Inspectors Champion Returns as Judge for 2014 Competition

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Canard, left, by John Sommers II for Transport Topics
By Michele Fuetsch, Staff Reporter

This story appears in the Aug. 11 print edition of Transport Topics.

When would-be champions ask Derek Canard, the Arkansas Highway Police corporal who won the 2013 North American Inspectors Championship, how best to approach the competition, his message is simple.

“Pay attention to detail, and do what you do every day on the side of the road,” Canard said.

Forty-nine inspectors will be competing for the top prize at this year’s competition Aug. 11-15 in Pittsburgh.



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The event is held annually in conjunction with the National Truck Driving Championships and is sponsored by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance — the state, provincial and local police agencies that enforce trucking and bus laws in North America.

Canard will be judging this year instead of competing but said one thing won’t change.

“Every year I went, I learned something new; it helped me to strengthen my skills,” said Canard, who competed several years before winning the title.

The skill strengthening is a critical part of the event, said CVSA officials, who use it to provide intensive training sessions. That benefits the agencies that paid to send the inspectors after they first won state championships.

“What they get back is a better inspector and an inspector who can now [share] the information he’s learned,” said CVSA’s president, Sgt. Thomas Fuller of the New York State Police. “So it’s a win-win scenario for the agencies.”

The relationships built during the competition won’t end when the inspectors leave Pittsburgh, Fuller said.

“When the feds write a regulation, it’s not always crystal clear; we all know that, so people like to get opinions,” he said. “Well, if I’m the champion from my jurisdiction, who’s the best person for me to call? Maybe a champion from another jurisdiction.”

“They continue on with their relationships, and they call each other and talk to each other, and they solve problems that way,” he added.

And CVSA has an underlying motive in the competition and training — promoting the uniformity that develops when jurisdictions are talking to one another, Fuller said.

“You have to look at it from a trucker’s point of view,” he said. “You drive through 20 different jurisdictions; do you want to be treated 20 different ways?”

Skilled inspectors generate “better data quality, and better data quality is what everybody’s striving for to help out companies and enforcement,” Fuller said. Good data allow law enforcement and industry to spot and correct deficiencies, he said.

Stephen Keppler, CVSA’s executive director, said that, to further strengthen inspector skills, CVSA uses real-world data when developing the competition tests.

“When we’re designing those elements, we use data and information from the field to help construct the problems,” Keppler said, “things like where we’re seeing trends in the inspection data or if we’re seeing inconsistencies.”

Jurisdiction Contestant Name Department/Agency
Alabama Justin Jones Alabama Department of Public Safety
Alaska Bill Walden Alaska Department of Transportation
Alberta Rick Smith Alberta Justice & Solicitor General
Arizona JW Watlington Arizona Department of Public Safety
Arkansas Tim Gushing Arkansas Highway Police
British Columbia Val Hunsaker British Columbia Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure
California John Werner California Highway Patrol
Colorado Rueben Romick Colorado State Patrol
Connecticut Abraham Rosario Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles
Florida Erick McGuire Florida Highway Patrol
Georgia Ryan Vicars Georgia Department of Public Safety
Idaho Gerald Stemm Idaho State Police
Illinois Paul Hentze Illinois State Police
Indiana Charles Lovins Indiana State Police
Iowa Steven J. Robinson Iowa Department of Transportation
Missouri Chris Praschak Kansas City Police Department
Kansas Nicholas Wright Kansas Highway Patrol
Kentucky Jerry Hudson Kentucky State Police
Louisiana Jarett Dobson Louisiana State Police
Maine Daniel Russell Maine State Police
Manitoba Bryan Horst Manitoba Infrastructure & Transportation
Maryland Michael Riwniak Maryland State Police
Massachusetts Stevie Browning Massachusetts State Police
Michigan Marcus Studer Michigan State Police
Mississippi Ricky Higginbottom Mississippi Department of Transportation
Nebraska Benjamin Schropfer Nebraska State Patrol
Nevada Gary Foster Nevada Highway Patrol
New Jersey John Hibschman New Jersey State Police
New Mexico James Nolen New Mexico Department of Public Safety
New York John Burris New York State Police
North Carolina J. D. Berrong North Carolina State Highway Patrol
North Dakota Josh Anderson North Dakota Highway Patrol
Nova Scotia Roderick Dykeman Nova Scotia Transportation & Infrastructure Renewal
Ohio Michael Byrne Ohio State Highway Patrol
Oklahoma Brad Mitchell Oklahoma Highway Patrol
Ontario Robert (Bud) Kneller Ontario Ministry of Transportation
Pennsylvania Brian Carpenter Pennsylvania State Police
Rhode Island John Gadrow Rhode Island State Police
South Carolina Stephen Holmes South Carolina State Transport Police
South Dakota Tommy Torok South Dakota Highway Patrol
Tennessee Charles Shaver Tennessee Highway Patrol
Texas Jeremy Usener Texas Department of Public Safety
Utah Bryce Ivie Utah Highway Patrol
Vermont Jamie Salter Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles
Washington Jeff Winslow Washington State Patrol
Wisconsin Cory Shilts Wisconsin State Patrol
Yukon Michael Kasprzak Yukon Highways & Public Works
Federal Member Miguel Galindo U.S. DOT / FMCSA
Local Member Kenneth Hopkins Mansfield Police Department