Trucker of the Month
58 OVERDRIVE APRIL 2009 L ucinda Coult er D exter Ramsey, a 35-year-old owner-operator from Atlanta, says success in the moving business relies on a simple principle: Treat others the way you want to be treated. I have old-fashioned ways, he says. Never try to get over on people, be as honest as you can, and always go out and do the best job you can. Ramsey applies the old adage to both people and property. I always handle customers' household goods as if they were mine, he says. Leased to Suddath Relocation Systems' United Van Lines, Ramsey has been moving families cross-country for 15 years. Trucking in the household business is a lot different from regular freight, because you get to interact with a lot of different people on a lot of different economic levels, he says. We move everyone from CEOs, to military person-nel, to athletes. Regardless of his customers' age or economic status, he tries to treat them the same. Everyone is a VIP in my van, he says. Paul Gleason, Suddath's vice president of operations, says he judges drivers by a simple standard. I usually rate a good van operator by whether or not I would let him move my mother, and Dexter is one driver I would let do that. Gleason says that Ramsey's aptitude for putting people at ease has helped him succeed. You have to be a friend, a counselor and a mover all at once, he says, noting that moving isn't just about property. He is a safe and caring driver. Ramsey says his parents taught him Standing beside his 2007 Kenworth W900, Dexter Ramsey is United Van Lines' Operator of the Year for 2008. Headed toward Tucson, Ariz., and Las Vegas from Atlanta with five families' household goods, he said arranging loads is like playing a Tetris game or putting a puzzle together. Golden Rule United Van Lines Operator of the Year Dexter Ramsey takes old-fashioned values to the road. BY ASHLEY VICE