Want to make one of the drivers in your life feel really important? And maybe even help him and her score a cool $15,000 in cash and prizes?

The Highway Star of the Year Award is given annually to an outstanding truck driver; an owner-operator or a staff driver, it doesn’t matter which.

If you’re reading these words, you probably know (or you might even be) a person eligible to win the fabulous $15,000 worth of cash and prizes won by the Highway Star of the Year.

Ordinary drivers who live decent lives. Outstanding in their drivers’ seats and in their communities. Heroes in the eyes of the kids. Candidates can come from any part of the country. City drivers. OTR people. Married. Single.

The Highway Star of the Year contest is one of the easiest and free-est competitions you’ll ever come across and even if your candidate doesn’t win, you’ll be paying him or her a huge compliment by submitting their names.

Previous winners have included a furniture mover from Manitoba, a Miramichi owner-operator who’s an active trucker-buddy and one Quebecois driver who spends most of his time doing fund raising for local charities.

The winners are flown to the Truck World show in Toronto in April and showered with prizes and then consulted afterwards by our editors who are always looking for stellar truck drivers to interview.

Furthermore, even if you entered a candidate in past years but didn’t win, you can still do it again, this year. Like we said, it’s free and pays off in all sorts of surprising ways.

You can get a copy of the nomination form by clicking here.

The Highway Star of the Year contest is operated by Newcom Business Media, the same company that produces todaystrucking.com and Today’s Trucking and Transport Routier Magazines and owns Truck World 2012 and CamExpo.

Prizes are courtesy of Newcom in partnership with Gold Sponsors Espar and Meritor; Platinum Sponsor Freightliner; Silver Sponsor Cummins; and Association Sponsor OBAC/APRAC.