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About FedEx
FedEx Archives: 2000 Press Releases
( BW)(CA-VIKING-FREIGHT)(FDX) Viking Freight Drivers Set to Compete for Top Honors; Team of Six Highly Skilled Drivers Travel to New Orleans for National Truck Driving ChampionshipsBusiness Editors SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 7, 2000--With a commitment to promote good driving habits, six drivers from Viking Freight Inc., the leading LTL (less-than-truckload) carrier providing Western regional transportation service and a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. (NYSE:FDX), will travel to New Orleans to compete in the National Truck Driving Championships (TDC), August 9 - 12. These drivers represent Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, and Utah, where they won various first place awards in state championships during the last few months. "Each year the competition continues to grow, adding more excitement and challenge to both the state and national championships," said Scot Bishop, Viking's director of human resources, safety and training. "Our employees and customers take pride in our drivers' accomplishments, whether it's everyday safety, on-time deliveries, or in the championship arena." Only drivers who win first place awards in their state championships are invited to participate in the national competition. Viking's six first-place state winners, who will demonstrate their talents in New Orleans, are: Doubles -- 1st - Wes Brinkley, Chico pickup and delivery (P&D) driver, California Three Axle -- 1st - Jeff Smit, Portland P&D driver, Oregon -- 1st - Gregg Wilson, Reno P&D driver, Nevada Five Axle -- 1st - Richard Anderson, Phoenix P&D driver, Arizona Straight -- 1st - Carol Craig, Reno P&D driver, Nevada Twins -- 1st - Bill Sorrels, Salt Lake City P&D driver, Utah "Our drivers see their participation in this competition as a valuable benefit of working for our company," said Tom Suchevits, Viking's vice president of human resources. "They are excited to have the opportunity to showcase their abilities as professional drivers, as well the opportunity to show their Viking team spirit." Viking's other state winners were selected in ten driving categories and the winners in each event, excluding the six first place winners mentioned earlier, were as follows: Best Pre-trip Award (perfect equipment inspection score) -- Chris Outen, Portland P&D driver, Oregon Doubles -- 3rd - David Marquez, Fresno line driver, California -- 3rd - Brian Mallory, Fontana P&D driver, California Flatbed -- 2nd - Bud Deforest, Salt Lake City P&D driver, Utah -- 3rd - Bruce Wilson, Reno P&D driver, Nevada Three Axle -- 2nd - Pat McGovern, Denver P&D driver, Colorado -- 2nd - Dan Shamrell, Portland P&D driver, Oregon -- 3rd - Brian Hait, Salt Lake City P&D driver, Utah -- 3rd - Chris Mahony, Salt Lake City P&D driver, Utah -- 3rd - Mike Thacker, Fontana P&D driver, California Three Axle Grand Champion (competition's highest score) -- Jeff Smit, Portland P&D driver, Oregon Four Axle -- 2nd - Steve Beck, Reno P&D driver, Nevada -- 2nd - Rich Fleming, Portland P&D driver, Oregon -- 2nd - Dennis Triano, Santa Clara P&D driver, California -- 3rd - Jerry Lambert, Portland P&D driver, Oregon -- 3rd - Manual Medeiros, San Leandro P&D driver, California President's Safety Award - P&D -- Wes Brinkley, Chico P&D driver, California Straight -- 2nd - Chris Outen, Portland P&D driver, Oregon -- 3rd - Charlie Woodland, Phoenix P&D driver, Arizona Twins -- 2nd - Brad Clyne, Phoenix P&D driver, Arizona -- 2nd - Tracy Ellis, Salt Lake City line driver, Utah -- 2nd - Ted Hunger, Denver line driver, Colorado Viking has been well represented at the national competition the last several years. In 1999, Viking drivers took home three awards at the national event. Out of all 385 drivers from across the country who competed that year, Viking's Salt Lake City-based driver Alan Gale received the Vehicle Condition Award for the best pre-trip inspection. This was the third time a Viking driver has received this top honor. In addition to its drivers' success last year, Viking is also home to national champion Ted Hunger, who was awarded first place in the 1991 doubles competition. Truck Driving Championships are sponsored by state trucking associations to challenge the skills and industry knowledge of professional truck drivers across the country. Drivers must be accident-free for at least one year before they can compete in a TDC. The competition has four main components: driving skills in six scenarios; equipment safety inspection; a written test on industry facts; and an oral interview to evaluate the drivers' professionalism and understanding of the role they play in the safety of the motoring public. First place winners in each state TDC are then invited to participate in the annual American Trucking Associations-sponsored National Truck Driving Championships. As part of FedEx Corp. and its family of companies, Viking Freight Inc. is the leader in providing next-day Western regional freight service. Founded in 1966, the company is headquartered in San Jose, Calif. and has more than 5,000 employees. Viking provides services through a comprehensive network of 66 service centers in the eleven Western states, including Alaska and Hawaii. Known for its EZTDBW(R) (Easy-To-Do-Business-With) customer orientation, Viking is also consistently recognized for its industry-leading on-time delivery performance record. In 1999 the company's commitment to safety was honored with the American Trucking Associations' President's Trophy for its safety record. In addition to reliability and convenient e-commerce services, Viking offers shippers value-added services such as cross-border service to Canada and Mexico. More information about Viking can be found at www.vikingfreight.com. With annual revenues of $18 billion, FedEx Corp. is the premier global provider of transportation, logistics, e-commerce and supply chain management services. The company offers integrated business solutions through a network of subsidiaries operating independently, including: FedEx Express, the world's largest express transportation company; FedEx Ground, North America's second largest provider of small-package ground delivery service; FedEx Logistics, an integrated logistics, technology and transportation-solution company; FedEx Custom Critical, the world's largest provider of expedited time-critical shipments; and FedEx Trade Networks, a provider of customs brokerage, consulting, information technology and trade facilitation solutions. More than 2.5 million customers are connected electronically through the FedEx information network and approximately two-thirds of its U.S. domestic transactions are now handled on-line. NOTE TO EDITORS: FedEx Corp. press releases are available on the World Wide Web at www.fedex.com. EZTDBW(R)is a registered trademark of Viking Freight Inc.
--30--JW/na*
CONTACT: Viking Freight Inc, San Jose
Kathy Keller, 408/323-4238
Keller-Kathy@vikingfreight.com
or
Just Marketing, Monteray
Jean E. McClymonds, 831/438-4800 ext. 2
justmktng@aol.com
KEYWORD: ARIZONA CALIFORNIA NEVADA OREGON UTAH ALASKA HAWAII
INTERNATIONAL CANADA MEXICO
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: AUTOMOTIVE TRANSPORTATION
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