Letter From The Editor Chris Hamilton

chamilton@engaged.media

Let’s talk about the reward after the work. Generally, most of our editorial revolves around building trucks, showing trucks, competing, or even complaining about the pain behind the process. This month, however, I want to show a little love to the time spent outside the atmosphere of the industry when we are around our friends and family who are usually less of a truck enthusiast crowd and more focused on quality of life through love and tradition. 

For the past 2 1/2 years, we’ve spent countless hours and an untold number of weekends wrenching away on Project Rocky with the ultimate goal of having a SEMA-quality truck ready for the big show in Las Vegas. Documenting all the steps along the way through print and video added another layer of demand I put on myself in order to give our readers a sense of what it really takes to make a statement in this industry of giants. And as the saying goes, “We came, we saw, we conquered,” but now it’s time to enjoy.

Not everyone has the ability or appetite for classic trucks or even modern muscle, but it’s clear that these machines are universally appreciated by men and women from all walks of life.

With all the obligations met and the memories of all the hard work in the rearview, it’s finally time to turn the key and take some time to appreciate our accomplishments. I live in a relatively small central Florida town where the pace is slow and the people have pride. Our downtown area is about the size of a standard city block, but the atmosphere is electric on the weekends, which was the first place my wife and I took a drive in our competed custom C10. I can’t deny that looks and smiles on the faces of the people around town brings joy, but the feeling of accomplishment a cruise like this brings is a feeling everyone deserves at least once in their life. Cousins, aunts, uncles, and even the smiling baby in the bench seat may know nothing about this lifestyle we all love, but they all can appreciate the effort put into a project that is clearly powered by passion. Everyone wants a ride, and it’s rewarding to see the subtle surprise on their face when we fire up the truck for them the first time.

Not everyone has the ability or appetite for classic trucks or even modern muscle, but it’s clear that these machines are universally appreciated by men and women from all walks of life. I highly encourage anyone out there who has a similar story to put away the concern of crashing your custom, and do what most of us industry insiders recommend: Get out and drive it!