Dave Miller is planning a road trip to Pittsburgh, Pa., later this summer.The professional tractor-trailer driver, who was featured in a Beacon News story last week, won first place over the weekend in the Illinois Professional Truck Driving Championship, hosted at Joliet Junior College.
The event, sponsored by the Illinois Trucking Association, involved 132 drivers from 13 companies who have accumulated 35 million miles of accident-free driving.
Miller, a St. Charles resident, said he practiced extra hard this year, and was confident going into the competition.
"A few of us got together on the weekends and built our own (competitive) course to practice. The more you practice, the better you compete," he said.
The course for the Illinois Professional Truck Driving Championship consisted of six driving problems demanding skill and persistence.
On one of the courses, drivers were required to parallel park a 53-foot trailer within 57 feet of space and be within 18 inches of the curb, Miller said he came within 5 inches of the curb.
Miller is a driver for Yellow Roadway Corp. in Montgomery and has accumulated 1.5 million accident-free miles in his 25 years as a professional driver.
Miller has previous state wins and has finished in second place in national competition in the past, so he has some idea what to expect for the American Trucking Association's National Truck Driving Championships Aug. 18-22.
"Now we're off to the Super Bowl of trucking," he said.
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