Living on a ranch in Wyoming, you learn to work at an early age, but if you are lucky, you get to do a job that you will love for the rest of your life. Our friend Marty Miles (52) did just that, but he didn’t become a cowboy – he became a cow trucker. From a very young age, Marty was all about anything with a motor and wheels. Tractors had a motor and air conditioning – a horse did not. His brother Jack was the cowboy, and Marty was destined to be the one who fell in love with driving. It didn’t really matter what it was – if he could drive it, he was happy in it.
In 1987, when he was 14 years old, Marty got a “hardship” license that allowed him to drive a straight truck from sunup to sundown, within 100 air miles of his home, as long as he didn’t go out of state. The truck he loved the most was an old 1979 International S1900 with an 18’ Omaha Standard ag box, a gas motor, and a 5-speed transmission with a 2-speed rear end.
Marty was the 4th generation to live on the farm/ranch, which has been in his family since the late 1800s. They grew hay, corn, and oats to feed the cows they raised. I was happy to hear that most of the ranch is still in the family, with his cousin Jamie and her husband Chad owning part of it, and his Aunt Peg and Uncle Jim owning another part of it, with the rest having been sold.
They always had trucks around so they could haul hay and feed for their cattle. They would haul the calves to market when they were weaned and, later on, started keeping their cows all the way until they were “fats” and then sold them direct to packers. Marty’s dad Jack would help the neighbors haul their cattle, too. Back then, neighbors helped neighbors, and in Alcova, Wyoming, neighbors were not plentiful (in the 2020 census, there were only 34 residents in the tiny, unincorporated community).
Marty’s love for trucks grew as he watched a lot of the Wisconsin “big rides” roll by on their way from Casper to Rawlins, Wyoming. Anytime he got a chance to ride with his dad, he was there! A big CAT motor with straight pipes has a distinctive sound to trained ears. Listening to Marty talk about some of the old trucks he grew up around, and eventually bought and owned, as well, you can hear the love of it all in his voice. He remembers when a neighbor got an old Jimmy with aluminum front wheels and he was impressed, saying, “You were a high stepper if you had aluminum wheels.”
Another one of the trucks he loved was a 4300 International conventional daycab that they put a 36-inch “coffin sleeper” on for a place to take a little nap – and give it a serious cool factor! His dad’s first “fancy” truck was a 1985 Freightliner FLC with a 60-inch flat top sleeper, a 400 CAT, 13-speed, 3.90 rear ends, and ten aluminum wheels. Painted gold with a matching frame and custom pinstripes, the truck had owner operator specs all the way. Marty often drove trucks to school, but he was disappointed when his dad wouldn’t let him take the truck to his senior prom. His date could care less, but it bummed him out.
At 20 years old Marty got his CDL but still had to run in state and dream of the west coast for another year. When he was 21, in the spring of 1995, that trip finally came, and it was in a 1988 Volvo with a 425 CAT and a 13-speed. After bouncing to Le Grand, California to pick up feeder calves and then giving them a ride to Nyssa, Oregon, he raced to the Truck Inn in Fernley, Nevada where they had cattle only parking and pens if you needed to unload your livestock. That’s where all the “spring run” trucks would go to get dispatched. Driving this old Volvo for the family ranch for a few months after his dad sold his part of the property, Marty will always call that place home, but he’s happy where he is now in Pine Bluffs, Wyoming.
Like so many early truck drivers from the Midwest or back east, Marty’s big dream of going to California turned into a big disappointment on this first trip out west. After all the movies he had watched, he was convinced that as soon as he crossed into California, it would soon be palm trees and ocean views. However, as most of us who have crossed Donner Pass know, what it really looks like in the spring is lots of mighty pines, snow, big rocks, and, eventually, the central valley, filled with farms, agriculture, and many not-so-prestigious cities. However, this disappointing trip didn’t squash his love of driving at all.
In the fall of 1997, Marty’s dad helped him buy his first truck – a brand new 1998 Freightliner Classic XL with a big bunk. After selling his part of the ranch, his dad got his own authority, and Miles Trucking Company was born. Marty ran under his dad’s authority until January of 1999 when he got his own authority. H&M Express is the company he still operates today. Marty was engaged to his wife Heidi at the time, and you guessed it, the “H” stands for Heidi, and the “M” is for Marty – a partnership still going strong.
Working together as a team and building the business, while Heidi was home raising their two boys, Wyatt and Wesley, Marty was out driving. Talking about Heidi, Marty said, “She’s the best thing that ever happened me.” Marty is proud of the fact that he never missed a birthday or Christmas in all his years trucking. Not to say there haven’t been some events missed, but not these. After dad sold the ranch, he and mom (Penny) moved to Lingle, Wyoming, where they bought a 200-acre farm and grew hay and corn. Marty and Heidi lived just three miles from his parents, because Marty always wanted to be close to his dad.
Over the years, Marty and his dad worked on lots of trucks together, but the one that means the most is dad’s dream truck – a 1975 Dodge Bighorn – the last year they made them. Equipped with a 350 Cummins, a 13-speed, and 3.70 rears, they added air ride and a 60-inch Mercury smooth-sided sleeper. Marty found the sleeper in a junk yard, and then they brought it back to life. Marty’s dad always wanted one of these trucks, but it was a want at the time and not a need. A friend told Marty about this Bighorn in North Dakota that would be on the market, and his dad was able to make his dream a reality, and every hour spent “working” on this truck together was a labor of love for both of them.
The saddest trip this truck ever made was the one that Marty drove, along with his son Wesley, taking the “dreamer” to his final resting place. His mom still has the truck and all the memories that go with it. The last project they got to work on together was Marty’s 1985 K-100 Kenworth with a Series 60 Detroit, 18-speed, and 3.55 rears. They stretched it, put a new suspension under it, added disc brakes, and swapped out the motor and transmission. She was a Liberty edition when she was new, but the original owner had it painted in their company colors, and the KW still sports that paint job today.
We all remember the first truck show we went to, and Marty’s was at the Alamo in Reno, Nevada, in the fall of 1999. After that, it was on to Truckin’ For Kids in California, and from there, friendships began. Later, he was invited to the first invite only Kenworth Truck Parade show in Chillicothe, Ohio, in 2022. Marty was so proud to not only be invited, but to be able to take his dad and sons with him to the show.
Marty is an important part of the 10-4 family, and his help with the first and second “10-4 Trucker Rodeo & Show” held in Bakersfield, California, has been invaluable. Not only does he help promote the show with fun videos and advice, but he also helps run some of the events and parks trucks, too. His “training” videos, made to promote the rodeo, especially the cow loading contest, are very entertaining, to say the least, and greatly appreciated (nobody will forget his all-American jumpsuit, the mullet wig, and his colorful headband anytime soon).
The pictures on these pages show many of the trucks Marty has owned or driven over the years, and the history speaks for itself. At that show in Reno in 1999, our dear friend Bette Garber took lots of pictures of Marty’s awesome Freightliner Classic XL, hooked to his 1999 Wilson trailer (the first trailer he ever owned), and one those pictures was featured in a story by Deborah Lockridge called “Last of the Cowboys” about hauling livestock. Although Marty Miles has never considered himself to be a true cowboy, he still loves cow trucking and ranch living, and, even if possible, he wouldn’t change a thing!
EDITOR’S NOTE: Thanks to Marty Miles, Kim Jaikes, Jimmy Miller, Kara Mathews, Stephanie Haas, Angelina Gaare, and Daniel Linss for the photos for this feature.