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14 | November 1, 2018 | Malibu surfside news sound off
malibusurfsidenews.com
Ride of the Week
The automotive gift that just keeps on giving
Fireball Tim Lawrence
Contributing Columnist
Malibu resident
truck was a
gift from my
“The
dad. He found
it up in Fresno back in
2010.”
These were the first
words spoken by Efrain
Morales, whom I met
recently at Wheels and
Waves here in Malibu.
He’s a super nice guy who,
in my opinion, performed
the perfect truck rescue.
As you may or may not
know, 10 percent of our
proceeds in my business
goes to a Dog Rescue
called Hope for Paws in
LA. And in many ways,
Efrain (Efro) did the same
thing with this 1964 Chevy
Fleetside Long Bed C10
Pickup.
“It was a farm truck that
someone had abandoned at
a mechanic shop for over
20 years,” started Morales.
“The owner of the shop
was getting ready to retire
and just wanted to clear
out his shop, so my pops
got it for $1,000.”
And that, my friends, is
what we call a steal.
As the owner of Morales
Transport Corporation,
Morales is now the proud
owner of this big window
C10. And since purchasing
the “Trokita,” some of the
upgrades he’s performed
Efrain Morales has put a good deal of work into his 1964 Chevy Fleetside Long Bed C10 Pickup since receiving it as a gift from his dad in 2010.
Fireball Tim Lawrence/22nd Century Media
are a 350 engine with
700R4 transmission, front
disk brakes and 2 1/2”
drop spindles.
“Also, a 2” body drop,”
adds Morales. “It’s been
C-Notched and bagged, allowing
me to lay frame.”
And that, my friends,
is what we call slammed.
Welcome to the cool
school.
Then Morales began to
give me more of the background
story.
As the owner of a fleet
of big rigs, it’s very typical
to spend Saturdays driving
around picking up parts for
his mechanic to keep the
trucks on the road.
“I guess you can say it’s
a necessity,” Morales said.
“But the best part of
my truck is when it takes
people on a trip down
memory lane,” he said.
“Typically, the older folks
have the best stories.”
But how does Morales
primarily use this truck?
His favorite thing to do is to
take it on a Sunday cruise,
such as one that recently
brought him out to Wheels
and Waves here in the ’Bu.
But how about a funny
story?
“The first cruise after
getting it bagged was from
Boyle Heights in Venice
Beach,” starts Morales.
“After hanging out at the
beach, I was heading to the
freeway at about 2 [inches]
off the ground, thinking I
looked cool, when I hit a
metal plate on the road. It
literally stopped me and
it felt like I hit a wall. Not
having any real way of
knowing how low I was,
the metal plate made it
clear that it was too low. I
quickly aired up and drove
off.”
And that, my friends, is
what we call an oops. I’m
sure he left a little C10
divot in the road for good
measure.
But, as we always wrap
up Ride of the Week with
a little love for the ’Bu,
according to Morales “the
best part about driving from
the Boulevard up PCH to
Malibu has to be the scenery.
A beautiful backdrop
for a quick photoshoot.
Also, you got to love nicely
paved roads where you can
cruise low to the ground
and enjoy the ocean view.”
(Yep, that’s a plus and
what we call freedom.)
Check out Morales on
Instagram @efro64 to see
more pics of his “Trokita,”
from start to finish. And
take a moment to ponder
how you’d perform a horsepower
rescue. Somewhere
out there is a lost, lonely
vehicle in need of freedom.
And you, my friends, are
the rescuers. And that’s
what we call done.
Have a great week,
folks!
Want to be featured in Ride of
the Week? Send Fireball an
email at askfireball@fireball
tim.com.