Road Warrior grand prize winner presented with $25,000
Pilot Flying J announced Liz Leon of Victorville, Calif., a driver for 4Gen Logistics, as the 2024 Road Warrior grand prize winner.
Leon, a professional driver of more than 19 years, was presented with a $25,000 check in October during a surprise presentation featuring family members, colleagues and Pilot representatives in Rialto, Calif.
“I love driving. I love every single day; it’s so different … I love my family so much,” Leon, who was nominated by her daughter, said in a video posted on a Pilot’s X page.
Throughout her trucking career, Leon has accumulated an average of 100,000 crash-free miles per year and has received recognition for her efforts from the California Trucking Association, Pilot Flying J said in a news release.
“Congratulations to this year’s Road Warrior, Liz Leon, who stood out among the many deserving drivers we read about during the contest,” said Jordan Spradling, vice president of transportation and logistics at Pilot.
For the first time in 2024, Pilot also selected four $1,000 winners every week in September during the Road Warrior nomination period. In addition to Leon, those weekly winners were:
- Herschel Evans, Bremen, Ga. – Evans has more than 38 years of professional truck driving experience and has driven 3.5 million crash-free miles. He is involved in numerous charities, including Atlanta Ride for Kids, Convoy of Care and Safety Driver for a Cure.
- Joe Mondor, Grand Forks, N.D. – Mondor has driven more than 4.5 million crash-free miles during his 33 years as a professional driver. He is recognized by his peers as a true professional, safety leader and mentor.
- Roy Prentice, Reno, Nev. – Prentice has been a professional driver for more than three decades and has accumulated more than 3 million crash-free miles. He’s known for his passion for helping others in the community as well as his fellow drivers out on the road.
“We appreciate all the nominations and stories of drivers like Liz, Herschel, Joe and Roy, who show up day in and day out, put in countless hours and miles and embody everything we value at Pilot,” Spradling said.
As part of this year’s nomination process, Pilot utilized its social medial channels and held promotions during Truck Driver Appreciation Week and throughout September.
Pilot says on its website that it established the Road Warrior contest to recognize the most determined, dedicated and hardworking professional drivers who go the extra mile to keep the nation moving.
Past Road Warrior winners include Don Crouse, Dave Sweetman, Eric Curlett and Eric Britton.
More information about previous Pilot Flying J Road Warrior winners, including OOIDA members, is available on the company’s website.
As the largest network of travel centers, Knoxville, Tenn.-based Pilot has nearly 900 locations in 44 states and six Canadian provinces, serving an average of 1.2 million guests per day. LL