National Mixer Driver Championship

Drivers from Maschmeyer Concrete Co. and Rinker Materials Corp. in Florida, and Concrete Company of Springfield (Mo.), took the inaugural National Mixer

Don Marsh

Drivers from Maschmeyer Concrete Co. and Rinker Materials Corp. in Florida, and Concrete Company of Springfield (Mo.), took the inaugural National Mixer Driver Championship, October 15-16, in Orlando. The competition proved the highlight of the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association’s 2006 Operations, Environmental and Safety (OES) Forum and Expo. Co-located with the group’s annual Business Administration Conference, the event drew a record 500-plus attendees over an October 14-17 schedule.

Michael Hennekam of Rinker’s Cocoa, Fla., plant took first place and a $2,500 prize in the mixer competition, followed by Conco’s Kenneth Blair (second place, $1,000) and Maschmeyer/Lake Park’s Tony Jackson (third place, $500). They and 26 counterparts from 27 producers competed in a program involving a two-hour written exam; walk-around visual mixer safety inspection; and, seven-station obstacle course set up in a parking area of the Buena Vista Palace Hotel at Disney World. All drivers were recognized at an October 16 awards dinner marked with repeated standing ovations.

The OES Committee opened the competition to member company drivers and applicants from mixer truck rodeo or similar competitions staged by NRMCA-affiliated state associations. Drivers could compete in their choice of rear or front discharge mixer models provided by Continental Mfg., McNeilus Cos. and Schwing America. The OES Committee and NRMCA Truck Mixer Manufacturers Bureau plan a similar competition for the 2007 Forum & Expo, with dates and venue soon to be announced.