Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/734262
80 | Overdrive | October 2016 ReaRview F ounding Overdrive editor and publisher Mike Parkhurst wasn't shy about employing theatrics, especially when it came to fighting against Teamsters, lawmakers or the rail industry. In 1962, a year after Overdrive began publication, Parkhurst formed the Independent Truckers Association as a means to rally the magazine's readership around common causes. ITA state chapters worked to assert truckers' views into policy discussions across all levels of government. Parkhurst used the group to initiate trucker rallies and shutdowns, form national meetings and promote ITA- backed policies with truck banners, among other activities. The group also offered members discounts on trucking equipment and services. ITA's protests are partially credited with deregulating the industry in 1980, along with reducing Teamster influence within trucking. Parkhurst also launched the similar grassroots-level Roadmasters, whose goals were akin to ITA. It fizzled out in the mid-1980s when Overdrive own- ership changed hands and Parkhurst was no longer affiliated. Organized independence BY JAMES JAILLET The left photo shows truckers affixing a banner to an ITA member's trailer. The top photo shows ITA members picketing on the U.S. Capitol steps. The photos ran in the July 1979 Overdrive. Overdrive founder Mike Parkhurst championed owner-operator causes through ITA and the maga- zine. He died in 2014 at 81. This photo from the January 1974 issue shows an Overdrive/ITA-led shutdown at Mile 120 of the Ohio Turnpike. The accompanying article details a con- versation between Overdrive editors and those at other trucking publications. The fleet-focused peri- odicals "denied any knowledge of the shutdowns," Overdrive wrote. "Such is the close ties these orga- nizations keep with the men behind the wheel."