PORTLAND – The man behind the wheel of the governor’s Chevrolet Suburban Wednesday morning has served on the chief executive’s security detail for the past eight years.

James R. Trask, 41, is one of a select group of state police detectives who work rotating shifts, staying with the governor around the clock.

Trask was injured Wednesday morning along with Gov. John Baldacci when he apparently went over a patch of ice and lost control of the 2004 Suburban on Interstate 295, officials said. Both Trask and Baldacci were taken to Maine Medical Center but were not seriously injured.

Trask was first selected for the executive protection detail under Gov. Angus King, who remains a friend. King has had Trask over to watch football since leaving office last year.

“They’re with you 24 hours a day. They go to the store with you, and they drive you,” King said of the half-dozen or so troopers assigned to the detail. “They’re family,” said Mary Herman, King’s wife.

King called Trask a “great guy” who was well-suited to the job. “They’re sociable and friendly, but they’re very earnest about their jobs. They take it very seriously, and Jim was one of those guys,” he said.

King said the troopers assigned to the governor have long experience and good records and were well-trained to protect him, whether in the car or at a large public event. King estimates he was driven 350,000 miles around the state in all types of weather, and never had an accident.

Trask graduated from Thornton Academy in Saco and Southern Maine Vocational Technical Institute in South Portland before enrolling at the Maine Criminal Justice Academy. SMVTI is now called Southern Maine Community College.

Trask joined the Maine State Police in 1985 and worked as a drug agent with the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency and as one of the troopers who patrol the Maine Turnpike. He was promoted to the governor’s security team in 1995.

“It is probably the most harsh, the most scrutinized unit. It’s very tough to get into that unit,” said Mike Edes, president of the Maine State Troopers Association, the union representing state police troopers. “You have to have a certain personality to do that.”

Edes said the job requires a lot of dedication and carries a lot of responsibility.

The governor’s drivers get special emergency vehicle training both in Maine and at a training school in Philadelphia, according to state police. Trask also received training in a dignitary protection program run by the U.S. State Department.

Trask has no incidents on his record for the past five years. However, he has been involved in nine accidents in the past 25 years; two of those occurred while he was parked, the Press Herald reported.