Sudburian wins new pick-up truck through national contest

Ron Proulx just won a brand-new 2016 Ram 1500 SLT quad cab pickup truck worth $45,000 through a national contest put on by 3M Canada.

But the Sudbury resident said he's not sure how often his wife will actually let him drive it, although he'll certainly use it for some of his favourite pastimes — hunting and fishing.

Ron's wife, Michelle, said she's the one who usually drives their current 12-year-old truck, and she's even picked out the new truck's dark grey colour.

“I'm happy,” she said, beaming.

The contest he won is the 3M Cubitron II Discs Grind Like a Legend II Contest.

A sticker with a unique code was placed on the 3M Cubitron II abrasive products, which are used by metalworkers. Users entered the contest online using the codes.

Ron, who's worked as a welder at Bristol Machine for eight years, was told about the contest by one of the company's suppliers. He started collecting the codes, and entered more than 300 times.

He was drawn as a finalist from more than 15,000 entries last summer, and was invited to a Mötley Crüe and Alice Cooper concert in Montreal on Aug. 24, where the grand prize winner was announced.

Ron could have chosen a Harley Davidson motorcycle as his prize, but instead chose the truck, which he picked up at Doyle Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram dealership Nov. 24.

Given the age of his current truck, he said the contest win couldn't have happened at a better time.

“We bought a new car last year, and now we've got a brand-new truck,” Ron said.

3M Canada abrasives division marketing supervisor Erin O'Brien has gotten to know Ron over the course of the contest, and said she's thrilled for him.

“He is just the most genuine, nice person you're ever going to meet,” she said. “He had an older truck he was looking to upgrade. On behalf of everyone at 3M, we are more than happy to help him with that.”

The co-owner of Doyle Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram said he's envious the Proulx family is getting such a nice Christmas present.

“What a nice present leading into Christmas, to be able to win a brand-new Ram,” said Blake Didone.

“It was a nice event to have here at the dealership ... It's nice that somebody from Sudbury was able to win this. It's a national contest. It's some nice exposure for the city and certainly for Doyle Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram.”