Ford F-150 Named "Truck of Texas"
By Sue Mead
Ford was the big winner at this year’s Texas Truck Rodeo awards, with the F-150 half-ton pickup line winning top honors as the “Truck of Texas.” The 2010 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor off-road pickup took first place in the “Full-Size Truck of Texas” category and the 2010 Ford F-150 King Ranch SuperCrew was tapped as the “Luxury Pickup of Texas”, a stand-alone entrant in its category. The Blue Oval was also tapped for the "Top Feature," recognized for its Ford Works Solutions commercial productivity technology.
“We’re elated,” said Doug Scott, Ford truck group marketing manager, after receiving the news about Ford’s long list of top awards at this year’s TTR. “Texas is the biggest pickup market in the world and this event has some of the country’s most critical journalists. The awards resonate with consumers not only in Texas, but also across the country.” Scott is referring to the TAWA journalists; this year, 41 members attended the two-day event, driving a field of 17 trucks, vying for 7 truck class awards, with first, second and third place winners.
Ford also won the "Truck Line of Texas" award for its complete lineup of pickups, SUVs and crossovers.
How did Ford garner so many awards for its pickups and how does the Truck Rodeo award system work?
Think of it like the Grammy Awards, where different genres of music get their own award, like Best Country Album or Best Rock Album, but the top winner is awarded Album of the Year.
In the Texas Truck Rodeo, Full-Size Pickup Truck of Texas designates a specific class, as do Crossover of Texas and SUV of Texas, while Truck of Texas is considered the highest honor of all the vehicles TAWA tested.
“Truck of Texas is our highest honor,” said Harold Gunn, TAWA president. “It’s awarded by tallying each member’s choice of which model line is best. This year, it’s the F-150 line of pickups, which also won last year.”
Photo courtesy of Jeff Yip
Dodge also did well. Its pickups drove away with the first place “Heavy Duty Truck of Texas” award for its all-new 2010 Dodge Ram 3500, and the top Mid-Size Truck award for the 2010 Dodge Dakota Crew Cab TRX4. Dodge also won second place in the Top Feature category with its Ram Box innovation. Other truck makers, including GM, Toyota and Nissan took home awards, as well. The competition, that also includes all categories of SUVs and CUVs, pitted 17 trucks against each other.
"We're very proud our all-new Dodge Ram heavy duty pickup trucks were recognized by the Texas Auto Writers as the best heavy-duty trucks in the market in head-to-head competition and the Dodge Dakota as the best mid-size truck in its category," said Rick Deneau, director, product and brand communications. "Where better than Texas, the pickup truck capital of the U.S., for Dodge Ram trucks to receive this honor?"
“This year was the most ‘Texan’, of the Texas Truck Rodeos,” Gunn said. “It’s the best venue we’ve ever had,” he said, referring to the two-day driving event held at the 100-year-old Knibbe Ranch on the outskirts of San Antonio. “The narrow, two-lane Texas county roads, along with the ranch roads, comprised of dirt tracks, with gravel, mud and rocks are not fabricated. These roads and driving experiences duplicate the real day-to-day use of the vehicles we evaluate,” said the native Texan, who owns a ranch as well.
“It means a tremendous amount to the industry and we bend over backwards to make sure the playing field is level and the competition is fair,” Gunn said after the award announcements.
Want to see the full list of Texas Truck Rodeo entrants in each category? We've got them all.
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