REPEAT DIESEL CHAMP TEACHES AT SVCC
In 2007, Bryan Lewis, Diesel Technician, was at the top of his game having won a competition as the best diesel technician in the United States. Guess what, he did it  again. Defending his title, the Wal-Mart Technician and part-time Southside Virginia Community College instructor, won the TMC SuperTech 2008 recently.
Winning for a second year in a row has placed a target on his back. Others in the competition are determined to beat him and some do not even want him to be allowed to compete again. He reached the finals this year by winning the local competition at Sutherland and placing second in the Wal-Mart Regionals in New Hampshire and also by placing second in the Wal-Mart Nationals in Arkansas.
Lewis works as a fleet supervisor for Wal-Mart Distribution Center in Dinwiddie where he maintains the tractor trailers. He holds ASE Master Truck Technician L-2 Advanced Electronic Engine Certification. He also graduated from SVCC last May with degrees in Automotive Technology with a specialty in diesel technology and plans to pursue a bachelor’s degree.
In Nashville, Lewis competed during the Fall meeting of the American Trucking Association’s Technology & Maintenance Council (TMC) “where top technicians compete to be trucking’s best.” A total of 96 technician contestants made it past the written exam to compete as finalists in the daylong schedule of 25-minute -long, hands-on skills challenges.
Besides winning the overall competition, Lewis was the winner of one of 14 Skills stations, winning the Repair Order portion. He received a trophy and placque along with an all-expense paid vacation, Snap On Tools, laptop computer and many other items. He is the contest’s first repeat grand champion.
Despite all of the glory he has received because of his skill, Lewis remains a down-to-earth kind of guy. He enjoys the country life living in Amelia County, farming, working on the family’s vehicles, his jobs and family. He and wife, Donna, have a 15-year-old daughter, Katy.
For information about learning from a real champ at the SVCC Diesel Technician Program, call the school located at Pickett Park in Blackstone at 434-292-3101.
(c) 2008. Southside Virginia Community College. All rights reserved.
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