2015 Ford F-350 Super Duty Owned by Las Vegas State Farm Insurance Agent Heads for SEMA
- 11 Sept 2017
The truck is used as a daily driver, her business vehicle, and to tote a Polaris RZR UTV for off-road riding with the family. It has helped promote her business and has made her somewhat of a celebrity in the greater Las Vegas area as well as all of Nevada. She really does turn heads when people see her climb out of the cab of that big truck wearing a dress and high heels. There is a reason why she calls the truck “Big Sexy.” She also volunteered that she meets prospective clients at car shows and having the truck helps her build confidence with custom car owners. “I have special knowledge and experience on how to help guide clients who own custom vehicles when inquiring about insurance and the repair process during a claim,” she said. Holds Special Knowledge On Heavy Duty Trucks She got interested in big heavy-duty trucks growing up in Big Sky Country in Dillon, Montana. “I grew up in big trucks,” said Monica. “My parents owned trucks living in the Big Sky Country and when my husband Damon and I first met, one of the first vehicles I owned was a Ford F-150. My first Super Duty was a 2001 Ford F-250 with a standard transmission that I bought about 10 years ago when I opened my insurance business.” That first heavy-duty truck served as a canvas for a plethora of custom enhancements. “My husband and I did quite a bit of aftermarket customization to it and put a full vehicle wrap on it to help market my business,” Monica continued. “It did wonderful things for my business. So we decided to build another truck that would be even bigger and more eye catching.” She sold the 2001 Ford F-250 and contacted a Ford dealership and told them she wanted a new and improved Super Duty. The dealership ordered her a 2015 Ford F-350 straight off the Ford assembly line built to her specifications and it was delivered in May 2014. “I wanted to maximize my business opportunity and I knew I wasn’t going to purchase something small. I wanted something big and bold that would make a statement. Most of my local competition and colleagues drive your average sedans or a small SUV. I wanted something that stood out.” She never considered any other brand of truck except a Ford. That’s because she enjoyed owning a Ford F-150 and Ford F-250. She also explained that she is impressed with the truck’s power and she likes the size of the cab on the F-350. “The Ford cab is very comfortable and appealing, which makes it the best,” she said. Upon delivery, she knew she would be fulfilling her vision of her customized dream truck. Her wish list included many upgrades that would require the expertise of several shops and vendors. She found the shops that could help her build her dream truck through contacts from her business. “I work with a lot of body shops and a lot of aftermarket shops because of my business and my clients. It was helpful knowing people in the industry. One of my contacts is with Sudden Impact, who has a wonderful working relationship with me. They have helped repair many of my client’s vehicles that have been customized. The shop owner got me in touch with another local company called 4 The Truck and they did the majority of the labor-intensive work.” She and her husband chose the products installed on the truck. They selected products from familiar top-rated companies that they had great past experiences with. For example, the truck includes the K&N HP-4005 oil filter as well as a K&N 63-2582 air intake system.
“One of my best contacts works with my client Best In The Desert, the largest off-road racing association in the U.S. They have a great relationship with Ford and have a lot of knowledge about the Ford Super Duty and the many different aftermarket products available. They were a great influence on the products that we selected,” said Monica. Another influence that was a great resource on products and manufacturers was the founder of Silver State Classic Racing, which is an Open Road Rally Event that closes 90 miles of Nevada State Route 318 between Lund and Hiko, Nevada. And then there was SEMA “SEMA 2014 opened up a lot of doors for us, too,” noted Damon. “Once we had a spot reserved in the SEMA show, many aftermarket manufacturers jumped on board and offered their products and assistance. They wanted their products displayed on the truck, especially after they saw the magnitude of what we were building. What they saw was not only bolt-on products but a lot of one of a kind truly custom systems like the overload air bag system, which is 100-percent custom; and front bumper and matching roof rack." “We were the first at SEMA to have frenched in lights that were flush even on the custom built front bumper and grill as well as the custom built roof rack. Now you can find almost every manufacturer displaying the flush-mounted frenched in lights. You could say, we were a trendsetter,” said Damon. They Had A Vision Monica and Damon had a vision of what they wanted the truck to look like before they bought it. They hired KEG Media in Fort Smith, Arkansas, to create a rendering, which they used to entice manufacturers to become a build partner and to provide products as sponsors. “KEG Media is the number one rendering firm for SEMA and is well-known in the automotive industry,” noted Damon. “We approached companies who had the best systems for what we were trying to achieve and the products with the best overall performance,” he continued. “When we contacted the vendors for help with a custom designed product, a lot of them opened their arms to us and put me in touch with their engineering departments so that they could work directly with us on finishing the design to ensure that their product was compatible with the overall vision. The vendors were excited to be involved with our project and wanted to participate in a build of a truck that they knew would be an eye catcher at SEMA.” Products and Sponsors The new custom products installed onto the F-350 include: • EBC disc rotors and pads • 8” Fabtech front suspension system with 4 link coil over • Dirt Logic 4.0 coil over shock absorbers • American Force Storm 22-inch by 12-inch wheels • Toyo Open Country 37x13.50R22 tires • 8” Fabtech leaf with airbag rear suspension system
• Fabtech 2.25 shock absorbers • Hellwig sway bar • Titan 50-gallon fuel tank • K&N AirCharger intake system • K&N oil filter • MagnaFlow 5-inch exhaust • Two XS Power D6500 batteries • T-Rex grille • Bushwacker flared fender • Las Vegas Wrought Iron one-of-a-kind custom built front bumper • ARE camper shell • Aleatronix video system with two 9-inch DVD-TVs in the headrests • Custom painted interior red accents • Custom front seats with “G” stitched in headrest • Black leather upholstery with red perforated diamond inserts and red piping • Royal Purple Oil Other partners included Knipex, WARN Industries, and ROGUE Racing.
“My truck, or as I call her, ‘Big Sexy,’ is a true representation of who I am as a person. This truck is big, bad, red, powerful, tough, beautiful, sexy, and one of a kind. It is an attention grabber and I am very proud to be the operator. People often double take when they see me get out of the driver’s seat in heels, confidently driving such a large vehicle. ‘Big Sexy’ is my mobile billboard for my insurance business and chariot for my family,” concluded Monica. | ||||
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