In trucking, plenty of things feel urgent.
Delivery windows, traffic, weather, hours of service, and customers waiting on freight can all create pressure. But at Cypress Truck Lines, the standard is simple: no load is more important than getting there safely. In Episode 33 of the Cypress Truck Lines Podcast, Dave Penland Jr., Director of Safety Sharee DeHart, Blayze Padgett, and longtime Cypress driver Mark Angel discuss what that philosophy looks like in everyday operations.
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Why Safety Comes Before Operations at Cypress
One phrase captures the Cypress approach to safety: “We’re not hauling body parts.” The freight matters, but there is no delivery important enough to justify putting a driver or anyone else on the road at unnecessary risk.
Dave Penland Jr., Sharee DeHart, and Blayze Padgett explain why safety is not a department that operations has to work around. It is part of how Cypress operates. Decisions about weather, traffic, delivery schedules, equipment, and driver conditions all have to pass through that safety-first mindset.
In this episode, you’ll hear about:
- Why Cypress puts driver safety ahead of delivery pressure
- What “we’re not hauling body parts” means inside the company
- How safety and operations work together instead of competing with each other
- Why drivers are expected to make the safe call when conditions change
- The importance of pre-trip inspections and equipment awareness
- Why experienced drivers can be one of the best resources for newer CDL drivers
- What Mark Angel learned during more than 20 years and 2 million safe miles with Cypress
- Why safe flatbed driving involves much more than simply securing the load
Learning From 2 Million Safe Miles
The second part of the episode features Mark Angel, a longtime Cypress driver who spent more than 20 years behind the wheel and accumulated 2 million safe miles before beginning the transition into dispatch. That experience gives him a unique perspective on both what drivers face on the road and how operations can better support them.
One piece of advice stayed with Mark throughout his driving career: “It’s not what you’re hauling, it’s how you’re hauling it.” Proper securement matters, but how a driver handles the truck, traffic, road conditions, and changing situations is just as important.
Mark also encourages newer drivers to seek out veteran drivers and ask questions. Decades of safe driving experience can teach lessons that are difficult to learn from a manual alone. That willingness to pass knowledge from experienced drivers to the next generation is an important part of the safety culture at Cypress.
More Stories From Cypress Truck Lines
The Cypress Truck Lines Podcast features conversations with professional drivers, safety leaders, trainers, recruiters, operations teams, and others throughout the trucking industry.
Explore more Cypress Truck Lines Podcast episodes for real conversations about truck driving careers, flatbed trucking, home time, safety, driver training, and life on the road.
Interested in Driving for Cypress?
Whether you’re an experienced CDL-A driver interested in growing your career or a new driver looking for the right place to gain experience, Cypress Truck Lines offers several paths forward.
- Regional CDL-A Truck Driving Jobs – Explore regional flatbed driving opportunities with steady freight and regular home time.
- OTR Truck Driving Jobs – Looking to maximize your miles and earning potential? Learn more about over-the-road opportunities with Cypress.
- New CDL Driver Jobs – Just earned your CDL? See how Cypress helps newer drivers build experience, learn flatbed trucking, and start earning.
- Cypress CDL School – Don’t have your CDL yet? Cypress CDL School provides a path into professional truck driving and a career with Cypress.
Questions? Call 1-800-545-1351 to speak with a recruiter.