From 8 Horses to 100 Years in Trucking

What is your name and what do you do for a living? Michael Lombard, and I work full-time. I'm the partner development manager at Truck Parking Club. Are you associated with Lombard Trucking at all?

Oh yeah, Lombard Trucking. That's my name on the, on the internet. And, uh, Lombard Trucking, it's a great story.

You know, I wouldn't be who I am without my family's name.

And it's a name that actually goes back, uh, over 100 years in the, in the, in the trucking industry.

Something my great-great-grandfather started here.

So like horses and carriages? Horse and carriage.

I'm talking 8 horses, 2 carriages became 2 trucks in the 1920s, 1923, and, uh, was one of the largest motor carriers up in the Northeast based based out of Waterbury, Connecticut. They were, they were a victim, a casualty of the Motor Carrier Act in 1980 and sold in 1984. But I grew up with my grandfather, whose primary job as part owner was driver.

So he's a true owner-operator.

And so I'm proud to carry on that name and legacy, especially. And how are you involved in the trucking business?

So I got involved in the trucking business, I got into like the freight industry about 9 years ago. I started working in a warehouse and we had rack body, like local delivery trucks.

And so drove those around a little bit, also a forklift. But I loaded and unloaded trucks every day, and I was finally like, you know what, it's time. And I got my CDL and I went over the road for a little over 3 years and then came off, spent some time in recruiting, driver recruiting. I do a lot with driver fitness, and then I've been with Truck Parking Club since, uh, for a year and a half.

What is the one thing that you realized after you got your CDL that was different or something that you did not expect about trucking? Um, honestly, getting my CDL is what gave me a purpose again in a lot of my life. Like, it's— I felt as though getting my CDL was a way of honoring my family's name and, and legacy.

And so That's definitely a perspective that changed.

Like my overall life perspective changed. But I guess from what I didn't know about getting my CDL, the biggest like eye-opening thing was just about how this is an industry that is happening everywhere around everybody all the time and nobody knows anything about it. Do you think we should appreciate truckers more?

Absolutely.

I mean, truckers, I said this back on July 4th that America doesn't reach 250 years or the 250th birthday without the, you know, blood, sweat, and tears that America's drivers have been doing from the horses and the wagons all the way into the drivers who are driving them. Driven our way to prosperity because of America's drivers.

Now you're involved with truckparkingclub.com. It's one of the biggest problems in American trucking, lack of parking.

How do you guys help truck drivers out there with this issue? 100%. I'm definitely, I'm not at Truck Parking Club by accident. It's one of the first issues, especially when I had my own truck and I was working as a lease-on-owner-operator with Warren Transport.

You know, I became, I started to learn about so many issues in the industry and parking always stood out and I became vocal about it online and, you know, Evan Shelley our CEO, I started a podcast while I was over the road and I was one of the first shows he came on to talk about what he was doing, his solution.

We've been friends ever since.

And so I've kind of been seeing what Trucking Parking Club has become since the start. And it's really, you know, it's really become kind of the change agent in this discussion because the government can't do it themselves. It's really hard for truck stops to, you know, manufacture and build new truck parking with zoning laws and cost.

And so with Truck Parking Club working with existing property owners, I mean, it's become one of the big, you know, the most most effective and efficient ways of solving this problem of not having enough truck parking. You're all about fitness and health. What is your story? How did you get into health and fitness? 100%.

You know, it's, uh, not to, you know, and I can go on and on about this one, but I sort of hit a rock bottom in 2018 when I lost a really good friend of mine who I served in the Marines with. And at the time I was about 280 pounds, and I started to turn things around when I was working in that warehouse. And then 2 years later when I went over the road, I read David Goggins' first book, and I needed to become a runner. And that book totally changed my perception of how I view and value my time.

And so if I wasn't driving, I was walking or running. And along the way, I ended up being able to lose 100 pounds and completely change and transform my life. And it's, I mean, it's the reason why I'm not here today without what I've done with all the decisions I've made and habits I've built through health and fitness. Thank you for your service and thank you for your inspiration.

What is your one tip to truck drivers that are struggling with healthy lifestyle? Maybe they wanna do it, but they don't know how to start.

Absolutely, the best place to start, it's the power of one. Pick one thing and do that until you don't even think about it anymore.

And I always recommend either incorporate daily movement like walking or don't drink your calories anymore. I'll say just switch to diet, don't change anything else, don't worry about food, switch to diet, don't drink your calories, see how you feel in 2 weeks and you notice you feel a little bit better or incorporate some form of daily movement that could be 10 minutes, 15 minutes, however much, it's more than 0 minutes.

So just pick one thing, do that until you don't even think about it anymore. What's in your future?

What's the plan? In my future, hopefully, honestly, I'd love to, I mean, I'd love to see truck shows with more Trucker Olympics type events that hopefully I can host.

You know, it'd be great to get, you know, these truck shows are phenomenal, but I'd love to be, you know, creating more opportunities for drivers to come out and kind of open up a little bit the opportunity for the working drivers to come out to a little bit more of these shows in different kinds of areas. Future-wise, athletics, you know, I hope to continue advance in the triathlon world and in the running space and doing what I do and hopefully continue to add some locations with Truck Parking Club and keep expanding and keep adding more truck parking.

Was taking part in the Truckers Olympics part of that plan to inspire others to become more healthy and move around a little more?

Absolutely. I mean, I gotta lead by example. I can't come out to Iowa 80 and then just sit at the tent the whole time.

I've gotta practice what I preach when I can and get out there and, you know, do some hard things like dragging that truck around. Thank you for the great show. You did amazing. Thank you.

Really appreciate it. All the best to you. You, and I hope all your dreams come true. Likewise, right back at you. Thank you, Michael.

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