The Iowa 80 Truckstop is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, it announced this week.
The truck stop began serving truckers out of a small white enamel building in 1964 before Interstate 80 was completely built. Bill Moon, Iowa 80 founder, located the spot, at what is now Exit 284, for Standard Oil. They built and opened the truck stop with Bill taking over management a year later, in 1965.
Today, after 28 expansions and remodels, Iowa 80 is still owned and overseen by the Moon family, and it now includes the 300-seat Iowa 80 Kitchen, a gift store, the Super Truck Showroom, a dentist, a barber shop, a chiropractor, a workout room, laundry facilities, a 60-seat movie theatre, a trucker’s TV lounge, a Verizon store kiosk, 24 private showers, a Food Court featuring Wendy’s, Dairy Queen, Orange Julius, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and Caribou Coffee; a convenience store, a custom embroidery and vinyl shop, 10 gas islands, 16 diesel lanes, a fuel center, a 7-bay truck service center, a 3-bay Truckomat truck wash, a CAT Scale, a Dogomat Pet Wash and the Iowa 80 Trucking Museum.
Iowa 80 serves about 5,000 customers per day, it says, and has parking spaces for 900 tractor-trailers, 250 cars and 20 buses. Each year in July, the Iowa 80 hosts the Walcott Truckers Jamboree, a 3-day event dedicated to celebrating drivers. Last year, the show drew more than 40,000 visitors.
A book celebrating the truck stop’s 50 years in business is underway and will be available this spring, the company says. For more information about Iowa 80, visit www.iowa80truckstop.com or find Iowa 80 on Facebook at www.facebook.com/iowa80WLT.
