No Room for Error
The oil companies appear to be the culprits this time around, but they're just trying to maintain their (substantial) profit margins. Are you doing the same?

Training That Pays Is Worth the Cost
Moral support is not exactly automatic for a prospective driver, but Alberta's Professional Driver Certificate program helped sway the people in Chris Buller's world.

My Little Secret
This month's question: I suspect I might have sleep apnea, but I'm nervous about asking my doctor about it. If the doctor finds that I do have sleep apnea, can she suspend my license on medical grounds until it's successfully treated?

Snapshot Dale Hadland takes home the prize This year's Highway Star of the Year award was open to company drivers for the first time, but when the judging was done, owner-operator Dale Hadland earned the nod. A resident of Beachville, Ont., he's been an owner-operator for 23 years and currently works with International Freight Systems (IFS) in Tilbury, Ont. With more than two million accident-free miles behind him, he's a steel hauler, running primarily into the Great Lake states of Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. He's very involved in his community, which is what the Highway Star of the Year award is all about. "He's always there when we need him," his wife Kris says of Dale's commitment to his family and his community. "He's always there when anybody needs him – not just us. He always does his best to give back what he can." For instance, for the past three years Dale's been in the Top 10 fund raisers for the Ontario division of World's Longest Truck Convoy for Special Olympics. He also donates a great deal of time to his church, and in September of 2006, he and his son Dexxter went to Peru on a mission to help build a church. Dale paid his own way. Kris calls Dale a conscientious professional who puts safety above all. He's been an active participant in the co-op insurance company at IFS, as well as serving on its safety committee, and was recently elected to be on the company's board of directors.

In the Magazine You'll find these and other stories in the highwaySTAR print magazine this month. Available at your favourite truckstop. New Brunswick body-builders turn a Pete into a suite. Can't I Just Turn it Upside Down and Whack it? Why 24-hour restaurant service is getting hard find in Canada.