SWEET & NEAT PETE
THE LATEST PROJECT FROM CLINT MOORE
This month’s “creation” was built for Tim Stockwell of Meridian, Idaho. Tim (50) did not grow up around trucks, but he has always been fascinated by them, so it didn’t take much to get him going. In fact, all it took was one ride in an old narrow-nose Peterbilt wrecker, and he was hooked. He has been driving truck ever since.
Tim grew up in a rural area around Fresno, California. His dad Ray (who is now retired) was a Battalion Chief for the California Department of Forestry, while his mom Joan (who is also retired) was a school teacher. Tim’s parents divorced when he was five years old, but he still saw his dad every other weekend. After graduating from high school in 1977, Tim went to school to be a machinist, but it just didn’t work out. Eventually, he found himself driving a delivery truck.
One day his delivery truck broke down, so a wrecker was dispatched to pick him up. Tim can still clearly remember climbing into that cool old 1965 Peterbilt that came to pick him up - it had a butterfly hood, low-rider seats and the engine really rumbled - he loved it! From that moment, his life changed (he even subscribed to some trucking magazines, and he didn’t even own a truck or know how to drive one yet).
Shortly thereafter, Tim found a friend whose dad drove a tanker truck and he talked him into letting him ride along. Pretty soon, after a few lessons, Tim was driving. Tim’s trucking career began at Assured Trans, and then he switched over to Beneto, where he spent five years. While at Beneto, in 1990, he was in a terrible crash that left him with a broken shoulder blade, two broken ribs, a punctured lung, and severe damage to both of his arms. Today, he has several tattoos on his arms to hide the scars.
After he left Beneto in 1992, he bounced around a bit and then ended up in Idaho. In 2004 he bought a 2002 Pete 379, got his own authority, and then began running flatbed freight between Idaho and California. The name of his company, Sage Rider Transport, is a mix between the idea that truckers are modern-day cowboys, his love for the high plains, and a book he once read called Riders of the Purple Sage. Tim does not look like a cowboy, but he is one at heart.
Running in California, Tim became a fan of 10-4 Magazine, picking it up every month. So, when it came time to order a new truck, he called Clint Moore. Clint ordered Tim a 2010 Peterbilt 389 with a 70” HR sleeper, a 525 Cummins ISX, an 18-speed transmission, a 280” wheelbase, factory weed-burner exhaust, and a car-hauler front axle on air-ride. Tim picked the color, Aqua Metallic Blue, because it reminded him of the color of the water he saw on a recent trip to Hawaii.
When the truck showed up at the shop it was pretty bare, so they went to work. Clint, with help from Jesus and Brent, installed a set of stainless steel Hogebuilt half-fenders with hidden brackets, five bullet lights, old-school emblems, 8” stacks (dummies), painted body drop panels, and a painted bowtie visor. They also added the black and gold stripes, painted the fuel tanks and dash, and chopped the air cleaners. Tim built the rear light bar himself from the back of a trailer.
Clint really enjoyed working with Tim - he is super laid-back, and didn’t even get upset that the truck wasn’t ready to roll until 7:00 PM on Christmas Eve - and there was a foot of snow on the ground! Because he is so mellow, Tim’s friend gave him the nickname “Homegrown” (but he doesn’t ever touch the stuff). Tim has been married to Martha, his high school sweetheart, for 30 years and has two daughters, Jennifer and Ashley. Both of their girls are now married, and Ashley has given them two grandkids, Isaiah and Claire.
Currently, with the building industry in a slump, Tim is running any freight he can find, wherever he can get it. Clint wanted to thank all of the guys in the shop (and his dad) for working hard to help get this truck done so Tim could get his Christmas delivery and get home (just a little late) to celebrate the holiday with his family.
~ If you would like Clint Moore to order and/or build you a new custom truck, contact him at Kansas City Peterbilt via e-mail at clintmoore@kcpete.com or call him at (913) 484-7768. You can also visit his website at www.custombuiltfor.com and check out pictures of other custom trucks he has built.