“I asked for a new T610 – I thought I was getting a white one with ‘Land Transport’ on it and this is what turned up!”
And with that, Tony West found himself behind the wheel of ‘Miss Ivy’, a bright pink Kenworth SAR named for one of the Land family’s younger members.
Tony has been driving the distinctive truck for the last 18 months, with the colourful Kenworth drawing a number of admirers both out on the road and at a variety of events.
He had headed up the Goldfields Way in late September to the Temora Truck Show, with truck and driver looking to continue on their success from 2023, where they took out the Truck of The Show honours.
Having given the guards and the stainless a bit of a shine prior to judging for this year’s event, he took the time to have a chat to Big Rigs about the truck and his time on the road driving it.
“The company has about 15 themed trucks. It was decided that the grandkids would be given a colour chart, and they would pick their favourite colour. Ivy’s favourite colour is pink so away they went – she was about five years old when she picked this one out,” Tony explained.
“Ivy’s sister has a 6900 Western Star, ‘Sunrise Ruby’ and there are another five to six in Melbourne with the kids’ involvement down there – it’s a good thing for the family and the kids are invested in it too.”
While the truck is based a long way south from the company’s main depot, young Ivy recently had the chance to go for a ride in ‘her’ truck.
“I happened to be in Brisbane the other week when she was there on holidays, so I took her out of the depot and around the block in it, she loved it,” he said.
The SAR was painted in its pink hue, known as Jane McGrath Pink due to it being the same shade used by the Breast Care Network Australia, on the production line at the Kenworth Bayswater plant. It was then sent to Masterart Designs in Brisbane for a bit of further attention, with a unicorn adorning the back of the sleeper cab.
“Unicorns go with the theme and Masterart came up with the idea so they went with that. Rocklea Truck Electrical then fitted all the bling.
“I didn’t realise how many lights were on it – I thought that there was just a few here and a few there so my young bloke went out and counted them and came back in and said, ‘there are 96 lights on it!” said Tony with a grin.
The SAR is also fitted with a SleeperAir cooler unit, drop visor and driving lights with the personalised Queensland ‘MISSIVY’ number plates adoring the front and rear bars, and a ‘Pegasus’ flying horse hood ornament sitting atop the Kenworth ‘bug’ emblem.
On the inside the pink theme extends to the Pearlcraft pink-marble patterned steering wheel, gear shifter and grab handles. The truck is currently rated to 97 tonnes, with a Cummins X15 and 18-Speed Roadranger pushing the power through to the back end.
Having clocked 270,000 trouble-free kilometres thus far Tony reckons that the 610 is leaps and bounds ahead of his previous truck, a big-cab K200.
“I got into this and thought I was in heaven. The K200 had come a long way from the first cab-over Kenworth one I drove in 1980, but I couldn’t believe the ride in this from the first trip to Darwin, especially when I got out around Augathella.
“I have also driven 909s, and this is on the same wheelbase, but this has more room in it, and they are not as rough. The 50-inch bunk is also a better set up with the wardrobe and drawers,” Tony explained.
With the company’s head office in Toowoomba, Tony runs pretty much ‘anywhere with anything’ from his base at Wagga Wagga, generally pulling a B-Triple tautliner set.
“The way it’s going, B-triples are the next B-double. We have been setting up a lot more B-triples. It’s currently rated at 97 tonne but it can go out to 110 tonne. We do mostly road train work with it, generally as a B-triple. I run just about anywhere with it. My maiden trip in it was to Darwin. I have also run it across to Perth but most recently we have been running up and down the east coast.
“We cart anything from handbags to forklifts and anything in between. I used to tow open trailers with the K200, but this one has been tautliner work as I am getting old and frail,” he said with a smile.
With its colour scheme setting it apart from the majority of other trucks on the road, Tony has taken on board getting the truck out and about to shows and events as his schedule permits.
“I thought If I’m going to drive it I will own it, so we have the ‘Miss Ivy’ shirts and hats made up that we wear. The truck is predominantly for the kids, but we fully support the Breast Care Network Australia where we had it last year at a fundraiser for them just out of Toowoomba at Murphy’s Creek,” he explained.
Apart from its success at the Temora event last year, the SAR has also had a presence at a number of other shows and events. With Land Transport the naming-rights sponsor of the Colac Truck and Ute Show Tony found himself displaying the truck in southern Victoria earlier this year, with the Kenworth also a regular at both the Lights on The Hill event in Queensland and at the Casino Truck Show the last couple of years.
Having gone home with the major prize from Temora last year, Tony did not go home empty-handed in 2024, taking out the ‘Major’s Choice’ award on the day.
It would be fair to say that both Tony and Miss Ivy will be running the road together for the foreseeable future and Tony is firm in his opinion that his SAR is the way to go.
“There are two types of trucks – Kenworth and the rest – and this one is just that little bit special.
“People can’t say they didn’t see me.”