SACRAMENTO, CA - The California Trucking Association (CTA) held the 64th Annual California Truck Driving Championship on May 20. This year’s competition saw more than 650 of the best truck drivers compete the best in each of nine classes, Rookie of the Year, and Grand Champion. (List of winners below).

Click here to read the release about the initial, regional competition.

"Driving a truck each and every day requires a great amount of skill and exposes professional drivers to numerous challenging situations," said Scott Blevins, President of Mountain Valley Express and 2012 CTA President. "The California Truck Driving Championship showcases the best of the best in the industry.”

"We are very proud of each driver that competed in the California Truck Driving Championship because they ably demonstrate the skill and pride involved in being a professional truck driver," boasted, Blevins. "This year's state winners have a lot to live up to in going for the three-peat as California's best seek to hold on to the title of Grand National Champion."

In a superb demonstration of skill and perseverance, first-year competitor Conrad Rice of Covenant Transport took home both the Rookie of the Year award and the title of Grand Champion as the top driver in the competition. The Rookie of the Year award is given to the best first-year competitor in the Truck Driving Championship and the Grand Champion title goes to the best driver in the competition regardless of class. Mr. Rice is based out of Covenant Transports Pomona, CA terminal.

Established in California by California Trucking Association in 1948, the California Truck Driving Championships (CTDC) provides professional truck drivers an opportunity to demonstrate the skills and knowledge that make them leaders in the industry. The championship consists of a written test, a 'Pre-Trip' inspection overseen by volunteers from the California Highway Patrol (CHP), and a driving skills test where drivers must successfully navigate six problems designed to simulate real-world challenges.

Previously, a North and South Regional competitions were held to determine which drivers would advance to the state championship competition. The top three drivers in each of the nine classes from the both the North and South Regional competitions advanced to the state championship competition on May 20th in Sacramento, CA. The nine different classes include trucks from package delivery vans to 5-axle sleeper cabs. The top driver in each class is eligible to compete in the American Trucking Associations’ National Truck Driving Championships to be held in Minneapolis, Minnesota on August 7-11, 2012.

California Truck Driving Championships- Sunday, May 20, 2012 Sacramento, CA

3-AXLE

Place

First Name

Last Name

Company

1st

Fernando

Espino

Con-way Freight

2nd

Leodiven

Gonzalez

Con-way Freight

3rd

Emilio

Rios

FedEx Freight

TWIN-TRAILERS VAN

Place

First Name

Last Name

Company

1st

Tracy

Dewees

USF Reddaway

2nd

Jose

Regis

USF Reddaway

3rd

Michael

Brown

FedEx Freight

PACKAGE VAN

Place

First Name

Last Name

Company

1st

Oscar

Enciso

FedEx Ground

2nd

Harmit (Jimmy)

Sarwan

FedEx Ground

3rd

Rodney

Humphreys

FedEx Ground

STRAIGHT TRUCK

Place

First Name

Last Name

Company

1st

Alfonso

Saavedra

Con-way Freight

2nd

Barry

Yeates

FedEx Freight

3rd

Gary

Lopez

FedEx Freight

4-AXLE

Place

First Name

Last Name

Company

1st

Max

Carbajal

Con-way Freight

2nd

Rollie

Fugate

Walmart

3rd

Tony Alan

Huddleston

Mountain Valley Express

5-AXLE, SLEEPER

Place

First Name

Last Name

Company

1st

Richard

Best

Covenant Transport

2nd

Jaime

Hernandez

Covenant Transport

3rd

Armando

Ochoa

Walmart

5-AXLE, FLATBED

Place

First Name

Last Name

Company

1st

Conrad

Rice

Covenant Transport

2nd

Robert

Haldane

Walmart

3rd

Anthony

Furtado

Mountain Valley Express

5-AXLE, VAN

Place

First Name

Last Name

Company

1st

Richard

Camarda

ABF

2nd

Raymond

McNamara

YRC Freight

3rd

Joe

Renteria

McLane Foodservice

5-AXLE, TANKER

Place

First Name

Last Name

Company

1st

Jasmesh

Singh

Con-way Freight

2nd

Sebastian

Mora

Williams Tank Lines

3rd

Scott

Elliott

Plastic Express