With cameras strapped to his 2022 Freightliner truck, Brian Milsaps, a professional driver for GP Transco, heads down State Road 47 in Albuquerque, New Mexico and pulls into the new Pilot Travel Center. Representing his fellow pro drivers, Brian is playing an important role as part of the New Horizons launch video to announce Pilot’s $1 billion investment to upgrade our travel centers across North America.
During the filming, we had the privilege to learn more about Brian, a veteran and professional driver for ten years who is about to celebrate his first 1 million miles behind the cab. He spent 21 years in the Navy and completed multiple overseas deployments as a heavy equipment operator, “If it had wheels or tracks, I drove it,” he said.
After retiring from the Navy in 2009, he took his decades of experience operating heavy equipment and hit the road, delivering freight across the country. While he is spending weeks out on the road, Brian relies on Pilot Flying J for a clean and friendly place to rest and refuel, and he frequently uses the myRewards Plus™ app to help.
“The most important is getting the prime parking. If it’s late in the afternoon and I know I have to drive until 8 or 9 pm, I will pull up the app and look up the closest Pilot or Flying J to the area. Then I can see the available parking spots you have and will go ahead and reserve a spot,” Brian said. “I love it when I don’t have to worry about finding a parking spot; if I reserve a spot, I know I got it.”
As a veteran, he takes advantage of our Military Discount Program all year long to save money in our stores which he can put towards a hot shower. The shower remodels are something he is excited to see as part of our upgrades across North America. Being able to refresh before you get back out there makes a huge difference, and “Pilot Flying J always has that extra person to make sure the showers are clean and ready to go. You can tell they aren’t afraid to spend the money to have that extra someone there to take care of you,” Brian said.
As he hops out of his truck back home in McComb, Mississippi, his advice to new drivers just getting into the industry, “there is a lot to learn on the road as you go, you’re going to get aggravated, have patience, learn the trucker etiquette, and enjoy the trip.”
Thank you, Brian, for being part of this exciting initiative, and more importantly, thank you for your continued service to our country. We thank all our veterans for their bravery and sacrifice and look forward to seeing you in our travel centers. For more details on how we are celebrating Military Appreciation Month in May, click here.
