Truck Show Report: By Daniel J. Linss With absolutely perfect weather, great friends, and a bunch of cool iron, this year’s Nor-Cal Spring Fling was one of the best. Held once again at Tehama County Fairgrounds in Red Bluff, CA on May 29-31, 2026, as a fundraiser to help cover ongoing medical expenses for our friend Rene “Frenchy” LaChance, a well-liked trucker who was involved in an accident that left him paralyzed and in a wheelchair, it was not the biggest event ever, but it was still one of the best. We are always excited to attend this show, and everyone there is always so nice and thankful, we look forward to coming back year after year. Last year the weather was horribly hot, and it really affected the show. With temps at 106 degrees, nobody wanted to be there, and we spent most of the day sitting in the shade with our bare feet in a kiddie pool filled with ice and cold water. Don’t get me wrong, we made the best of it and had some fun with that little pool, but this year, no pool was needed – the weather could not have been nicer. With rain falling just a day before the event began, there was some mud to deal with out in the front show lot, but temps were in the low-70s when we arrived on Friday afternoon to get set up. There was a warming trend throughout the weekend, but it never got really hot. Bringing our full local show setup, featuring the beautiful yellow and green 1962 “Godfather” Peterbilt owned by Maggini & Son Trucking and piloted there by our great friends and helpers Roger and Annette Ghidelli, hooked to our TFK show trailer, complete with a bar and snacks inside and a covered lounge with tables and chairs outside, our spread is always a favorite hangout for other vendors and attendees alike. Setting up one side as the 10-4 booth, which was also selling TFK swag and leftover Bonus Buckets, with the other side being the “10-4 Lounge” area. Big thanks to the show producers for always taking great care of us. And speaking of the show hosts, this 3rd annual event (since the current group of people took it over), was put together almost entirely by Faren Miller, Phil Miller’s wife, who has been helping Stuart Loewen of Nor Cal Custom Trucks for the past few years. This year, Stuart took a step back and Faren took over – and she did a great job! Stuart did make the trophies once again, which were then customized and pinstriped by Jack Miller of Kuzn Jack Pinstriping (this guy does amazing work). Faren was even nice enough to order and bring a beautiful birthday cake for our own Miss Shannon for her birthday for the second year in a row, which we shared with everyone on Saturday night. Another thing that made this show special for me was the fact that I got to see some family I hadn’t seen in about 15 years. Before the show began, I reached out to a few cousins that live in nearby Chico, California, just about 30 minutes from Red Bluff, and invited them to come out to the show for a visit. And, late Saturday afternoon, two of my cousins and their significant others, which I had never met, showed up, and then we were surprised when my Aunt Kathy, their mother, came out, too. The six of us had a great time driving around the show in the golf cart, talking about trucks and family, eating great BBQ (compliments of the crew at Talley), and getting reconnected. With just shy of 100 trucks and some 16 vendors, including a few food and drink concessions, a raffle and silent auction, and music and announcements by “DJ Ray” (Raymond Sarmanto) atop a flatbed, there was plenty to see and do at the show. Walking around and taking pictures on Friday night and Saturday morning, a few of the standouts included Phil Miller’s cattle truck, which was just recently pinstriped by the same guy who did the trophies, a few of Stan Silva’s turquoise beauties, an orange and white 2000 Peterbilt 362 hay truck and trailer owned by Bill Hawhee of Wellington, Nevada, and a newly-built cream and red Peterbilt 389 with a Rogue transfer setup, brought out by Dylan Johnson of Cascade Rock in Sacramento, California. There were also hot rods, motorcycles, classic cars, and even a few rat rods. Along with a few past cover trucks brought out to the show by friends like Jeff Zonneveld (September 2010), Mike Viviano (August 2024), and Ethan Rico (May 2025), a few others that caught my 20 10-4 Magazine / July 2026 A PERFECT WEEKEND
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjA1MjUy