Attendees at the Great American Trucking Show voted Jeff Fields’ 1979 Peterbilt most worthy of the Big Honkin’ Truck Makeover.
The owner-operator from Tully, N.Y., wins a $50,000 interior, exterior and communications makeover, courtesy of Castrol Tection Extra.
“This has been awesome,” said Fields, whose wife, Jackie, encouraged him to enter the contest. “I never thought when I submitted our entry that we would win.”
Fields has driven Petes on local hauls and “hot runs” to St. Louis and Chicago for 20 years. He said he wanted to win for his 8-year-old son.
“I grew up with trucking in my blood, and my son, Jeffrey, has the same dream,” Fields said. “We bought this old Pete three years ago with the intention of fixing her up together. She runs strong, but we just haven’t had the money or the time to give her everything she needs. She’s a classic and just needs some life breathed into her. When the makeover is done, this will be something that my son can always treasure.”
Fields confessed to another reason for entering the contest: “One of my dreams was to be in one of the trucking magazines.”
The other two finalists won prizes, too. Runner-up Robert Jones of Lithia Springs, Ga., won a trip for two to the 2005 ACDelco National Hot Rod Association Nationals in Las Vegas, while local favorite Ed Godfrey of Dallas won a portable DVD/CD/MP3 player and a selection of DVDs.
