SamTrans bus operators and mechanics faced off in the local bus roadeo competition held recently in South San Francisco.

Bus operator Edwin Freeman of South San Francisco came in first place with 607 points out of a possible 650. This is the ninth time that Freeman has won the local competition, a SamTrans record.

Bus operator Rodrigo Eguilos of San Mateo came in second place with 593 points, followed by Ariel Hale of Pacifica with 572 points.

The event is the first step to the annual American Public Transportation Association’s international roadeo, which will be held in May in Seattle.

Bus roadeos provide an incentive for front-line transportation providers to hone their skills, setting the bar for safe driving practices ever higher. Drivers must maneuver a 30,000-pound bus smoothly through 11 challenges on a timed-course. Each operator leaves the starting line with 650 points and points are deducted for making errors or taking longer than the allotted seven minutes. Competitors also are judged on how smoothly they drive the bus.

Freeman, Eguilos and Hale will represent SamTrans Oct. 18 at the Northern California Regional Bus Roadeo, which SamTrans will host. Scores from the local and regional roadeos will be combined to determine which SamTrans operator will compete in the international roadeo.

On the maintenance side, teams made up of three mechanics were challenged to trouble-shoot a “bugged” bus and ace a written test. The top scoring team was Greg Reschke of San Mateo, Ashok Singh of Fremont and Gary Cox of Tracy. They will compete in the Northern California Regional Bus Roadeo and then proceed to the international roadeo.

In other competitive divisions, Mechanic Jaime Gonzales of Vallejo finished first in the maintenance driver competition. Instructors Bernardo Hernandez of San Mateo and Ron Jordan of Menlo Park came in first and second place, respectively, in the instructor division. Arthur Shull of San Francisco was named Rookie of the Year.

The roadeo also included a competition of operators from MV Transportation, the district’s contract operator. In that competition, Andres Garner of San Jose came in first place.

The SamTrans Bus Roadeo is dedicated to former veteran employee James V. Castagno. Castagno began his career with SamTrans as a mechanic and, at the time of his death, had worked his way up through the ranks to a senior management position.

For more information about Caltrain and SamTrans schedules and fares, call 1-800-660-4287 (TTY 650-508-6448)

09/3/08 - msk
Media Contact: Mary Knuckles, 650-508-6356