The Terrible Truck is still chugging along all these years later
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - It took the Fan N'ATion crew two years to find the owner of the Terrible Truck, a modified 1920s Mack truck that was present at Three Rivers Stadium during the formative Steel Curtain years and beyond.
Glenshaw's John Kaiser, the owner of the black-and-gold vehicle, opened up his garage to take Daisy Jade back in time.
"Mr. Rooney used to kid me about having a better parking place than him because I parked on the field," Kaiser said with a chuckle.
It was Kaiser's dream to attend a Monday Night Football game, but he could never afford it. So, ever the diehard Steelers fan, Kaiser decided to build a truck. He called Steelers legend Myron Cope and Cope told Kaiser that his "Steelers-mobile" would transport Charlie Daniels out to the field so he could sing the national anthem.
The Terrible Truck was born and christened.
Kaiser built the truck in 1969, resembling a 1923 Mack truck, Kaiser said.
"I was working in the construction field at the time, and wherever I worked in Pittsburgh, I would try to get whatever I could find. The entire truck has come from the city of Pittsburgh," Kaiser said.
The custom gauges on the dashboard came from an old, yellow taxi cab. Kaiser also refurbished an old church window to construct a Maltese cross.
"It's a unique truck, it really is. It's got a Corvette engine and a little card you stick in the dashboard" to start it up.
Kaiser believed he built around 20 custom trucks, but he still actively drives four or five from his collection.
Kaiser showed Daisy his large collection of refurbished pedal cars, antique toys, and more.
"The truck had a feeling to me. It was part of Pittsburgh. The people at that time were so revved up over the Steelers, everybody wanted to see the Terrible Truck," Kaiser joyfully recounted.
To see the field, the fans, and take in the atmosphere of Three Rivers Stadium during the first golden age of Steelers football was an unforgettable memory for Kaiser.
"It was the biggest thrill of my life."
