Welcome to Working Iron

And in my opinion this space is dubbed “Working Iron” for the right reason, namely that at the end of the day heavy-duty trucks are tools for doing heavy-duty work.

Such work can entail an awful wide variety of things nowadays, as we all know, from hauling goods such as laundry detergent, timber, and fuel – just to name a few – to directly performing tough jobs like drilling, fracking, towing, and other assorted hard labor.

It’s also no secret that the bulk of such work is done by “the little guy,” which is for whom we write for here at American Trucker magazine.

For example, if you look at the annual compilation of trucking statistics compiled by Fleet Owner, our brother-in-arms in the wordsmithing business, you’ll see that some 90.6% of freight-hauling fleets today operate six or fewer trucks. Over 90%! That tells you something, I think, about how critical the taken-for-granted “little guy” is to the trucking industry.

The sheer artistry and creativity put into building custom trucks – many of which then roll right out into some incredibly harsh working environments, despite all that bling and shine – is something that has always drawn the attention of American Trucker’s editors, so don’t be surprised to see plenty of photos snapped and ink spilled on that seminal topic in this space as well.

[In fact, above at right, you'll see American Trucker's new editor Kevin Jones hard at work taking pictures of all the show trucks on display at the annual Mid America Trucking Show back in March. And make sure check out his superb blog Running Lights while you are at it!]

Not only do I hope you enjoy what you’ll be reading here in this blog, but will also be encouraged to send in your photographs and stories as well regarding the “working iron” you pilot every day to make a living.

Because, at the end of the day, all of that metal tells a multitude of human stories – about drivers behind the wheel, the technicians keeping working rigs running smoothly, plus all the factoring and figuring required to make money in trucking.

Here we go!