“Full of the Pipe is a festival for truckers – it’s our Electric Picnic!” 

26/06/2026

As sure as night follows day and prices go up but never down, legendary Irish trucker Don ‘The Cowboy’ Curtin is returning to Full of the Pipe again in 2026. The co-host of the brilliant ‘The Trucker’s Bible’ podcast is bringing the barbecue and a keg or two and will even have a few tubs of his award-winning ‘Cowboy Dust’ seasoning on hand to spice things up even more! 

None of you will be surprised to hear that Don Curtin is going to be at Mondello Park over the weekend of July 11th and 12th, 2026. The charismatic and inimitable Cork trucker never misses Full of the Pipe and this time he’s looking forward to cooking up a storm with a healthy sprinkling of cowboy dust at Ireland’s premier truck community gathering. 

‘Cowboy Dust’ is the name of the tasty, spicy meat seasoning Don brought to market a few years back. With just the right amount of flavour and heat, the seasoning has gone down a storm and is ideal for barbecues. When I asked him would he be bringing any product with him to Mondello for FOTP, it was perhaps a rhetorical question in hindsight… 

“We’ll have a few tubs with us and we’ll be bringing the barbeque too, so there’ll be enough for everyone,” Don enthuses. “I have to say the seasoning is going very well. It’s been three or four years now since we launched it and it’s been a big success – it’s flying! There’s always good demand for it, which is great.” 

So how did Ireland’s best-known trucker end up taking such an unexpected curveball and getting involved in the culinary world? “I was trying to lose weight and that’s how it all started,” Don reflects. “They had me on these turkey rashers and they tasted like cardboard. I couldn’t eat them anymore and I said to herself [Don’s girlfriend, Linda, who is a chef] could she make me up something for them. 

“I love a bit of spice and she had a good idea of my taste. She put the mix together and when I tasted it I said ‘that’s some serious tack’ and I called it ‘Cowboy Dust’. One thing led to another and it went on the market. People love it and it even won an award at the 2024 Blas na hÉireann food awards.” 

Is the recipe as closely guarded as Coca-Cola’s? “She doesn’t even tell me! Well, I know what’s in it but I don’t know the quantities in the formula so, yeah, she’s keeping that to herself… 

“Linda is great. She’s my sidekick and goes with me to all the shows and we’ll both be at Full of the Pipe.” 

On his love of and longstanding association with Full of the Pipe, Don continues: “I’ve been there every year apart from the first one in Athlone. That was the only one I missed. We treat it like a festival. It’s a big, big thing in the trucker’s diary and without doubt the social highlight of the year. 

 “I work for Shane Foley Plant Hire and he had six trucks up at the show last year. We’ll try to bring the same again this year. Shane likes to go all out and you have to commend him for that because in this day and age it’s very tough to be taking trucks off the road and bringing them to shows. You have to take your hat off to the owners for putting so much into the show. 

“Full of the Pipe is a festival for truckers – it’s our Electric Picnic. There’s nothing like it and you watch out for and look forward to it every year. The weather was unreal last year and hopefully we’ll get the same again. There’ll be a right gang of us going to it this year, including my good buddy Stephen Dillon and his partner Emma.” 

Together, Don and Stephen co-host the wonderful improvised ‘Trucker’s Bible’ podcast, which has been a resounding success due to its combination of celebrating all things truck-related and the casual and down-to-earth approach of the co-hosts. 

“We started with that about 18 months ago or so and it really took off. It takes a lot of time, so it’s gone a little quiet of late but we’re hoping to get stuck back into it again if we can find the time. We basically like to just have a bit of craic and there’s no real structure to it. We just sit down and talk, without planning anything out, and it just works. 

“It’s all off the cuff and we go with the flow. It’s worked out really well because people like it and they get the vibe of it. It’s like we are sitting at the end of the bar having a pint and talking. The format is very natural and effective. I really enjoy doing that, even though it takes a lot of time to try to keep it going. 

“The plan is to get back into it a bit more again. We got some mobile stuff to do the shows and we’ll be able to work between Cork and Edenderry, which is where Stephen is from.” 

That’s certainly something for all of us to look forward to later in the year. In the meantime, people can catch up with Don and Stephen in person at Full of the Pipe 2026, take a look at his stunning Shane Foley Plant Hire truck and sample some of the game-changing ‘Cowboy Dust’ seasoning spice! 

“I can’t wait,” the infectious Cork man concludes. “There’s talk of a crowd coming over from London, including my friend Colm McDonagh of Mac Civils. It’s always an outstanding weekend and the beauty of it is that you meet people face to face and have the craic with them. 

“You might meet them regularly through social media or whatever but, outside of that, truck shows, funerals and weddings seem to be the only places where you really catch up with people and have a drink and a bit of a chat. That’s what life is all about and Full of the Pipe is great in that way.”