“THE GMC TRUCK PROMOTION THAT CAME OFF WITHOUT A HITCH”                                                                                  

On June 27, 2007 when GMR-Works first offered to provide me a new 2008 GMC one ton dually truck to replace my 1997 Chevy one ton dually I rejoiced. The Chevy had pulled the Liberty Bell for almost 300,000 miles honoring our troops and first responders. The Liberty Bell uniquely represents those American values of our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, Police and Firemen who fight to defend, “Life, Liberty and The Pursuit of Happiness.” When their sacrifice is given to defend our values it is only fitting that the Liberty Bell be there to honor those commitments of our freedom.

 

On July 27, 2007 a GM team of over 10 management staff greeted us at GM headquarters on John Carpenter Freeway and rang the Liberty Bell while many other GM employees viewed the spotless black “97” Chevy show truck with gooseneck hitch and display on the trailer for the first time.  Our meeting concluded after two hours. Prior to coming to that meeting I picked up the “97” truck from a front end alignment shop and something went wrong on my way there. When Rick Beets, a GM executive, asked me upon closing our meeting,” Is there anything I can do for you today.” I told him about my truck front end alignment issue. Rick called and arranged an immediate appointment at Classic Chevrolet that Friday afternoon. When I went to pay my bill at Classic I found Mr. Beets had paid the first $100.00 down. Kurt Ward, Classic Chevrolet’s Service Dept. manager found unseen damage to the truck that made it impossible to drive safely. Kurt said he could fix the problem, but that the truck would not be ready before Monday. This issue created a dilemma. On Saturday morning the Liberty Bell had to be in Glen Rose, TX. for the funeral of Cpl. Rhett Butler, a soldier killed in Iraq. The Service team at Classic Chevrolet did not let the fallen soldier’s family down. Within one hour, a chauffeured Corvette arrived out front where I was helping customers ring the Liberty Bell. I was whisked away to Ken Thompson’s office and he thanked me for honoring our troops, and asked me if I would accept one of his trucks to fill in until my truck was repaired.  C. W. Higgins escorted me to the truck lot to select a gooseneck hitch equipped truck to pull the Liberty Bell for the next few days. Ken Thompson had the keys ready and we drove to the

Bell, hooked it up and we all posed for pictures. “As a point of interest”, I was in Ken’s office the other day and his picture with “The Liberty Bell –Heartbeat of America” is proudly displayed on his desk. After the Ken Thompson rescue I spent Saturday, July 28,2007 in Glen Rose, Texas with all the citizens and neighbors of the Rhett Butler family helping to heal the wounds of war. The Bell tolled as Bells have tolled for over 500 years honoring Heroes who lay down there lives for their countrymen.  GM–Rick Beets, Kurt Ward, C.W. Higgins and Ken Thompson made it all come together with the gooseneck hitch equipped truck, their skill, and patriotism. They are true patriots by any measure. 

 

GMR-Works sent me GMC’s first contract proposal on September 17, 2007 offering to give Proclaim Liberty a truck outright with no strings attached. Included in the proposal is the phrase “You can put any hitch in it you like.” However, in conversations later we were encouraged by GM to accept the use of a new truck every year. Proclaim

Liberty would provide a $5,000,000 insurance policy to GM and GM would provide events, dealership openings and state fairs events where the truck and bell would be featured to offset the cost of insurance. We accepted what GMC offered. The cost of insurance is $100.00 a week. To date:  we are one year later, one quarter of the contract is over, the insurance is in force, the truck has been waiting at the dealership, the promotion dates have passed, the monies have been spent,  and GMC now declares that a GMC truck cannot utilize a gooseneck hitch to fulfill the contract they  envisioned, crafted and executed.

On September 9, 2008 Jon H. Bustetter, Assistant Regional Marketing Manager, GMC Division of General Motors Corporation, Detroit Michigan with Corporate Offices at 225 E. John Carpenter Freeway, Suite 1100, Irving, Texas, 75062 sent Proclaim Liberty a registered letter requiring the Liberty Bell Display be pulled by a bumper hitch equipped truck only or they would be required to vacate the promotional contract.  For the last three months GMC’s contract has been running without a GMC truck able to perform their duty due to this hitch issue. GMC at this time is able to supply a truck to pull with a bumper hitch only. GMC is unable to provide a truck to pull a gooseneck trailer.

Proclaim Liberty appreciates GMC’s continuing desire to honor our troops, but feels as GMC cannot provide a truck to tow the Liberty Bell display safely as required by Proclaim Liberty we must concur with GMC in cancelling the contract so we can move forward in our quest to find a truck that can satisfy our mechanical and transportation needs. It is our opinion GMC deserves credit for trying.

 We have been pulling the Bell for 15 years with a gooseneck hitch connection on every truck we have used. We find the gooseneck connections larger, stronger, and more reliable than a bumper hitch. They stay cleaner in the center of the bed of the truck where they can easily be seen at all times through the back window. The Liberty Bell stands 11 feet tall creating a high center of gravity and benefits greatly from the higher mounted hitch in counteracting the normal pitch and sway of traveling. The gooseneck hitch greatly reduces driver fatigue, steering fluctuations, bucking and bottoming out due to road conditions. If the driver is required to swerve to avoid a road hazard he can do so without any loss of control with a gooseneck hitch. The Liberty Bell display and trailer weight is 7,000 lbs.  With the gooseneck hitch, 2,000 lbs. of the weight is transferred from the trailer to the truck on a hitch ball located one foot in front of the truck’s rear axle. This provides a constant weight placement exactly where the truck cargo is designed to be carried.  On a bumper pull hitch connection the hitch ball is located out of view down near the road five feet behind the rear axle.  On a bumper pull hitch every dip in the road is a weight shift, and a steering adjustment. 

The 2003 GMC truck currently being used to pull the Liberty Bell Display has been donated by Century Trucks and Vans of Grand Prairie.  Owners Daniel and Shaun Adams are Patriots who have supported the Bell for years, and will be replacing the current GMC brand truck with a truck brand which has the backing of its representatives for this duty until a “permanent Liberty Bell Truck” can be found.  

The trucks that I have always purchased to pull the Liberty Bell have been GM. I still have the 1976 Chevy gooseneck equipped truck in our garage that we first used to honor our countrymen.  Perhaps we will go look up the keys.  Seriously, if this were a hobby the “76” would be running. This is not a hobby.  This is a sacred duty we have been given.  We must do our best for our troops as they do for us. Their families and communities depend upon us for their concluding honor.  We can be five hours early to toll the Liberty Bell, and prepare to play “Taps”, but we cannot be five minutes late.  The truck selected for this honor must always be the best available for the sacred duty it will perform is like that of no other, healing the wounds of war.

Sincerely,     Liberty For All                                           

The Belladier,    David Hall

September 22, 1008

 

 

Here’s the letter that Proclaim Liberty received from GM.

 

GM Letter