The Story of Lightning

My 11yr old son and I climbed into my Cabover Pete with 48ft refer trailer loaded with various food stuffs bound for Californias various institutions in the Sierras. There were only 4 drops that we had to accomplish before heading up I 15 to the port of entry for Nevada. The goal was to arrive at a mill in Fredonia AZ to pick up 1100 bales of wood shavings for the bosses horses at home.
Anyway as we finished the last drop it was getting a little late. We were able to make it to rest area along I-15 N just in time to get about 5 hrs of sleep.
In the morning we awoke but were in need of a little diesel/food just to make it to the 76 in Las Vegas.
A little ways up the freeway we found an out of the way fuel station to the right on the northbound side of the frwy.
I parked my truck next to pumps and called to my son who was still asleep in the sleeper. As he awoke I told him that this would be our last stop for awhile and to come with me to the store to pick up some supplies for the drive.
When we entered the store a young girl with a heavy southern accent greeted us. My son went off to find himself some supplies in the store.
The girl at the counter asked me "Are you a trucker?" And my reply was in my best southern accent I could muster was " Yes I,m a trucker" and I pointed at my son and said "he,s a trucker too." Then she said "Well then the coffee,s free" She then asked, "Do you need some diesel fuel?" And I replied "Yes." Then she said, "If you need some diesel fuel you,all will have to talk to Lightnin'.
Well I thought to myself what have I gotten myself into and who was this guy "Lightning."
I went to the service bays around the corner to find Lightning and he even had his name Lightning printed on his shirt. There he was, a man about 78 yrs old working on a vehicle. I told Lightning that I needed about 60 gallons in the left tank for now.
After he put the nozzle in the tank my curiosity got the best of me so I asked him in my best southern accent "So why they call you Lightning" Oh brother, I shouldn,t have said that because he put the pump on slow and began to tell me his story.
He asked me. "Have you ever seen the movie "every which way but loose." and I replied "yes". Well for the next 30 minutes he told me how he was a prizefighter in his youth and at the end of his story he began to cry as he told me how he had beat a man so bad that it put him in a wheelchair for life.
Well any way guys while your out on the road just take a few extra minutes to ask some questions of people and you my get a story you,ll remember for years to come. Some of my experiences on the road have been the most rewarding experiences in my life.