For decades I’ve been among the many motorists driving by the semi trucking school, located at the I-10 and I-17 intersection, known to locals as “The Stack.” When Arizona Contractor & Community decided to do another special issue on trucking, I took the exit ramp and explored the school.
On the grounds, I first noticed a 1954 “needle nose” Kenworth, before an employee directed me to where I would find Jay McCormick “Mack” Sheesley, the owner of a fleet of vintage semis. Soon I was greeted by Mack and Miss Liberty, his Australian blue heeler.
Mack grew up in Chicago where he learned mechanics working in various shops. “I’ve always been sort of a roamer and, after living in various Eastern states, I enlisted in the Air Force,” he says. “After a year of training, I became a Radar Maintenance Technician in California.”
In 1964, Mack, along with some friends, moved to Arizona. He worked for a short time at Ralph’s Diesel Service, located where the CDL Trucking School is today. Mack later moved to Cummins Diesel as a warranty adjuster.
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This article originally appeared in the Arizona Contractor & Community magazine, Mar/Apr 2019 issue, Vol. 8, No.2. The Arizona Contractor & Community magazine is a bi-monthly publication.