COVER FEATURE - MARCH 2004
FIRE DOWN BELOW
By Daniel J. Linss - Editor
The day started out bad. As we awoke in our hotel room in Las Vegas, we realized the big storm the weather guessers had “predicted” would hit, actually did. Overnight, the surrounding mountains were covered with a fresh blanket of snow, while heavy rain continued to fall on “sin city” causing serious flash flood concerns. This was no way to start a photo shoot! For a while we even wondered if it would happen at all, but then we came to our senses and realized rain or shine, wet or dry, cloudy or sunny, we were going to get the job done. This weather “event” merely added to the challenge of getting a great shot.
The truck and its driver, a young man named Dan Jackson, were ready and waiting, but the rain was still falling, so we decided to have some breakfast and wait the storm out. It seemed to be moving through pretty quickly, so we figured we’d just stall a bit until it passed. After we ate, we decided to take advantage of a break in the rain, and headed out for our destination - Valley of Fire State Park just north of Las Vegas. After all, the truck we were shooting was sporting a realistic-looking “fire” mural, so where better to photograph it but the Valley of Fire.
By the time we arrived at our destination, it started raining again. What a nightmare! We left the truck parked in a turnout and ventured into the park for a look around. Wow! What a gorgeous area. If you have never been to the Valley of Fire, it’s worth a stop - even in the rain. The Valley of Fire derives its name from red sandstone formations, formed from great shifting sand dunes during the age of dinosaurs, 150 million years ago. Complex uplifting and faulting of the region, followed by extensive erosion, have created the present landscape. Every turn we took on the road through the park seemed to amaze us more than the last - the scenery was truly spectacular.
The day was passing fast - and so was the daylight. Finally, at about 2:00 PM, the weather started to show signs of clearing. Thick clouds still clung to many of the mountain tops, but the sun began peeking through the gaps, causing dramatic lighting effects, which made the scenery look even more interesting. We raced back to the parked truck and began wiping it down. Having been cleaned and polished the day before, we basically just had to dry it off and rub out some water spots, but it still took an hour. By now, it was after 3:00 PM and we were beginning to wonder if our little bit of sun was going to last before the rain began again. Well, it did, and based on the photos seen on the cover, the centerfold, and these pages, we think it all worked out for the best. We shot until the sun went down, and then we shot some more. Dramatic weather, dramatic lighting and dramatic scenery made for dramatic pictures. Of course, our subject was pretty dramatic too.
The neat truck seen here is owned by Thomas J. Peck and Sons Trucking out of Lehi, Utah. Owner Tom Peck built the truck for himself but wasn’t using it enough to justify its existence in their fleet, so he passed it on to a lucky driver named Dan Jackson. And Dan couldn’t be more excited. He is infatuated with this truck and loves driving it. Dan has been driving for Peck for about eight years, and, obviously, has made an impression on the powers that be. Operations Manager Steve (Schoony) Schoonover told us that Dan has always taken very good care of his equipment and always been a good spokesman for the company. And we would agree. At only 29 years old, this “kid” really has his head screwed on straight - we were very impressed with Dan and the way he represented Peck Trucking.
The truck is a 2002 Kenworth W900L with a 72-inch flat top AeroCab sleeper, a Cat C-16 with 600 HP, an 18-speed transmission, 3.70 rears, a Jake brake and a hydraulic retarder. This thing purred like a kitten but roared like a lion! Even while pulling a fully-loaded reefer trailer, the truck was blowing by four-wheelers as it climbed the grade up out of the Las Vegas Valley toward the State Park. Covered with LED lights and plenty of chrome, the truck (like all of Peck’s trucks) features a specially-ordered red frame, red interior and a one-piece, lightweight, plastic front end. But what really sets this rig apart from the rest is its cool paint job.
Tom wanted to do something different, so he hired airbrush artist Mike Lavallee to do what he does best - paint realistic-looking flames. After Gary and Lisa Jensen did all of the prep work, Mike, owner of Killerpaint Airbrush Studio in Snohomish, Washington, flew down to Utah and spent two days on the truck. He not only sprayed all of the “fire” but also painted a mural of a beautiful Indian Maiden on the back of the sleeper. Mike’s innovative “TRU-FIRE” technique is taking the custom world to the next level. He has painted several motorcycles and cars with this type of mural, as well as a helicopter. His unique work has been featured on Discovery Channel’s Monster Garage and he also does a lot of work for Jesse James, owner of the now-famous West Coast Choppers.
Some other items the truck features include a custom bumper with LED lights, stainless Hogebuilt full fenders, polished stack guards with laser-cutouts, polished stainless straps that are virtually invisible around the polished fuel tanks, and chrome covers on every nut on the frame. The truck has a specially-ordered interior called the “Seattle Package”, which adds extra upholstery to places that usually don’t have it. They call it the “Seattle Package” because Kenworth has to send the truck to Seattle to get the work done. Back in the sleeper, a custom bedspread was made with individual buttons sewed on to match the button tuck upholstery. Like the truck’s exterior, the bedspread is black on the top and red underneath, and features a silkscreened picture of the truck on the top. The sleeper has a TV with a VCR/DVD player so Dan can watch movies while relaxing or waiting for a load.
Thomas J. Peck and Sons was formed back in 1947 by the late Thomas J. Peck. In the beginning, the company was more of a mining operation than a trucking company. The trucks came out of necessity, and then later became a large part of the operation. Today, the Peck fleet consists of 53 trucks - all of which are KW’s with Cat engines. After Thomas J. Peck passed away in the mid 1970s, his children took over the business. Peck still specializes in hauling clay and concrete aggregates, but has recently branched out into other areas like reefers, hot oil tankers and step-decks. The reefer division was started primarily as a way to keep some of their drivers busy during the slower winter months, but it is rapidly growing into a year-round operation. Peck now has nine reefers, running primarily between Utah and California.
Growing up in Lehi, a relatively small town about 25 miles south of Salt Lake City, Dan can remember daydreaming about driving for Peck. Their yard was directly across the street from the high school, and Dan used to sit and look out the window of his classroom and watch the trucks go by. Who knew that one day he would be driving a truck like this for Peck. I guess its a daydream come true for Dan!
When not working, Dan likes to ride his wanna-be Harley and spend time with his wife Nancy and their four young children. He wishes he could be home more, but he’s not complaining. He loves the fact that he gets to drive a show truck every day - and now be featured in a magazine. I guess it turned out to be a pretty good day after all.