RALEIGH – Fourteen N.C. Department of Transportation employees have been recognized as the agency's best at operating heavy equipment and earned an opportunity to compete against their peers from across the Southeast.
The winners of the state's annual Equipment Operators Safety Training Conference and “Roadeo" held at the N.C. State Fairgrounds in Raleigh on June 20 will travel to Mississippi in September in the regional event.
Competitors are judged for their skills and dexterity at maneuvering heavy equipment such as dump trucks and tractor backhoes through tight obstacle courses. The competition mirrors the situations heavy equipment operators face on the job regularly. New this year was a crane maneuverability event.
The statewide competition marked the final leg of a journey that began with competitions held in each of the 14 divisions that comprise the NCDOT. The winners of each event went on to compete in Raleigh, with an all-time high of 92 participants from nearly 60 counties.
The goals of the event include helping NCDOT workers advance their skills, emphasizing the importance of safety when operating heavy equipment, fostering a sense of team spirit and recognizing employees who excel at their jobs.
The overall winner was Division 4, which includes Edgecombe, Halifax, Johnston, Nash, Wayne, and Wilson counties. Division 11, which includes counties in the Boone area, and Division 12, comprised of counties north and west of the Charlotte area, tied for second.
Below is a list of first and second-place individual winners who will travel to the regionals Sept. 17-19 in Biloxi, Miss.
Single Axle: First place, Benjie Caldwell, Division 13 (Madison Co.); second place, Allen Williams, Division 8 (Moore Co.).
Double Axle: First place, Keith Wrench, Division 6 (Harnett Co.); second place, Kyle Sanders, Division 4, (Johnston Co.).
Backhoe: First place, David Brown 12 (Lincoln Co.); second place, Cliff Jenkins, Division 4 (Wilson Co.).
Crane: First place, Chris Baldwin, Division 7 (Alamance Co.); second place, Larry Flowers, Division 14 (Cherokee Co.).
Lowboy: First place, Wayne Boone, Division 4, (Nash Co.); second place, Travis Price, Division 7 (Rockingham Co.).
Motor Grader: First place, Daniel Evans, Division 4 (Nash Co.); second place, Kerry Mabe, Division 11 (Alleghany Co.).
Tractor Mower: First place, Russell Wagoner, Division 11; (Wilkes Co.) second place, Rocky Millsap, Division 12 (Alexander Co.).