Taking a load off

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By Dawn Feddersen | Friday, July 14, 2006 12:12 AM CDT | () comments

Photos by Nick Loomis/QUAD-CITY TIMES Delmar Bequette of New Douglas, Ill., takes a closer look at the engine of a truck on display during the Truckers Jamboree that began Thursday at the Iowa 80 Truckstop in Walcott, Iowa. “I’ve been around trucks all my life,” Bequette said. “I put 3 million miles on a freight truck myself.” The jamboree continues today with events from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

WALCOTT, Iowa — There have been many long, lonely nights when a truck driver on Interstate 80 was thankful to see the friendly glow of the Iowa 80 Truckstop. During Iowa 80’s 27th annual Truckers Jamboree, the business is saying thank you right back.

Delia Moon Meier, senior vice president of Iowa 80, is grateful for the impact truckers have on our daily lives.

“In America, there’s one truck for every three people, just hauling stuff to the store for us to buy. Trucking is a major leg of the American economy,” she said.

The jamboree began in 1979 when Iowa 80 founder Bill Moon wanted to do something special for truckers to thank them for their contributions to the business and to America.

The jamboree has grown from a small gathering of a few hundred drivers to a family event that attracts more than 30,000 people.

Ten-year-old Austin Mys was as interested in seeing the antique trucks on display as he was the new, top-of-the-line models. He shares that love of trucks with his father, Jim, who is a driver.

“He’s been around trucks his whole life. Right now, we’re just checking out things that are a little different than our own,” Jim said Thursday afternoon.

Many of the antique trucks from the early days of freight hauling were not much bigger than many sport utility vehicles on the road today. Several had signs detailing the distant locations the old trucks had traveled to and the adventures their drivers experienced along the way.

Nearby, gleaming new semis sat ready to have adventures of their own crisscrossing the country.

For the owners of not-quite-new semis looking to make a repair or add customization, the selection at Iowa 80 has more than doubled in size.

A 17,000-square-foot addition to the showroom was completed recently, bringing the truckers’ store up to 30,000 square feet. At 2 p.m. today, a ribbon-cutting ceremony will officially mark the opening of the new Super Truck Showroom.

No matter how elaborate one’s truck might be, the jamboree’s Trucker Olympics proves that a truck isn’t the only thing that can handle heavy hauling.

Anyone with a commercial driver’s license is invited to join the games and show off their strength by pulling an antique cement mixer with nothing but one’s own muscles. Other events, including musical hay bales and water balloon tossing, may not be as physically demanding, but the competition is just as fierce.

The Truckers Jamboree continues today with the Trucker’s Best Friend Pet Contest from 10 to 11 a.m., the Trucker Olympics from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m., live music from 5 to 7 p.m. and the Super Truck Beauty Contest Awards at 7 p.m.

Contact the city desk at (563) 383-2245 or newsroom@qctimes.com.