Shaq Goes Big with a Diesel Ford F-650

The power of Celebrity Culture never ceases to amaze me. When the Internet came along, Michael Crichton (author of Jurassic Park) told the Washington Press Club that Television would go the way of the dinosaur within ten years, eclipsed by all the content available on the Internet. Ten years later, when social media came along, what did people talk about? They talked about what was happening on televison. Shows like Dancing with the Stars and The Masked Singer now have one thing in common. They underscore how much we love our celebrities. 

Sports heroes, rock stars and Hollywood celebs are all around us. When we go to the SEMA Show in Vegas, which culminates today with SEMA360 for 2020, the longest lines are for signatures by TV carbuilders and NASCAR drivers. We buy the sunglasses they wear and enjoy reading about the cars they drive. That's why this article about Shaquille O'Neal's daily drive is fun to read. 

The article begins by noting that at 7'1" the former NBA All Star doesn't always have an easy time finding a vehicle he can comfortably drive.  To resolve this issue Shaq went to Wade Ford in Smyrna, Georgia and SuperTruck in Augusta. Max Goldberg, writing for The Drive in 2017, describes the vehicle they created for him.

It started as a 66K Ford F-650 and ended as a Ford F-650 Extreme SuperTruck. In addition to all the amenities of a luxury vehicle on the inside, under the hood you'll find a commercial grade .6.7-liter Powerstroke V8 that makes 330 horsepower and 750 lb0ft of torque. The big man has a big truck with big power.

Most of us became aware of Shaq's superstar potential even when he was in college at LSU where he was a two-time All-American. A #1 draft pick by the Orlando Magic, he helped the Magic win 20 games more than their previous season and was voted Rookie of the Year. In his second year he helped the team ascend to the playoffs for the first time in its history. Over the course of his career he became a 15-time NBA All Star and helped his teams win 4 NBA Championships. The Rings speak volumes.

There's plenty more to Shaq than what we saw on the courts. His interest in rap music led to his producing five albums with his first, Shaq Diesel, going platinum. He even performed with Michael Jackson on 2 Bad.  

Like many celebs Shaq has had many nicknames. He called himself "The Big Aristotle" and "Hobo Master for his composure during interviews. Journalists gave him a variety of other nicknames including "The Diesel", "The Big Daddy", and "The Big Cactus." (Among many others.)

Being popular opens doors and so its no surprise he's been in some movies as well as numerous television shows, advertising and even pro wrestling. 

All this say it was fun seeing the range of Shaq's interests. It's apparent he worked hard, and made a lot of good moves. At one time he was just a little boy with a lot of big dreams.

Here's the article about his Big Diesel Truck.

And a YouTube video about 10 Ridiculously Expensive Things Shaq Owns.

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Photo at the White House taken when the Heat won the Championship. (Shaq holds the ball.)
Photo at top of page borrowed from The Drive.