John Culp (left) presents the Chairman’s Award to Jim Ward. (Truckload Carriers Association)
PHOENIX — More than 1,300 trucking executives and industry suppliers gathered March 15-18 for the Truckload Carriers Association’s Truckload 2025 convention to discuss their continued efforts in navigating a difficult operating environment, and to explore challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.
“Your attendance at this meeting is a testament to your resolve and the ability to navigate challenging times,” said TCA President Jim Ward. “The political landscape has taken a complete 180-degree turn, and many of us are still waiting in anticipation and doing our very best to remain on top of the weekly, if not daily, changes coming from the White House and attempting to figure out how your business is going to be impacted by Trump 2.0.”
Dennis Dellinger, CEO of Cargo Transporters and chairman of American Trucking Associations, said the pandemic highlighted the importance of TCA and ATA working together.
“As I fast forward five years, we carry with us that experience and knowledge gained, ensuring that trucking remains strong, prepared and ready for whatever comes next, whether that’s the fires in Los Angeles, the flooding in western North Carolina, or even a freight recession affecting most of our industry,” Dellinger said.
TCA’s professional drivers of the year are, from left: Walter Jackson, Toby Wallis, Perry Carter, Scott Lindsey and Gerald Rhoden. (Truckload Carriers Association)
Major topics discussed at the meeting included the economy, industry best practices and technology. The conference included a keynote speech on disruptive thinking from Jeremy Gutsche, a New York Times best-selling author and CEO of Trend Hunter, and a presentation from Emmy Award-winning mentalist Oz Pearlman. There were several carrier panel discussions and awards recognizing the hard work of individuals in the industry and the introduction of the new association chairman for the coming year.
John Culp, president of Maverick Transportation and TCA’s outgoing board chairman, presented the Chairman’s Award to Ward. Ward’s transportation career began in 1978, and he served as CEO of D.M. Bowman for 21 years before retiring in 2022.
“He enjoyed his retirement for a whole weekend before beginning his role as your association president on Monday, April 4,” Culp said, adding that Ward’s leadership has taken the association to new highs. “He has transformed our staff from the association management mentality to an energized, productive, customer-focused business machine.”
The conference included a keynote speech on disruptive thinking from Jeremy Gutsche, a New York Times best-selling author and CEO of Trend Hunter. (Truckload Carriers Association)
Shepard Dunn received the Past Chairman’s Award, one of the association’s highest honors. “This award recognizes industry leaders who have really made a significant contribution, not only to the business community and the trucking industry but also this association,” said Dave Williams, senior vice president of equipment and government relations for Knight-Swift Transportation and TCA’s immediate past chairman.
Dunn has been part of the trucking industry for more than 31 years and has served in several roles, including CEO of Best Way Express for 22 years. He also served as TCA’s 2014-2015 chairman and has been active on numerous committees. “He learned the trucking industry through his peers and has spent quite a bit of time giving back, which is a hallmark of this award,” Williams said.
TCA honored 60 Highway Angels throughout 2024, and three were selected as Elite Angels through a public vote in which more than 2,000 votes — an all-time high — were cast. “We have a lot of highway angels, and the general public doesn’t always know that, but we’re very proud at TCA to be able to have this program, and even more proud of the angels,” Culp said.
Emmy Award-winning mentalist Oz Pearlman. (Truckload Carriers Association)
Michael Dorsey of Mercer Transportation was honored for his quick action while loading his flatbed truck at an industrial park. As floodwaters from Hurricane Helene were rising, Dorsey allowed several people to take refuge on his trailer. He is credited with saving six lives.
Daljit Sohi of Triple Eight Transport saw a woman drop her purse at a rest stop and followed her and her family for three hours to return it. The purse had $1,100 in cash, a gold chain and other important personal items inside.
Jason Corino of Melton Truck Lines witnessed a road rage incident escalate into a shooting, with a driver shooting at a police officer. Corino stopped his truck to halt traffic behind him, keeping motorists out of harm’s way. Footage of the incident captured on his truck camera later was used as evidence in the investigation.
TCA also recognized five professional drivers of the year. Those drivers are: Perry Carter with Cargo Transporters, Scott Lindsey with Cheema Freightlines, Walter Jackson with Landstar, Gerald Rhoden with Stevens Transport and Toby Wallis with Freymiller. Each driver received $20,000.
The 2024 TCA Fleet Safety Award Grand Prize was awarded to Liberty Linehaul West of Montebello, Calif., in the small carrier division (total annual mileage of less than 25 million) and Nussbaum of Hudson, Ill., in the large carrier division (total annual mileage of 25 million or more).
During the conference, Ward thanked outgoing TCA Chairman Culp for his work throughout the past year. “John took the challenge and made the commitment to continue to improve upon TCA’s value proposition,” Ward said.
Culp was instrumental in TCA’s new Elite Fleet certification and benchmarking program. “John’s passion for excellence, industry knowledge and effort in contributing to this certification program will be remembered and live on for many years to come,” Ward said.
Karen Smerchek, president and owner of Veriha Trucking, will serve as TCA’s chairman for the 2025-2026 term. Smerchek has nearly 20 years of experience in the truckload sector and attended her first TCA meeting as a 21-year-old junior in college. She said a session on succession planning inspired her. Smerchek’s father founded Veriha Trucking in 1978 as a one-truck operation.
Throughout her chairmanship, Smerchek plans to focus on truck parking expansion and predatory towing reform, expanding education, championing practical sustainability, enhancing trucking’s public image, and policy improvements, including hair follicle testing.
“Stepping into the role of TCA chairman, I’m committed to ensuring that carriers and drivers have the tools, policies and support needed to succeed, from regulatory reform and infrastructure improvements to driver job satisfaction and financial sustainability,” Smerchek said.
