KPD officer places first in regional competition

AUSTIN — Kyle Police Department (KPD) Officer Matt Clark was sitting in the auditorium in Austin on March 29, waiting to see if he placed in the Texas Truck Challenge — a competition to demonstrate knowledge of commercial vehicle inspections. As they called out third, he began to feel nervous.

Then they called out second place and he thought, “Well, these guys have been doing this a bit longer than me.”

As they announced first place overall, he was utterly surprised.

“I was shocked when they called my name,” Clark said.

Sgt. Tracy Vrana, Clark’s supervisor, established the commercial enforcement unit three years ago in hopes of keeping Kyle roads safe as the city grows.

“Because of all the trucking traffic that comes into town, there are a lot of inherent dangers that come with it,” Sgt. Vrana said. “I needed [someone] to volunteer to step up and become certified. It’s a lot of training and a lot of required time on the job to do so. And officer Clark volunteered to do just that. He’s been very instrumental for the department in our division to help get it full speed ahead and to get us where we’re at now.”

Anxiety was a factor for Clark when deciding whether or not to compete. He was aware that there were going to be others who had more experience, tenure and confidence. Despite this, Clark thought it was necessary to push himself for the betterment of KPD.

“I was definitely nervous to do it. Because like I said, I’m new to this. I’m still learning a lot. I know some of the other guys have been doing it longer, have more experience, but you’ve got to start somewhere,” Clark said. “I think the main thing is just that it’s more training for me, more experience so, if nothing else, I get that out of it. And that’s worth it.”

This is the first year that KPD has participated in the challenge.

“It felt really good [to represent KPD]. It’s a new program for us, we haven’t done it before … We’ve put a lot of work into it, a lot of time [and it was a] headache in some places,” Clark said.

Clark trained for six weeks before obtaining his certification when the division was first created, but he reached out to other officers in the area that had participated in the challenge before.

“[I trained] kind of with just doing the work … And since we’re the first officers to get certified to do this at our agency, we’re working with the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Austin Police Department and some other agencies who have been doing this a bit longer by shadowing them. They’ll kind of train us and show us what to do and get us heading the right direction,” Clark said.

On Wednesday, March 29, Clark completed his morning routine on autopilot — his mind elsewhere, listing off the possible violations that could be present on the tests ahead of him.

The day was a grueling 12 hours consisting of a written test and four inspection sites. Vehicles — trucks, school buses and more, with violations present — are driven to the site on the day of the competition. Officers are then placed in pairs at each site with inspection forms to fill out within a 20- to 40-minute time limit, but marking whether there is a violation is not enough. The officer must correctly identify what the infraction violates or risks losing points.

Although Clark was confident in his work shown at the challenge, he didn’t believe that he would place higher than third.

“We were all sitting in the auditorium where we were kind of hanging out all [day waiting for the results] … I thought I might get third place or something like that, you know?” he said.

He never imagined that his name would be called as they announced first place.

“I didn’t get third or second [and] I know a couple of those guys [that received those]. They’ve been doing it a bit longer,” Clark said. “They said, ‘first place overall is,’ and they called me. I just didn’t — yeah, I just didn’t [process it] … I was shocked when they called my name.”

He was overjoyed to win first overall in the Texas DPS Region 6 Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program division, as it proves that KPD is headed in the right direction with its commercial vehicle enforcement unit.

“It shows that we’re being successful with it. We’re able to compete with [the others]. Because we’re doing something right, we’re headed in the right direction. It’s a good look for the police department,” Clark said.

Although the unit is small at KPD, the officer felt supported from the entire region, which spans multiple cities across Central Texas.

“It’s a pretty close-knit community … A lot of the officers from different agencies, they know each other and have good relationships,” Clark said. “Everybody’s happy to help out in any way they can.”

His placement gives him more confidence in his abilities and Clark hopes to continue to represent KPD with pride.  He will go on to the state competition in Corpus Christi at the end of June.

“I’m still a little nervous, but not as bad as going to the regional one … I have an idea of what I’m walking into. I know there will be a lot more competition because now it’s statewide,” Clark said. “Last year, the officer that won the national level was a Houston police officer, so there will be a lot of troopers, officers and deputies that have a lot of experience.”

To prepare for state, he said that he will continue to complete inspections and study the material when time permits.

Smiling and shaking his head, Clark joked, “I don’t expect to place first, but I thought that last time.”

Sgt. Vrana emphasized the importance of the challenge and the unit as a whole.

“The purpose of the trucking program is that we understand we need big trucks to help further commerce, growth and all that for houses, commercial buildings and so forth, but we have to do it safely … Corners could be cut [if not inspected properly] and it becomes a safety issue for equipment that needs to be replaced or repaired; it would put other motor vehicles in danger,” he said. “We’re talking about vehicles that can easily weigh 60,000 or 90,000 pounds. When those guys get into a crash, sometimes it’s very horrific, so it’s all about safety. That’s why we’re out here.”

Clark reiterated this, stating, “Hopefully this inspection and enforcement will help the city out as well. We’re able to inspect the commercial vehicles to grow the city. Houses, neighborhoods and businesses have big trucks coming in and out all the time … People can look at it and say we’re doing a good job and we’ll provide good service for the city.”

“I’ve enjoyed doing the commercial vehicle enforcement. It’s a whole new world of traffic enforcement and it’s challenging at times, but can be rewarding, too,” Clark continued. “It’s something new to learn and a new service to provide to the city. I’m happy to be a part of it.”