Con-way Freight’s Carl Krites Is NTDC’s Grand Champion

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Con-way Freight driver Carl Krites was named Grand Champion at the National Truck Driving Championships Saturday, beating more than 400 truck drivers in taking the title.

“It’s been a pretty overwhelming week,” Krites, a competitor from Ohio in the tank truck class, told Transport Topics after winning the title.

Krites scored higher than the 45 other drivers in the tank truck class in a written exam about the trucking industry, a pre-trip vehicle inspection and a driving skills test.

Krites, who has driven more than 3 million miles in 32 years with no chargeable accidents, also beat champions of the eight other truck classes in a class-based handicapping system in winning the top prize.

“I love going to work,” the Sydney, Ohio-based driver said. “I love what I do.”

NTDC, also called the “Super Bowl of Safety,” took place at the Greater Columbus Convention Center, and was sponsored by American Trucking Associations.

Con-way Freight is a unit of Con-way Inc., ranked No. 6 on the Transport Topics 100 listing of U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.