Rhys Lynn’s 1991 International Harvester Diesel Truck

This month, the spotlight goes to one of our newest team members. Her name is Dot! Some of you might have already seen her around the neighborhood. Owner of Nona.Media and publisher of Nonahood News, Rhys Lynn, gives us a closer look at his baby.  

Make: International Harvester

Model: Diesel Truck

Year: 1991

Mileage: 280,000

Horsepower: 160-210

Backstory:

According to Lynn, he’d been looking for a truck for about six months. Nona.Media picked up on their video production game and needed more space when transporting gear. Equipment would be crammed at the back of his Jeep, and it was becoming impractical. “I didn’t want to go with just another boring box truck or cargo van. I wanted something that would really kind-of stand out and make a statement and kind-of give us some cool visibility,” said Lynn.

He had been browsing the internet for months in search of a ride. He saw a ton of vehicles that would make a good fit, such as old fire trucks and old military vehicles, but none of them really caught his eye. After months of searching, he had finally found the perfect ride. He found the truck on eBay, and it was being auctioned off. It wasn’t a lot of money (relatively speaking), and it was already all black – that was a plus. It had tons of space inside. It also came with a bunch of features that would help during video shoots.

However, it wasn’t all smooth sailing when he was in the process of trying to get his new ride. Explaining the scenario, he says, “I set an alarm for myself to go off right before the bidding ended so I could snatch it in the auction that last minute. I was in my office that day. The alarm went off. I had two different people walk into my office and phone calls going on at the same time. I got distracted and missed the bid. I was about to go bid, and I saw that it had already expired. I was really mad about it. I was looking for six months for the perfect vehicle and I just lost it, it’s gone forever, there’s no way I’ll ever get it now. I was really bummed out the next few days.” Nonetheless, his son advised him to call the seller to see if the deal actually went through with the bidder that won the vehicle. The odds turned in his favor when he heard the bidder never paid the deposit. So, Lynn asked if he could put down a deposit, and the seller said yes and Lynn went to collect the truck.

The truck was located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Lynn drove up from Orlando, looked at the vehicle, and drove it home that same day.

It’s a little different from your traditional, everyday storage vehicle. Believe it or not, Dot was originally an ambulance. After spending days on the road saving lives, a police department bought her and transformed her into a SWAT vehicle.

“We pulled out a lot of the old equipment we didn’t need: the intercom system, oxygen tubing, etc.,” states Lynn.

Some might ask where her name came from. The answer to that is in the middle of the company name: “Nona.Media” (nona dot media). Not only was Dot a practical name, but it also gave the new ride her own character.

Not only is the inside spacious, but there are a lot of great storage compartments outside of the truck that can be used for storing gear. Inside comes with a work table that can be used for putting laptops on to do work. It has five seats altogether (two in front and three in the back). It also comes with air conditioning in the back. The truck also has features such as electricity, a loudspeaker, built-in air compressor, rear air suspension (handy for loading and unloading gear), and an air horn.

Mods:

• Replaced all lighting inside with LED lighting.
• Added a large LED light for the work area.
• 24-inch production monitor for use inside the truck.
• Full graphics package on the exterior.
• Anchor points to shoot video outside from back of the truck.
• Amber color lenses on the exterior (previously red and blue).

Future Mods:

• Battery backup power supply.
• New stereo system.
• Potential built-in fridge.

Overall, Dot serves her purpose well as the media machine. She lends a comfortable place to sit and work on a hot day during a shoot, offers power out in the field in locations that might not otherwise have power available, and she gets the media gear and team from point A to B and back in a safe fashion.

One can find Dot at local events covered by Nona.Media. She also spends her idle time at GuideWell Innovation Core (Nona.Media headquarters) and at the Amazing Explorers parking area near Canvas Restaurant.

If you don’t already, be sure to follow Nona.Media on Instagram @nonadotmedia or on Facebook by searching “Nona.Media.” One can also visit the website at www.nona.media.