Ride of Pride
Schneider's rolling tribute to honor veterans.
We are proud to welcome the 10th edition Ride of Pride truck into our fleet. The 2012 Freightliner tractor joins the 2007, 2008 and 2011 Ride of Pride, plus the only Canadian Ride of Pride ever produced, making Schneider the only trucking company with five Ride of Pride trucks. Each one features decals representing members of the military, their families and their sacrifices — serving as a sign of gratitude and a salute to their service.
History of the Ride of Pride
The Ride of Pride program originated in 2001, when Ed Keeter, a shift manager and U.S. veteran at Freightliner’s manufacturing plant in Cleveland, NC, proposed the project as a way to honor military veterans. Initially the idea was to decorate a Freightliner truck and drive it to the local veterans’ hospital for a visit. However, Freightliner’s employees embraced the idea so wholeheartedly that it quickly became part of a national effort and includes participating in the annual Ride for Freedom, a procession through Washington, D.C. each Memorial Day.
After the first year’s overwhelming success, Freightliner began awarding a military-themed Ride of Pride truck each year to a trucking company. Because of Schneider’s ongoing commitment to the military, Freightliner has awarded a record four Ride of Pride trucks to its fleet (2007, 2008 and two in 2011).
A special multi-episode video has been created to capture what our Ride of Pride trucks mean to our drivers, veterans and the motoring public.
Ride of Pride Trucks in Schneider Fleet
As the United States marked the tenth anniversary of 9/11, Schneider was deeply honored to be selected as the recipient of a Ride of Pride truck. The one-of-a-kind Freightliner Cascadia is fully customized with symbols of America and the armed forces decaled on the orange Schneider cab. As with all Ride of Pride trucks, the 2011 model was designed by employees of Freightliner’s manufacturing plant to show support for active duty personnel, retirees, families who have lost someone in service to the country, prisoners of war and those still missing in action.
The addition of the 2011 U.S. Ride of Pride to our fleet motivated Schneider’s Canadian associates to work for a Ride of Pride that salutes Canada’s Armed Forces. With Freightliner’s help, the first-ever Canadian Ride of Pride was born. The one-of-a-kind Freightliner Cascadia is fully customized with symbols of Canada’s armed forces decaled on the orange Schneider cab. It was designed to show support for active duty personnel, retirees and families who have lost someone in service to the country. The words “Lest We Forget” and “We Support Our Troops” are written in English and French respectively, recognizing the two official languages of Canada.
The 2008 Ride of Pride truck is a one-of-a-kind Freightliner Cascadia, fully customized with symbols of the United States and the U.S. armed forces decaled on the orange Schneider cab. The truck was designed by employees at Freightliner’s manufacturing plant, just like the six Ride of Pride versions before it.
The Ride of Pride VI is a Freightliner Cascadia, a truck model launched in May 2007. The design features images of a bald eagle, an American flag, a POW-MIA logo and military campaign ribbons from World War I to the Global War on Terror.