Entry Details

About the Entry

Category: 
All Content > Individual Profile > Mid Atlantic

Title of entry: 
Veteran XPO driver navigates trucking’s daily challenges with ease

Issue or Publication date:
3/1/2024

Publication name: 
Trucking Dive

View Website home page:
https://www.truckingdive.com/

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Entry URL(s), if applicable:
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https://www.truckingdive.com/news/xpo-driver-steadman-steve-mitchell-truck-ride-maryland-deliveries/709049/

Entry Essay: 
Steadman “Steve” Mitchell's colleagues say the XPO truck driver is unflappable, dependable and safe. Trucking Dive Senior Reporter Colin Campbell’s profile shows it from the first sentence, when Mitchell taps his brakes, unfazed, as a pickup truck cuts off the driver during a ride-along in Maryland.

The story, "Veteran XPO driver navigates trucking’s daily challenges with ease," invites readers into Mitchell's passenger seat for a ride to show one exemplary driver's day.

But the way Campbell tells it — with an artful combination of prose, images and color — makes the story pack a punch far above its weight, showing Trucking Dive's executive readers exactly how broader industry trends can affect their drivers daily.

"To make it home safe is a big deal to me," Mitchell told Campbell.

Driving a truck is a tough job in a tough industry, where any one accident could become fatal. Even after 30 years of experience, Mitchell is grateful to avoid an accident every day, Campbell shows.

But importantly, he also shows how the trucking industry could treat drivers better.

Mitchell told Campbell he wished he could bring his dog on the ride. While casual readers may see it as a fun line, it's a telling quote for executives — after all, Trucking Dive has reported several cases of companies seeing driver retention improve after allowing pets in trucks.

The Mitchell profile also opened doors with some industry sources. After reading about Mitchell, more companies were willing to consider giving Campbell access to drivers.

Within Trucking Dive, Campbell is one of the foremost advocates for the power of in-person reporting. If Trucking Dive's mission is to serve executive readers in the industry, he argues, it is the publication's duty to see how workers are experiencing and handling challenges.

As a result, in early 2024, he got the team to commit to prioritizing more frequent site visits. The strategic vision has resulted in several landmark pieces and reporting trips, including the ride with Mitchell, and source feedback applauding Trucking Dive's willingness to get in the trenches.

For Campbell, the most meaningful praise came later in the year, during a different ride-along with Jesse Weeks, an A. Duie Pyle driver.

The profile of Mitchell captured the essence of a day in the life of a truck driver, Weeks told Campbell after reading the story on a lunch break.