We hear it all too often, "I'll never be able to build a cover truck without my daddy's trust fund..." But that, my friends, is a stereotype that has no bearing whatsoever! The majority of the cover trucks on this very magazine are the result of years of blood, sweat, tears, friends, and beers. Yes, some trucks are shop-built and cost an arm and a leg to build, and those trucks deserve just as much respect. But this story is all about one man's battle to the top. Kyle Bertsch is a North Dakota native, who has been unfortunate enough to fight off the elements year after year, while wrenching in his cold-ass garage, all to make his dream come true.
Kyle met his buddy, Trevor Anderson, about seven or eight years ago. It was Trevor who turned him on to the custom side of life. Since they were teenagers, they have cut stuff up together, grown their friendship, and others eventually joined their ranks.
After Kyle had his fair share of dilapidated projects, he turned his talents onto a '93 Toyota pickup. This would be the truck that would make his dreams come true. As he put it, "I just built it paycheck by paycheck until it was finished, 'cuz I'm broke!" This long haul took the majority of five years to complete. But the battle wasn't just one of time and money. Kyle assured us anything that could possibly go wrong did. He's even been lucky enough to be part of the cover-truck curse and smashed the whole back end of his truck just weeks after his photo shoot.
When we asked Kyle what was the best part about his build, he gave the answer every proud minitrucker would give: "Finally finishing it after more than five years-with everyone telling me it'll never ever be done-debuting it at the final Resolutions show, and winning Best Minitruck! Also, joining Severed Ties, and cruising the strip in Greenville in it!" Now, that's a great list of accomplishments.
But, there were also some sacrifices that came in the form of "All the money and ex-girlfriends I lost to it."
All in all, Kyle has accomplished what all of us dream of doing, and he did it with the help of a few close friends, and most importantly: perseverance. We can all take a page out of Kyle's book.
So, if you see him around the shows, shake his hand and congratulate him on a job well done. We're sure we haven't seen the last of Kyle and his love of the custom minitruck! For all the specs and info on the build, check out the Lowdown.