So every year, the National Truck-In changes host clubs or councils and also changes locations and states so it keeps it very interesting to see where its gonna go next. The great thing about this is that any chosen year it could be that much closer to you. This is one thing that usually doesn't keep Vanners from coming. I have been seeing the same Vanners at the past three that I have been to and the location has spanned from PA to NY to OH and this year it was in Wisconsin. This was awesome for us cause we have never been to that state and this was the perfect opportunity. For the 40th year Nats, Dairyland Vanners came together to give all us Vanners a great week experience. One of the coolest things was there was a live band on stage from Tuesday night all the way to Saturday night. This is the time at night where all the Vanners from all around the fair grounds come together to listen to some tunes and hangout and catch up with each other. The vendors area and food area are always in that location so its great to be able to walk out the side of the booth and kick back and listen to the music and run our mouths. I was able to set up next to Dave, better known as Astro, again this year in the vendors area. Dave runs Vannin.com which is the communication sorce for Vanners all over the world. So it is also a great way to see and meet new Vanners that come to chill. And that we did....with it being in WI it gave us the chance to meet a whole different group of Vanners that we had never seen before. Some of the contest, events and gatherings that happen throughout the week include a meet and greet hosted by Vannin.com that offers FREE beer and hot dogs to all that come, a burnout contest that this year seemed to bring out the lady Vanners, the Bright-N-Shine that lights up Friday night and the huge Van show that fills the showfield on Friday with chrome and slick paint. This year an added bonus was a Showoff in town that gave locals a chance to come out and enjoy these crazy Vans. Again, this was a great mid-year vacation and I'm glad I got a chance to come back out and hang with my Vanner family and I'm glad Sabra (not my woman...lol) was able to come back with me. We had a very good time as we always do and are looking very much forward to next year's Nats being held back in Ohio. Thanx to Dairyland Vanners and the National Truck-In Board for everything and to all my Vanner Family, it was great seeing everyone again. See you all at Keystone Madness.

If you read my article for the last show coverage Summer Showdown, you will know that we are right in the middle of our 2 1/2 week road trip which the whole purpose for was to come here to the 40th National Truck-In and spend a week with our Vanner family like we have for the past 3 years. We came to the Van Nats with a slight sour taste in our mouths as we were robbed about 4 hours from Elkhorn, WI in Lafayette, IN where we stopped at Walmart. They got $2500 in cameras, our money box and my wallet. Fortunately I had a little extra money with me that I was gonna get my Vanners goodies with and show my Van at the show on Friday. I had to sacrafice all that so that I could buy a camera to shoot the Nats with and money to live off of for the week. It sucked not being able to show but I felt like the coverage of the Van Nats was just a lil more important. Thats why you didn't see my Van on display out in the show field. As if that wasn't enough, I misplaced my SEMA bag that had all my Vanner goodies in it for the past 3 years on Monday after uploading at the Nats....that hit me even harder than the cameras. That stuff is irreplaceable...it was my dickie shirt with all my patches that I had collected, my Van lamp that is very hard to find, some other small Vanner collectables, my Animated Attractions club shirt, and my Toopa Sinner Tribe initiation memorabilia. I have replaced some of my patches while at the Nats this year and hopefully will run across the rest. Thanx to everyone who tried to help as much as possible and for the support. See you all next year.