Freightliner unveils rolling tribute

With 2015 marking the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign, it's interesting to see the various ways in which Australia's allies around the world pay tribute to their servicemen – and this Canadian tribute truck from Freightliner certainly turns heads.

It's actually the 12th in a line of patriotically themed trucks produced by Freightliner under its 'Ride of Pride' program, and the seventh tribute truck to join the fleet at Schneider – a North American transport giant with over 11,000 drivers on its books.

The Freightliner Cascadia in question bears a stunning custom paint job with the theme of 'Military Past'. The imagery depicts the Canadian War Memorial in Ottawa, Ontario, as well as 10 gravestones from Flanders in France – where Canada first fought independently of the British Commonwealth.

The Canadian flag and red poppies are also prominent, as are the phrases "Lest We Forget" and "Appuyons nos troupes" (French for "Support our Troops").

The truck will be driven by Darrell Esson (pictured), an Ontario resident with 21 years of military service under his belt including tours of Cypress, Kosovo and Afghanistan. He's been Canada's Ride for Pride driver since 2011, when he was selected to drive the first Canadian tribute truck produced.

"Driving the Ride of Pride means a lot to me," he says.

"People often slow down or come up to me at truck stops because they want to thank me or share their stories, and that's because they feel a connection to the truck."

In addition to its usual haulage duties, the truck will appear at a range of military-themed events in coming months.

Freightliner says it began its Ride of Pride tradition 13 years ago when Ed Keeter, Freightliner shift manager and Vietnam War veteran, proposed the project as a way to honour current and prior members of the US military. The concept was extended to the Canadian military in 2011.