What does a retired champion professional truck driver do when he wants to give back to his profession?
For Dick Gillespie — 13-time Minnesota Truck Driving Champion, seven-time National Truck Driving Champion, two-time Grand National Champion and captain of the 1992 America’s Road Team — the answer is teach.
At 56, he no longer plies his trade behind the wheel of a tractor-trailer on the open road. Rather, he instructs the next generation of professional truck drivers. Now retired, Gillespie teaches part-time at Dakota Technical College in Rosemount, Minn., passing along the wisdom garnered over 35 years and 3 million miles of operating commercial vehicles.
“The industry was really good to me, and this is one way I feel I can repay the industry,” he said. “I want to help out in any way I can to train as many drivers as I can.”
For the full story, see the Mar. 20 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.