The Best Big Rigs Get Their Due

While Class 8 tractors (“big rigs”) are trucks that typically aren’t featured in the print or digital pages of MotorTrend, there really is a lot of rhyme and reason behind this report on the 39th Annual Shell Rotella SuperRigs truck show, held July 29-31, 2021, at the Love’s Travel Stop in Elgin, Illinois.

Kenworth, Peterbilt, Freightliner, Mack, Volvo, and other kings of the road occasionally appeared in Diesel Power, a former MotorTrend Group print magazine. Big rigs and events like SuperRigs earned coverage based on the trucks’ engines, of course, and because in addition to Diesel Power’s core audience of pickup truck enthusiasts, the title’s readership included big-rig fans (like yours truly, editor KJ Jones, for example), as well as actual truckers, many of whom are also owners of the Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra, Ford Super Duty, and Ram Heavy Duty trucks that were the book’s primary focus.

Shell Rotella SuperRigs is one of the trucking industry’s premier events. The show is a celebration of hard-working rigs and their drivers, held each year at select travel centers (truck stops) throughout the U.S., and it became part of Diesel Power’s regular beat in 2015.

The thing that draws us to SuperRigs is the fact that trucks presented for judging are rigs that haul loads every day and typically have anywhere between 100,000 and 400,000 (or more) miles on their odometers. There are four main “Best” categories, including Classic Truck Division, Tractor Division, Tractor/Trailer Division, Peoples’ Choice Award, and of course, Best of Show, and also recognition for the best Working Trucks, Chrome, Interiors, Lights, Engine (won by 2020 Best of Show champion, Brian Dreher’s, 2016 Peterbilt 389), Theme, and so on.

A new category, Best Show Truck, was added for recently completed, non-working big-rigs with much fewer miles. The intent is for those rigs to compete in other divisions at future SuperRigs shows.

And although there’s a big trophy and $10,000 at stake for being selected the overall Best of Show, as well as monetary and Shell My Miles Matter reward points awarded for winners of other categories, every driver will tell you their true wish is to have their rig picked to appear in the annual Shell Rotella SuperRigs calendar. Pride is a big thing in this circle, and it definitely shows in each truck that rolls up to the judging area.

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic made presenting SuperRigs “live” impossible. Like many other automotive shows and presentations the event was held virtually, through an interactive website loaded with photos and information about entered trucks and drivers.

With health concerns and safety still priority this year, Shell Rotella SuperRigs’ non-virtual comeback wasn’t as elaborate as past events (there was much less outside/public participation, and there was no vendors midway, live entertainment, fireworks display, or the wildly popular Friday evening Parade of Trucks into downtown Elgin). However, 70 very impressive vehicles were presented for judging, which we’re sure was no easy task.

In the end, Kiegan Nelson of Hartland, Wisconsin (operator), and Richfield resident Vinnie Diorio’s (owner) 2020 Peterbilt 389 and Mac flatbed trailer (with Quick Draw Conestoga tarpaulin) received Best of Show honors. The gorgeous rig combines a full-on throwback exterior theme featuring an old-style grille shell, headlights, cab-mounted air horns, and sleeper box, with a highly customized, uber-sanitary, red-everywhere leather interior that also won the best award in that category.

Kiegan is no stranger to the Shell Rotella SuperRigs spotlight. In 2015, his 1985 Peterbilt 359 and Mac trailer combination were voted Best of Show and also took the win in the Peoples’ Choice category (voted on by fellow SuperRigs competitors and show attendees).

Best of Show
2020 Peterbilt 389 (Kiegan Nelson and Vinnie Diorio, Richfield, Wisconsin)
$10,000 and 50,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points
Place in the 2022 Rotella SuperRigs Calendar

Best of Show First Runner Up
2016 Peterbilt 389 (Brian Dreher, Campbellsport, Wisconsin)
$4,000 and 40,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best of Show Second Runner Up
2007 Peterbilt 379 (Truett Novosad, College Station, Texas)
$2,000 and 30,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Working Truck, First Place — Limited Mileage
Chris Alby, Genoa City, Wisconsin
2015 Peterbilt 389
$1,500 and 10,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Working Truck, Second Place — Limited Mileage
Austin Gottman, Rockford, Illinois
2019 Peterbilt 389
$1,000 and 8,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Show Truck
Truett Novosad, College Station, Texas
2007 Peterbilt 379 Extended Hood
$250 and 10,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Jacob Linson, Lafayette, Indiana
2020 Peterbilt 389
$250 and 10,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Robert Hallahan, Lacrosse, Wisconsin
2021 Peterbilt 389
$250 and 10,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Truett Novosad, College Station, Texas
2005 Peterbilt Extended Hood
$250 and 10,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Dan Brubaker, Sigourney, Iowa
2020 Peterbilt 389
$250 and 10,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Engine
Brian Dreher, Campbellsport, Wisconsin
2016 Peterbilt 389
15,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Lights
Danny Kimball, Burlington, Wisconsin
2007 Kenworth W900
15,000 My Miles matter Reward Points

Best Chrome
Truett Novosad, College Station, Texas
2007 Peterbilt 379
15,000 My Miles matter Reward Points

Best Theme
Truett Novosad, College Station, Texas
2007 Peterbilt 379
15,000 My Miles matter Reward Points

Best Interior
Kiegan Nelson and Vinnie Diorio. Richfield, Wisconsin
2020 Peterbilt 389
15,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Tractor/Trailer Division, First Place
Barry Kuhn, Mount Aetna, Pennsylvania
2018 Kenworth W900L
$1,500 and 10,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Tractor/Trailer Division, Second Place
Ben Overton, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
2021 Peterbilt 389
$1,000 and 8,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Tractor/Trailer Division, Third Place
Danny Kimball, Burlington, Wisconsin
2007 Kenworth W900
$750 and 7,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Tractor/Trailer Division, Fourth Place
Jimmy Ganski, Rosholt, Wisconsin
2014 Peterbilt 389
$500 and 6,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Tractor/Trailer Division, Fifth Place
Collin Rodgers, St. Ansgar, Wisconsin
2015 Peterbilt 389
$250 and 5,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Tractor Division, First Place
Shani Lee, Sibley, Louisiana
2007 Peterbilt 379 Legacy 995
$1,500 and 10,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Tractor Division, Second Place
Mike Wilkinson, Guelph, Ontario, Canada
2020 Kenworth T680
$1,000 and 8,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Tractor Division, Third Place
Kevin Benson, Maywood, Missouri
2019 Peterbilt 389
$750 and 7,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Tractor Division, Fourth Place
Clayton Driscoll, Spring, Texas
2018 Kenworth W900L
$500 and 6,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Best Tractor Division, Fifth Place
Tony Huttlestein, Queen City, Missouri
2020 Kenworth W900L
$250 and 5,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Classic Division, First Place
JR Schledger, Britt, Iowa
1985 Kenworth K100E
$1,500 and 10,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Classic Division, Second Place
Trevor Timblin, West Bend, Wisconsin
1999 Peterbilt 362
$1,000 and 8,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Classic Division, Third Place
David Foster, Joplin, Missouri
2005 Kenworth W900L Studio
$750 and 7,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Classic Division, Fourth Place
David McKinney, Lexington, Alabama
1993 Peterbilt 379
$500 and 6,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

Classic Division, Fifth Place
Mike Coyne, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin
1996 International 4900
$250 and 5,000 My Miles Matter Reward Points

2022 Shell Rotella SuperRigs Calendar Winners:
Brian Dreher
Truett Novosad
Kevin Benson
Derek Joubert
Jimmy Ganske
Dil McKinney
Danny Kimball
Trevor Timblin
Tony Huttenstine II
Jason Lemberg
Ben Overton

The big-rig show made a big-time return. Enjoy galleries of photos from Shell Rotella SuperRigs 2021 that will be posted soon, and stay tuned for our continued coverage of this event in future years.