Joseph Phelps is a relative newcomer to trucking, but he didn’t waste any time attempting to make his mark through his work in the industry.
Phelps came to the business around the time of the COVID pandemic. He'd been doing offshore oil work, but COVID shut that work down. “And so, I was like, ‘Well, I got to do something,’” Phelps said.
He contacted Stevens Transport and went through their CDL training program, working for them for a short time before moving to Absolute Trucking, owned by Midwest Dairy in Coopersville, Michigan. Absolute put him on the Quality Life Science (QLS) contract, which he drives for today, hauling pharmaceuticals mostly in the Midwest down to the Southeast.
Phelps hauls in a 2022 Kenworth T680 owned by QLS, powered by a Paccar engine with an automatic transmission, which Phelps said he needs “due to disabilities from the military.” It’s outfitted with a 60-inch sleeper.
The first thing you notice about the truck, though, is the autism-awareness theme with colorful puzzle pieces and other features all around, intended to build awareness for the condition. It's a rolling tribute to his son, Elijah, who suffers from autism. “I just decided that his fight’s my fight,” Phelps noted. “If he can go on in life dealing with that, then I can make everybody see what it’s like.”
On the side of the cab is an autism awareness ribbon, along with a custom “His Fight Is My Fight” autism awareness sticker on the sleeper window.
Phelps joked that the truck is actually Elijah’s -- “I just make the money with it." And more seriously: "I just love the message, getting the message out there,” he said. “Because a lot of people think of autism from the ‘70s and ‘80s as, ‘Eh, they can't do much.' And it's 100% not true. It's a special ability, not a disability. So, they just see the world differently, and they react differently. So I'm just real proud of the message she gets out there.”
On the front of the truck, Phelps added an autism-awareness skull over the Kenworth logo on the grille, which Elijah bought for him.
“He thought that was cool with the reflective lights, so I put it on the front of the truck. That’s the first thing you see.” Phelps also added a grille guard from GrilleAdz with the autism awareness logo, along with window chops that he wrapped in an autism awareness theme.
The side of the hood features a callout to the Autism Society with their logo, too.
The back of the cab features a mural with the “You’ll Never Walk Alone” autism awareness message and artwork.
He’s also added Dual Revolution lights around the truck that switch to blue for the “Light It Up Blue” autism awareness initiative.
Inside the truck, all of the interior lights are blue, and he’s added multi-channel floor lights that he typically keeps blue to stay with the theme.
The sleeper also showcases the theme with a light-up logo on the back of the sleeper, blue lights all around and more.
The truck is nicknamed “Daisy,” after a phone conversation with a friend that he details in the video up top. Catch more views of the rig there.
[Related: Kimball Transportation's '96 Kenworth W900L, built for show]
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Joseph Phelps: I drive a 2022 Kenworth T680. Did it up for Autism Society for my boy. My name is Joseph Phelps. I drive for Quality Life Science out of Coopersville, Michigan. We haul mainly pharmaceuticals -- Pfizer, McKesson, so on and so forth.
It's a 2022 Kenworth T680. It's got a Paccar motor in it. It has the 60-inch sleeper. We run light loads, so I get great fuel mileage. But I did it up for my boy. He actually bought this for me. He thought that was cool with the reflective lights, so I put it on the front of the truck. That's first thing you see. So I just decided that his fight's my fight. If he go on in life dealing with that, then I can make everybody see what it's like. My son's name is Elijah. So it's his truck. I just make the money with it.
Well, I changed out the stock front bumper because, when I got the truck, it was actually cracked, so. And I just went with a little 12-inch drop bumper, didn't want nothing big. GrilleAdz supplied the grille guard with the autism logo. I added the window chops and wrapped those, and then the rest of the murals I installed the except for the one on the rear of the truck.
I added a new light bar with the four dual revolution lights on the back. I put the Dual Revolution lights on the sides. That's really it. I mean, mostly cosmetic work, not much mechanical work on it. So yeah, on the interior, I've replaced all the interior lights with blue interior lights. All my lights are blue. I've got multi-channel floor lighting, which normally I run them is blue, right now they're flashing different colors.
I have this logo and a metal plaque on the back of the sleeper. It's also lit up. Got the "You never walk alone" fleece blanket. I have the Autism Society carpet in there. Took out the work mats and put in actual blue pleated floor mats. So I tried to tried to keep it blue with the "Light It Up Blue" theme.
Matt Cole: Does the truck have a nickname or anything?
Phelps: Daisy. A friend of mine... With Stevens Transport, I drove 68 mile an hour truck, this one set at 75. And, I actually was on the phone with a buddy of mine in Florida, and truck come up beside me and I said, "Well, looky here. I'm getting passed." And he goes, "Well, they're a daisy if they do." And I said, "you know what?" And it just stuck after that.
I'm just I just like love the message, getting the message out there. So because a lot of people think of autism from the '70s and '80s as, "eh, they can't do much," and it's 100% not true. It's a special ability, not a disability. So they just see the world differently and they react differently.
