EDMONTON, Alta. – Alberta’s Professional Truck Driving Championship was held in Edmonton this past weekend with winners taking home top honors in four categories.

Drivers from across the province competed in the 71st annual event, hosted by the Alberta Motor Transport Association (AMTA) at its new track and facility at the Edmonton International Airport.

“This event is an opportunity for the general public to come and see some of the best drivers out there, as they showcase their skills and proficiency,” said AMTA president Chris Nash. “Professional driving typically doesn’t get the recognition it deserves and we are proud that these folks have a day to demonstrate their highly specialized skills and what they do so exceptionally well within a demanding job.”

Winner of the Ann Taylor Award as grand champion was David Lowe of Bison Transport, who also placed first in the tandem tandem category.

The straight truck category winner was Walter Suter from Kinetic Transport. Daren Hodgkins of Bison took home first place for tandem pup, and Lonnie Wilton from Canadian Freightways was the B-train winner.

The Gerry Baptiste Teams Award went to the Bison crew made up of Hodgkins, Taz Singh, Robert Wells, Harwinder Singh Given, and Curtis Mann. The Canada Cartage team was the runner up.

Singh from Bison was also the Fred Dedels Memorial Award winner for a rookie driver.

Fifty contestants took part in the contest, which saw the 26th annual Alberta Inspectors Championship run in conjunction with the event, as well as a visit from the official Optimus Prime truck from the Transformers movies.