10-4 Magazine - For Today's Trucker

COVER FEATURE - SEPTEMBER 2007

A GOOD TIME FOR A GREAT CAUSE
CHARITY SHOW HAS RAISED MONEY FOR KIDS SINCE 1981
By Daniel J. Linss - Editor

For over 26 years the annual charity truck drags has raised money for various children’s charities. This show, which has been held in a few different locations in California and been called a few different names over the years, is now produced by Truckin’ For Kids, a nonprofit organization headed by Frank Pangburn and his wife Dianna. Frank, who started out as a volunteer in 1985, has been the race director for this event since 1991. Their slogan has been “A Good Time for a Great Cause!” for several years now, because that is exactly what this event is. But when and where did it all start? Whose idea was it anyway? Well, ask no further. We recently sat down with Frank Pangburn and got all the answers.

It all started back in 1981 when a small group of truckers started joking with each other about who was the best truck driver. At some point it was decided that everyone would meet and compete in various driving challenges to see just who was the best. Everyone threw money into a hat, but at the end of the day, nobody wanted to take it. One of the gentleman suggested that they donate the money to a local charity, and another one, who happened to be handicapped, suggested the Crippled Children’s Society of Southern California. And so the Palmdale Truck Drags were born. That small group of men included Bill Donohoe, “Fast Eddie” Hall, Bill Frampton, Terry Klenske, Bob Wilson and Jim Grogan, to name a few. These men were the pioneers of the show, and many are still involved with it today.

The Palmdale Truck Drags, as the show was called for many years, was held at Los Angeles County Raceway (LACR) in Palmdale, CA. Each year the show got bigger and better. In 1985, Frank and Dianna Pangburn got involved and became volunteers for the event, which is and has always been run entirely by unpaid volunteers. In 1991, Frank took over as race director and the show really took off. It was at that point that Frank started referring to the show as Truckin’ For Kids (TFK). We at 10-4 Magazine got on board in 1994 when we began to promote, attend and sponsor the event.

Before Frank took over as race director in 1991, the show was only netting about $2,000 to $3,000 dollars a year (that’s what was left to give to the charity after all of the expenses to produce the event were deducted). Frank’s first year as race director the show netted $7,000. Then the next year it earned $11,000 - then $14,000 - then $17,000 - then $23,000, etc. Today, on average, the show nets about $20,000 to $25,000 annually for the charity it is affiliated with that year. Over its 26 year history, the show has earned over $525,000 for various children’s charities.

As the show grew, the parking lot in Palmdale seemed to shrink. In 1998, Frank had to turn 100 trucks away because he was out of space. For the next few years, Frank focused on improving the quality of the show and not the quantity - since there was no more room, there was no use in trying to get bigger, just better - or maybe just more organized. In 2002 Frank incorporated and Truckin’ For Kids, Inc. started as a non-profit organization, focused primarily on producing the drags, and the event’s name was officially changed to Truckin’ For Kids Truck Drags and Show & Shine.

But by 2004, Frank was tired of holding back, so he decided to “take a leap” and move the event to a bigger location in Famoso, CA (just north of Bakersfield off Highway 99). The venue was huge, with nearly unlimited space, but it had its issues as well. The 2004 and 2005 events held at Famoso Raceway were successful, but Frank wanted the event to be held in a more central location, so in 2006 he moved it to California Speedway in Fontana. And what a great year that was!

The 2006 show in Fontana was a one-day event because the venue was too costly to get it for two days. And boy was it a crazy day, as over 300 trucks lined up to get inside at the break of day. By the time everyone was in and parked, much of the day was gone. Judging went all day, and the awards ceremony didn’t begin until some time after 8:00 p.m. It was a great day, but it was also very long and tiring. Frank would have liked to keep the event in Fontana (and it may return to there in the future), but for now, it is just too costly of a location. So for 2007, the show will be held at Irwindale Speedway in Irwindale, CA. This venue, while not as large as some of the others, should prove to be adequate (early surveys show enough space for at least 300 trucks and some trailers). One of these days, Frank hopes to find a permanent home for the show.

For many years, all of the proceeds from the show went to the Crippled Children’s Society of Southern California, but when that organization began to have internal problems, Frank found a new charity. From 2000 to 2003, all of the proceeds from the show benefited the Children’s Center of Antelope Valley. But after moving the show to the Bakersfield area in 2004, Frank wanted to find a “local” organization in that area and found the Society for Disabled Children. The show was affiliated with this organization for two years. As of last year, 2006, the show is now raising money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. This international organization is totally dedicated to finding a cure for diabetes (www.jdrf.org).

This show has always been a lot of fun. With a truck beauty show, working competitions and, of course, the drag racing, this event has always been exciting. Back in the early days, the working competitions would get pretty crazy. We can remember one year, during the car loading and unloading contest, a participant drove one of the cars off the side of the trailer. Good thing it was a rental - we just hope they had opted to pay for the accident insurance. Over the years there have been a few crashes during the drag racing but, for the most part, the racing has been safe.

It takes a lot of people, working very hard, to put on a show of this size year after year. Frank and Dianna have a terrific group of volunteers who work 10 months of the year to put the show together. Most of the all volunteer committee (they don’t get paid) have been with TFK for more than 10 years, and a few for more than 20 years! Here is a list of just some of the people that volunteer to help each and every year: Richard Abraham, Greg Algori, Ray Algori, Cornelius Allen, Diana Berry, Dan Born, Paul Estrada, Jay Galloway, The Gonzales Family, Marilyn Graves, Dale Holtkamp, Tim Ludwig, Jonna Pangburn-Dennis, Bob Radcliff, Jim Schrein, Janet Ulberg, Travis Ulberg and Sean Westover. These people help to make this event a success and also make it feel more like an annual family reunion than a truck show.

Last year Frank decided to buy a truck to help promote the show and to pull the organization’s trailer that holds all of the necessary items needed to put on the show. Being an “old school” guy, Frank picked a 1975 Peterbilt cabover. The truck was purchased from a hay hauler in Nipomo, CA. Mechanically, the rig was good, but it did need some cosmetic work, so Frank dropped it off with his friends at Maggini Hay Company in Riverdale, CA. Maggini’s fleet of yellow and green trucks is well-known in the west, and Frank was sure that they could build it right (and he couldn’t beat the price - they did all the work for free). Getting most of the parts from sponsors, Frank was able to put together a really cool little truck.

The truck, which has a 120-inch wheelbase and a 32-inch sleeper, is powered by a 400 Cummins Big Cam, a 13-speed transmission and a 3.70 rear-end. The crew in Maggini’s shop sandblasted the cab and frame, fixed a few dents, and then painted everything. Frank wanted the truck to look like it was speeding through water or wet paint, but painter Jimmy Ogawa of Ogawa Designs in Sanger, CA “tweaked” this idea a bit. All of the lights were switched out with new LEDs, a new bumper, deck plate and aluminum wheels were installed, and new quarter fenders and mirrors were added. Nothing has been done to the interior yet, but Carl Carstens at Rockwood will be taking care of that shortly. Frank wanted to thank Juan & Lilianna at A & L Truck Supply for providing the chrome, Bill Cuningham at Truck-Lite for the lights and mirrors and, of course, everyone at Maggini for the labor.

When we went to Maggini’s place to take the pictures of the truck, we pitched the idea of doing a burnout (to help promote the drags) and Mike Maggini jumped at the chance. We didn’t have to ask him twice. He did about five fantastic burnouts for our cameras. And their weekend detail crew washed that little cabover at least three times that day, and did a great job at getting all that burned rubber off the back of the mud flaps!

After a 40-year trucking career and 20-plus years of doing the truck show, you’d think Frank would be getting tired, but he just keeps on going. Besides all the work he does throughout the year for the show, he also drives a water truck part time and helps his wife Dianna at the restaurant they recently opened in the small Idaho town they live in. Frank figures he’ll continue to produce the show for at least five more years or “when it isn’t fun anymore.” At that point, hopefully someone else will pick it up and run with it, because there are still plenty of kids out there that need help!

So now you know the whole story. And now you know why this truck show is such a special event. This year’s show is October 6-7 at Irwindale Speedway in Irwindale, CA. We urge you to join us and to have “A Good Time for a Great Cause!” We hope to see you all out there. Let’s make this the biggest and best year ever! For more information about the show, call Frank Pangburn at (208) 448-2811 or visit www.truckinforkids.org today.