Texas Team Takes Home Roadeo Crown at TSD Conference

November 9, 2024

A school bus navigates one of the roadeo and training competition events held on Nov. 9, 2024 as part of the TSD Conference. Photo by Vincent Rios Creative.

FRISCO, Texas — Plano Independent School District located just miles from the TSD Conference this weekend claimed the top two spots in the annual roadeo and training competition as Texas continued its dominance of the event.

The team of Andwain Coleman and Mohmed Omera tied coworkers Mohsen Al Asad and Nabila Audi with scores of 889 out of a possible 1,020 points. Alexandra Robinson, the lead coordinator for the roadeo organizer Women in Transportation. (wit.) group and a TSD Conference Tenured Faculty member, said during a banquet Saturday night hosted by lead sponsor Q’Straint/Sure-Lok that the roadeo judges broke the tie by comparing times for finishing the event.

Coleman and Omera clinched the victory as their time was six minutes faster than that of Al Asad and Audi. Robinson said it was the first time in the roadeo’s 30-year history that such a tiebreaker was needed. It was the fourth consecutive win for a Texas team dating back to 2019. The competition was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The team of Elizabeth Berninger and Jennifer Gue representing the Washington Association for Pupil Transportation took home third place with a score of 885 points. Ten teams competed at host Frisco ISD in 9 events or stations and also took a written test.

Coleman finished second in last year’s competition and said he partnered with Omera earlier this year after his previous partner was promoted to a different position. It was Coleman’s third consecutive year competing in the event. This was Omera’s second national competition.

When asked about their confidence following the competition, Coleman said, “Ain’t nobody perfect, I know we had some mess ups there, but I know overall we did pretty good.”

Coleman and Omera both have been driving for Plano ISD for the past six school years, with Coleman previously driving a truck for 20 years.

Looking ahead, Coleman and Omera confirmed they plan to compete at the roadeo competition and training next year, as they already won their Texas district competition. The next step is competing in regionals in March.

When discussing the challenges of their Plano ISD school bus routes, Coleman and Omera cited student behavior and other motorists on the road as the biggest daily challenges they face.