled from Bedford to cheer on her husband, who drives for XPO in Roanoke and has been behind the wheel for nearly 40 years.

"It is like a family," Cottrell said. "We get along with everybody and we root for a lot of different people from every company. Some of these people we see once a year. But when we see them, it is like a family event and a cookout."

Cottrell has attended the championships for years and even keeps a running scorecard to track how drivers are performing throughout the competition.

"I've tried to gather all the scores so we kind of know where the drivers line up, who might be in first place, who might be in second place," Cottrell said. "A lot of times, people come to me and say, 'Hey, what did so and so do?' And I kind of have a calculation of it."

Competition continues Sunday, with a barbecue planned for Saturday at the Keystone Truck and Tractor Museum for competitors and their families. Bennett said roughly 275 to 300 people are expected to attend.

The public is welcome to come out and watch the competition. Bennett asked spectators to stay off the course but encouraged them to observe.

"The next time you're out on the road, you will appreciate what they're doing and the skill that they have to have to be able to do what they do in a safe manner," Bennett said.