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Beacon Software Expands Towlien.com

Beacon Software expanded its TowLien.com lien-processing service and now includes Texas, Maryland, Virginia, New York and Florida. TowLien is a stepby-step, online process that includes national registration searches, vehicle history reports, lien letters, static forms and more.

TowLien is available 24/7 and can be accessed from any web browser. Account set up is free, and customers pay per usage. Beacon said the work goes more efficiently, and legally, with the service.

The company said the complete lien processing soon will be expanded to Arizona, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Mississippi, Montana and Tennessee. Registration searches are available in these states now. Associations may contact Beacon Software for more information on the Towing Association/TowLien Partnership Program. Source: Beacon Software.

Tower Rescues Trapped Woman

A tower and a bylaw officer In Ottawa, Canada, rescued a woman who became trapped under a van when she was struck by a vehicle. The two men were working together to clear snow for the city when they witnessed the crash in February.

“We were driving by here to go for breakfast,” said tower Justin Morin-Wilson.

That’s when the pair saw a van hit something as it pulled out of a Montreal Road parking lot. A 57-year-old woman was pinned under the vehicle.

“The driver’s side tire, she was right underneath it. And it was just her chest and head sticking out with her hands,” said Morin-Wilson, who grabbed the jack from his truck and ran over to ease the pressure off the woman. Within minutes, emergency crews arrived and managed to free the woman.

“I tried to do all that I could, what I would want someone to do if someone in my family was under there,” said MorinWilson. Source: Ottawa.ctv.ca.

In Berkeley, Calif., the city council voted 8-0 in February to use immobilizing boots on cars with unpaid parking tickets rather than towing the vehicles. Tow company owners in Berkeley say they will lose about a third of their business under the new policy.

The city now has a contract with PayLock Inc. to provide a boot that is placed on a car’s wheel when the owner has five or more unpaid tickets. The owner can call a “help center” to pay off the tickets, along with an additional $140 fee, and get a code that unlocks the boot and drive off. A $500 credit card deposit is supposed to ensure the driver will return the boot to a central location.

“It really doesn’t pay to say, ‘Hey, what about us?’ ” Bob Berry said, owner of Berry Brothers towing in Oakland. “People don’t really have much sympathy for tow owners or police officers on the enforcement side. It’s certainly not going to be a good thing for us.” Source: mercurynews.com.

Berkeley Approves Boots

Hall of Fame Sets New Board, Officers

The International Towing & Recovery Hall of Fame and Museum recently announced its newly elected officers and board members of the museum.

The officers through September 2012 are Bill Gratzianna, president; Troy Barnett, first VP; Quinn Piening, second VP; Bert Bertling, treasurer; and Donna Brock Mesaros, secretary.

The board members through September 2011 are Jerry Bullock, George Connolly, Dick Frasier, Jef-

The International Towing & Recovery Hall of Fame and Museum frey Godwin, Al Gregg, Andy Hovanes, Will Miller, Randy Olson, Jerry Riggs, Warren Roosevelt, Angela Roper, George Stevens, Tom Tedford, Terry Warford, Steve Welchel, and Shannon Yates.

Check Out What’s NEW and HOT!

Lodar’s line of hard-wired controls can now be added to any existing remote controls or ordered with current systems, giving backup should the radio fail or if the transmitter is lost or damaged. The controls attach directly to the RS232 connection on the receiver and will operate the relays, bypassing the rest of the controls. The standard length of cable is 10 feet; longer lengths are available. www.lodar.com

Number 200 on Reader Card

Control Arm Skates Hard-Wired Pendant Controls

CSA Roadside Lighting Repair Kit

I Tow In Inc. developed a single-piece accessory (no moving parts) to assist loading/unloading of vehicles with ball joint and bearing failures onto flatbeds and other carriers. The Control Arm Skate works by placing the affected part (control arm, ball joint, axle, etc.) into the skate’s recessed area before moving the damaged vehicle which prevents further damage to it or the carrier bed. www.skatesiti.com

Number 201 on Reader Card

Grote Industries portable Roadside Lighting Repair Kit, No. 00990, includes 23 of the most commonly used lighting components found in today’s commercial vehicles. The kit has everything a driver needs to make a first-class field repair. The kit features: 12 lamps, four styles of pigtails, three grommets, two brackets, conspicuity tape, a selection of 14-gauge butt connectors and zip-tie fasteners. Grote’s kit also provides an inventory sheet with part numbers and color images to track usage and replacements. www.grote.com

Number 202 on Reader Card

TerraStar Praised at Daytona

International debuted its new entry into the Class 4/5 market at the 2010 American Towman Expo in Baltimore. The TerraStar display unit featured an extended cab and was equipped with a 21-foot Century aluminum carrier.

In January, a TerraStar outfitted with a Century 412 towing and recovery unit, took to the track for the start of the 2011 race season at the “Rolex 24 at Daytona” at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona

Beach, Fla. Manned by the veteran operators who make up the Miller

Industries Race Recovery Team, the TerraStar was an instant hit.

Operators commented on the truck’s power, maneuverability and comfort. “It seemed to get around real well; it had good maneuverability, a roomy cab and good visibility,” said Charlie Wade, owner of Bud’s Truck and Diesel

Service in Bridgeport, Conn. Wade was one of the team to use the truck during race week. “I was apprehensive about the smaller truck at

first, but it has great power and gets around good,” Wade said. “It’s a great light-duty truck with good throttle response … especially when you have to cross a live track and get across real quick.” “I was impressed with the maneuverability in tight quarters and steering in the garage area,” said Ken Burdine, motorsports director for Miller Industries. Other benefits he noted were comfort for the crew. “It sits lower to the ground, so getting in and out of the truck is easier up and in, and comfortable distance from wheel to seat made it easy to use.” Power is attributed to the TerraStar’s MaxxForce 7 dual-stage turbocharged engine and fivespeed automatic Allison 1000 transmission. The 300-hp MaxxForce 7 delivers 660 lbs./ft. of torque, has a B-50 life rating of 500,000 miles and is 2010 EPA compliant using Exhaust Gas Recirculation to meet the new emissions rules. Other perks of the new TerraStar include an easy-tilt hood for better serviceability and maintenance, and it is available with a standard cab, extended cab or crew cab. www.internationaltrucks.com

Number 203 on Reader Card