As I prepped my truck today for attending the World Ag Expo in Tulare, California next week, I sat in line at the truck wash thinking about how long I have been coming to this particular place to wash my truck. I realized that one of the very first things I did after I bought my first truck was drive it over to this same truck wash to get it shined up just the way I like to see my trucks. There is something about the way the shining sun gleams off a freshly washed truck that just makes me feel that much better about what I do. I really can’t explain the exact feeling other than saying it creates a sense of pride for me in my ride!
While wandering around inside the truck stop to grab some odds and ends I needed for the truck, a man walked up to compliment me on how nice the truck looked. He made the statement that I must get a lot of compliments driving around a “show truck” for a living. I have a kind of “auto-response” preprogrammed into my brain for that exact phrase, which usually comes out something along the lines of “It’s a work truck first and a show truck second!” Of course my response made an appearance in this conversation, which led me to explaining a little bit about what I haul for a living he wanted to know if I liked the CNG-fueled option of this particular Freightliner Cascadia. All in all, it turned out to be a very nice conversation ending on the common ground that both of us feel more people should take pride in their rides these days.
After walking away from talking with that man, I got to thinking about how I have always taken pride in my trucks, long before I ever bought one of my own. Even as a company driver in my first trucking job ever, I can remember with great detail the passion I had for making paint shine and chrome gleam. My first truck back then was a Freightliner Classic XL and I can remember how awesome it looked when I had just finished polishing the wheels, tanks, and exhaust stacks on that thing! There is no written rule or unspoken code that you have to own a “show truck” to treat your truck like one. Shoot, you don’t even need to own a truck at all. Just make a little extra effort to take care of the one that someone is nice enough to let you drive to make your living in. Taking pride in your truck means you take pride in what you do, which goes a long way in first impressions…let me tell you! A little aluminum polish and some elbow grease can go a long way in making you feel better about the truck you often spend more time in than you do at home. Take a little pride in your ride today…whether it’s yours or even if it’s just the one you drive for someone else! Trust me, you’ll feel better for doing so!