10-4 Magazine December 2024

56 10-4 Magazine / December 2024 came to the show, and it’s always great to hang out with him. He’s been busy working for Reinsfelder Inc. these days, so he hasn’t made it to many shows. This year, there was a new host for the semi truck pulling event. CS Pulling Promotions brought out some really cool trucks that I have seen at other shows, and it was great to see them at the DMF show, as well. During the event, there was a dedication to local pulling legend Fred Sanders (Silver Bullet). Fred was a long time competitor in the Big Rigs Pulling Series and has multiple wins and championships. For many years, Fred competed in the Stock and Off The Road Semi divisions, and then moved into the Big Rigs Pulling Series. Fred built and drove “Silver Bullet 2” then added two other teams, which were both Macks (Silver Bullet 1 and Cat Scratch Fever). Fred owned Sanders Excavating, located in Ravenna, OH, until his retirement. A beat up 2004 Kenworth T600B in Werner light blue paint with one stack rolled into the show. This thing looked worn out, and I was just looking at it as it arrived and thinking, “WTH is that?” Come to find out later that it was Marcus Ballentine, who usually does these types of events in his 1994 Kenworth W900L (ALWAYS THINK’N). The W900L was in need of some repairs, but Marcus did not want to sink the money into it at the time. So, instead, he pulled some parts off the W900L and put them on the T600, and brought it out. He actually did pretty decent with it, and had a lot of fun, as well. I found out later that he, along with a couple of the other pulling guys, were at the other event nearby earlier that day drag racing their trucks. The guys in the truck show wanted to do a light show, so they asked if they could have one. The promoter said, “No problem!” So, while the truck pulls were going on, a light show was happening at the same time, too. However, most of the people in attendance at the event were focused more on the exciting and loud truck pulls. I did manage to sneak away for a few minutes to get some cool pictures of the lit-up trucks, but then it was back to the truck pulls. This was a fun and exciting show with great people and a little different mix of trucks that attended this year (stuff you usually don’t see in the area). And the change in vendor for the truck and semi pulls was a change for the better. The weather held off, and it was just a great day to attend a truck show and truck pulling event, and all for a good cause. So, mark your calendar for September 20, 2025, because the 5th annual DMF-OH Cancer Benefit will be here before you know it! And trust me, after four years of fun, you don’t want to miss this one next year. n