IDAHO NATIONAL TRANSPORTER Idaho
Transportation
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Newcomers surge to the top at state Roadeo In a sense, it was a changing of the guard… several new drivers emerged as top performers at the state" roadeo" competition recently held at the Shoshone/Twin Falls maintenance shed in District 4. Six district roadeos and the culminating state finals test the knowledge and skills of ITD equipment operators. Pete McGuire of District 4 and Mike Allen of District 2 earned trips to the national competition this fall in Colorado, and Martin Meyers of District 3 trailed close behind in third. Meyers would fill in at the 2008 Western Snow and Ice Conference in Estes Park, Colo., if McGuire or Allen is unable to compete. The western finals will be Sept. 22-26 in the shadows of the Rocky Mountains. Of the three tops finishers, only Allen won at the district level. McGuire and Meyers both finished second in their respective district roadeos. McGuire, who works out of the Shoshone maintenance facility, narrowly edged Allen for the state title. He finished with 3,218 points, followed closely by Allen, a foreman in District 2’s Dworshak Dam maintenance area, who scored 3,208. Meyers, of the Mountain Home maintenance area, amassed 3,163 points. A perfect score in diagnosing equipment problems and operating a grader and front-end loader would have been 3,575 points, explains Rex Hufford, an equipment analyst at Headquarters who coordinates the annual events. “I want to express my appreciation by saying thank you to everyone who volunteered their time to make the 2008 roadeo season special again,” Hufford said. Robin Freeman and colleague Mike Praegitzer represented Idaho at the snow and ice conference last fall and combined to finish second among 47 competitors in the tandem axle Snowplow Truck event behind a team from Delaware. They were also 18th in the single axle snowplow truck competition. The national conference typically draws more than 750 participants from throughout the country.
* Denotes foreman
Note: Rick Carpenter represented Leon Thornton from District 6 at the state roadeo; Kevin Steele represented Ron Dammon at the state roadeo. - - - - - Photo: Pete McGuire of District 4 accepts the plaque representing his emergence as the 2008 ITD state 'Roadeo' Winner. Published 6-20-8 |