Don't Mess With Texas

ONE TOUGH GMC PICKUP THAT’S RIDIN’ HIGH

- Steve Temple

Since they say everything’s bigger in Texas, it’s no surprise that Texans like their trucks big, too. Jesus Zubia, who hails from the Lone Star State, is a fitting example, having owned a slew of lifted trucks. The latest is the 2015 GMC Denali shown here.

More about all the mods in a moment, but first some background. Zubia has lots of brothers in arms, since Texas is the largest market for new pickups in the United States. More large pickups are purchased in Texas than the next three largest truck markets— California, Oklahoma, and Florida—combined. Zubia lives in Midland, Texas, named for being the midway point between Fort Worth and El Paso. Cattle and oil have figured prominently in the city’s history since its founding in 1881. And what’s a ranch hand or an oil worker without a pickup truck?

HOOKED FOR LIFE

Working as welder on wellhead pulling units for oil rigs, a hard and dangerous occupation, Zubia obviously needs a good work truck. But he also has customized several pickups for his personal pleasure since high school, when he was initially inspired by all the cool vehicles he saw in the first Fast and Furious movie. He started with a ’97 GMC Sierra, painted it candy tangerine, and dropped and rolling on dubs (20-inch rims), which was a fairly new thing at the time. Staying on the cutting edge with new design elements would prove to be a point of pride for him.

A lowered pickup isn’t all that practical for rough Texas ranching roads, so he got into lifted trucks after that. His next truck was a 2001 Chevy with a Cadillac front end. In addition to its Escalade body conversion, it was elevated 10 inches and fitted with 24-inch wheels wrapped in Toyo tires, once again a novelty for its time.