Image Matters
Image matters. It can take a lifetime to build a positive image. That image can be destroyed in a split second. One thousand trucks may interact with a motorist perfectly. One truck can bully tailgate. Those thousand trucks are not remembered.. That one is. Image matters when it comes to how we are treated. When someone leaves their disgusting trash behind in a parking lot we can lose the privilege of parking there. It matters that you or I might gather a few grocery carts from the truck parking area, and properly place them in cart corrals. It matters that we might pick up a little bit of trash from the area. It is remembered when someone leaves their most disgusting trash behind.
Last May, I wrote a blog called “What a Weekend”. All over the country truckers were running marathons 
and half marathons. Bill Baker won his age group. For all of us who come up with excuses why we can't exercise, remember that Bill found enough to time to train for and win his age group in a marathon. There is this photo that Beth Zelten took of her husband Kenn. They run team together. The photo is of Kenn running seemingly all alone in Lambeau Field on his way to finishing his first marathon. To me that is the image of a trucker that should be remembered.
This month the trucking industry will gather at the Mid America Truck Show in Louisville, KY. MATS is an 
annual celebration of all things trucking. Manufacturers big and small will show off their latest innovations. Engineers will beam as they unveil the latest in technology. Truckers will judge whether or not they will stand up to the ultimate test, real life. Organizations like OOIDA will be there in full force. OOIDA is working together with their natural enemy, the American Trucking Association, and others on way to improve the image of the professional driver because a positive image helps all of us.
Sure there will be tasteless radio stunts like the first annual Road Hog eating contest. Competitors will vie to see who can eat the most White Castle hamburgers in a limited amount of time. Some in the industry seem to revel in the image of the professional driver as a “Road Hog”. At the same time, the Trucking Solutions Group will be hosting its annual health walk. The Trucking Solutions Group represents a heightened image of the professional driver. That radio stunt is about as much about professional drivers as the so called safety groups are actually about safety.
It is my sincere hope that the lasting image of M..A.T. S. will come from groups like the Trucking Solutions Group, OOIDA, and the ATA who are presenting a positive image of the professional driver. While I worry that the Road Hog will leave a lasting impression, it is up to all of us to press on. Picture yourselves as Kenn Zelten. Keep moving forward and present a positive image. There is no stopping us that believe in the positive image of the professional driver.