Clamp mechanism for a cover assembly

A protective cover assembly for covering a space defined by at least one wall of a bed of a truck, said protective cover assembly comprising;

• a rail,
• a support bow coupled to said rail,
• a material disposed over said rail and said support bow for covering the space of the bed of the truck, and
• a clamp mechanism coupled to said support bow for securing said protective cover assembly over the space, said clamp mechanism including:
• a latch member for engaging the at least one wall,
• a handle operatively engaging said latch member for moving said latch member between an engaged position and a disengaged position,
• a slide having an extending flange and coupled to said latch member and directly connected to a portion of said support bow and remaining connected to said support bow when in both an operational and a stowed position and sliding relative to said support bow between the operational and the stowed positions for guiding said handle and said latch member between the operational position and the stowed position relative to said support bow, and
• a rod coupled to said extending flange of said slide and operatively engaging said latch member.