Hello! Thank you for checking out T-R Travels. My name is Walker Detweiler and this is my personal blog. I live in Raleigh, North Carolina with my beautiful fiancé Olivia and our golden retriever Eleanor. Be sure to drop your contact information if you’d like to connect, or feel free to reach out via the information below.
919-632-3554
Normal is not an adjective I’d use to describe myself…
As my obnoxiously long tagline suggests, my life is far from normal. We’ll start from the top and begin with the Engineer portion. Growing up, I was always one to be building or tinkering with anything I could get my hands on, as my endless pile of Lego’s and K’nex could easily attest too. I’ve always had an uncanny ability for solving problems and increasing efficiency in whatever way possible. Taking these technical and critical thinking skills to the next level, I graduated from Virginia Tech in 2015 with a degree in Industrial & Systems Engineering.
Although I’ve worked in sales & marketing the majority of my professional life, I will always be an engineer first and foremost. Industrial engineering was the perfect fit for me, as my mind has slowly gravitated to the business end of things as I’ve grown older. ISE was a nice blending of the two (engineering + business), and I am forever grateful for the skills I learned at Virginia Tech. Go Hokies!
After returning home to Raleigh, I was hired by a leading foam manufacturer called Nomaco, Inc., located in Zebulon, North Carolina (25 mins north). I worked with Nomaco for just under six years filling three different roles across various industries. Having experienced a good share of the business over my time (sales & marketing, customer management, product development, continuous improvement, just to name a few), I am very thankful for the mentorship and exposure that I received at Nomaco.
Recently, I have utilized this excellent foundation of skills to accept a different challenge with a new (to me) employer called Apptio. I was hired as a Sales Development Rep in June of 2021 and recently promoted to a Commercial sales role in September of 2022 selling Apptio’s suite of IT financial management software. Be sure to check out my resume page for a more thorough list of my professional accomplishments.
My secondary focus while in school (and the second part of my tagline) was a four year commitment to the club Ice Hockey Team at Virginia Tech. After growing up playing (as a goaltender) in the Junior Hurricanes youth programs in Raleigh, I was excited for the opportunity to continue to play competitively while still working towards my degree. I stepped into the starting role my Sophomore year and proceeded to lead the squad to a record of 36-26-7 over my four year career.
The rink was my escape from the daily grind, and my teammates were my closest friends for four years–I still keep in contact with the majority of them to this day. Hockey has taught me so much in life: how to be a team-player, the value of hard work, and how to pick yourself up after a tough defeat, just to name a few. I still play men’s league in the RDU area about two nights a week and have not lost my passion or appreciation for the game.
In terms of my go-to creative outlet, music will always be one of my first loves. Beginning with the piano in grade school and transitioning to drums/percussion in middle school, I have always been a musically-oriented individual. Moving out of my parents place a couple years back, I sadly had to part ways with my epic acoustic drum kit from when I was a kid.
I currently own an electronic drum kit (Roland TD-11) that I play whenever I get a chance. Living in a third-level apartment has restricted my access quite a bit, but I still jump on every now and then and am looking forward to the day that I can purchase another badass acoustic kit.
The last part of my goofy tagline came together late last year when Eleanor the Golden came into my life. My fiancé Olivia and I adopted Ellie from the best breeder right down the road in Cary. She was the first of nine brothers and sisters and has been such a good girl from day one. Ellie has completely changed my world and I don’t know what I would do without her. She loves any and all types of water and enjoys snuggling with willing (or sometimes unwilling) participants. Eleanor just turned three in November.
Well now that you know a bit about who I am, please feel free to take a deeper dive into my recent travels and activities by perusing this blog, or drop me a line if you have something to add. Thanks for checking out T-R Travels!
Tl;dr – Walker (T-R), summarized:
– Born and Raised in Raleigh NC.
– Graduated from Virginia Tech in 2015 with a degree in Industrial Engineering.
– Currently living in Raleigh with his girlfriend Olivia and golder retriever Eleanor.
– Previously worked at a foam manufacturer called Nomaco for six years in various sales and marketing roles.
– Recently accepted a new position selling IT business management software at a company called Apptio.
– Played ice hockey (goalie) since age ten. Still playing men’s league in RDU area.
– Primary creative outlets are playing the drums and making YouTube content.
– Avid roller coaster and amusement park enthusiast. Have ridden over 230 roller coasters worldwide.
– Way too big a fan of Virginia Tech football & basketball as well as the hometown Carolina Hurricanes.
– Other hobbies include: golfing, snowboarding, boating, photography & videography, PC and console gaming.
Texas-Ranger Travels 