It was that time again – time to hit the road and hammer down Interstate 15 to PDI’s Annual Customer Appreciation Truck Beauty Competition, held on October 8-10, 2015, in St. George, Utah. Performance Diesel Inc. (PDI) is a manufacturer and installer of many high-quality performance products that can take your engine horsepower to another level and meet the harsh demands of the open road. Not every trucker needs the extra punch, but with different terrains and extra weight, it is nice to get up and over the mountains or hit the cruise and let it purr for better mileage. We see the heavy haulers with lowboys and step-decks loaded to the gills and can only wonder how they keep moving from point A to point B without any upgrades.
PDI’s installation shop is busy year-round, but for six years now they pick a weekend when they can invite all their customers and friends to say “thanks” to so many with a big welcome party for the whole family to enjoy. It just so happens that this fun event also has an added bonus – in conjunction with the Pride & Polish National Championships, this show is the second stop in their 2015/2016 series and certain winners can qualify to contend for a national championship title at the GATS event in Dallas next summer – so the pressure was on.
We arrived on Thursday afternoon and it was unseasonably hot for the entire weekend, with temps around 90 degrees. The early arrivals were already parked and the cleaning was in full force across the lot, while proper hydration was the key to beating the heat. Inside PDI’s work bays were tubs loaded with bottled water and soft drinks on ice, which offered participants a chance to get in the shade and mingle a bit inside. The lot was well-organized with all of the beautiful combos parked on the far side and the bobtails and specialty trucks staged on all sides of the facilities’ headquarters.
With more trucks arriving on Friday, the streets were detoured to allow some overflow parking. Local radio stations were playing music and a few vendors were taking refuge under their pop-ups to avoid the heat. Cory, from Dynaflex, was handing out some goodies, and factory representatives from Panelite by Dieters and Lincoln Chrome were also in attendance (they donated some great prizes, too).
The sun was intense and the trucks were sitting pretty and shining with lots of glare. With rags down, the nine judges went to work and surveyed every angle of each truck and then noted their scores on the great variety of makes and models, in a variety of classes, on the lot. It seemed like every truck stood out on its’ own, whether in style, color, graphics, interior, engine, extra cool add-ons, and/or more. It was obvious that the hard work was going to pay off for a few folks on Saturday to receive those giant trophies that were on display for all to envy. While the trucks were being scrutinized by the judges, many trucks went on PDI’s dyno to show off their horsepower – and what an impressive display of muscle, it was!
With canopies set up to shade the awards and seating area, the BBQ was fired up to feed the crowd of truckers and their families with a free lunch. With so much going on, the awards were delayed until around 4:00 pm. Once the crowd was fed and settled down, the Pride & Polish winners were announced, including a special award that went to young Cody Madsen and his black Peterbilt 389 in honor of the late Randy Rebillard, who passed away earlier this year. Randy was a good friend and customer of PDI, and his widow, Jona, was on-hand to choose and present this special award.
When asked how she picked the winner she said, “I picked the driver/truck that represented the way Randy would want it. Before he passed we had many discussions, and one of them was if there was a memorial trophy given out in his honor, he requested some specific qualifications. Randy wanted the driver to represent a positive image in the industry, and the truck didn’t have to be the newest or most tricked-out (but that didn’t hurt, either). Randy always put family first, which was also something that was important to him. Cody Madsen was the perfect recipient for this award.” What a huge moment when the crowd gave Cody a standing ovation, as many had wet eyes, including Cody. We are sure that Randy was cheering from up above, as well.
In the end, the “Best of Show” winners who qualified for a trip to Dallas next summer were Kyle Cousins (Limited Mileage Bobtail), Josh Skidmore (Limited Mileage Combo), Cody Madsen (Working Bobtail) and Tim Miller (Working Combo). This was a nice way to spend a hot weekend in St. George, Utah, to be appreciated by PDI, and to compete with fellow hard working truckers for trophies and some bragging rights in the Pride & Polish Truck Beauty Competition. Mark your calendar for next year as the dates become available, as we had a lot of fun this year, and hope to see you there next year.
HERE ARE ALL OF THE 2015 WINNERS
LIGHTS (BOBTAIL): 1st Doug Jameson/James Williams, Ozark, MO; 2nd Kyle Cousins/Fleenor Bros. Trucking, Carthage, MO; 3rd Darnell Bradshaw, Loma, CO.
LIGHTS (COMBO): 1st Miro Dragich, Norwalk, CA; 2nd Shane Scofield, Flandreau, SD; 3rd Kason Traveller/Stone Cliff Development, St George, UT.
WASH & SHOW WINNERS
BOBTAIL (2000 & OLDER): 1st Mark Dewsnup/Aero Express Trucking, Salt Lake City, UT; 2nd Jared Tibbitts/Poulsen Trailer Sales, Logan, UT; 3rd John H Mason/Farmington, NM.
BOBTAIL (2001 & NEWER): 1st Jerry Torgerson, Fredonia, AZ; 2nd Kevin Zitting, Stockton, MO; 3rd Devin Gardner/Josh Skidmore, Brigham City, UT.
COMBO: 1st Kason Traveller/Stone Cliff Development, St George, UT; 2nd Weston McAllister/McAllister Enterprises, American Fork, UT.
PRIDE & POLISH WINNERS
BOBTAIL (ANTIQUE): Kamrie Brinkerhoff/Bob Orton Trucking, Panguitch, UT.
BOBTAIL (NEW TRUCK): Dan Dutson/Tuf Transport Services, St George, UT.
BOBTAIL (COMPANY TRUCK): Ty Dutson/Tuf Transport Services, St George, UT.
BOBTAIL (WORKING TRUCK): 1st Cody Madsen, Amargosa, NV; 2nd Darnell Bradshaw, Loma, CO; 3rd Kyler Brinkerhoff/Bob Orton Trucking, Panguitch, UT.
COMBO (WORKING TRUCK): 1st Tim Miller, Tulare, CA; 2nd Miro Dragich, Norwalk, CA.
INTERIOR (CAB ONLY): 1st (tie) Cody Madsen, Amargosa, NV AND Miro Dragich, Norwalk, CA; 2nd Ty Dutson/Tuf Transport Services, St George, UT; 3rd Dan Dutson/Tuf Transport Services, St George, UT.
INTERIOR (OEM SLEEPER): 1st Darnell Bradshaw, Loma, CO; 2nd Tim Miller, Tulare, CA; 3rd Kamrie Brinkerhoff/Bob Orton Trucking, Panguitch, UT.
BEST INTERIOR (LIMITED MILEAGE): Shane Scofield, Flandreau, SD.
PAINT (BOBTAIL): 1st Darnell Bradshaw, Loma, CO; 2nd Ty Dutson/Tuf Transport Services, St George, UT; 3rd Kamrie Brinkerhoff/Bob Orton Trucking, Panguitch, UT.
PAINT (COMBO): 1st Miro Dragich, Norwalk, CA.
BEST PAINT (LIMITED MILEAGE BOBTAIL): Doug Jameson/James Williams, Ozark, MO.
BEST PAINT (LIMITED MILEAGE COMBO): Josh Skidmore, Brigham City, UT.
ENGINE: 1st (tie) Cody Madsen, Amargosa, NV AND Tim Miller, Tulare, CA; 2nd Darnell Bradshaw, Loma, CO; 3rd Ty Dutson/Tuf Transport Services, St George, UT.
BEST ENGINE (LIMITED MILEAGE): Josh Skidmore, Brigham City, UT.
BEST OF SHOW (LIMITED MILEAGE BOBTAIL): Kyle Cousins/Fleenor Bros Trucking, Carthage, MO. *
BEST OF SHOW (LIMITED MILEAGE COMBO): Josh Skidmore, Brigham City, UT. *
BEST OF SHOW (WORKING BOBTAIL): Cody Madsen, Amargosa, NV. *
BEST OF SHOW (WORKING COMBO): Tim Miller, Tulare, CA. *
*Qualified to compete for the 2015-2016 National Championships next year at GATS in Dallas, TX
