2010 Bristol: Jason Leffler NASCAR Nationwide Race Preview

Jason Leffler sporting the color of the Irish at Bristol Motor Speedway

Leffler returns to the seat of the No. 10 ABF Camry this weekend at "Thunder Valley." During the 2010 season, Leffler will spend his time piloting Braun Racing’s No. 10 Camry (eight races) and No. 38 Camry (27 races), competing in a full schedule and making a run for the 2010 driver championship. Leffler and his crew, including crew chief, Scott Zipadelli, will remain together for all 35 races, despite the swapping of car numbers and sponsors.

Over the last couple of years, the Long Beach, Calif.-native has proven himself as a solid contender at the "World’s Fastest Half-Mile." In his last five starts at the famed track, Leffler has one top-five and four top-10 finishes. Additionally, he has one pole to his credit (fall, 2008) and a total of 81 laps led. Full Story......

U.S. Recession Taking Toll on ABF

ABF Freight System, like all freight companies, is doing its best to weather the worst operating period it has ever experienced. ABF, with a reputation as one of the best and most efficient motor carriers in the LTL industry, has suffered an unprecedented drop in shipments and revenues since late 2008 coinciding with the near collapse of the entire U.S. economy.

Due to prudent business decisions throughout its growth as a Teamster-represented carrier, ABF has been able to survive the throes of this recession because it carried little debt on its books and always maintained adequate cash reserves. In contrast, YRC Worldwide, Inc. had very high levels of debt and very little cash reserves to weather the drop in freight volumes and aggressive pricing environment. Full Story....

YRC Worldwide reports a fourth-quarter profit on $194M debt-redemption gain

YRC Worldwide Inc. swung to a fourth-quarter profit, although the number got help from a one-time gain tied to the company’s successful debt-for-equity swap, the company said in a regulatory filing late Tuesday.

The Overland Park-based trucking and logistics company in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing reported earning $119.5 million, or $1.64 a share, during the three months ending Dec. 31. By comparison, the company lost $244.9 million, or $4.15 a share, during the same period a year before. Full Story.....

National security jitters have trucking firms focusing on vigilance

Driving to work one morning, the government official charged with keeping the trucking industry safe from terrorists spotted an Osama bin Laden look-alike on the Capital Beltway.

The tall, bearded, white-robed foreigner tending to a stalled Toyota on the American Legion Memorial Bridge, the official later learned from police, was just a Sikh fixing a flat tire.

But Bill Arrington, general manager of the Transportation Security Administration's Office of Highway and Motor Carrier, said he felt pretty good about calling the cops with his suspicions. "What if that bridge had been blown up and I had done nothing?"

Speaking to transportation professionals at the Traffic Club of Memphis last week, Arrington brought to the forefront the TSA's largely advisory efforts to ward off terrorist threats to commercial transportation. Full Story......