TRUCKER RON & HIS KW
BY TRUCK DRIVER & WRITER BRYAN WELSH
Featuring some of the nicest rigs that run
up and down the road every day.
We’ve all met a lot of “Rons” over the years, but trust me, there’s only one real “Trucker Ron” out there! Ron Pettijohn of Chiloquin, OR met “Big Ed” Davis and his son James at the Vegas truck show in 2005 through a good friend named Jeremy, and the rest, as they say, is history. Shortly after meeting each other, “Big Ed” offered Ron a driving job, and just a couple years later, “Trucker Ron” found himself standing in a paint booth in Canby, OR staring at his soon-to-be trademark W900L Kenworth (seen here) coming to life with a fresh coat of bright orange paint.
For Ron to be lucky enough to drive such a unique company truck, it takes a dedicated and unique fleet owner, and this is where “Big Ed” Davis comes in. Ed has loved everything about trucking since his early years as an 9-year-old boy standing beside the highway in Blodgett, OR, holding an apple box in one hand and a pillow in the other, waiting for Paul Maddox, a local log truck driver, to stop and pick him up and take him on a run to Oregon City (or wherever). After countless trips in the cab of Paul’s old log truck, sitting on his pillow-topped apple box, “Big Ed” realized that trucking was his calling.
Ed starting trucking in 1972, running in the 11 Western states, and by the time the mid-70’s rolled around, he had the tiger by the tail! Later, with the help and support of his wife Rayven and their two kids, Renae and James, Ed bought his first truck – a 1976 Freightliner cabover – and then things really got going (thanks to a little more help from Plywood Components in Albany, OR and Ed’s good friend Dave Ebert).
Anybody that knows “Big Ed” remembers his always-pressed-out 1979 A-Model and/or his cool 1985 B-Model Kenworth rollin’ through the West. So, it was really no surprise in 2003 when Ed bought what would be the first of ten trucks in his current fleet – a pretty basic 275” long black 1996 Kenworth W900L with a 72” Studio Sleeper, a 550 Cat and a 13-speed transmission. Believe it or not, Ron’s orange stunner seen here is that original cookie-cutter Kenworth.
Ron, who has been trucking since 1990, became part of the Davis team (and family) in 2007 while rebuilding and transforming this truck. Ron proudly admits that his enthusiasm and happiness would be nowhere near what it is today without his best friend and wife of over 26 years, Pam Pettijohn – she has always supported Ron and his trucking fetish and made their house a home for all these years. Ron also attributes a lot of his happiness to “Big Ed” (who describes himself as being 5’18” tall) and James Davis for providing him the best job he’s ever had!
All ten of “Big Ed’s” trucks haul for Ram Trucking out of Brownsville, OR and each of them have their own special touch – in this case, “Trucker Ron” is that special touch. He’s been the heart of this truck since 2007 and done a lot to it. Whether it’s converting the windows to one-piece glass, adding custom deckplates and drop panels, or even painting the dash, Ron has done it all (with help from Jeff Botelho and others). And let’s not forget the endless hours of polishing! Ron has always operated this truck as if it were his own, and we here at 10-4 Magazine would like to thank him for being the one-and-only “Trucker Ron” in our book.