On-highway with the 'Bandit': Owner-operator John McCormick's 2021 Kenworth W900L

In this edition of Overdrive Radio, drop into a dry-bulk run in the Working Bobtail, 2015 & Newer category-winning rig in Overdrive's 2022 Pride & Polish competition, owner-operator John McCormick's 'Bandit' 2021 Kenworth W900L. It's the Oakley-leased owner-operator's bread-and-butter haul back and forth between Cresline Plastic Pipe in Henderson, Kentucky, near the McCormick home in Robards, and Westlake Chemical’s PVC complex in Calvert City.

Hooked to one of two Mac pneumatic tank trailers owned by all-owner-operator Oakley Trucking out of North Little Rock, Arkansas, McCormick’s Bandit Kenworth cuts a fine picture, whether offloading PVC powder into one of the silos at Cresline, where they turn that powder into pipe, or hauling along I-69 or 24 or elsewhere between the two principal points for most of his runs.

The 280-inch wheelbase KW features a 565-hp Cummins X15, an 18 speed transmission and 3.36 rears. Utilizing principal supplier Chrome Dome out of Haubstadt, Indiana, on I-64 north of Evansville, McCormick's added bright parts and more over the two years he's owned the truck -- including throughout the interior. He's added 8 cab lights, breather lights and plenty throughout the interior. Amber underglow lights are by Shift Products,

Drive fenders are from WTI, and custom-painted by a semi-retired artist in Robards McCormick knows only as "Chop." Chop's next project is already under way -- he's painting a Rockwood floor for the interior that McCormick gave the artist plenty of rope to produce. When asked what it was going to look like, "I'm not real sure," McCormick said. Basically I just give him free rein of it. He said he had a friend who does airbrushing. ... I told him, 'you know the truck, the theme of the truck, you can go from there.' ... Everything I've seen from him looks great."

It's that kind of trust in long-term business relationships that guide 48-year-old McCormick, whether in his choice of leasing partner (he's worked with Oakley for 15 years now) or his approach to general maintenance. Over the time he owned Western Stars prior to the Kenworth purchase in 2020, he established a solid partnership for basic preventive maintenance with a Detroit dealer right next to the Cresline facility, Clarke Power Services. "I'm sure people would wonder why I take a Cummins to a Detroit dealer to get the oil changed," he said. "It's one of those deals where you get a good working relationship with somebody and you want to stick with them."

Find plenty pictures from the run of the rig and the equipment in McCormick's history via https://www.overdriveonline.com/15303882

Read about all Pride & Polish winners via http://overdriveonline.com/pride-polish