Stage 3 of the Tour of Alberta is literally days away and residents should prepare for some incredible cycling, and a few traffic adjustments.
    Greg Peters of The Town of Drumheller has been busy preparing for the race, which will be through Drumheller on Friday afternoon.  He says one of the most exciting aspects of the race is there are all kinds of places residents can view the cyclist as the pass thought the community.
    He said cyclists will be entering Drumheller coming from the south hill, and residents will be able to line up from Extra Foods, along the track all the way to the World’s Largest Dinosaur. From the World’s Largest Dinosaur the cyclists will continue over Gordon Taylor Bridge and on a trip through Starland County and Kneehill before returning to Drumheller through Nacmine. It will pass by Newcastle and through downtown before terminating at World’s Largest Dinosaur. 
    There and the Badlands Community Facility will be festival central where there will be race related events and entertainment. With the expectations of 160 professional cyclists, along with their support team and media, it will be a busy day for Drumheller.
    Peters has been very busy informing residents on how it will be affecting the town and local traffic flow. He has sent a bulletin to all residents and businesses along the route.
    Parking will be banned down 5th Street East from the intersection of Highway 9 and 10 to 1st Street East from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
    There will also be no parking from 12th Street West at Newcastle Trail continuing along Newcastle Trail into 3rd Ave East to 1st Street West from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
    Even if you are not along parts of the race route Peters says to expect some traffic slow downs and pattern changes and be patient and courteous as Drumheller hosts the world.

    Alberta is a land of opportunity right now, especially for those who have earned their Class 1 licenses.
    Job boards are filled with employers seeking trained truck drivers.
    “Class 1 and 3 licenses are in demand. There is a shortage of truck drivers across the province. With a Class 1 license, you can find work anywhere in Alberta,” said Rob Lunman, business and industry team leader with the Drumheller Alberta Works branch.

With a province-wide shortage, job boards are filled with listings from employers seeking trained class one and three truck drivers.

    The demand is being driven by the transport industry and, like for many other careers, the oil and gas industry.
“The demand is mostly from long haul trucking, so the transportation logistics industry, and shorter distances, like oil field and construction,” said Lunman. “They need people to drive anything from dump trucks to vac trucks.”
    The training to earn a Class 1 license is a long, hard road, but there are many programs out there to help train aspiring drivers. Most program will cover how to drive large trucks, plus a number of secondary skills, such as vehicle maintenance and load control.
     “There are a number of training providers out there and it can take some time and money to get it done, but it’s certainly a good investment in that there are so many opportunities out there,” said Lunman.
    “One of the things we’ve heard from employers is they prefer people with experience. It can be a challenge for people to get their training, licenses, and then some real world experience, but there’s such a shortage that if you have the right attitude the opportunities will come and if you can get into a training program that covers most of those, you’ll certainly have an advantage.”
    Although the cost can be steep, the wages being offered are such that whatever you spend on training and obtaining your licence will be repaid quite quickly.
    “There is a pretty good range of wages. You can make quite a bit of money as a driver. I would say starting, you’re looking at around $25 per hour, but could be more. If you’re working full-time, you could make $80,000 per year or more,” said Lunman.
    Alberta is growing and to help drive that growth, people with Class 1 licenses have plenty of opportunities.