In this episode, Ray welcomes back technician training program students Diesel and Chris as they compare and contrast the advantages of attending a traditional college compared with a tech school.

Two Truck Country technician training program students come from opposite ends of the age spectrum. Diesel, 19, entered the training program fresh after graduating high school. Meanwhile, Chris, 53, took a detour on his way to the program, initially pursuing a career as an airplane pilot and other opportunities before making his way to the Truck Country team.
In this episode, host Ray Clark visits with the men about the similarities — and differences —they learn coming from different age perspectives.

Ray, along with his colleague Jolene, celebrated National Apprenticeship Week by welcoming a members of Truck Country's apprenticeship program. Trey H., from our Dubuque dealership, and Cesar H., from our Hampshire location, talk about their experiences as part of the program.

Truck Country's Technical Training Program's newest class members have come from far and wide to join the company. Class members range in age from 18 to 52 and come from all walks of life with diverse backgrounds. The students have done everything from completing maintenance work on U.S. Army Blackhawk helicopters to fixing scuba diving equipment in Guam and flying airplanes. One class member didn't even apply to work for the company but still has found his way to the apprenticeship program.

Get to know our new training group and learn about their early impressions of the program in the latest episode of "More Than Just Trucks."

Ray's not pulling any punches! As diesel repair shops struggle to fill technician positions, it is not a good time to take a passive approach when recruiting future staff members, podcast host Ray Clark says.

Ray, joined by guest Jay Goninen, co-founder and president of WrenchWay, puts out a call to shops everywhere to be more proactive in engaging with students enrolled in tech programs but also local high schools and middle schools.

The recruiting season is always open in the trucking and transportation industry! Recently, Truck Country and Stoops training programs welcomed newcomers to their diesel tech training classes with cool events at their facilities. The programs welcomed new "recruits" by hosting Apprentice Signing Day events, where newcomers to the three-year program were invited to ink their contracts in a similar style to how often college athletes sign their letters of intent.

The latest episode of "More Than Just Trucks" provides an overview of the training programs and talks about the hoopla surrounding the contract signings. Josh Jorgenson fills in as guest host, but you'll find our usual host, Ray Clark, on the other side of the microphone. As Truck Country and Stoops' training director, Ray, and Todd Trentz, an instructor and developer for Truck Country's program, give an overview of the three-year program. Matt Schanze, a new Truck Country program student, also shares his thoughts.

For more info about the training programs, email RayClark@truckcountry.com.

"More Than Just Trucks" kicks off 2023 by looking back at 2022. This month, Ray is joined by Jim Connely, Truck Country/Stoops' marketing director, as they recap the trucking and transportation industries, as well as other world news and pop culture.

Following up on last month's discussion about making diesel careers appealing for ladies, Ray visits with a panel of women who have found careers in the shop. Our panel discusses what attracted them to become technicians, their personal experiences in the shop, and how they are perceived by their coworkers.
Panelists for this episode are:
• Melissa Petersmann, aka The Diesel Queen, is a social media influencer who previously was a heavy equipment technician for John Deere.
• Courtney Sturman joined the Truck Country - North Chicago team in March 2021. A proud new parent, Sturman is currently enrolled in Truck Country's technician training program.
• Sevy Carter has been a member of the Stoops Freightliner-Quality Trailer's Anderson team since November 2021. Sevy is a new biker, taking up the hobby this year. She is also a member of the Stoops' tech training program.

(Marked as Explicit for language.)