The IBEW Local 1245 ‘Gearheads Gathering’ Car Show at the PG&E Gas Training Facility in Winters, Calif. on October 7, 2023.
The IBEW 1245/PG&E Fleet “Gearhead Gathering” Car/Truck/Motorcycle Show returned to the PG&E Gas Training Center in Winters, CA in early October. With over 50 cars in this year’s show, it was a great success. The family-friendly event showcased a wide variety of vehicles, including motorcycles, a fire truck, drag cars, and even a hearse.
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At just 12 years old, People’s Choice winner and decorated racer Hailey Miller impressed the crowd with her half scale junior dragster.
“She runs a 890 bracket race dragster. It does about 70 to 78 miles an hour, depending on what track we’re at,” Justin Miller, Hayley’s father, explained, noting that children can acquire an NHRA license at five years old, and can start compete racing at six years old. “We travel all over the West Coast from Coos Bay to Vegas, to Fallon, Nevada. Anywhere there’s a race, we go to them. Right now she’s track champion at Redding Dragstrip. And I believe we’re third in points for Sonoma, and eighth in points at Sacramento.”
Retiree William Beck’s ’67 restomod Chevy Chevelle with LS3 engine nabbed the coveted Best in Show award. The car took four years and tens of thousands of dollars to restore, and Beck takes it to as many car shows as he can.
“I don’t trailer this car. It’s meant to be driven,” he said, “and I stress the point: be driven.”
Beck retired from PG&E after 35 years, but still takes just as much pride in his career as he does in his car.
“I started in actually tower department. Then I was in OMC when we had power plants and worked at the Geysers several years as a station mechanic,” he recalled. “And then I went into gas department… and retired as a gas foreman, Working Foreman B.”
We would like to express our gratitude to all who attended this year’s car show. Special thanks to our friends from the Winters Police Department, Fire Department, and PSEA, as well as all the volunteers who helped make this car show a success. Special recognition goes out to our members in PG&E’s Printing and Graphics Services for crafting the trophies for this year’s event, as well as the members of PG&E’s Fleet Department, who co-hosted the event.
–Gerald Williams, IBEW 1245 Business Rep
Congrats to all of the winners:
- Best 50s- Lou Mennel, 1955 Ford F100
- Best 60s- Kevin Goodner, 1968 VW BUG
- Best 70s- Rory Dimick, 1970 Chevy Chevelle
- Best 80s- Anthony Brown, 1988 Pontiac Firebird GTA
- Best 4×4- Shelley Giradi, 2004 Ford F250
- Best C10- Chris Nicora, 1968 CHEVY C10
- Best Import- Ralph Kenyon, 1972 Nissan Skyline
- Best of Show- William Beck, 1967 Chevy Chevelle
- Best Modern- Tim Gonzales, 2016 Chevrolet Camaro SS
- People’s Choice- Hailey Miller, 2006 Half Scale Jr Dragster
- Under Construction- Jim Griffis, 1955 Chevrolet 3100 series
- Most Unique- Chuck Adams, 1953 “CHEVY PONIAC”
- Best Muscle Car- Royce Bradley, 1961 Buick Skylark
- Best Chevy- Mike Arreola, 1967 Chevrolet Camaro
- Best Mopar- TJ Hohenberer, 2018 Dodge Challenger Hellcat
- Best Motorcycle- Kenneth Knocks, 2018 Harley Road Ride
SAVE THE DATE for our next annual Gearheads Gathering — Oct. 5, 2024
Winner of the Best in Show award, William Beck, with his Chevelle.
12 year old Hailey Miller, winner of the People's Choice award, in front of her dragster.
A judge takes notes
The trophies were made by IBEW 1245 members at PG&E’s Printing and Graphics Services