Commercial truck dealer John "Jack" Saum of Maryland was named the American Truck Dealers/Heavy Duty Trucking Truck Dealer of the Year Saturday during the ATD annual convention in Orlando.

"It's very exciting and unexpected," said Saum, chairman of the board of Beltway International, LLC, in Baltimore, Md. "This recognition is really a tribute to my dealership, family and employees. Without the employees we have, we would not have been even considered for this award."

When asked how it feels to win the award, Saum said, "I'm going to Disney World. Really, I'm taking three of my grandkids there tomorrow."

The judges singled out Saum's innovative leadership of the "A New Truck is a Green Truck" initiative at the state, federal and industry level. Saum believes this green initiative is his most valuable contribution to the industry, community and fellow dealers. With the help of NADA and Navistar, Saum spearheaded a campaign that kicked off in May 2008, "A New Truck is a Green Truck." The goal is to stress the environmental and fuel efficiency benefits of current model trucks and educate people about the societal benefits of new truck design improvements, focusing on new diesel trucks, hybrid trucks, APUs and retrofit programs.

Saum has been active in several community and civic organizations. He was awarded Navistar's International Truck Dealer of the Year in 2004. The dealership is a 15-time winner of Navistar's Circle of Excellence award for dealership performance; 10-time winner of Navistar Financial Corps President's Award for financing excellence; nine-time winner of Navistar's Diamond Certified dealer for operations excellence; and 11-time winner of the Idealease, an award for lease and rental operating excellence.

Robert Nuss, president of Nuss Truck & Equipment in Rochester, Minn., was named runner-up. Nuss has earned numerous industry awards, including several from Mack Trucks for sales leadership and recognition of best business practices. He was honored with the national Mack Trucks Dealer of the Year in 1997. He's actively involved in charitable and civic organizations. Following the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001, Nuss helped deliver a fully-equipped fire truck to the New York Fire Department.

Other nominees were Jay Ellison, president of French-Ellison Truck Center, Ltd. in San Antonio, Texas; Mark Gillam, president of Floyd's Sales & Service, Inc., in Scottsbluff, Neb.; Blake Jackson, president of The Jackson Group, a consortium of Peterbilt dealerships in Utah, Idaho and Colorado; Greg Lesher, president of Lesher Mack Sales & Service, Inc., in Lebanon, Pa.; and Ron Meyering, president of M & K Quality Truck Sales in Byron Center, Mich. You can read about their views on the economy and the industry in the May issue of Heavy Duty Trucking magazine.

The award recognizes excellence in dealership performance, industry leadership, civic contributions and community service. The winners were chosen by a panel of professors from Indiana University's Kelley School of Business.