Trucker Talk: By John & Kim Jaikes Living on a ranch in Wyoming, you learn to work at an early age, but if you are lucky, you get to do a job that you will love for the rest of your life. Our friend Marty Miles (52) did just that, but he didn’t become a cowboy – he became a cow trucker. From a very young age, Marty was all about anything with a motor and wheels. Tractors had a motor and air conditioning – a horse did not. His brother Jack was the cowboy, and Marty was destined to be the one who fell in love with driving. It didn’t really matter what it was – if he could drive it, he was happy in it. In 1987, when he was 14 years old, Marty got a “hardship” license that allowed him to drive a straight truck from sunup to sundown, within 100 air miles of his home, as long as he didn’t go out of state. The truck he loved the most was an old 1979 International S1900 with an 18’ Omaha Standard ag box, a gas motor, and a 5-speed transmission with a 2-speed rear end. Marty was the 4th generation to live on the farm/ranch, which has been in his family since the late 1800s. They grew hay, corn, and oats to feed the cows they raised. I was happy to hear that most of the ranch is still in the family, with his cousin Jamie and her husband Chad owning part of it, and his Aunt Peg and Uncle Jim owning another part of it, with the rest having been sold. They always had trucks around so they could haul hay and feed for their cattle. They would haul the calves to market when they were weaned and, later on, started keeping their cows all the way until they were “fats” and then sold them direct to packers. Marty’s dad Jack would help the neighbors haul their cattle, too. Back then, neighbors helped neighbors, and in Alcova, Wyoming, neighbors were not plentiful (in the 2020 census, there were only 34 residents in the tiny, unincorporated community). Marty’s love for trucks grew as he watched a lot of the Wisconsin “big rides” roll by on their way from Casper to Rawlins, Wyoming. Anytime he got a chance to ride with his dad, he was there! A big CAT motor with straight pipes has a distinctive sound to trained ears. Listening to Marty talk about some of the old trucks he grew up around, and eventually bought and owned, as well, you can hear the love of it all in his voice. He remembers when a neighbor got an old Jimmy with aluminum front wheels and he was impressed, saying, “You were a high stepper if you had aluminum wheels.” Another one of the trucks he loved was a 4300 International conventional daycab that they put a 36-inch “coffin sleeper” on for a place to take a little nap – and give it a serious cool factor! His dad’s first “fancy” truck was a 1985 Freightliner FLC with a 60-inch flat top sleeper, a 400 CAT, 13-speed, 3.90 rear ends, and ten aluminum wheels. Painted gold with a matching frame and custom pinstripes, the truck had owner operator specs all the way. Marty often drove trucks to school, but he was disappointed when his dad wouldn’t let him take the truck to his senior prom. His date could care less, but it bummed him out. At 20 years old Marty got his CDL but still had to run in state and dream of the west coast for another year. When he was 21, in the spring of 1995, that trip finally came, and it was in a 1988 Volvo with a 425 CAT and a 13-speed. After bouncing to Le Grand, California to pick up feeder calves and then giving them a ride to Nyssa, Oregon, he raced to the Truck Inn in Fernley, Nevada where they had cattle only parking and pens if you needed to unload your livestock. That’s where all the “spring run” trucks would go to get dispatched. Driving this old Volvo for the family ranch for a few months after his dad sold his part of the property, Marty will always call that place home, but he’s happy where he is now in Pine Bluffs, Wyoming. Like so many early truck drivers from the Midwest or back east, Marty’s big dream of going to California turned into a big disappointment on this first trip out west. After all the movies he had watched, he was convinced that as soon as he crossed into California, it would soon be palm trees and ocean views. However, as most of us who have crossed Donner Pass know, what it really looks like in the spring is lots of mighty pines, snow, big rocks, and, eventually, the central valley, filled with farms, agriculture, and many not-so-prestigious cities. But, this disappointing trip didn’t squash his love of driving, at all. 66 10-4 Magazine / February 2026 NOT A COWBOY
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