10-4 Magazine May 2022

14 10-4 Magazine / May 2022 works for Hope Gospel Mission, an organization that provides life-changing solutions to persons facing hunger and homelessness. Tom wanted to thank his parents, everyone at K&D and Johnson Hill Customs, including Dwight, Karen and Adam Johnson, for all their help and suppor t over the past eight years, his uncle Butch for getting him star ted in trucking, and Merle Hermundson for teaching him how to drive a truck. Looking to drive a few more years, until he’s maybe 65 years old, Tom would like to eventually put a driver in his truck and go into the office to dispatch for K&D. Right now, he still loves to drive, and isn’t ready to give it up. Some days Tom wishes he would have stayed at the family business, but he really enjoys trucking and being independent. His grandma lived to be 103 years old, and when she died, she had more than 100 grandchildren, great grandchildren, and great great grandchildren. Tom jokes that he was grandchild number one in the family, and for a few shor t years, he got all the attention. We first saw Tom’s slick ride at the AMCAN Truckfest in Union Grove, WI back in June of 2020. Our man Eric Hill was at that event taking pictures and submitted one of Tom’s KW, which cer tainly caught our eye. Something about this truck really struck us. Asking Eric about it, he had nothing but good things to say about Tom and everyone at K&D. One thing the truck was lacking was a custom interior – back then, it was pretty much just stock. However, we still tried to set up a photo shoot later that year, but it just didn’t come together. We saw this truck again in Wildwood, FL in April 2021, but again, we weren’t able to get any pictures. And maybe that was a good thing, because when we saw it at MATS in 2022, this thing was the full package. Now, we were able to get it done. Thanks to Eric Hill for turning us onto it originally and keeping it alive by always reminding us about it. When Big T does something, he likes to do it right, and he never skimps. Evidence of that would be this truck (and his motorcycles). He went all-in on this baby, and the results really show it. Aero trucks like this Kenwor th T680 may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but Tom Fedie doesn’t really care. In fact, if you asked him why he built this unique sloped-hood rig, he’d probably say, “Because I like it, and who else has one?” And he’d be right! n