Dedicated driver adds to growing list of accolades

By Robert Williams

Editor

Jack Pate, of rural Motley, recently surpassed a very significant milestone with Daggett Truck Line by hitting the 4,000,000-mile mark in July. Amazingly, all of those miles are accident-free, according to Daggett General Manager Erik Anderson.  ¶  Based out of the Frazee terminal, Pate began his career with Daggett Truck Line in 1997 and has consistently managed to accrue 150,000 miles per year since then. By way of comparison, the moon is roughly 238,900 miles from earth. Another approximation is driving 4,000,000 miles is like driving around the circumference of the earth 160 times.  

¶  When told those distances, Pate just laughed.  ¶  “It might sound cliché, but I’m just doing my job, you know?” said Pate. “I love driving. I always have.”  ¶  Pate is a native of Ohio growing up 12 miles from downtown Cincinnati. After high school, he joined the Army when he was 20 and met his first wife who was from Minnesota. Both were military policemen and after finishing their service they moved to Minnesota.  ¶  “It was cool; I did a lot of neat stuff,” Pate said.

Pate served four months in Honduras, was on a security detail at a NATO conference in Monterey, did security for DEA controlled burns, worked security during a visit for the Pope, and was fortunate to not face combat during his time served.

“When I was in basic training that was when everything was going on with Khadafi and we were bombing them from 1986-89,” he said.

The couple married and moved to Ohio for a year, before transitioning to Minnesota in 1990.

“What are we going to do?” said Pate. “We needed a change of scenery.”

Pate’s first job was at Madden’s Resort before moving to Seafest where he worked for seven years.

“Seeing the trucks come in and out and talking to Daggett drivers I kind of got hooked up,” he said. “That’s how it all transpired. Daggett’s trained me and they’ve treated me very well. They’re family and I’m one of the senior drivers now. I run to the east coast every week and I’ve been going out there for the better part of 20 years.”

Over the years, Pate and his truck have cruised through many large metropolitan areas, including New York City.

“That was a learning experience,” he said. “A lot of that, for me, it honed my skills and reminded you what it was from here to there. It’s not as hectic.”

After nearly three decades behind the wheel, driving has also become less hectic in the transformation of trucks during that time.

“They’re world’s apart,” he said. “In ‘97, I started out in a cabover and my first four or five trucks were cabovers.”

A cabover truck, also known as a cab over engine, is a truck with a flat front and a cab that sits directly above the front axle.

“When I finally got to a cabover that had the cutouts behind the seats where you could stand up, I can remember one of the guys here in the office say, ‘we need to do some training.’ He’s like, “Well, I have to show you how to stand up and put your pants on!’ Instead of just laying down to put them on, and of course, the ride. These trucks are like Cadillacs compared to the old ones.”

Pate was one to hang out with the older drivers during the early days of his career to learn the ropes.

“One of the guys that is retired now, we talk every Tuesday night. He’s in his 80’s and he always talks about the old trucks. Yeah, Ford with a bucket on it, that type of thing,” Pate said. “These trucks now are so much quieter, so much of a nicer ride and they’re just world’s apart.”

When Pate moved to his first conventional truck, he started with a short wheel base and progressively moved to longer trucks.

“Instead of just going from a cabover to what we’re driving now,” he said. “I had a transition there, which was nice.”

As a kid, Pate had two professions he wanted to pursue.

“I wanted to be a cop or a truck driver,” he said.

Poor eyesight without his glasses negated his chance at working for the police in Ohio so he eventually jumped on board with Daggett.

At 58, Jack plans to continue hauling for another decade.

“I figure I have about nine more years,” he said. 

Over the years, Pate has accumulated 1,000,000 miles in just under seven years.

“Hopefully, if everything keeps going as it goes, I’ll have my fifth million by the time I’m 65,” he said. “I probably do close to 300,000 a week.”

An obvious question is how do you stay awake driving all those miles. Pate readily admits when he and his wife Sheila take road trips back to Ohio in a car he might make it to Indiana before he is done. He tried caffeine pills and other tricks early in his career but the big secret is the job itself.

“For me, it’s the responsibility of the truck,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s adrenaline. You’re in a truck with everybody around you.”

Which is why Pate sticks to running east. On a recent run to Denver he described the drive as “boring.”

“I like the hustle and bustle; it keeps me alert,” he said.

Pate is not the first driver to hit 4 million miles for Daggett Truck Line, but he is likely going to be the first one to hit 5 million.

“If I’m not mistaken, I think there are guys who have worked here that got 4.5 or 4.8, so that’s kind of my personal goal,” he said. “All these goals are kind of personal. I’m striving for me. In life, you set goals and when I hit that first million I was like ‘all right’ and then I hit my second.”

“We are extremely proud to have him behind the wheel of a Daggett Truck,” said Anderson.

This past summer, Jack asked for his miles count to see how close he was to 4 million. 

“They gave me a rough number, like I had 40,000 to go, so I figured August, maybe September,” he said. “We got to talking in July and I was going on vacation in August. I thought I could hit it before vacation.”

He got a much more precise measurement.

“He was like let’s see, you needed 5,000 miles starting in July and I had already got that,” said Pate. “That’s pretty anticlimactic!”

Aside from reaching distant milestones, Jack has also accumulated some of the most coveted driving awards during his career.

In 2017, he was awarded the Minnesota Trucking Association’s coveted “Driver of the Year” award for his commitment to safety and excellence. In 2021, Pate was awarded the National Association of Small Trucking Companies “Driver of the Year” award at their annual conference in Nashville. However, like most people who are awarded for their efforts at work, why he does the job and enjoys it has nothing to do with trophies or recognition.

“I guess I would honestly have to say it’s the relationships I’ve made at all the different places, because I go to the same places and I get to know the people and kind of get to know their story, so to speak,” he said. 

When he gets back to Minnesota, it’s about being around people that mean something to him as well. People who provide a respite from all the alone time in the truck cab.

“My wife always gives me a bunch of crap when I get home,” Pate said. “I go out with my buddy I hang out with and she asks me why I don’t just stay home. I’m by myself all week. I need that interaction when I’m home.”

Jack and Sheila have six kids. The couple lives in rural motley on their own 40 acres and when Pate isn’t on the road, you’ll find him spending quality time with his family, cheering on his beloved Ohio State Buckeyes, and definitely fishing on one of his secret lakes.