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, 33Ă—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 4Ă—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.
