2010
Robert Valdivia DSR, XKC
Driver Sales Representative Robert “Bobby V” Valdivia entered the professional driving field in a bit of a roundabout manner. He started out working in construction, where driving a truck was part of the job. After three years in the industry and with a growing family at home, he decided to pursue professional driving as his full-time career.
Bobby started out driving the night line-haul shift for Con-way Freight, which he did for years. While working nights does have its challenges, Bobby said he is grateful for the job, which helped him put all three of his daughters through college. Now with his daughters grown and gone, Bobby has recently found himself working days, which he is really enjoying.
“It’s a nice change of pace for me to drive days,” said Bobby. “Nights are good too, because the traffic is much lighter, which I like. But now that I’m on days, I’m finding that I have more time to do things like yard work or watching movies at night. By having had the chance to work both shifts, I feel like I’ve gotten to experience the best of both worlds.”
Bobby says being patient and having a relaxed attitude is the key to maintaining a safe driving record and reaching two million miles accident-free. He also says that defensive driving is extremely important.
“I think it’s a matter of just getting along with the motoring public,” said Bobby. “As I got older, and especially when I reached one million miles of safe driving, I noticed that I became more of a defensive driver.”
He also adds that motorists need to view driving as a way to get safely from one point to another, not as a competition or a race,
“If you’re out here with an attitude, or not paying attention, you can easily have an accident,” he said. “It’s obviously never your intention to have one, but that’s why they call them accidents! So my advice to all drivers is to just slow down, calm down and pay attention.”
Bobby says another way he stays accident-free is by being well-rested and starting each shift with a good attitude.
“It’s important to be in a positive frame of mind before you get behind the wheel,” said Bobby. “I also make sure I get plenty of sleep, exercise and eat a balanced diet, which I believe does factor into safe driving. Good health makes your mind more alert and helps make you a better driver.”
While talking about himself and his achievement is not Bobby’s favorite activity, he does say that he is happy to have reached the two-million-mile mark.
“I’m proud, but I also am just a man who comes to work every day and tries to do my job, which is to deliver goods safely and accident-free,” said Bobby. “However, I talked with my wife about this, and she said I need to really acknowledge and appreciate this award, because it is a milestone. Maybe if I’m still around and not retired, I can go for three million miles. That would mean a lot to me.”
A resident of Kansas City, Mo., Bobby is based out of Con-way Freight’s Kansas City, Kan., service center. He has been married for 33 years to his wife, Teresa, and has three children: Jennifer, 32; Katherine, 31; and Megan, 25. He enjoys riding motorcycles in his spare time.
