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Harley Rider Is First Customer For International LoneStar H-D

Owner-operator Chris Hawker was so excited about getting his International LoneStar Harley-Davidson that he couldn't wait for the official delivery ceremony. He picked up the special-edition road tractor Aug. 13 and had trucked more than 24,000 miles before a gala was staged in his honor more than two months later.

The party last Friday (Oct. 23) at the Harley-Davidson Museum near downtown Milwaukee officially marked the delivery of the first of the limited edition LoneStar H-D to a customer, according to representatives of Navistar International, whose Chatham, Ont., plant built the vehicle. The very first unit was the one unveiled in March at the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville. It appeared at the museum with Hawker's tractor.

Hawker, 47, of Westfield, N.Y., early this year had spec'd a LoneStar from Five Star International in Erie, Pa., but changed the order when Randy Leighton, the sales manager, alerted him to the then-new H-D version. Hawker rides a 2003 Harley 100th Anniversary Edition FXSTD Softail Deuce, so he had to have the H-D version of the LoneStar. He added about $13,000 in extras, mostly to the interior, to what he had originally envisioned, and paid about $167,000 for the tractor, said Leighton, himself a Harley rider.

Hawker has been a truck driver for 21 years and an owner-operator for nine years. He's contracted to CBS Express Freight, Eden, N.Y., and hauls dry goods between his home in upstate New York to Georgia, Florida and other states in the Southeast. His LoneStar "is quiet and has a smooth ride, and the quality of the cab's interior is just great." Its powertrain includes a 525-horsepower Cummins ISX and an Eaton Fuller 13-speed transmission.

The H-D edition's interior includes white-faced instruments, chrome and patterned aluminum trim, leather seat and panel covers, and wood flooring and a fold-down sofa bed in the sleeper. Outside it has black-and-silver paint with orange stripes, H-D logos on chromed hubcaps, and actual cycle headlamps on the fenders. The halogen headlamp model comes from Harley's accessory catalog, said stylists from "the motor company," who worked with a Navistar styling team on the LoneStar H-D.

At Hawker's request, Willie G. Davidson, a descendant of one of the company's founders and Harley-Davidson's senior vice president and chief styling officer, autographed the dashboard in the cab. "Willie G." is famous among Harley enthusiasts and well known in the motorcycle world.

"'Custom' has always been an important word in Harley-Davidson's brand language," Willie G. said. "We wanted the design impact of this new LoneStar Harley-Davidson to have a 'wow' factor equal to our motorcycles."

Navistar Launches 'Drive for Jobs'

The official delivery of the International LoneStar Harley-Davidson special edition tractor also marked the launch of Navistar's "Drive for Jobs" program. For each mile that Chris Hawker drives in his new LoneStar Harley-Davidson Special Edition, Navistar will make a donation to the American Trucking Associations' GetTrucking.com, a driver recruitment initiative which includes training returning military personnel for careers in the trucking industry.

While the current U.S. economic recessions has driven up unemployment rates in numerous industries, trucking included, the trucking industry has and will continue to faces driver shortages in the near future.

As Hawker began his journey from Milwaukee to Jacksonville, Fla., an "all-points bulletin" was distributed at the delivery event in Milwaukee. The "APB" encouraged anyone who saw Chris driving the LoneStar to sign up for the opportunity to win prizes and make a donation to the "Drive for Jobs" program.

All of these events will lead up to Truck Driver Appreciation Week, Nov. 1-7, culminating with a check donation to the ATA's GetTrucking.com initiative. Navistar supported this charity earlier this year with a $15,000 donation generated from proceeds from DVD sales of Drive and Deliver, the documentary Navistar developed to celebrate the lives of truck drivers and the contributions they make to society.

"We appreciate Navistar's support for the ATA's GetTrucking initiative," said Bill Graves, ATA president and CEO. "The men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces are ideal candidates to become trucking industry professionals - they have all the motivation and tools necessary to move successfully from the military into our industry."

To learn more about the International LoneStar Harley-Davidson special edition, go to www.internationaltrucks.com/lonestarhd .

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