10-4 Magazine - For Today's Trucker

CHARITY CONVOY BEST EVER
TRUCKERS UNITE ONCE AGAIN FOR SPECIAL OLYMPICS

About 80 big rig trucks and 20 motorcycles gathered at Madera Speedway in Madera, CA on Saturday, September 15, for the Central California edition of the World’s Largest Truck Convoy. This event, held annually since 2000, raises money for Special Olympics. Convoys are held across the country and in Canada, simultaneously (for the most part), to raise money for the cause. Because of scheduling conflicts, some convoys are held sooner and some are held later, but most happen on the same day. Last year more than 1,800 trucks participated in 45 convoys in 32 states, raising more than $544,000 for Special Olympics. Event organizers are hoping to exceed that number this year.

The trucks and motorcycles left Madera Speedway at 10:30 in the morning, heading south on Highway 99. With a police escort leading the way and setting the pace, the long line of trucks made themselves known, as they caused a small traffic jam wherever they went. But that is what an event like this is supposed to do – not only raise money, but awareness, too. The parade of vehicles, all marked with special placards, made their way to their final destination, the SaveMart Center at Fresno State, where a fun post-convoy celebration took place. As the trucks filed into the parking lot of the SaveMart Center, scores of Special Olympic athletes and their families greeted them with signs of affirmation and thanks, and a lot of clapping and cheering.

Once parked, participants made their way to a large tent where tables and chairs were set up and Applebee’s provided a delicious hot lunch for all in attendance. The band “Undercover” provided live music throughout the entire event as participants, vendors, sponsors and Special Olympic athletes relaxed and enjoyed the perfect weather. A few vendors set up small booths including Westar Transport (which featured free hand painting), Aflac Insurance, the CHP, a company that sold remote-controlled cars, boats, airplanes and helicopters (they also did some cool demonstrations), Papé Trucks (Kenworth of Central CA) and, of course, 10-4 Magazine. Sponsors and vendors also provided prizes that were raffled off during the event, helping to raise even more money for the cause.

But the best part of the post-convoy party was the truck pull. This year, event coordinator Courtney Shapiro got Papé Trucks to bring out two identical brand new 2008 Kenworth T660s, one painted red and the other blue, and teams of five pulled the 18,000 lb. trucks with a rope over a predetermined distance. The event was timed, and when it was all said and done, the winning team was the tough group from Westar Transport. Papé Trucks was also nice enough to bring out another truck with a flatbed trailer which was used as the stage for the band.

Although there is no formal truck beauty competition at this event, organizers let the Special Olympic athletes pick their favorite trucks and hand out plaques. Our friends at Tally Transportation in Madera got a plaque for having the most trucks in the convoy (12), and Pete Dykstra’s yellow and black 1952 GMC was awarded Best Antique. Colton Pounds of Central Valley Transport and his uncle Keith brought out Mark Pound’s flamed Freightliner Classic XL which was named Best of Show. The Tulare Chapter of the ATHS had six trucks in the convoy, including Willem DeBoer’s rust-colored Peterbilt cabover which was the lead truck. Westar Transport out of Selma, CA made a pretty good showing as well, bringing out eight trucks to the event.

This event started seven years ago as a single convoy in Florida by Norm Schneiderhan and has grown every year since. Five years ago they started having multiple convoys in several different states. Norm hopes to one day have at least one convoy in every state. To learn more about this event, visit www.worldslargesttruckconvoy.com. We’d like to thank everyone who participated in this year’s convoy and invite them to make it an annual event that they attend with their family and friends. The 2008 convoys are scheduled for September 20th, so mark your calendars now and stay tuned for more details as that date approaches.