This profile is part of a multi-part series profiling the seven Pride & Polish winners from the 2020 virtual Pride & Polish photo contest in August.
Eva Knelsen drove “Ken Worth,” this 2018 Kenworth W900L and 2018 Wabash reefer, for more than three years for Don English, owner of West Coast Transportation, based in London, Ontario. The truck won in the Working Combo, 2016-’21 category in the 2020 Pride & Polish.Eva Knelsen started driving for Don English at London, Ontario-based West Coast Transportation about 4.5 years ago and first drove a burgundy and white Peterbilt. But with her love of pink, she had the interior decked out in pink.
English’s girlfriend at the time later brought up the idea to buy Knelsen a pink truck, and at first, English was opposed. However, after suggesting a tie-in to breast cancer, he agreed to order a pink 2018 Kenworth W900L and have it wrapped for breast cancer awareness.
Full results from the 2020 virtual Overdrive’s Pride & Polish photo contest can be found here. Catch stories about all of the winning rigs and more from Overdrive‘s GATS Week webcasts via OverdriveOnline.com/gats-week.“To this day, he absolutely loves it,” Knelsen said. “Any time I come home with a load that goes east of Toronto, he tells me to drop it at the yard, and he will deliver it.”
Knelsen gave the truck a nickname after getting tired of men trying to ask her out. “A friend told me to tell them I have a boyfriend, so I named the truck ‘Ken Worth,’ and he was my ‘boyfriend’ for the longest time,” she said.
Knelsen said the tribute truck came to mean more later because her mother recently was diagnosed with lymphoma.
When the truck came in, the frame and front fenders were painted pink. Then, Lowride Customs in Aylmer, Ontario, added some stainless and lowered it some. Finally, Xtreme Graphix in London did the breast cancer awareness wrap.
Knelsen began driving the truck in 2017, mostly hauling medical supplies and plastic containers for food products out to California and backhauling to Ontario with produce. About six months after she started driving the truck, English ordered a 2018 Wabash reefer and had it wrapped to match.
Knelsen said the truck recently has been sold and that she has upgraded to a 2020 Kenworth W900L that has the same wrap and color scheme. She plans to make the truck show circuit next year.
In addition to the pink breast cancer awareness wrap, the truck also features pink underglow lights.
