Churchville-Chili bus drivers win top honors

Eight Churchville-Chili bus drivers competed in the 27th annual Rochester Area School Bus Safety Roadeo on Saturday, June 11. The event, which was hosted by the Greece School District, is held to test the knowledge and driving skills of the area school bus drivers. The drivers can test their skills in the van, transit, or conventional bus or, if they really want to test their skill, they can drive all three classes.

There is a Special Needs competition that is a learning experience for both driver and attendant. It incorporates the skills of both the driver and the attendant in being able to handle a child with special needs in the event of an emergency, sickness or any other need that arises. This is a competition that is a test of knowledge and a way of learning from others.

The Mechanics Roadeo, in it fourth year of competition, consists of 40 multiple choice questions, two hands on stations, and a practical station that requires the mechanics to either diagnose a problem or identify a part. The top two finishers go to the state competition in Albany in July.

The regular Roadeo has 11 different driving skills, a written test and a pre-trip test. Many hours of practice paid off for the eight from Churchville. Five of the eight had competed in the past while the other three were competing for the first time. The competitors were Gene Ehrmentraut, first, Ron Hubbel, second; Steve Trenton, fourth; Dave Sanderson, sixth; Mary Steedman, seventh; Melanie Meyer, 20th; Ann Williams, 21st and Bitsy McHugh, 22nd. This was the conventional bus division. Ehrmentraut, Trenton and Sanderson also competed in the transit division and finished third, seventh and eighth, respectively.

Ehrmentraut and Hubbel will represent Churchville-Chili and the Rochester area as well at the state competition in Albany on July 9.