Whether you want to be informed or entertained, there will be plenty of opportunities for truck drivers at the 2025 Guilty By Association Truck Show.
GBATS, the biennial truck show in Joplin, Mo., begins Thursday, Sept. 25 and will run through Saturday, Sept. 27. The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, which is a show sponsor, will be participating at the event.
Thursday, Sept. 25
The show will kick off on Thursday with one of the event’s staples – a demolition derby – at 6:30 p.m.
From 7 to 9 p.m., the Bobby Degonia Band will conclude the first day of the truck show with a free concert.
Friday, Sept. 26
For the informative side of things, FMCSA Senior Policy Advisor Michael Hampton will be in the GBATS town hall proverbial hot seat, fielding questions from truckers in attendance. The event will start at 10:30 a.m. on Friday. It will be held in the 4 State Trucks Installation Shop.
After the Q&A session ends, the day is loaded with fun events for truckers and their families. Some of the featured events include Big Rig Burnouts, Trucker Olympics, Truck and Tractor Pull, a United FMX Motorcross Stunt Show and a concert by a ZZ Top tribute band. The day will conclude with a fireworks show at 10 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 27
Highlights on Saturday will include the Special Olympics truck convoy and a light show that will close with a downtown street party. In 2023, the convoy generated $120,000 for the Special Olympics of Missouri.
The concert that day will mark the return of country music star Collin Raye.
Raye, who also performed at GBATs in 2023, is scheduled to bring another live show to Joplin. Known for such hits as “Love Me,” “In This Life,” “My Kind of Girl” and “I Can Still Feel You,” he was nominated for the Country Music Association Awards’ Male Vocalist of the Year honor in 1996, 1997 and 1998.
The Chad Cooke Band, a country group from Houston, is scheduled to open for Raye. The free concert is scheduled to start at 8 p.m. Saturday at Maiden Lane in Joplin.
A full schedule of events can be found here. LL
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