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Trucking History: Page 2

Overdrive Extra
Overdrive founder Mike Parkhurst 'wasn't afraid of nothing'
Owner-op Donald Ridzon’s memories of Overdrive founder Mike Parkhurst haven’t dimmed: “He was always willing to dive into something that was different. He never backed out of it." Here find more memories of Parkhurst approaching 7 years since his passing.
July 19, 2021
truck drivers in front of a semi-truck holding signs with the text shutdown #2 january 31 until as long as it takes on them
Channel 19
Updating the top 10 trucking songs of all time
Ten years ago, we asked, you told, then voted. Here are those results. Likewise a call to action: What song would you nominate, either on this list or not, for the No. 1 trucking song of all time today? Drop us a comment toward an updated top 10 for 2021!
August 4, 2011
Dave Dudley
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Overdrive Radio
‘Hello, I’m a Truck,’ and I’ve got a few bones to pick with you, drivers
Red Simpson’s “Hello, I’m a truck” hit No. 4 on the country charts in January 1972, making it the biggest hit single in Simpson’s long career. This latest "Songs of the Highway" installment channels that history, from the point of view of the truck.
July 4, 2021
'Hello, I'm a Truck' graphic
Channel 19
Resurrecting the Rubber Duck's classic 1970 Mack RS700
This video showcases small fleet owner Anthony Fox of Rome, Ga., proud owner and caretaker of a piece of history that is one of the original 1970 Macks/60s trailer from the classic “Convoy” trucking film of the 1970s, released today 43 years ago.
November 16, 2017
Mack RS700
Trucking History
Little-known movie showcased Overdrive founder’s Hollywood, Nashville forays
Go way back in Overdrive’s 60-year history and you’ll find more than a little dabbling in the bright lights of Hollywood and the country music scene of the ‘60s and ‘70s. At the heart of that is this little-known movie produced by founder Mike Parkhurst.
June 21, 2021
marty robbins
Overdrive Radio
Tales of three runaway trucks: Crises endured and averted, lessons learned
The advice was good then and it's good now -- see a massive pileup, a multi-fatality runaway, ask yourself, "Could it have been you?" Owner-operator Gordon Alkire's '70s runaway tale, among others, shows it could. When you least expect it.
May 3, 2019
runaway truck sign
Overdrive Radio
An era’s social unrest finds an anthem in the rebellious ‘Convoy’
The legacy of history behind the unlikely 1970s hit "Convoy," by C.W. McCall, aka ad executive Bill Fries. The song, heavily laden with CB slang and conversation, tells the story of a spontaneous truck convoy that clashes with authorities.
June 7, 2021
Mack semi truck
Custom Rigs
The day five famous 70s/80s rigs made history on 'Hollywood Hill'
A firsthand account of the event, bringing together restored trucks from movies “Duel,” “Convoy," and “Smokey & the Bandit” with “Movin’ On” and “B.J. & the Bear” TV rigs — among others at the Southern Classic Truck Show in 2016.
December 21, 2016
semi trucks in a field
Trucking History
'Bandit' lives on as a classic trucking movie
As the movie debuted, the May 1977 Overdrive highlighted the magazine’s involvement in 'Smokey and the Bandit,' notably the inclusion of a truck race banner bearing its name.
May 24, 2021
DOC_2-2017-05-22-09-39-2017-05-25-15-35
Channel 19
The proud trucking legacy of the Bixlers, Updegraves in Pennsylvania
How's an estimated 1,500 years' worth of cumulative trucking experience for one family over the course of just a few generations? Meet another trucking family here with a proud legacy, via longtime owner-operator Steve Bixler and kin.
May 20, 2021
Steve and Doris Bixler having picture taken outside of truck
Overdrive Radio
'Six Days on the Road' and the outlaw trucker image
“Six Days” remains in contemporary times one of trucking’s most popular songs -- a decade ago around Overdrive's 50th anniversary, readers voted the track as the No. 1 trucking song of all time. Hear more about its history in today's podcast.
May 17, 2021
Being “a little overweight” and with a log book that's “way behind,” Dudley sings that “nothing bothers me tonight, I can dodge all the scales alright. Six days on the road and I'm a-gonna make it home tonight.”
Channel 19
Generations of owners' family legacy in Overdrive
How a trucking culture was built and maintained through the years with family, past and present. Meet Eddie Karwaski of Pennsylvania, Carl Nyhof of Wisconsin, Carl Rhodes of West Virginia, and others who learned from family, hereditary or not.
May 10, 2021
apple house
Overdrive Extra
Lisa Kelly of 'IRT' still drives Alaska’s Haul Road
Kelly runs between Fairbanks and the oil fields around Prudhoe Bay on Alaska’s northern shore. She still gets "Ice Road Truckers" fan mail.
May 3, 2021
Lisa Kelley appeared in eight of the 11 seasons of the History Channel’s “Ice Road Truckers” franchise.
Overdrive Radio
Remembering the inaugural Pennsylvania Make-a-Wish Mother's Day convoy
A special edition of Overdrive Radio looks way back into history to the first Make-A-Wish convoy to set off from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, with former trucker George Ruelens, hauling for Ned Bard & Son at the time. This year's convoy sets off May 9.
May 24, 2019
make-a-wish convoy
Trucking History
What's behind 'Woman Behind the Man Behind the Wheel'
This Red Sovine classic celebrated heroic wives and mothers, who shouldered the burdens of maintaining a household while their husbands drove over the road. It also subtly addressed doubts either spouse might have about the other ...
April 19, 2021
a woman resting her elbow on a clothesline with a sad face
Overdrive Extra
Truck stop is part of Alaska's backcountry history
Coldfoot Camp and the Dalton Highway, which runs past it, have ties to development of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline and, more recently, the popular "Ice Road Truckers" TV series.
April 12, 2021
Man eating inside restaurant
Custom Rigs
A salute to the 'Old Filthy' 1957 Kenworth fuel hauler
For this week's Overdrive 60th-anniversary installment, the story of how one longtime hauler came to own one of his first employers’ classic 1957 Kenworth 925. “Old Filthy” was the first truck bought new by Montana-based owner-operator Gene Ballinger.
May 15, 2017
1957-Kenworth-Old-Filthy-bill-ward-2017-05-15-09-38
Overdrive Radio
Hey, mate, this classic American trucking song isn’t exactly American ... or much about trucking
"I've Been Everywhere," one of trucking's classic American road songs, has roots in another continent. Decades before Johnny Cash's popular rendition, it was recorded by Hank Snow and others.
March 29, 2021
Hank Snow
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Life
Last call: Complete your Highway Report Card here
Weigh in by May 19 to name the worst of the worst, and best, states and routes in the nation for road conditions, parking, and more. With a big infrastructure funding reauthorization slated for next year, we want to hear your recommendations for states, metro areas and particular routes where improvements are needed.
Maxresdefault
Custom Rigs
'Pretty good life' for Gary Jones' short-hood '79 Peterbilt 359
Mix Collage 01 May 2025 12 39 Pm 8944
Small Fleet Champ
Calling the best of the best: Enter Overdrive's 2025 Small Fleet Championship
The Whately Truck Plaza in Whately, Massachusetts, the scene of a weird start to Roadcheck and one of the best diners you can park a truck at.
Channel 19
Roadcheck Day One: Weird things afoot in Whately, Mass.
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