Gimpel named Rookie of the Year at NTDC

In driving an 18-wheeler more than 500 miles a day in his job as a FedEx freight driver working out of the Aurora hub near Love’s, Aurora native Todd Gimpel has lots of experience and has been accident-free throughout his 20 years on the road. However, even he was a bit intimidated by having to drive a truck on the shiny concrete floors of the crowded Indianapolis Convention Center last month where he had to avoid running over rubber ducks placed in the out-of-bounds areas. Even there, though, he was able to maintain his perfect record to be named Rookie of the Year at the American Trucking Associations’ 2024 National Truck Driving Championships (NTDC). In doing so, he also came in 6th in the nation out of the 48 other drivers who had also won their state competitions in his class. 
Gimpel said last week he’s not sure why he signed up for the Nebraska truck driving competition this past May, but now he’s glad he did. He said the state competition consisted of four parts. 
“There’s a written test, an interview with a state trooper and a pre-trip inspection, and then the driving course that includes six problems to maneuver through,” he said. “Your points are based on how you do driving around that course. And I competed in the twins class, which is what I normally drive – two trailers, “doubles,” most people know it as – and I was able to win my class. And then I believe there were 30-some rookies in Grand Island in Nebraska, and I was the top of that, so I got Rookie of the Year at Grand Island as well. So the winner from each class goes to nationals which was held in Indianapolis this year. It kind of moves around, but it’s a big deal for those in the know on the trucking industry.”
Gimpel says there 48 drivers in his class – one from each state of the union except Hawaii and Vermont. He said there were a total of 422 drivers in the competition representing 66 different transportation companies and driving various sizes and classes of trucks, everything from panel delivery vans to the biggest big rigs. The contest was similar to the one he had won in Grand Island with the only difference being there was no interview at the nationals.

A new challenge
Gimpel says even after more than a million miles of driving truck over the years, the competition in Indiana was a new and nerve-wracking experience. 
“In both Grand Island and there you’d hear them talking about you on a speaker as you’re trying to do what you’re doing,” he said. “So I had to put that distraction aside.”
He said the course is laid out on the floor with road cones and yellow rubber ducks are used to mark the out-of-bounds zones.  
“There’s set marks for certain dimensions from each barricade,” he said. “The scoring zone is defined and which defined tire goes across that defined area is your score. And if you go out of bounds and hit a duck, you’re going to lose your points for that problem.”
However, Gimpel said his nerves were eased by the positive atmosphere that prevailed at the event. 
“For the most part, it’s a friendly competition,” he said. “Everybody cheers for the other people. Sure you cheer more for your company and the people you know, but it’s kind of a celebration of everybody there who is, at a minimum of the last year, accident free. Many drivers are 20 or 30 years accident free and that’s their celebration of what they’ve accomplished.”
Gimpel said there was no cash prize for his accomplishment but he said coming home with a plaque proclaiming him as the 2024 National Rookie of the Year gives him a feeling of accomplishment.

Part of an elite team
Ron Mears, a communications advisor with FedEx Corporation, said the company was proud of the performances of Gimpel and the numerous other FedEx drivers who had come away from the competition with national awards. 
“We’re very excited about Todd’s performance, as we are with all of our drivers,” Mears said. “Five of the nine driving classes were won by FedEx drivers, plus one of those five national champions was also named the grand champion. So Todd’s performance was part of a fantastic year by the FedEx team this is actually the key purpose of this initiative. It’s to really reinforce the FedEx commitment to safety of its drivers and to the motoring public. The National Truck Driving Championships offer an excellent opportunity for our drivers to demonstrate their skills and professionalism and promote the importance of safe driving. And Todd is certainly a symbol of that initiative.”
Mears went on to note that Gimpel has driven more than 1.4 million safe miles during his driving career that has spanned more than 20 years. 
“To maintain that safe driving record and to qualify is an accomplishment all its own,” he said. “And then to go out and accomplish what he did in the first year of competing... The thing is that it’s not only you being safe, but when it comes to being accident free, you cannot even have an accident that is the fault of another motorist. So it’s a challenge every year to go out on the roads and maintain that safety and to have others that you hope are just as focused on safety as you are.”
Gimpel, who grew up on a farm outside Aurora, says he is grateful for his job with FedEx which takes him five nights a week from his home in Aurora to Kansas City and back. He says after more than five years of mostly driving the same route every day he knows every pot hole between here and KC. He also recalls the stress of 2019 when, due to Missouri River flooding along I-29, he had to reroute through Kansas for a time.