Overdrive's July Trucker of the Month is Crystal Rives, owner and operator of the 2006 Peterbilt 379 and '06 Cottrell stinger trailer pictured, here loaded with classics bound for Mecum Auto Auctions this past April.
Small fleet owner Mike Carr met owner-operator Crystal Rives hauling cars more than 10 years ago. Speedy, he calls her, for one principal reason. "On my best day I can't load half as fast as her," he said. "That girl's so fast she'll give you whiplash. ... I haven't met a dude that can outdo her yet. If you watch her too long you get a little bit dizzy."
Owner-operator Rives' C&R Trucking business is based in Cleburne, Texas, south of Fort Worth, and serves a base of customers among used-car dealers and others with her paid-for 2006 Peterbilt 379, powered by a 550-hp Caterpillar with an 18 speed tranny she keeps humming in large part on her own for basic preventive maintenance. A trusted mechanic in her area does whatever "I can't do because I don't have a shop" at her home, she said. It's not uncommon, though, for Rives to help him out when he's doing routine valve adjustments and the like.
It's the kind of work that many folks she encounters -- whether on the road, on-site at an auction house, or elsewhere -- are sometimes surprised to see her doing. "She's a small gal," said Carr. "You don't think she can handle the job or the truck, but she does both" extremely well, holding herself to a high standard. "She's my inspiration. She has a lot of energy with her and a lot of the time we need that push."
Owner-operator Crystal Rives is pictured here on the step with that April load of classics bound for Mecum Auto Auction hauled for a private restoration specialist.
"Being a woman in the trucking industry" early on, she said, at times various companies "didn't want to hire me." Yet she's always held in her heart the words of her grandfather, which ultimately led her into business for herself seven years ago. To wit: "Just show them you can do it, and that you can do it better than them."
For these and plenty other reasons, Crystal Rives is Overdrive's July Trucker of the Month, putting her in the running for the 2023 Trucker of the Year award.
