Osburn and The Spirit head to Iowa 80 Truckstop Jamboree

There is a party in Iowa, and Jon Osburn is taking OOIDA’s touring trailer there to join in.

The party is the 40th annual Iowa 80 Truckstop Jamboree in Walcott, Iowa. It is at Exit 284 from Interstate 80. The Spirit of the American Trucker is scheduled to be there July 11-13.

There will be some nice-looking trucks to gander, thanks to the planned antique truck display and Super Trucks Beauty Contest. There also will be carnival games, live country music, fireworks and more than 175 exhibitors.

Admission is free and so is parking. You don’t need to buy a ticket for the concerts either.

More than 42,800 people attended last year’s Jamboree.

Here is a schedule of events. The Trucker Olympics and Truckers Best Friend Pet Contest sound particularly fun.

The Trucker Olympics should be a lot of fun. Events include:

• Tire roll, where the contestant must roll the tire straight through an end goal.
  
• Obstacle course, in which contestants run through cones with cup of water.
  
• Strap wind competition.
  
• Strong man and strong woman contest, in which contestants pull a 12,000 antique cement truck. Prizes will be awarded for time and distance.
  

In the Truckers Best Friend Pet Contest, pets will be awarded first, second and third place in three categories:

• Best dressed.
  
• Best trick.
  
• Owner look-a-like.
  

Music scheduled for the Jamboree includes the Davisson Brothers Band, which is scheduled to play at 5 p.m. Thursday, July 11. They have been hailed by Rolling Stone Country as one of “10 New Country Artists You Need to Know,” according to the Iowa 80 website. Their music has been described as a mix of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Marshall Tucker Band, ZZ Top and Bon Jovi.

CMA Award winning group Sawyer Brown is scheduled to play at 5 p.m. on Friday, July 12.

Southern rock band The Kentucky Headhunters is scheduled to play at 1 p.m. on Saturday, July 13.

More information can be found at TruckersJamboree.com.

Of course, the Iowa 80 Truckstop has the Trucking Museum, which is worthy of a visit. Go see the antique trucks and trucking memorabilia collected by Iowa 80 Truckstop founder Bill Moon. The REO Theater in the museum presents short videos about trucks of yesteryear.

After Walcott, Osburn and The Spirit are headed to Rochelle, Ill., and Gary, Ind., before setting up at Shell Super Rigs on July 25-28 in Albert Lea, Minn.

Whenever you see The Spirit tour truck, go say hello to Jon. He enjoys visiting about the Association’s activities and current issues. You also can join or renew your OOIDA membership for $10 off the regular price there. Also, you can get vouchers for flu, shingles and pneumonia vaccines from Jon at The Spirit.