Meet the finalists for Overdrive’s 2024 Trucker of the 12 months award

Outcomes are in from the primary judges‘ spherical in Overdrive’s 2024 Trucker of the 12 months award competitors, and here is an enormous congrats to the three finalists on the prime of the heap you see above: Oakridge Transport’s Alan Kitzhaber, working with authority within the Menard’s distribution community; Lengthy Haul Trucking-leased owner-operator Gary Schloo; and Zimmerman Ag co-owners Daryl and Nelson Zimmerman, with two vans serving an array of agriculture-industry clients and famers within the area round a Minnesota house base. 

The three finalist picks adopted a 12 months’s value of highlighting 10 totally different contending owner-operators, starting in January and ending in October, as Overdrive 2024 Truckers of the Month. Based mostly on these studies and accompanying podcasts, and a wealth of knowledge submitted by entrants as a part of the method, judges then reviewed all of the supplies and rated every unbiased enterprise, weighing a wide range of components that shall be evident in commentary that follows, from earnings and sensible practices to neighborhood contribution, historical past and the companies‘ foundations for longer-term success. (Does your personal price excessive on these components? Have you learnt one other proprietor you admire that matches that invoice? Now you can enter your self or one other deserving proprietor in our 2025 Trucker of the 12 months competitors by way of this hyperlink.)

Overdrive’s Trucker of the 12 months competitors is sponsored by Bostrom Seating, who will ship a brand new seat, as much as a $2,500 vlaue, amongst different perks, to 2024’s final winner, to be introduced within the new 12 months.All 10 of the Truckers of the Month honored this 12 months exhibit an incredible diploma of all these qualities, it is sure. Hats off to them for paving the highway to success with their instance.

Although the gear used and the freight hauled is as diverse because the trucking {industry} itself, I am 100% sure you will discover a minimum of a bit of to study from all of them, a perennial purpose of the Trucker of the 12 months award program.

So here is a salute to your complete 2024 Trucker of the 12 months aggressive area. Click on/faucet via the title of every finalist and contender beneath for his or her tales. (Catch two current podcast roundtables with most of them for a late-2024 replace and extra perception by way of this hyperlink or the embedded episodes on the backside of this story.)

2024 Trucker of the 12 months finalists:

Pictured right here is owner-operator Gary Schloo’s store on his property in Austin, Minnesota. You possibly can simply see the again of the conestoga-setup flatbed he owns along with his 2014 Peterbilt 386. From one of many judges about Schloo’s lengthy historical past in trucking, which dates again to the Nineteen Seventies: „Schloo loves trucking and trucking loves him again. He is earned an unimaginable stockpile of trucking knowhow, a sort of wealth that up and down cycles cannot contact.“ Schloo Trucking’s been leased to Albertville, Minnesota-based Lengthy Haul Trucking via a lot of this century, serving devoted accounts for lots of that point.

The elder of this pair of accomplice proprietor brothers in two-truck Zimmerman Ag, Daryl (left, pictured with Nelson), although simply in his early 30s, has amassed many years‘ value of knowhow via his profession, almost all of it spent as an unbiased owner-operator in service to agriculture. What the judges needed to say: „A strong marketing strategy, with a really in-house method to the operation! Love the very measured plan of development, with the first buyer base direct. And but they’re sensible to remain versatile when occasions are lean.“

Proprietor-operator Alan Kitzhaber’s 1995 Kenworth T600 this 12 months handed the 4 million mile threshold, all of these miles run below his tutelage, for greater than a decade now with authority hauling devoted within the distribution community of Menard’s. Judges lauded his meticulous method to each upkeep and effectivity all through the operation. „The most effective and most strong enterprise plans I’ve ever heard one other truck proprietor function by,“ stated one. And one other: „I am unsure I’ve ever heard of an proprietor who so maximized the potential of a truck, and who remains to be wringing each final drop out of it. A sensible businessman. Actually a monument to the craft of trucking as an owner-operator.“

2024 Truckers of the Month

Pictured is Costerus‘ and his Alpha Drivers Transportation firm’s not too long ago renamed „Blue Nova“ 2024 Volvo VNL, one among two rigs that have been within the fleet once we instructed his story of comeback after years leased to Landstar, an enormous well being scare that resulted in a kidney transplant, and a trucking profession reboot that is delivered. Judges lauded the relativley younger ADT enterprise‘ lengthy strides in gas effectivity. Within the phrases on one: „His contributions to improved gas financial system are one thing that each truck proprietor, fleet proprietor and even mega provider can study and revenue from. He’s attempting one thing distinctive to enhance the {industry} and deal with one of many hardest issues each drivers and truck homeowners face, a testomony to his willingness to seek out new and higher options.“ You can examine a few of these efforts in his personal phrases on this story penned earlier in 2024 for Overdrive.

Bitterman Trucking proprietor Leslie Bitterman’s actually inspiring story of comeback after a 12 months and extra’s value of COVID problems, after a near-death expertise with the sickness, prompted loads in the way in which of commendation from judges for sticktoitiveness, for the willpower to construct on her private household legacy in unbiased hauling out West. „By no means the thought crossed her thoughts to do something however succeed,“ stated one, „as a enterprise proprietor, via essentially the most difficult of private circumstances. That she’s carved her area of interest with ag clients makes it all of the extra superb, and a testomony to her clear acumen.“

Like Alan Kitzhaber’s T600, the 2000 Kenworth W900L right here pictured, R&M Transportation proprietor Holguin’s rig, has been below the proprietor’s tutelage for nearly his whole historical past trucking. Close to all of that historical past, too, has performed out on his phrases with a definite do-it-yourself method to upkeep and enterprise, usually. He is spent his whole trucking profession working with authority. He „adopted his dream to truck possession with authority,“ famous one of many judges, „and has lived it for the final 21 years. He makes use of the data he’s gained effectively and pays it ahead to assist others attain their goals, serving to relations study the ropes earlier than getting their very own authority.“

Pictured right here is Nichols‘ „Lesa Marie III“ 2020 Freightliner Coronado leased to Wayne Transports and hauling dry bulk freight of their community. Judges lauded Nichols‘ clear enterprise acumen, but for a lot of it was his ardour for the enterprise of trucking that actually confirmed via: „Mike Nichols‘ love of trucking is 100% clear in his outreach efforts as an explainer of the enterprise and life to most of the people. Severe, sensible, and hard — he is discovered his area of interest and is making the best possible of it, and never giving up on the outreach mission“ within the course of. Nichols urges affiliation membership for different homeowners as a solution to maximize their very own voices‘ potential to make a distinction, whether or not a nationwide group or their state affiliation. As Overdrive Radio listeners shall be conscious, he is lengthy been a member of the Proprietor-Operator Impartial Drivers Affiliation and is presently on the poll to probably develop into a board alternate this 12 months.

Proprietor-operator Marley is pictured right here together with his 2020 Peterbilt 579, presently leased to Mercer after the previous couple of years spent hauling with authority. Her story elicited reward for a „no stop method“ from judges, likewise the smarts and tenacity each to pivot when „being an unbiased didn’t work. As an alternative of giving up, she discovered an efficient possession area of interest as a leased owner-operator. Offers again to others, too, simply superior.“

Pictured right here is Labosky’s 2017 Freightliner, with which he is discovered his area of interest in a comparatively quick a number of years after an extended hiatus from trucking. In Amazon’s system, he is labored the angles to his benefit leaning on what judges referred to as an intuition to study as a lot as potential to do himself as a lot of the work as potential, whether or not maintenance-, load-planning- or common business-related. Mentioned one: „He is discovered the right way to make the system work for him, which has allowed him to attain a excessive ranking, opening up extra alternatives for better-paying freight.“ And one other: „Wonderful perspective and planning! Love that he doesn’t shrink back from what others would possibly deem ‚low cost‘ for his success.“ Labosky is aware of what he wants for revenue, and that it „doesn’t matter if any individual else is making extra.“

Leased to Oakley Trucking pulling company-owned hoppers is the 2014 Freightliner Cascadia right here pictured, owned by Viaille and his Goat’s Transport enterprise. Mentioned one of many judges, remarking additionally on Viaille’s lengthy and storied historical past in trucking, „one other instance of figuring out the place your strengths actually sit and discovering that area of interest to allow them to shine. Doug’s obtained drive sufficient to persevere via the robust occasions, setting him and his household as much as climate the challenges of life.“

Enter the 2025 Trucker of the 12 months competitors, once more sponsored for the 12 months by Business Car Group and its Bostrom Seating model, at this hyperlink.