The Velasquez brothers grew up around trucks, and from an early age, all four of them were helping their dad rebuild them. But it wasn’t until their uncle Marcos Segovia took them to Truckin’ For Kids at Los Angeles County Raceway (LACR) in Palmdale, CA in October 2002 where they were first exposed to big rig drag racing – and they fell in love with it! From that point on, it was their dream to build and race a hot rod semi together as a family, but that dream wouldn’t become a reality for almost 20 years. Today, V-Bros Racing and their 1800-hp Big Cam Cummins powered 1957 Kenworth are two-time NHRDA World Champions that hold records for both mph (128.53) and elapsed time (11.06 seconds) in the quarter mile.
This story began when Oscar Velasquez, the boy’s father, immigrated to the United States from El Salvador in 1977 with a dream of starting his own trucking company. By 1980 he had become an owner operator, hauling containers, with his first rig – a 1974 White Road Commander powered by a 318 Detroit and a 10-speed, with a short wheelbase on Hendrickson suspension. Because of the hard ride, they nicknamed that truck “La Burra” in Spanish, which translates to “The Donkey” in English. But that cabover was a vast upgrade from what he drove back in El Salvador – a 1966 Toyota Stout he used to transport barrels of water to rural areas. By 1981 he had upgraded to a 1975 Kenworth K123 powered with a Cummins 335, and at that time, he realized that Kenworth would be the brand of choice for him. Peterbilt’s are cool, but because of his short stature, he was just better seated in a Kenworth (his own words).
By 1984 he had ventured into the produce side of transportation in a long hood Cummins powered W900A pulling a stainless reefer (a truck the Velasquez brothers wish they still owned). Unfortunately, the hard recession of the 1980s would hit the Velasquez household, and dad would have to restart all over again after losing the trucks he owned. By the early 90s, restarting again, he then ventured into hauling mail, and by the mid-90s he had become a US mail contractor. Having a mechanic and body shop background, he never had the need to have work done by any other shop on any of his trucks – he also started getting a lot of help from his four young boys.
Being from the troubled streets of South Central Los Angeles, Oscar Velasquez (now 67) made sure to keep his four boys out of trouble by keeping them in the shop all the time. The boys, Henry L. Velasquez, Oscar J. Velasquez, Alfred Velasquez, and Jefrie Velasquez, now collectively known as the V-Bros, were all just kids at the time and they knew that vacation from school and weekends meant time at the shop. Their idea of playtime meant driving the shop forklift or helping by handing dad tools. Back in those early days, they loved looking at all the cool trucks featured in 10-4 Express Magazine, which is what the magazine was called between the years of 1994 and 2000.
After another restart occurred in October 1998, things took a turn for the good when dad acquired a 1962 Kenworth wrecker that was purchased from Eddie Tate at Ace High Truck Parts in Wilmington, CA. As a side note, Ace High Truck Parts was a longtime advertiser and supporter of 10-4 Magazine. Their ad appeared in our very first issue back in September 1993 and ran for decades. They were also part of our distribution network, right from the start, and I personally would go to their location to fill their rack each month. While there, Eddie and his son Kevin talked a lot about BBQ, and my initial love and fascination of smoking meat started with them! Sadly, Eddie died several years ago, and the business has since been closed.
The old Kenworth wrecker was originally powered by a 290 Cummins. Later, after the 290 blew up, they swapped it with a 335 Cummins, and then at some point later, it was upgraded to a Big Cam II. Towing from L.A. to Fontana was their usual run, and it was common for the V-Bros to be spotted in the truck with their dad – Alfred and Oscar J. would be stuffed into the KW’s small 30” sleeper while older brother Henry would be in the co-pilot seat. By 2000, Henry had his CDL, and he started helping drive the wrecker, which had a twin-stick setup for the 15-speed main and 3-speed Brownie. By the year 2002, the Velasquez family had opened a truck salvage yard in Gardena, CA, and the towing side of the business helped them find trucks to part out.
All the boys grew up around this wrecker, which they still have and use, and whenever work needed to be done on the old Kenworth, Oscar J. was usually the one to help dad. Their love for trucks and drag racing took the V-Bros to shows in Tijuana, Mexicali, Arizona, and wherever TFK was happening (Palmdale, Fontana, Famoso and Irwindale) – wherever there were truck drags, they would be there. The dream of building their own race truck began from the very start in 2002 when they attended their first TFK event. In 2008, they attempted to build their first drag race truck, but dad stopped them, saying they were too inexperienced. Dad eventually became a full-time minister, and since then, the boys have pretty much been on their own.
By 2012, with the success of their parts store on eBay “Hanks1961KW” (named after Henry’s 1961 Kenworth), the V-Bros quickly ventured onto the world stage and began building Peterbilt 359s for a customer in Sweden and shipping parts to Australia. Building about 15 trucks in total, they would then export them in shipping containers to Sweden. With the boost of social media, they expanded to specialty vintage truck parts and Jemsal, Inc. was born. The name “Jemsal” came from dad, and it is an acronym for the Spanish phrase “Jesus es mi Salvador” (Jesus is my Savior). Wherever a Peterbilt 359 was being built, the Velasquez brothers quickly became the go-to guys for parts.
The dream of building a drag race truck had been put on hold for long enough, and having the wrecking yard gave the brothers access to parts and space to save them. In 2016, they bought a classic 1957 Kenworth 921 that would eventually become the race truck. Purchased from Triny Elizarraras, the truck sat behind his house for two more years, until it was finally brought to the shop in Los Angeles in 2018. Gathering a hot rod Cummins Big Cam and a Positraction rear-end, they began working on the truck in their spare time. Why Cummins? Most racers from back in the day ran 8V92 Detroits, but the Velasquez boys grew up working on Cummins engines and were the most comfortable with them, so Cummins it was.
By September 2019, the V-Bros had what resembled a drag race truck. Getting close to the October date of TFK, their goal was to finally have their race truck on the track. When race day finally arrived, the truck was not painted, and they needed help hauling it to the races. Their friend, Ryan Rodriguez, offered to haul the KW race truck to TFK with his 1950 Kenworth. Running nowhere near as fast as they do today, these rookies still had huge smiles on their faces, and V-Bros Racing was born. Living pretty close to Irwindale Speedway, it was common to see the KW “testing and tuning” on the track every Thursday night. With lots of experimenting, trying to prove the Detroit powered racers wrong, they were determined to make that Big Cam Cummins run fast.
Social media would help the boys a lot, with help that came all the way from Australia. Alfred became friends with Steven Zammit of SRZ Racing who, without really even knowing the brothers, sent them a custom camshaft that would help them start going faster. By April 2021, the truck finally got its flashy Viper red paint job to help identify the truck’s name “El Manzano” – which means “The Apple” – and was the nickname given to Alfred by their father when he was born (apparently his face was all red). Naming the race truck after Alfred was only fitting because he was the one who drove all the other brothers to finally get it finished. For the 40th annual TFK show in 2021, “El Manzano” with its red paint and yellow flames, like you see today, won 1st place in the Super Drag class – it was their first major win. At TFK 2022 the following year, they became repeat champions by winning the class again.
Winning their first NHRDA (National Hot Rod Diesel Association) event at the NorCal Diesel Nationals in Redding, CA in May 2023, V-Bros went on to win the NHRDA World Championship in Ennis, TX later that same year. This would be their greatest accomplishment to date. Sadly, 2024 was not kind to them, with V-Bros only getting a few 2nd place finishes that year – but they kept racing. Surprisingly, 2025 went on to be their greatest year ever, winning the TFK race again, and going on to become NHRDA World Champion for the second time. Oscar would also place V-Bros Racing in the record books when he set a new record of 128.53 mph on the quarter mile in Ennis, TX at the Texas Motorplex.
The 2026 NHRDA season has started off good, too! At the very first event this year in February, at “Diesels in the Desert” in Chandler, AZ, not only did V-Bros win the event, but Oscar also set another record for the fastest elapsed time of 11.06 seconds. The funny thing is, that would have been a 10-second pass, but Oscar began hearing a strange noise at about the 1,000-foot mark, so he took his foot off the gas and coasted to the finish. As it turned out, they had cracked the block. The truck is currently being fitted with a new engine (they have a few spares) before their next event at, you guessed it, TFK 2026 at Famoso Dragstrip in Bakersfield, CA – and we can’t wait to see it run!
The truck, still based on the original cab and chassis of that 1957 Kenworth 921, has a custom 1,800-hp Cummins Big Cam engine, with the valve covers and intake/exhaust manifolds from an early Cummins N14, along with a 98mm Garrett GTX55 single turbo. The hood is a rare fiberglass wide hood, made for narrow cab KWs in the 1960s, which they got as salvage, and then had it stretched 14 inches. There is a notch cut out of the hood to accommodate the exhaust, which goes straight out the top. On the back, there is polished diamond plate decking, custom slicks that come from Pennsylvania, a polished fuel tank, and the nitrous tank (there are also parachutes on the back, but they are just for show). The pinstriping and lettering on the truck was done by Justin Klos of Klos Custom Trucks in Australia, and includes “Lokin” on the door, which is Spanish for “Crazy” (Oscar’s nickname).
Without giving away too many secrets, the engine has a stock block, crank and rods, and features modified and ceramic-coated pistons, double springs on the high performance heads, a custom cam, high flow injectors, and a turned-up fuel pump. Power is pushed through a modified manual 10-speed transmission and a custom four-disk clutch to that previously mentioned Positraction rear-end. There is also a box marked as “Some Apple Juice” mounted behind the cab, which they fill with 60 pounds of ice before each quarter-mile pass. This ice-cold water is pumped into the intercooler to cool down the air going into the engine. Nitrous is used as a secondary cooling system for the air, and it also adds some horsepower. They burn five gallons of Hot Shot’s Secret Diesel Race Fuel on every quarter-mile pass!
Inside the truck, you won’t find a lot of fancy gadgets or creature comforts – just the bare minimum of what is needed to go fast! There is only one seat, which is surrounded by a full NHRA-approved roll cage, just a handful of gauges, old style glitter toggle switches, and a removable steering wheel. The truck is equipped with a Computech DataMaxx data logging system that records everything about the truck – and I mean everything – during a pass. It records what is happening in every cylinder, along with all the other important data points, inside and outside air temperatures, everything. All this information goes onto an SD card that can be removed and then put into a computer to be viewed and analyzed. This data is invaluable when honing your craft and dialing in your machine! One other interior “feature” is the co-pilot, “Bob” the eagle (most racers have a mascot inside that goes along for the ride).
Building a truck like this is no small feat, and it takes a lot of help, from a lot of great companies and friends. Steven Zammit of SRZ Racing in Sydney, Australia is their custom cam specialist and tuner, Warren Wulstein of Premco Diesel Performance in Lampasas, TX provides the custom injectors and pump (and helps financially), and Robert Calixtro of American Premier Casting in Vancouver, WA provides their high performance heads. Vic Caliva of Caliva’s Polishing in Montebello, CA keeps the race truck looking good, and Jonathan Rosa Reyes takes care of all their gearing. Financial supporters include Mike Hedges of Pacific Trux Sales in Signal Hill, CA, Mario Monette of Mario High Performance in Canada, and Brandon Cromwell of Cromwell Diesel Engineering in Lawrenceburg, TN. Special thanks to Wayne Talkington, Oscar’s “godfather” in racing, and Carlos Hernandez of Alliance Specialized, Inc. in Lynwood, CA for hauling the truck to faraway races in places like Montana, Texas and Canada.
Each one of the brothers has a unique skill set and job, both at Jemsal, Inc. and with V-Bros Racing. Henry (44) is the oldest and he has been married to his wife Abigail for ten years. At Jemsal, Henry runs things in the office, makes the sales listings online, deals with customers, does some shipping, and handles the finances. At the track, he handles all the vendors and logistics, oversees the finances, and runs a camera. He enjoys attending church (where his dad is the minister) and spending time with his wife. He owns an old 1976 Chevy dually crew cab and likes taking it out.
Oscar J. (40) has been married to his wife Vanessa for 12 years, and the couple has three kids – Jacob (12), Esteban (10), and Alexandra (4). At Jemsal, Oscar is a general mechanic, builder, welder and painter – he’s basically the “handyman” at the company. At the track, he has one job and one job only – to drive the race truck. When not working or playing with trucks, he enjoys spending time with his kids and doing things like going to the beach, camping, and visiting the local amusement parks.
Alfred (36) has been married for eight years to his wife Lorena, and they have a young daughter named Lauren (3). At the shop, Alfred is the motivator and project scheduler – he keeps things moving. At the track, he is the crew chief for V-Bros Racing, and he manages the engine. Alfred loves rebuilding engines, especially Chevy LS engines, and has a 1969 Chevy Nova, a 1957 Chevy Corvette, and others. He rebuilds engines for other people, too, and enjoys traveling with his wife, spending time with his daughter, and playing with sand toys.
Jefrie (34) is not a full-time employee at Jemsal, he is a shop teacher at a local community college. He has been married to his wife Jacky for ten years, and they have a daughter named Rosemary (3). Jefrie is in charge of all the fabrication on the race truck, he handles the media, and he fills the “icebox” before each race. He has a 1965 Chevy El Camino, which he has raced at TFK, and also enjoys video games and 3D printing. Although he is not a full-time employee at Jemsal, he is a part owner of the company and very involved in the race team.
As mentioned previously, Jemsal specializes in vintage truck parts, mostly for Peterbilts and Kenworths, but they also do full truck builds (nothing too fancy, mostly just making nice, road-worthy work trucks, with their specialty being budget builds). They also build their own older trucks – like Peterbilt 359s – and then sell them. They do all the fabrication, mechanical work, paint, accessories, everything. Most of what they do revolves around retro styles and west coast vibes. They prefer vintage/original to crazy custom – but they will do whatever the customer wants. They can also re-power or reconfigure older trucks to a newer chassis or newer drivetrains for comfort and reliability. Located next to Caliva’s Polishing on Bluff Road in Montebello, CA for the last eight years, feel free to stop by and say “hello” or to check out their latest projects – you won’t regret it!
Oscar always liked speed. In his younger years, he even did a lot of street racing, until he got into a bad wreck. But this fueled his passion to one day drag race. After that first TFK and seeing big trucks drag racing, all the brothers were hooked. When they won their first World Championship in 2023, beating out Oscar’s mentor Wayne Talkington, that was a real high point in their lives. But more than anything, the brothers love doing it all together. They love inspiring the next generation of truckers and racers, because they remember when they were that little kid. This brings them a lot of joy. The race truck is family – it is not any one of them, it’s all of them. And following in their father’s footsteps and legacy also makes them proud.
All the boys not only attend their dad’s little church in South Central Los Angeles, but they help run it, too. Dad always wanted a cool old Cadillac, so three years ago, Henry found a yellow 1959 Cadillac, bought it, and gave it to their dad for Father’s Day – and he loves that thing. All stock with a 390 Cadillac engine, dad still works on it and drives it all the time. The brother’s parents, Oscar and Berta, have been married for 46 years. We got to see dad and his Cadillac when we went to their yard and took the pictures for this feature. And yes, you see it correctly, we were out there on Bluff Road, in the heart of Los Angeles, doing burnouts in the middle of the street!
Coming from a strong Christian Evangelical household, the brothers first and foremost want to thank God and Jesus Christ for His blessings and grace, along with their parents and their patient wives, who support them in their truck show and racing travels. One day, they would like to see this big rig drag racing deal as popular as regular NHRA drag racing, with big sponsors, big payouts to the winners, and televised coverage. Some of the reasons they built the race truck was to highlight their skills, promote the company, and have fun together as a family. We at 10-4 Magazine would like to thank our friend Vic Caliva for initially suggesting that we should consider putting these guys on the cover – you were right, Vic, they are worthy! Thank you!!
The Velasquez brothers do not smoke, or drink, or do drugs – the way they de-stress and unwind is through racing (although Oscar joked that they might spend less money if they did all that other stuff instead of racing). If you want to watch these guys race after their dreams, find them at NHRDA events around the country, at TFK in Bakersfield, CA on May 2-3, 2026, and at the largest diesel motorsports event in North America, Alberta Diesel Days in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada on June 27-28. And if you get a chance to talk to any of the brothers, do it, because you will not be disappointed. The day we spent with V-Bros at their yard was really fun, and we truly enjoyed getting to know this special family. We wish them all the best and hope all their racing dreams come true!