10-4 Magazine July 2024

62 10-4 Magazine / July 2024 Peterbilt 389 with a standup sleeper that runs for RAM Trucking out of Oregon. Of course, Rene LaChance brought out his classic red Peterbilt 359, parked on the grass, along with several big rides from Gus Hulstein (his older gold and brown Pete transfer was my favorite), and a 1946 Kenworth wrecker, for some reason, just kept catching my eye. Hanging out with us in the “lounge” throughout the weekend, we enjoyed spending time with Bruce Amen, Bruce and Kellie Cone, Mitch Railsback, John Testa, Bruce Campbell, Matt Azavedo, and Miro Dragich Jr. We even had a surprise visit from our friend “Trucker Ron” Pettijohn on Saturday morning, and then Jeff Botelho and his family showed up late Saturday night. Annette decorated the inside of the trailer with all sorts of signs and balloons for Shannon’s birthday, and on Saturday evening, Phil Miller’s wife Faren had a birthday cake delivered to the show via DoorDash for all of us to celebrate and enjoy, along with a few bottles of champagne. Sunday morning it was time to hand out a few awards. The Best Motorcycle went to Casteel Trucking, Best Car went to Billy Rocha, and Best Pickup went to Faren Miller. In the truck classes, Best Bobtail went to Parsnip Peak Cattle Company, while Best Combo went to Johnny Brown. There were also two memorial awards handed out, including one in honor of Jeff Botelho’s father Jim (The Botelho Memorial Award) that went to Trenton LaChance for Rene’s red 359, and the Rico Memorial Award, in honor of Jisilfredo Rico, who passed away from cancer last year, which went to Phil Miller Livestock. We at 10-4 Magazine were surprised and touched when Stuart presented a trophy to us, acknowledging and thanking us for helping, promoting, and participating in the event. After all was said and done, almost $10,000 was raised for Rene “Frenchy” LaChance and his ongoing medical and living costs. As mentioned earlier, Rene was a popular transfer truck operator in Northern California who was involved in an accident that left himmostly paralyzed from the neck down and in a wheelchair. As you can imagine, he needs constant care, and his ongoing medical expenses are staggering. Insurance and such only cover so much, which is why this show was put together (and past ones in his name, as well). We would like to thank Stuart and his team for their dedication and hard work, making this a super fun and relaxed show, that also raised some nice funds for Frenchy! It was a win-win, for sure, and we can’t wait to be a part of it again next year. n