Every show producer out there hopes that their event gets bigger and better every year.\u00a0 And while some accomplish this goal, others just stay the same year after year \u2013 or fade away.\u00a0 The Great American Trucking Show (GATS), held at the newly-renamed Kay Bailey Convention Center in Dallas, Texas on August 21-23, 2014, is one of the shows that just keeps getting better.\u00a0 The past recession did create a few lean years, like with all the shows, but for the past few years GATS has seen steady and consistent growth.<\/p>\nngg_shortcode_0_placeholder\n
Now in its 16th year, the producers of GATS reported record increases in attendance, exhibitors, exhibiting floor space, and in the Pride and Polish truck beauty competition, which had over 60 of the country\u2019s finest trucks competing for the cash and prizes this year.\u00a0 Also on the line were five National Championship titles, with winners of the past qualifying events competing to take home some pretty impressive hardware created by Lincoln Chrome.<\/p>\n
Arriving on Wednesday, set up was in full swing on both the upper and lower levels of the convention center.\u00a0 Down on the lower level, the trucks were being pulled into an inside staging area to get them (and their drivers) out of the hot sun \u2013 and to get some final polishing done before being parked.\u00a0 The trucks competing for the National Championship titles were parked in their own area to fully showcase their amazing beauty, detail, cleanliness and craftsmanship.\u00a0 And with no obvious winners, the competition was going to be fierce, for sure.<\/p>\n
The show kicked off on Thursday morning, and after a VIP-only session to start the event, the aisles quickly filled-up with attendees from around the world.\u00a0 Walking the floor, we saw just about every aspect of the industry represented, including the OEMs, accessory manufacturers, recruiters, parts distributors, service-orientated companies, health and wellness businesses, performance products, and so much more.\u00a0 Like most shows, it was an opportunity knocking, for those who wanted to open the door.<\/p>\n
After the show closed on Thursday, the exhibitors\u2019 happy hour, hosted by Red Eye Radio, had live music and plenty to eat and drink.\u00a0 This little get-together is always a good time, and a fitting way to say \u201cthanks\u201d to everyone who helps make the show a true happening.\u00a0 During the after-hours, many headed over to the \u201cOwners Box\u201d in the hotel next door to the convention center, where the fun was extended late into the night.\u00a0 It was there where many of us relaxed, shot some pool, and enjoyed a few \u201ccold ones\u201d together in the Dallas heat out on the patio.<\/p>\n
As with any show, even after 20 years, it is always nice to see familiar faces.\u00a0 Walking the aisles, we met up with many of our advertisers, including Lynn of Clark Transfer, Jim with Axle Surgeons, Pete from Pittsburgh Power and Nick of Truck-It-Smart.\u00a0 We also saw the Lincoln Chrome crew (Katie, Josh and Ali), Dave at Trux, Bob from Sentinel Insurance, and Howard & Jerry with Howes Lubricator, as well as Hogebuilt, Grand General, Big Rig Chrome Shop, Bad Ass Customs and more.\u00a0 We also had fun seeing some of our old trucking friends like Shane Boullion from Louisiana, Jake Lindamood and his posse from Texas, Jerry Mies and his beautiful family from Kansas, and several others.<\/p>\n
Many of the show trucks looked amazing, but only a few rose to the top.\u00a0 The Best of Show awards this year went to: Jerry & Kay Kissinger\u2019s 1978 black cherry Mack Superliner (Limited Mileage Bobtail); Ray Rodriquez\u2019 2015 lavender & purple Peterbilt 389 and Western Step-Deck (Limited Mileage Combo); Mike Lemley\u2019s 2000 viper red Peterbilt 379 (Working Bobtail); and Dustin Pope\u2019s 2003 viper red Kenworth W900L & mural-covered Utility reefer (Working Combo).<\/p>\n
In the competition for the National titles, the winners were: Austin Ashley\u2019s 2007 white & purple Peterbilt 379 (Limited Mileage Bobtail); Vinnie Diorio\u2019s 2013 orange & purple Peterbilt 389 & MAC curtainside (Limited Mileage Combo); Bob & Shelley Brinker\u2019s 2000 black Freightliner Classic XL (Working Bobtail); and Bill & Sayra Rethwisch\u2019s 2013 green & white Peterbilt 389 & Polar tanker.\u00a0 Austin Ashley was also awarded top honors for the second year in a row for winning the online voting category (Trucker\u2019s Choice).<\/p>\n
With numbers on the rise, you don\u2019t want to miss another show in Dallas.\u00a0 Next year\u2019s GATS is scheduled for August 27-29, 2015, so mark your calendars now and plan to be there!\u00a0 This year\u2019s winners were:<\/p>\n
WORKING BOBTAIL (FIRST SHOW):<\/b> 1st Carlos Acevedo\u2019s White & Red Pete 379; 2nd Werner Enterprises\u2019 2015 Blue Freightliner Cascadia; 3rd Alan Harmer\u2019s 2014 White Kenworth T370.<\/p>\n
WORKING BOBTAIL (COMPANY TRUCK):<\/b> 1st David Kosar Jr.\u2019s 2004 Blue Peterbilt 379; 2nd David Kosar Sr.\u2019s 2008 White, Red & Gold Pete 389; 3rd Robert Freeman\u2019s 1996 Grey, Orange & Blue Peterbilt 379.<\/p>\n
WORKING BOBTAIL (2000 & OLDER):<\/b> 1st Mike Lemley\u2019s 2000 Viper Red Peterbilt 379; 2nd Caleb Eilers\u2019 2000 Green & Black Peterbilt 379; 3rd Voris Steward\u2019s 1994 Black KW W900L.<\/p>\n
WORKING BOBTAIL (2001-2004):<\/b> 1st Albert Aguero\u2019s 2003 White & Blue Peterbilt 379; 2nd Billy Wheeler\u2019s 2004 Blue & Black Peterbilt 379; 3rd Shane Boullion\u2019s 2001 Rose Grey Pete 379.<\/p>\n
WORKING BOBTAIL (2005 & NEWER):<\/b> 1st Mitch Broderson\u2019s 2007 White & Black Western Star LowMax 4900EX; 2nd Tom Davis\u2019 2013 White & Orange Peterbilt 389; 3rd David Foster\u2019s 2005 Red & Silver Kenworth W900L.<\/p>\n
WORKING COMBO (FIRST SHOW):<\/b> 1st Ladarren Jones\u2019 2015 White Mack & 2015 Southern Vac Tanker; 2nd Charles Bassett\u2019s 2015 Black KW T680 & 2015 Utility; 3rd Steve Shackelford\u2019s 2015 Red KW T880 & 2015 Rogue Custom Pup.<\/p>\n
WORKING COMBO (COMPANY TRUCK):<\/b> 1st Dave Conkling\u2019s 2013 Blue Freightliner Cascadia & 2014 Wabash Van; 2nd Pablo Cuellar\u2019s 2014 Black Kenworth T660 & 1995 Utility Curtainside.<\/p>\n
WORKING COMBO (2000 & OLDER):<\/b> 1st Ray Rodriquez\u2019 1988 Lavender & Purple Peterbilt 379 & 2003 Fruehauf Flatbed; 2nd Ray Rodriquez\u2019 2000 Lavender & Purple Peterbilt 379 & 2006 Transcraft Flatbed; 3rd Gilbert Velasquez\u2019 2000 White Peterbilt 379 & 2013 Great Dane Van.<\/p>\n
WORKING COMBO (2001-2007):<\/b> 1st Dustin Pope\u2019s 2003 Viper Red Kenworth W900L & 2010 Utility Reefer; 2nd Dean Jay\u2019s 2007 Cream & Brown Peterbilt 379 & 2013 MAC Flatbed; 3rd Billy Enoch\u2019s 2007 Blue & Black Peterbilt 379 & 2013 MAC Pneumatic Tank.<\/p>\n
WORKING COMBO (2014 & NEWER):<\/b> 1st Michael Hernandez\u2019 2014 Baby Blue & White Peterbilt 389 & 2014 Clement Round Belly End Dump; 2nd Henry Lopez\u2019 2014 Green Peterbilt & 2014 Travis End Dump; 3rd Warren Carter\u2019s 2015 Beige & Orange Peterbilt 389 & 2015 Manac Belly Dump.<\/p>\n
ANTIQUE (BOBTAIL):<\/b> 1st Geo Cuellar\u2019s 1985 Blue Kenworth K100E; 2nd David Schnautz\u2019 1981 Blue Kenworth W900A; 3rd Wade Wardlaw\u2019s 1975 White & Copper Peterbilt 359.<\/p>\n
ANTIQUE (COMBO):<\/b> 1st Doug Scholten\u2019s 1986 White & Gold Peterbilt 359 & 2001 Utility Reefer.<\/p>\n
INTERIOR (CAB ONLY):<\/b> 1st Caleb Eilers\u2019 2000 Green & Black Pete 379; 2nd Tom Davis\u2019 2013 White & Orange Pete 389; 3rd Dustin Pope\u2019s 2003 Viper Red KW W900L & 2010 Utility Reefer.<\/p>\n
INTERIOR (OEM SLEEPER):<\/b> 1st Doug Scholten\u2019s 1986 White & Gold Peterbilt 359 & 2001 Utility Reefer; 2nd Mike Lemley\u2019s 2000 Viper Red Pete 379; 3rd (tie) Mitch Broderson\u2019s 2007 White & Black Western Star LowMax 4900EX AND Dean Jay\u2019s 2007 Cream & Brown Peterbilt 379 & 2013 MAC Flatbed.<\/p>\n
BEST INTERIOR (LIMITED MILEAGE):<\/b> Ray Rodriquez\u2019 2015 Lavender & Purple Peterbilt 389 & 2015 Western Step-Deck.<\/p>\n
ENGINE (WORKING TRUCK):<\/b> 1st Doug Scholten\u2019s 1986 White & Gold Pete 359 & 2001 Utility Reefer; 2nd Ray Rodriquez\u2019 2000 Lavender & Purple Peterbilt 379 & 2006 Transcraft Flatbed; 3rd Ray Rodriquez\u2019 1988 Lavender & Purple Peterbilt 379 & 2003 Fruehauf Flatbed.<\/p>\n
BEST ENGINE (LIMITED MILEAGE):<\/b> Ray Rodriquez\u2019 2015 Lavender & Purple Peterbilt 389 & 2015 Western Step-Deck.<\/p>\n
CUSTOM PAINT (BOBTAIL):<\/b> 1st Mike Lemley\u2019s 2000 Viper Red Pete 379; 2nd Robert Freeman\u2019s 1996 Grey, Orange & Blue Pete 379; 3rd Albert Aguero\u2019s 2003 White & Blue Peterbilt 379.<\/p>\n
CUSTOM PAINT (COMBO):<\/b> 1st Ray Rodriquez\u2019 1988 Lavender & Purple Peterbilt 379 & 2003 Fruehauf Flatbed; 2nd Dean Jay\u2019s 2007 Cream & Brown Peterbilt 379 & 2013 MAC Flatbed; 3rd Dustin Pope\u2019s 2003 Viper Red Kenworth W900L & 2010 Utility Reefer.<\/p>\n
BEST PAINT (LIMITED MILEAGE BOBTAIL):<\/b> (tie) Jerry & Kay Kissinger\u2019s 1978 Black Cherry Mack Superliner AND Dustin Allen\u2019s 1984 Black Peterbilt 359.<\/p>\n
BEST PAINT (LIMITED MILEAGE COMBO):<\/b> Ray Rodriquez\u2019 2015 Lavender & Purple Peterbilt 389 & 2015 Western Step-Deck.<\/p>\n
BUILDERS CLASS (BOBTAIL):<\/b> 1st Robert Moneypenny\u2019s 1988 Orange & Black Pete 379; 2nd Jerry Cruz\u2019 2000 Black & Orange Pete 379.<\/p>\n
BEST OF SHOW LIMITED MILEAGE BOBTAIL:<\/b> Jerry & Kay Kissinger\u2019s 1978 Black Cherry Mack Superliner \u2013 \u201cPuff\u201d<\/p>\n
BEST OF SHOW LIMITED MILEAGE COMBO:<\/b> Ray Rodriquez\u2019 2015 Lavender & Purple Pete 389 & 2015 Western Step-Deck \u2013 \u201cWicked\u201d<\/p>\n
BEST OF SHOW WORKING BOBTAIL:<\/b> Mike Lemley\u2019s 2000 Viper Red Peterbilt 379 \u2013 \u201cCathouse\u201d<\/p>\n
BEST OF SHOW WORKING COMBO:<\/b> Dustin Pope\u2019s 2003 Viper Red Kenworth W900L & 2010 Utility Reefer \u2013 \u201cCash On The Barrelhead\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
NATIONAL CHAMPIONS<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n LIMITED MILEAGE BOBTAIL OVERALL NATIONAL CHAMPION 2014:<\/b> Austin Ashley of Ashley Transport in Raleigh, MS \u2013 2007 Purple & White Peterbilt 379 \u2013 \u201cDouble Take\u201d<\/p>\n LIMITED MILEAGE COMBO OVERALL NATIONAL CHAMPION 2014:<\/b> Vinnie Diorio of Rollin Transport in Richfield, WI \u2013 2013 Purple & Orange Peterbilt 389 & 2009 MAC Curtainside \u2013 \u201cTrendsettin\u201d<\/p>\n WORKING BOBTAIL OVERALL NATIONAL CHAMPION 2014:<\/b> Bob & Shelley Brinker of Grayling, MI \u2013 2000 Muralled Freightliner Classic XL \u2013 \u201cLegend of the Black Pearl\u201d<\/p>\n WORKING COMBO OVERALL NATIONAL CHAMPION 2014:<\/b> Bill & Sayra Rethwisch of Rethwisch Transport in Tomah, WI \u2013 2013 Green & White Peterbilt 389 & 2013 Polar Tanker \u2013 \u201cBlood, Sweat & Gass\u201d<\/p>\n TRUCKER\u2019S CHOICE (ONLINE VOTING):<\/b> Austin Ashley of Ashley Transport in Raleigh, MS \u2013 2007 Purple & White Peterbilt 379 \u2013 \u201cDouble Take\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Every show producer out there hopes that their event gets bigger and better every year.\u00a0 And while some accomplish this goal, others just stay the same year after year \u2013 or fade away.\u00a0 The Great American Trucking Show (GATS), held at the newly-renamed Kay Bailey Convention Center in Dallas, Texas on August 21-23, 2014, is<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":5005,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-4975","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-show-reports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4975","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4975"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4975\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5035,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4975\/revisions\/5035"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5005"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tenfourmagazine.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}