The 2nd Annual VRMCA Truck Roadeo was again a hugely successful event that gave professional drivers a chance to meet and fellowship with one another, as well as the opportunity to show off their expertise and knowledge regarding safe driving in the concrete industry.

The roadeo took place on November 2nd at the Richmond Raceway and was well attended with 21 drivers.

Scoring was based on three major components—a written examination covering the essentials of safety, a pretrip inspection and of course, the driving test.

The driving portion of the test was based on accuracy and speed. Drivers were penalized for knocking down cones and/or barrels and were marked accordingly.

Although the driving test is entertaining to watch, the primary goal of this event is to promote safety. The event is overseen by the VRMCA Safety Committee and all participating drivers are CDL licensed. Also, Florida Rock Industries even held an internal competition to see which of their drivers would attend the roadeo.

Steve Hobgood, of Cardinal-Virginia Concrete Company in Springfield, won first place and was awarded a $500 cash prize. He will receive an expense paid trip to the 2006 VRMCA Spring Convention, where he will be presented with a diecast mixer truck trophy.

Scott McNee of Superior Concrete in Harrisonburg took second place for the second time and received a $250 cash prize.

Two Virginia State Police Motor Carrier officers, J.E. Jones and Chip Rosemond, scored the pretrip inspections while others graciously donated their time to serve as judges. These individuals include: Phil Baumgart, Shane Sanderson, Phil Sabo, Jim Simons, Tina Harvey, Ricky Collins, Neil Logan, Todd Shenk, Sean Hurley and Jim Progar.

Tremendous gratitude is extended to the following sponsors: Boxley Materials Company, Capital Concrete, Inc., Crider & Shockey, Inc., Florida Rock Industries and Titan America.

We would also like to thank McNeal's Truck & Manufacturing, Inc. and Peterbilt of Richmond for providing the ready-mixed trucks for the competition.