When the phrase “Hall of Fame” is mentioned, what comes to mind is something related to sports. You might think of Hall of Fame football player Bart Starr, or baseball’s Hank Aaron, or basketball’s Michael Jordan. Arguably, the greatest of all time in their respective professions. Thesaurus defines Hall of Fame as individuals carefully selected as the best in their class. I don’t believe there is a “Hall of Fame” for truck shows, but if there was, I would bet a $100 that the Waupun Truck-N-Show would be a perfect candidate.
After 35 successful years, this truck show was retired on August 11, 2024. The last event was appropriately titled the “Waupun Truck-N-Show Last Ride” with over 600 trucks in attendance. In December 2024, the truck show team assembled at the Waupun Rock Golf Club one final time to celebrate the 35 years of hard work that made this truck show such a huge success. I had the privilege to attend this event, and many memories were shared, tears were shed, and hugs were given. It was a fitting send-off into the history books for the Waupun Truck-N-Show.
What makes a “Hall of Fame” event? First, it’s longevity. There are only a handful of major truck shows that have been in existence for longer (MATS and TFK come to mind). The origin of this show began in 1989 in a discussion between Alton Asmus, Don Schultz, Steve Wendt, John Williamson, and Ron VandeZande. Steve Wendt suggested the idea over burgers after attending a truck show in Green Bay, WI. Their goal was to start a truck show in Waupun, that local drivers and truck owners would actively participate in, with a goal of raising donations to benefit some local charities. The idea was agreed upon unanimously and they proceeded with making the show a reality.
Ron VandeZande was elected as the first President to lead the team. The early shows were held in the town center of Waupun on Madison Street. The first one-day truck show took place on August 4, 1990. As the truck show grew, it necessitated a move to the Main Street Waupun Community Center, on the northeast side of Waupun. It also required the creation of committees with a designated committee chairperson. At its peak, there were 22 committees and 50 people involved in organizing, planning, and executing of the event. Over its 35-year span, the show would vary in size from 300-600 trucks.
Because of health issues in 2019, Ron VandeZande was forced to step down as the first President of the show. Sadly, Ron passed away in December of 2021 at 78 years old. That same year another member of the original group, Steve Wendt, also passed away. Duey VandeZande was elected as the next President for the final six years of the truck show. Other key team members included Nancy Kutschenreuter, who managed registration for 28 years, and over the last five years, she served as Vice President. Lola Milner assisted Nancy with registration and was also responsible for ordering and selling Waupun show apparel for 32 years.
Besides the goal of having a “Hall of Fame” worthy event, the most important objective was raising money for two major charitable organizations – the Make-a-Wish Foundation and Special Olympics. There were other charitable organizations that got donations, but those two were the largest. In 35 years, the show donated well over $1 million in contributions from all the participants, sponsors, and attendees, that benefited many families. Here is a breakdown for each charity: Make-a-Wish (2004-2024) $687,000; Special Olympics (35 years) $385,000; Reach Waupun $57,000; and Waupun Animal Shelter (2023) $5,000. The donations of this sizeable amount cannot be overstated enough, and they will now unfortunately be missed.
For the participants, trophies were an important part of the show. Besides the Mid-America Trucking Show, the Waupun truck show handed out the most awards for all the events I’ve attended. There were so many trophies, they almost filled up an entire flatbed trailer! At one point, there were roughly 395 award categories. In the beginning, plaques were handed out for the award winners of each class, but eventually the switch was made from plaques to trophies. Over its 35-year history, three different companies provided plaques and trophies for the event.
Two special awards were created for the truck show. The first was the Memorial Trophy. This was a trophy created and awarded in memory of a special person who was a driver or owner that participated in this event. The second special award was the Kid’s Choice Award. Several selected children attending the truck show, along with our beloved 10-4 Magazine team member Kim Jaikes, would scour the show field and pick their favorite truck. These desired awards were presented at the Saturday afternoon awards ceremony.
There were many “Hall of Fame” sponsors, as well, that contributed to the event’s success over the years. Some of these major sponsors were AMCAN Truck Parts, Big Rig Chrome Shop, Brakebush, 4 State Trucks, Homer’s Towing, JX Enterprises, J&J Trucking, Jones Performance Products, Smedema Trucking, Time 2 Shine, Quad Graphics, Skinner Trucking, Wisconsin Kenworth, TTI/Blu Leasing, and Truck Country. A big “high five” goes out to all of these longtime show supporters!
Many accomplishments were made from this event, including contributing to charitable organizations, driver and owner involvement in every show, the development of both personal and professional lifetime friendships and partnerships, and major financial benefit to the businesses in and around Waupun. Over the 35 years of this truck show, millions of dollars were taken in, and its ending is a very big financial loss to these communities.
One of the key characteristics of a “Hall of Fame” truck show is the staff of people who made it happen and the time they invested in planning, organizing, and executing the show. A very special thanks and recognition to the following “Hall of Fame” team members: Lola Milner (33 years); Duey VandeZande (33 years); Steve and Judy Schaalma (32 years); Nancy Kutschenreuter (28 years); Tom Loveless (26 years); Brenda Douma (20 years); Jeff Kreuizenger (15 years); Peggy and Jeff Bolstad (15 years); Terry Beine (15 years); Scott Tofteland (10 years); and Carrie Sackett (10 years). In addition, a very special “Thank You” to all the volunteers and judges who contributed their time, expertise, and effort to each show, along with the City of Waupun, for allowing the truck show team to put on this amazing event for all those years!
On a personal level, I’ve attended many truck shows as an attendee and participant, and more recently, as a 10-4 representative. Over the past few years, I have provided truck show support and written many reports for the magazine, but Waupun was the last truck show event I attended with my parents before their passing, so it was special to me.
I’ve developed many personal friendships and professional relationships because of this show and would like to say a very sincere “Thank You” to the Waupun Truck-N-Show team for always making me feel welcome. It was a truly “Hall of Fame” show, with “Hall of Fame” people, that created “Hall of Fame” memories for so many of us over the years. We will sincerely miss this legendary August event!