For Immediate Release
July 10, 2003
Contact: Nancy O'Liddy, Director of Public Affairs
703/838-1950
or noliddy@truckload.org
Riders for Drivers
Tour Raises Funds For PTDI
TCA Applauds Carrier Transicold's Commitment to Truck
Driver Training
Alexandria, Virginia – The Truckload Carriers Association
(TCA) today lauded the motorcycle enthusiasts of Carrier
Transicold who just completed another successful
fundraiser for the Professional Truck Driver Institute (PTDI) through their "Riders
for Drivers Tour." Since the event's founding, it has generated nearly
$30,000 to support PTDI programs.
The three-day motorcycle tour, a mix of fun and philanthropy,
was born in 1999 when Carrier Transicold realized how many
Carrier customers shared a love of
motorcycles. Conceived as a fun – and unique – event, the Riders
for Drivers Tour began as a prelude to the TCA Refrigerated Division Annual Meeting
that year in Vail, Colorado.
But having a fun, unique event wasn't enough. Carrier Transicold also wanted
to make the ride a sponsorship to benefit a worthy cause, and found one in the
Professional Truck Driver Institute – North America's foremost advocate
of truck driver training and certification standards. "The ability to recruit,
train, and retain drivers is a major concern in our industry," said Travis
Smith, event organizer and Carrier Transicold's manager of dealer development. "Supporting
PTDI made perfect sense, and it presented a great way for us to team with our
dealers and customers to share our enthusiasm for motorcycling."
This year's tour, from Oakland, Calif., to the TCA Refrigerated Division
Annual Meeting in Lake Tahoe, drew 40 participants for a ride that included some
of the country's most breathtaking sights.
Robert Hirsch, President of TCA, thanked Carrier Transicold,
saying, "Without
the support of industry suppliers like Carrier Transicold, PTDI could not continue
the important task of developing driver-training standards and certifying courses
to ensure the availability of professional truck drivers in the future."
TCA is the only national trade association whose collective
sole focus is the truckload segment of the motor carrier industry.
The association represents dry van, refrigerated, flatbed,
and intermodal container carriers operating in the 48 contiguous
states as well as Alaska, Mexico, and Canada. Representing operators of over 200,000 trucks, which collectively produce an annual revenue of over $20 billion, TCA is an organization tailored to specific truckload carrier needs.
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