Thursday, June 22, Large Cars & Guitars truck show organizer and well-known trucker-songwriter Tony Justice presented a $45K-plus haul of proceeds from the show to April Douglas, representing beneficiary the Susan G. Komen Foundation for support of and advocacy for breast-cancer research and survivors of the disease.
"This is only possible because of a lot of big-hearted truckers out there who opened their hearts and their wallets," Justice said. The Large Cars show, in just its second year of existence in Kodak, Tennessee, nearly doubled the size of last year's event with 175 trucks and thousands of attendees over its two days. "We were able to raise $45,191 in about an hour and fifteen minutes during the auction," during which spots at the lead of an associated Convoy for a Cure were offered up.
[Related: 12,000 'Chromies' in the Smokies: Large Cars & Guitars wraps]
"The lead spot," Justice noted, "went for $10,000," and it "didn't take long for the money to start adding up."
Douglas noted the group's mission would be impossible without people like Justice and his wife, Misty, and all the truckers who gave. "We really can't do it without people like you," she said, instrumental in putting a face on and action into fund-raising. Empathy is built with stories like those of Misty herself, who fought the battle with breast cancer some years back and won.
"It's the people who've experienced it and gone through it and understand and want to help others who are going through it," Douglas said -- they really help "with our advocacy and research, and really caring for the breast-cancer community."
Tony Justice noted "it's hard to put into words what it means" to have gone through his wife's experience as a family, and be able to come out the other side with the ability to give back.
New 'Greatest Shifts' record now available
Justice had other news to share, too, as he was on hand in Nashville for this week's NASCAR races, with reps from the Bennett Family of Companies fleet. Among them was Bennett CEO David Lowry, who noted the company's support for Justice's brand-new "Greatest Shifts" record in tandem with its sponsorship of Richard Childress Racing's Xfinity Series No. 21 car, piloted by driver Austin Hill of Georgia.
The record's officially out as of today -- CDs are available via this link. "We're playing the Fan Zone at Saturday morning at 10:30" at the racetrack with his full band, Justice said, then a series of evening acoustic shows as part of the F150 Racing and Rhythm Tour at various campground sites for race fans. Sunday Justice will do another acoustic set amid meet-and-greets with driver Hill at Bennett's booth in the Fan Zone, too.
[Related: Truck parking reimagined: Bennett's Large Car Campgrounds]
What's more, the Georgia-headquartered fleet had a little surprise for Justice on the back of the 21 car.
The "Greatest Shifts" album art is pictured just ahead of the spoiler. On the record itself, you'll find 21 total tracks, including several new songs. The balance of the tunes on the album are fan favorites and singles from Justice's catalog of trucking music.
Misty Justice's favorite, she said, is "Truck named Purgatory," after the Peterbilt her husband has long driven for Everhart Transportation out of Greeneville, Tennessee. Take a listen:
Run through Justice's last record, "18 Gears to Life," via this 2021 edition of the Overdrive Radio podcast:
