It started with just a couple of friends hanging out with their trucks. Soon, other truck lovers wanted to hang out, too. Then, photos they shared on social media drew in more truck fans and it became a club. Today, the Bullz truck club has more than 200 members in chapters across seven Western states.

Members meet up for truck shows and competitions or just to get together for a barbecue where they can show off their newest customizations and be inspired by each other. Bullz members form friendships, meet each other's families and, in at least one case, fall in love and get married — all because a couple of buddies in Southern California wanted to spend time together appreciating their trucks.

The Bullz welcome truck owners whose passion is reflected in the customizations they choose for their vehicles. New wheels and rims. New hoods and grills. A higher or lower profile. Special modifications to improve performance. Each detail reflects the owner’s own artistic vision and their pride of ownership.

“As long as the trucks are good and look nice and clean,” club founder Ozzy Garcia says, “they're more than welcome.”

Now in its 15th year, the Bullz club recently welcomed Jackelyn Diaz Leal as a new member. The 23-year-old from El Monte, Calif., says she’d long admired the Ford trucks driven by her family members and the customized trucks she saw at shows. But, after she drove her cousin’s Ford F-150, she wanted one for herself.

“I was always a spectator,” she says. “But I never would have thought I would have gotten into it as much as I am now. When I took his truck … I completely fell in love with the truck — the way it drove, the way it sounded, the way it was comfortable.”

She had been in the market for a new car — “key word ‘car’,” she says. “I never would have thought I was going to get into a truck, but Ford was definitely a good move. It’s just everything I could have wanted.”

Bullz Vice President Rafa Martin welcomed Diaz Leal as a new club member during a recent gathering in Los Angeles, where fellow members presented her with the club’s official sticker, a stylized bull’s head. Martin’s passion for being part of the club is displayed with his Bullz tattoo, the trophies his vehicles have won in competitions, and in the details he’s added to his customized F-150.

“It’s something special,” he says. “I always had a passion for trucks. And then, just joining the team, it motivated me to do more and more.”

The care and attention that each owner puts into their truck draws attention from admirers wherever they go. Martin’s previous Ford truck won prizes in competitions. While his current truck is still a work in progress.

He’s already had it lowered, wrapped in black and set up with custom wheels. Martin says people who spot him out on the streets will tag him on social media and want to know more about the customizations he’s made.

“I always had a passion for trucks. And then, just joining the team, it motivated me to do more and more.”

Rafa Martin, vice president, Bullz truck club

But it’s not the attention that drew Martin into the scene. It was the satisfaction of creating something that expresses his own taste and style.

“I always did it because I loved it,” he says. “I always had a good taste in it. People tell me, ‘Damn. You know how to put a truck together.’ I guess I just have taste when it comes to that.”

When Bullz members are ready to start working on a new truck, they will search across states, and even into Mexico to find a vehicle matching the exact features on their wish-list. Diaz Leal knew she wanted a 4x4 truck with a short bed and 5.0-liter V-8 engine. She searched across Southern California until she found one in San Bernardino County.

The love that Ford owners like Diaz Leal and other Bullz members have for their trucks is recognized by Ford. The company actively listens to truck clubs as it designs new models, incorporating elements and power options enthusiasts desire, said John Walawender, brand manager for the Ford F-150.

“It’s from our commitment to listening to customer needs that helped us develop the 2025 F-150 Lobo,” Walawender said. “We heard loud and clear that street truck customers want a V8,” he adds, referencing the kind of engine sought by members like Diaz Leal.

“That's a rock solid engine that we've had forever and it's something that these customers have experience with and want to see in their street trucks. … It's also a great stepping stone for further performance modifications,” he said.

So far, the changes Diaz Leal has made to her F-150 are cosmetic, including lowering it, installing new tires, wheels, headlights and a custom hood. She’s noticed that Bullz members across Los Angeles prioritize exteriorstyle. “It’s beautiful when we all get together and you can see the differences between us all.”

The customizations can cost tens of thousands of dollars, investments that not only demonstrate the owner’s individual style and personal expression, but are evidence of the work that was necessary to bring their vision to reality.

“It’s all about pride, honestly,” Diaz Leal says. “When you work so hard to build something from the ground up. Every time you see someone’s truck, you see all the hard work they put into it.”

And while a Bullz truck represents significant investments of time and money, it’s also a project that is never quite done. When members get together, they become inspired to make new changes to their trucks, or to add another vehicle to their collection. But, it’s all worth it to get behind the wheel of your vehicle and take a drive, Diaz Leal says.

“Every time you see someone’s truck, you see all the hard work they put into it.”

Jackelyn Diaz Leal, mew Bullz truck club member

“You feel like you’re on top of the world,” she says.

People who stop to admire her truck almost always ask whether it’s actually hers, Diaz Leal says. She loves answering that question. “I say it with pride: ‘It is. Yep, this is mine.”

Michelle Morgante is a California-based contributing writer.