GBATS shines through

Not even rain showers and storms could dampen the vibe at the 13th Guilty By Association Truck Show and 50th anniversary celebration of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association.

The two-and-a-half-day event was plagued throughout by waves of rain showers and storms, forcing organizers to rethink and revamp the schedule on the fly – daily.

“It was the most challenging and stressful job we’ve had (compared to) prior shows. We had rain Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday at some point during the day,” said Bryan “Boss Man” Martin of 4 State Trucks.

“As far as major event and outdoor festivities, we were in a constant change of direction due to the weather,” he added. “But the turnout, the enthusiasm, the quantity and caliber of trucks, the money raised for Special Olympics – just everybody’s general desire to be here and mix it up with other truckers was fabulous.”

OOIDA has partnered with 4 State Trucks to put on GBATS for a few years now.

And when it came time to plan the 2023 edition, it was a no-brainer that OOIDA leadership wanted to celebrate the Association’s 50th anniversary in conjunction with the show.

“This has been a show that we participated in for quite a few years now, because it’s a fun show and we have lots of members who come here,” OOIDA President Todd Spencer said. “We thought it was a perfect place to celebrate our 50th anniversary.”

Both Martin and Spencer point to the camaraderie prevalent throughout the show and the opportunity it presents to connect with their customers and members, respectively.

Martin spoke in particular about the support he and the 4 State Trucks team received during all of the pivoting and adjusting required by the weather.

“Largely 98-and-a-half percent of them rolled with the punches. They knew we were up against a lot of great odds weather-wise and getting things set up and prepared around the weather, before the weather and after the weather,” Martin said. “They were all smiles, very supportive. I mean, I had hundreds of personal comments, just people slapping me on the back and saying, ‘Hey, man, we know you’re stressing, but it’s all right.’ This is a great gathering.”

“It’s a good chance to get reacquainted,” Spencer said. “And, obviously, for folks that may have been there that don’t know much about our organization, we enjoy it when they stop by because, you know, hey, we’ll benefit from the dialogue, both of us.”

Friends and colleagues were able to move from event to event, in between rain showers, throughout the two-and-a-half-day show.

Kicking things off was a demolition derby Thursday night, a first for GBATS but likely not the last. Monster truck demonstrations went on throughout Friday and Saturday. The sheer amount of rain – 6.5 inches at least – forced the cancellation of a fan favorite, the truck and tractor pulls on Friday night.

“We just could not confidently prep the track for the truck and tractor pulls,” Martin said. “With three hours’ notice, the monster truck guys stepped up, called in a fourth truck and really rose to the occasion.”

What was supposed to be a short monster truck demo immediately morphed into a two-hour show to packed grandstands with standing room only.

Saturday brought the threat of severe weather at the time originally set aside for the Special Olympics convoy to downtown Joplin for the Roots and Boots Tour featuring Aaron Tippin, Sammy Kershaw and Collin Raye. In the words of Martin, the City of Joplin is “skittish” about outdoor gatherings lacking sufficient shelter since the 2011 Joplin tornado.

“We had to make a call early on Friday on what we were going to do. So we moved the concert inside here at 4 State Trucks and put on a 20-truck convoy for Special Olympics on Friday night,” Martin said.

The auction for the 20 coveted slots netted more than $80,000 for Special Olympics in less than 30 minutes. And to make sure no one was left out, Martin met the remaining convoy participants who were around Sunday morning for another 36-mile convoy up and down Interstate 44. In all, GBATS raised $120,000 for Missouri Special Olympics, with donations still coming in as of press time.

From humble beginnings in 2009 when 30 or so trucks showed up for the first GBATS, things have changed – a lot.

“This is outside the scope of our wildest dreams,” Martin said. “And we never, never thought it could go to the magnitude that it is today. It’s really flattering to stand in the middle of it on Friday afternoon or any time Saturday and just see the throng of people that have come to Joplin 4 State Trucks to enjoy the truck show.” LL