SLOW POKE

Taking it Low & Slow

- Words by Kyle Rasmussen Photos by Joe Acevedo Jr.

BEFORE WE GET TOO FAR into this story, let's take a look back 20 years ago to a sophomore kid in high school with a truck and a dream. Without fail, every day you'd find me with headphones in, sitting on the floor in the hallway between classes, flipping through one of my many Mini Truckin' magazines I carried in my backpack. Each feature and article that graced those pages created a longing for a custom build that I could be proud of and call my own—one that others could find in a magazine to inspire their own builds one day. Though my yellow 1990 Toyota pickup with ghost flames never made it past the lowering blocks and drop spindles stage, and certainly never made it into a magazine, that love for custom laid-out trucks that oozed personality and demanded respect never left me as I got older.

As the years went on and friends came and went, I found myself dabbling in the JDM, off-road, and Euro scenes with only a temporary sense of community and fulfillment. These platforms were merely hobbies disguised as a lifestyle for me. I needed more out of the automotive scene. I needed friends I could call family and not just acquaintances. I needed a true build that I could learn from and constantly improve upon as I I gained experience with the platform. I needed to get back to my roots and what started it all for me so many years ago. I needed a truck again.

After a short stint in the VW community with a bagged 1964 Beetle, I sold it and took a personal oath swearing off wallet-draining classic projects to purchase a home and welcome our beautiful twin daughters into the world. Little did I know, this was the short reset I needed to change the trajectory of my life and involvement in the automotive scene.