Tag: MATS: Page 2

Overdrive Radio

Honoring a father's legacy with Tim Eacret of EZ Pete Interiors

There are some dads who, in not giving their children everything they’d like materially, wind up giving them something of far greater value. That describes the father of Tim Eacret, proprietor of truck-upholstery specialist EZ Pete Interiors, who honors his dad's legacy in this week's Overdrive Radio.

May 26, 2025

Custom Rigs

'Showoff' 1979 Peterbilt 359 pull truck tuned up to 1,250 hp

Owner Greg Graham competes in truck pulls with the high-powered unit, which has been customized as a rolling tribute to his daughter's late mother, who passed away after battling cancer in 2012.

May 22, 2025

Custom Rigs

'Pretty good life' for Gary Jones' short-hood '79 Peterbilt 359

Truck show mainstay Gary Jones, owner of SPB Trucking, showed off his latest build at MATS 2025 -- a 1979 Peterbilt 359 day cab with just 630K original miles, and a rare sight among Jones' trucks, which often sport custom big bunks.

May 15, 2025

Custom Rigs

Every smart mod to Trucker of the Year's 4M-mile 1995 KW T600

With 2024 Trucker of the Year Alan Kitzhaber's long career coming to a close and his long-running T600 up for sale, this video look at the rig's modifications show his prioritization of efficiency, increased comfort and durability. Also: His custom dashcam solution, dating back to 2013.

May 8, 2025

Custom Rigs

Up close with Tony Justice's newly-custom Bennett 2006 'Purgatory' Peterbilt 379

Overdrive's 2024 Trucker of the Year Alan Kitzhaber caught up with trucker and country singer-songwriter Tony Justice at MATS to talk about this recently-customized 2006 Peterbilt 379, a big part of Justice's trucking career.

May 1, 2025

Custom Rigs

Owner-op's '24 Pete 389 radiates hot-rod vibes

North Carolina-based Brandon Smith picked up a second-place trophy at the Mid-America Trucking Show with his custom 389, built with 12 Ga. Customs and MBH Trucking.

April 24, 2025

Partners in Business

Truck-spec, goal-setting lessons from two decades as an owner

In the annual PIB conversation with Red Eye Radio at MATS, longtime owner-operator and Overdrive contributor Gary Buchs detailed an "a-ha moment" with this career retrospective: what his peers had to say about his purchase of the Freightliner Century he drove for two decades --"It's a fleet truck!"

April 23, 2025

Custom Rigs

MATS when the sun goes down: Show trucks built to shine

Catch views of the annual PKY Light Show from the 2025 Mid-America Trucking Show.

April 22, 2025

Overdrive Radio

Truck drivers' English-language proficiency and the inspection problem, other issues

The importance of English-language proficiency regs when it comes to inspections, flagged in this Overdrive Radio edition by OOIDA's Lewie Pugh and others. Said Pugh of inspectors: "They’re not getting under a truck with somebody that doesn’t speak English. I don’t blame them. I wouldn’t, either."

April 21, 2025

Custom Rigs

Bill Warner & Son's 'Hillbilly Hampton' 1988 Peterbilt 362

Bill Warner Jr. and Cody Warner's "Hillbilly Hampton" 1988 Peterbilt 362 was custom-built for the 2025 MATS Big Rig Build-Off. Catch plenty views of the rig, and all the custom work put into it, in this video walkaround.

April 17, 2025

Channel 19

FMCSA's new ID verificaton test-drive, live from the Mid-America Trucking Show

FMCSA hopes its new ID verification tool for owners registering with the agency will stop fraudsters from infiltrating the system but be a breeze for legitimate, verifiable entities. At MATS, we took this test-drive to kick the tires on the new system.

April 17, 2025

Business

Congress looks to tamp down cargo theft | Another former trooper guilty in CDL fraud case

The bill would establish a multi-agency coordination center to increase collaboration between law enforcement agencies around cargo theft. Also: Flatbed rates still rising in mixed market; former Mass. trooper pleads guilty of CDL fraud scheme; more.

April 16, 2025