The Great (or not so great) West Truck Show was held on the last weekend of spring in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 14-16, 2012. With clear skies and a high-pressure weather system that scorched the desert city with temperatures in the 100’s every day, we now know why it is called “Sin City” – it was hot as sin out there! Nonetheless, this destination resort was ready for some 24-hour fun and excitement, but some of the fun and excitement at the show fell a little short – partly because of a new venue, and partly due to poor attendance. But, over the last few years, this show’s reputation has become quality over quantity – and this year was no different.
After being held for years at the Las Vegas Convention Center next to the Hilton Hotel, the show found a new home this year at the Sands Expo and Convention Center. This new location required big adjustments in regards to parking, move-in conditions, accommodations, and more. In the past, the Hilton was always a great place to call “home base” for exhibitors, attendees, and truck show participants, and provided ample amounts of parking and restaurants. After the show, many hours were spent at the lounge/bar and at the many eateries inside the hotel, then large groups of friends and business associates would venture out together into the city of lights for some fun. This new venue, which sits behind the Venetian Hotel, was not as accommodating or convenient, to say the least, but it may be a starting point for better things to come.
The 30+ trucks in the competition area were well spaced out, which allowed plenty of room for picture-taking and sitting and relaxing. The exhibitors had a total of 17 hours over 3 days to show off their stuff, and based on the feedback we got, the event got mixed reviews – some said it was great, while others were not so happy. The show traffic was slow but steady, with spurts of crowds at times to energize the exhibitors – and then, sometimes, you could hear a pin drop. But even though there were a lot of “issues” to deal with, overall, most of the exhibitors we spoke to had favorable things to say about the show.
The easiest way to attend the show was via taxi. If you did arrive in your own vehicle or rental car, you had to park at the Venetian and then take a long hike through a maze of parking lots, hoping you didn’t get lost. Visitor parking was, in the heat, a tour of duty. But once you got to the show, there was plenty to see. Walking the floor gave us a good chance to visit with some of our advertisers and friends, which included Lyndon from Engine Control Systems, Cory at Dynaflex, Jim of Axle Surgeons, and Josh over at Lincoln Chrome. We also got to see Debbie from Esley Truck Parts, Frank Pangburn and some of his volunteers from Truckin’ For Kids, our new friends with BlueSun Solution, and Rajiv of Setco Automotive. Bruce and Pete of Pittsburgh Power came all the way out from Pennsylvania, the guys from Truck It Smart came from Florida, and the two Bobs (Grover and Turley) with Pacific Truck & Trailer not only came down from Oregon, but they also brought out a very nice two-tone brown Peterbilt they just finished building.
Once again, stressing quality over quantity, there were beautiful rigs contending for trophies and bragging rights in the truck show beauty competition. Some of these trucks came in from nearby states, while others came from as far as eastern Canada. There were also several past 10-4 cover trucks, including Lil Rays’ Peterbilts (April 2011), James Davis’ Peterbilt (June 2008), John Silva’s hay-hauling Peterbilt (March 2010), Sandvik’s burgundy and silver Peterbilt (February 2009), and Cliff King’s golden-colored Peterbilt and matching trailer (August 2010).
Some other rigs that caught our attention (and some trophies) included a bright red 1968 Peterbilt 358 owned by Leroy Bracelin of Coos Bay, Oregon (built by Brent’s Custom Trucks), PDI’s “Show Me The Money” Peterbilt featuring a vibrant blue flamed paint job (and a big 830-hp chromed-out power plant), Michael Most’s award-winning “Legends & Heroes” yellow Freightliner Classic, and Tyler Picknell’s cool 1988 Kenworth W900B. The undisputed winner in the Limited Mileage Combo class was the “First Gear” truck owned by Randy Stroup of First Class Services. This rig, which has been cleaning house at shows across the country, features tons of custom fabrication and paint, and will be hard to beat – ever!
We would like to send out very special congratulations to our friend Ray Rodriquez Jr. of Lil. Rays Transport in Salinas, CA for his big win in the Working Combo class – he worked his butt off getting his trucks ready for the show, and his cool combo “Hardway” was looking better than ever. He certainly deserved this coveted award, and was pretty emotional about the accomplishment. Once the awards were handed out, it was time to relax, and before we knew it, it was time to get out of there! We hope this show works out its problems and figures out how to grow and improve before it is too late. Going to the show in Las Vegas every summer has been a 10-4 tradition for almost 20 years, and we’d hate to see all that fun come to an end.
And the 2012 Great West Truck Show winners were:
BOBTAIL (FIRST SHOW): 1st Jed Howard, 2001 Pink Peterbilt 379; 2nd Ben Vernier, 2012 Black & Green Peterbilt 389.
BOBTAIL (1994 & OLDER): 1st Lawrence Gibbons, Jr/Tyler Picknell Trucking, 1988 Blue Kenworth W900B; 2nd James Davis, 1993 Black & Orange Peterbilt 379; 3rd Corey Carroll/Kasslie Branson Trucking, 1994 White & Purple Kenworth W900B.
BOBTAIL (2006 & NEWER): 1st Jerad Wittwer/PDI, 2006 Blue Flamed Peterbilt 379; 2nd Josh Skidmore/Skidmore Transportation Services, 2007 White & Yellow Peterbilt 379 Legacy; 3rd Randy Reza/GSF, 2011 White Peterbilt 386.
BOBTAIL (BUILDER’S CLASS): 1st Leroy Bracelin, 1968 Red Peterbilt 358; 2nd Bobby Turley/Tradewinds Transport, 1998 Saddle Gold & Brown Peterbilt 379; 3rd Jason Shepherd/Gold Nugget Express, 1985 Black Mack Superliner.
COMBO (2007 & OLDER): 1st Ray Rodriquez, Jr/Lil. Rays Transport, 1988 Purple Peterbilt 379 & 2003 Fontaine Flatbed; 2nd Ray Rodriquez, Jr/Lil. Rays Transport, 2000 Purple Peterbilt 379 & 2006 Transcraft Flatbed; 3rd Cliff King/Castle Rock Transportation, 2007 Brown & Gold Peterbilt 386 & 2006 Wabash Van.
COMBO (2008 & NEWER): 1st Bill Duckworth/John Christner Trucking, 2012 Grey & Black Freightliner Coronado & 2012 Utility; 2nd Moe Whitchurch/Whitchurch & Son Trucking, 2008 Green & Yellow International 9900i & 2004 Reinke Curtainside; 3rd Larry Gonzales/GSF, 2011 White Peterbilt 386 & 2012 Utility Reefer.
COMBO (COMPANY): 1st Michael Salcido/Arrowhead Water, 2007 Red Freightliner Columbia & 1991 Brenner Stainless Tanker; 2nd Dustin Olibarz & Amanda Wise/Werner Enterprises, 2012 Peterbilt 587 & 2012 Wabash Van; 3rd Brian Governo/Liberty Linehaul West, 2012 Berry Red Kenworth T660 & 2013 Wabash Van.
COMBO (NEW): 1st John Lagomarsino, 2013 Grey & Maroon Peterbilt 389 & 2006 Landoll.
INTERIOR (CAB ONLY): 1st Lawrence Gibbons, Jr/Tyler Picknell Trucking, 1988 Blue Kenworth W900B; 2nd Jerad Wittwer/PDI, 2006 Blue Flamed Peterbilt 379; 3rd Max Frenes/GSF, 2011 Peterbilt 386 & 2012 Utility Reefer.
INTERIOR (OEM SLEEPER): 1st James Davis, 1993 Black & Orange Peterbilt 379; 2nd Brian Governo/Liberty Linehaul West, 2012 Berry Red Kenworth T660 & 2013 Wabash Van; 3rd Ray Rodriquez, Jr/Lil. Rays Transport, 1988 Purple Peterbilt 379 & 2003 Fontaine Flatbed.
INTERIOR (CUSTOM SLEEPER): 1st Cliff King/Castle Rock Transportation, 2007 Brown & Gold Peterbilt 386 & 2006 Wabash Van.
ENGINE: 1st Jerad Wittwer/PDI, 2006 Blue Flamed Peterbilt 379; 2nd Lawrence Gibbons, Jr/Tyler Picknell Trucking, 1988 Blue Kenworth W900B; 3rd Ray Rodriquez, Jr/Lil. Rays Transport, 1988 Purple Peterbilt 379 & 2003 Fontaine Flatbed.
PAINT (BOBTAIL): 1st Jerad Wittwer/PDI, 2006 Blue Flamed Peterbilt 379; 2nd James Davis, 1993 Black & Orange Peterbilt 379; 3rd Randy Reza/GSF, 2011 White Peterbilt 386.
PAINT (COMBO): 1st Ray Rodriquez, Jr/Lil. Rays Transport, 1988 Purple Peterbilt 379 & 2003 Fontaine Flatbed; 2nd Ray Rodriquez, Jr/Lil. Rays Transport, 2000 Purple Peterbilt 379 & 2006 Transcraft Flatbed; 3rd Michael Salcido/Arrowhead Water, 2007 Red Freightliner Columbia & 1991 Brenner Stainless Tanker.
LIMITED MILES (BOBTAIL): 1st Michael Most/Michael Most Trucking, 1998 Corvette Yellow Freightliner Classic XL; 2nd Andy Zary, 1959 Purple Mack B61; 3rd Isaac Aguilar/Sandvik Trucking, 1997 Burgundy Peterbilt 379.
LIMITED MILES (COMBO): 1st Randy Stroup/First Class Services, 2005 Pearl White & Candy Peterbilt 379 & 2012 Entrye Tanker; 2nd John Silva/John Silva Trucking, 2000 Red Peterbilt 379 & 1975 Double Flatbeds; 3rd Tyler Picknell/Tyler Picknell Trucking, 1996 Green Peterbilt 379 & 2008 Wilson Step Deck.
LIMITED MILES (BEST INTERIOR): Randy Stroup/First Class Services, 2005 Pearl White & Candy Peterbilt 379 & 2012 Entrye Tanker.
LIMITED MILES (BEST ENGINE): Randy Stroup/First Class Services, 2005 Pearl White & Candy Peterbilt 379 & 2012 Entrye Tanker.
LIMITED MILES PAINT (BOBTAIL): Michael Most/Michael Most Trucking, 1998 Corvette
Yellow Freightliner Classic XL.
LIMITED MILES PAINT (COMBO): Randy Stroup/First Class Services, 2005 Pearl White & Candy Peterbilt 379 & 2012 Entrye Tanker.
BEST ANTIQUE: Ruben Cendejas/Arrowhead Water, 1931 Red Ford Model-A Water Tanker.
BEST OF SHOW WORKING BOBTAIL: Jerad Wittwer/PDI, 2006 Blue Flamed Peterbilt 379.
BEST OF SHOW WORKING COMBO: Ray Rodriquez, Jr/Lil. Rays Transport, 1988 Purple Peterbilt 379 & 2003 Fontaine Flatbed.
