ROUGH RIDER
Jose “J.R.” Rivas is a contractor-owner with Personal Touch in Demopolis, Alabama. The company, which he started in 1996, clears right-of-ways for utility companies in Florida, South Carolina, Alabama, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Georgia. Rivas’ fleet includes 37 pickups, all fitted out with winches, bumpers, off-road tires and tool boxes before they hit the street. It’s a mix of GM 1/2- and 3/4-tons; the majority 4x4s. He puts about 80,000 miles a year on his pickup.
For his personal truck shown here Rivas drives a 2010 Chevy Silverado 2500HD. Upgrades include Warn replacement bumpers front and rear; Warn 12,000 winch in front; Whelen strobes (grille, bumpers and dash) a GoLight spotlight, All-Pro bed liner; Cam Locker toolbox; N-Fab nerf steps, Garmin GPS, Cobra power inverter, 33×12.50R20LT Toyo Open Country tires on XD Series wheels, and Warn fog and driving lights.
“You really abuse your truck in this type of work, so I have it set up with the things I use every day. I drive over a lot of rocky, sandy, muddy terrain working right-of-ways,” Rivas says.
An avid bow hunter, Rivas recently just bagged a non-typical whitetail that scored 308 points in the field.
SERIOUS SITE PREP
Jacob Chandler, with Pat Jones Construction and Southland Resources in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, show off his 2009 F-250 Crew Cab 4×4 diesel. Since buying the truck Chandler has added a number of upgrades including a 2 1/2-inch leveling kit; Line-X spray-in bed liner; Cam Locker toolbox; Warn 9500 Powerplant with a Warn brush guard and winch mount; Uniden CB radio (to communicate with equipment operators). Chandler says he puts about 25,000 miles a year on the truck. The company is involved in coal mining, property development and site prep.
