American Towman Magazine - December 2017 by dortiz-towman

Spirit Rides Triumphantly into Baltimore

FEATURE CONTENTS

30 Sabil & Sons were called to a loaded grain truck that went down into a ditch.

Three Days Down on the Farm

A loaded grain truck causes delays on a rural recovery. by Jim “Buck” Sorrenti

The Nine Lives of One Towman Departments The Walkaround . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 News Share . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Road Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Beacons On! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Work Horse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

Kyle Chirgwin turned stories from his own towing life into a children's book. by Brendan Dooley

Product Gateway 2018 Get a good look at the tools and equipment you'll need in 2018.

Tow Boss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Tow Engineer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

Equipment That Goes Boom

Ad Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34

Wire rope fails more often than it should, unless well cared for. by Dave Lambert

Beacons On! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65 Tow Financial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68 Repo Run . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72 Towman’s Market . . . . . . . . . . . .78 My Baby. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80 Low Down . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .82 Adventures of A.T. . . . . . . . . . . . .90 4 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Spirit Rides Triumphantly into Baltimore The final Ride of 2017 into Baltimore's Inner Harbor. by Steve Calitri

Deserved Recognition

First On The Scene! Dennie Ortiz Steve Calitri

by Dennie Ortiz

owIndustryWeek.com editor, Charles Duke, has a great column in our weekly e-magazine, “Two Cents,” where he shares his thoughts, appraisals and insights into the towing industry. In the Nov. 8 edition, he penned his thoughts about an “Industry with a Big Heart.” His words rang very true to my ears. Rather than paraphrase his thoughts, here is Charles’ column again in case you missed it: “It’s great to see how charitable the towing community is. In the news this week is an article on the 10th annual Tow Trucks for Tots that benefits underprivileged children and a GoFundMe page started for a fallen towman’s family. Tow Industry Today features an article related to charitable deeds undertaken by the Wisconsin Towing Association. “Likewise, many suppliers, tow companies and individuals have sponsored and donated to the Spirit Ride, seeing the necessity of bringing awareness of Move Over laws that are on the books in each and every state. “The towing industry does a great job in taking care of its own. We’ve run many stories over the years of the industry’s benevolence to others, providing assistance to the less fortunate or to those needing a helping hand. “No one does it for any special recognition; it’s just that the industry has a very big heart. Great job, tow industry.” —Charles Duke Charles is right, this industry has more heart than many outside the towing world might realize. Recent events make me believe that under-

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standing is changing for the better. Not completely unexpected (though not completely planned), one great byproduct of the Spirit Ride has been the positive portrayal of towers to millions, showcasing the difficult and dangerous work they perform that is integral to every community. Towmen and Tow Women are rightly cast in significance alongside other first responders. This message of the tower’s important stature was broadcasted by local and national media across the country. The Spirit Ride has helped strengthen the bonds between all first responders, as well as towers connections to their municipalities and public officials. It is heartening to see the towing community get the positive recognition they deserve.

Brendan Dooley Charles Duke

Publisher Editor-In-Chief Editor Senior Editor

Randall Resch

Operations Editor

Terry Abejuela

Field Editor, West

Jim “Buck” Sorrenti David Kolman Bill Simmons Emily Oz Mark Lacek

Field Editor, Northeast Chassis Editor Safety Editor On Screen Editor Repo Run Editor

Editorial Board Tommy Anderson Roy Carlson Debbie Collins Belinda Harris Bill Johnson Ron Mislan Kurt Wilson

Dallas, Texas Saint Paul, Minn. Las Vegas, Nev. Greensboro, N.C. South Hadley, Mass. Warren, N.J. Creve Coeur, Ill.

American Towman Staff Ann Marie Nitti Dennie Ortiz Ellen Rosengart Norma Calitri Jimmy Santos Miriam Ortiz Henri Calitri Toni Vanderhorst William Burwell Peggy Calabrese Ryan Oser Helen Gutfreund Emily Oz Steve Calitri

Page Layout Artist Advertising Sales Mgr. Senior Account Exec. VP of Accounts General Manager Subscription Manager Customer Service Publisher’s Assistant TIW Media Director Regional Advertising Sales iMarketing Manager Communications Mgr. ATTV Producer President

American Towman Media Headquarters 7 West Street, Warwick, NY 10990 800-732-3869 or 845-986-4546 E-mail: Publisher: dortiz@towman.com Editor-In-Chief: scalitri@towman.com Editor: bdooley@towman.com AT’S Digital Edition: itowman.com AT’S Website: americantowman.com AT’S Weekly: towindustryweek.com ATTV: americantowmantv.com Copyright ©2017 American Towman Magazine is published 12 times a year by American Towman Media, Inc. Subscription: $50–1 yr; $95–2 yrs • US $65 and $105 • International

In the Nov. 8 edition of Tow Industry Week, Editor Charles Duke penned his thoughts about an “Industry with a Big Heart.”

All material published through American Towman Media (AT), to include American Towman Magazine, iTowman.com and TowIndustryWeek.com, including advertisements, editorials, articles and all other content is published in good faith. However, AT accepts no liability for any errors or omissions, and does not endorse any companies, products or services that appear. AT does not test or review products submitted for inclusion in its publications. AT does not accept responsibility for the accuracy of content, warranties or claims made or implied by its advertisers. The views expressed are the authors’ alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of AT. The act of mailing or delivering a letter, email or article to AT shall constitute permission to publish that letter or article or any portion thereof. AT reserves the right to edit any and all material submitted. No part of the magazine or websites may be reproduced without prior written consent of AT.

Towman Killed, DUI Suspected A Wildomar, California, towman assisting two people on a freeway off-ramp was killed after being struck by an alleged drunken driver, according to the California Highway Patrol. Kyle Crull, 28, with DJ’s Towing, was standing to the left rear of his flatbed when a 2016 Kia Optima, driven by Danika McGetrick, 19, veered onto the right shoulder, sideswiped the disabled vehicle, struck Crull and then the back of his truck, CHP said. Crull was thrown onto the rear deck of his truck. He was pronounced dead at Inland Valley Hospital. No others were injured. McGetrick was arrested on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and driving under the influence, causing injury or death. A GoFundMe page has been established at: gofundme.com/kylecrull-memorial-fund. Sources: pe.com; patch.com.

Towman Assists with Arrest

A Moses Lake, Washington, police officer recently got an unexpected assist from a tow operator. Body cam footage showed the officer had tackled a known felon and pinned him to the ground. The officer got a hand from passing towman Juan Pineda, who kept Hamilton from escaping until backup arrived. “You could tell that he needed help,” Pineda said, “Nobody stopped, so I pulled over and turned my lights on and went to help him. I grabbed [the suspect’s] legs and he never got out of it.” The officer thanked Pineda, who just said he had to get back to work. Source: khq.com.

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Wisconsin Tow Truck Honors WWII Veterans Though he never served in the armed forces, Steven Rhinehart wants to make sure the stories of Reedsburg, Wisconsin, area veterans who served in World War II are shared with the community. Rhinehart owns Steve’s Auto Service and remodeled his heavy-duty tow truck with different pictures from the conflict to help keep the memory of those veterans alive. The truck includes photos of Rhinehart’s father-in-law, a customer and Poplar, Wisconsin, native Richard Bong, one of the most decorated American fighter pilots of the war. While his tow truck mainly features pictures from WWII, Rhinehart has thought about adding other pictures to represent veterans from

Steven Rhinehart changed the scheme on a heavy-duty truck at his shop to honor WWII vets. wiscnews.com image.

Korea, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan. “I’ve still got space left,” he said. Source: wiscnews.com.

Deputy Chief Feels

‘Betrayed’ in Detroit Tow Scandal The U.S. Attorney recently indicted former Detroit Deputy Police Chief Celia Washington. She is accused in the indictment of conspiracy to receive kickbacks for allegedly influencing towing contracts. “I feel betrayed,” Washington said. She was accused of meeting with the owner of a towing company and taking at least $3,000 to help him get towing permits. “Absolutely untrue,” she said. “I did not accept money from anybody to do anything criminal.” The indictment does not name the company, but a lawsuit since filed against Washington accuses her of helping Detroit tow owner Gasper Fiore get business. The City of Detroit accused him of

Former Detroit Deputy Police Chief Celia Washington. wxyz.com image.

cheating Detroit out of tax dollars for years. He is also facing charges connected to a public corruption investigation in Macomb County. Her attorney says minutes of city meetings and depositions given by other Detroit Police employees show she did not have control of who towed for the police department. Source: wxyz.com.

… My bottom line is being squeezed … Towing Association Seeks Fee Increase The Austin (Texas) Towing Association, which contracts with the Travis County Sheriff’s Office, wants to pay drivers $100 more per tow, raising the rate to $275. The idea is to give tow companies extra incentive to respond faster and get traffic moving. “My bottom line is being squeezed to sometimes I’m not even covering my costs,” said Patricia Diffee, owner of Bulldog Recovery. If approved by the Travis County Commissioners Court, the hike is expected to take effect in January. The Austin Police Department uses AutoReturn instead of a rotation list, which allows officers to contact the closest available tow truck driver. APD says it has drastically reduced the average wait time from about 20 to 30 minutes to less than 8 minutes. Source: kxan.com.

Mark Anderson Passes Former American Towman Magazine contributing editor Mark Anderson passed away in October at his home in North Carolina. He was 69. Anderson was president of International Recovery Associates as well as owner and president of Sea-AirLand Recovery and Air Cushions USA. He also served as a board member with the International Institute of Towing and Recovery and was a 1998 inductee into the International Towing Hall of Fame. Anderson served as TRAA’s Training and Membership Director and became an ordained minister in 2013. “Mark was a true friend and asset to the towing and recovery industry,” stated Peter Fuerst, IITR chairman. “He will be missed.”

Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

Hundreds of Tow Trucks Help Toy Drive Pat Winer, president of Worldwide Equipment Sales, discusses the 10th annual Tow Truck for Tots toy drive and tow truck parade with media. Abc7chicago.com image.

Hundreds of tow trucks gathered Bridgeview, Illinois, in November for an annual collection of toys and more for children in need. The 10th annual Tow Trucks for Tots event featured a parade of tow trucks from all over the country, sponsored by Worldwide Equipment Sales. “It’s about helping the kids and helping the less fortunate that’s what Christmas is all about,” said towman Early Walker. For some, the toy collection is personal. “Me, as a youngster, I didn’t receive anything,” said Erik Gonzalez, who donated toys. “So me, now that I’m older, I’m able to give to kids that don’t get toys, that’s pretty much why I’m here.” Source: abc7chicago.com.

Stolen Tow Truck Rampages Through Syracuse A tower with AAA recently stopped one afternoon to help a driver in Syracuse, New York. While helping change the customer’s tire, the worker left the AAA tow truck door open. Christopher Ricks was walking in the area when he noticed the tow truck’s door was open, said Onondaga County Sheriff Eugene Conway. Ricks, 26, climbed into the truck, put on his seat belt, A tow truck was stolen and taken for a destructive joyride in Syracuse, New turned on some music and sped away, York. syracuse.com image. Conway said. Ricks spent 30 minutes speeding around Syracuse in the stolen tow truck with officers close behind for most of the 7.6-mile joyride. Investigators have accused Ricks of intentionally ramming the cars of both police officers and civilians. Four people—including three officers and a civilian—were taken to a hospital. As of press time, deputies knew of 17 vehicles that were damaged. Four officers from two agencies fired gunshots at the truck near the end of the chase. Ricks only stopped after he crashed into a firetruck. Source: syracuse.com.

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 9

Check Out What’s NEW and HOT! Lodar PRO-Soft Control Lodar PRO-Soft Control targets towers who are “fed up with truck beds banging [and] winch cables snatching.” Unlike normal PWM systems, where there is full, variable control from the transmitter, Lodar said its normal transmitter with a receiver that is pre-programmed allows each function to be set as required. The first few seconds—at the beginning and end of each function—is “softened,” removing the harsh actions of momentary systems.

Gearwrench Ultra-Thin Flex-Head Lights Gearwrench’s two new Professional Ultra-Thin Flex-Head Work Lights, a 12.5” 500 lumen model and an 8.4” 150 lumen model, feature a dual-setting LED main light mounted on a pivoting flex head that swings open to direct light wherever it’s needed. Each has a 30 lumen LED at the tip of the flex head for illuminating hard to reach areas, an integrated fold away hang hook and magnetic base. Each has a run time of three hours at full power and six hours at low power.

gearwrench.com

lodar.com

Liquid Wrench Lubricant with FlashSight Liquid Wrench Pro Penetrant and Lubricant now features FlashSight technology, a built-in LED located directly above the spray nozzle, enabling users to see where they spray and improving accuracy in low-light areas. The penetrant features an anti-seize formula the company said is safe on metal, plastic, rubber and painted surfaces. It also provides corrosion protection on metals, including copper, brass and bronze.

Military-Spec Booster Cables Mississippi Industries for the Blind now offers its heavy-duty military-spec booster cables to the general public. Developed by MIB for the U.S. military since 1984, the MIL-SPEC booster cables combine 1-gauge stranded copper welding type cable with solid copper clamps for enhanced electrical conductivity. The cables are significantly thicker than standard 6-gauge jumper cables, and each clamp and cable has a 600 amp minimum current rating. The clamps are tested to hold 500 pounds. The abrasion-resistant booster cables maintain flexibility in temperatures from -94 degrees F to 198 degrees F and are available up to 25’ lengths.

liquidwrench.com

AMSOIL Reformulates Signature Synthetics

msblind.org

Talbert 55-Ton Trailer

Talbert Manufacturing’s new 55-Ton Roller Paver heavy-haul trailer has a concentrated load rating of 55 tons in 12.5’ of deck that allows owners to haul a variety of equipment, including rollers, pavers, excavators and dozers. It includes dual kingpin settings for states with 43’ kingpin laws. The company said extra steel in the main and side beams of the deck, gooseneck and rear axles allows the trailer to achieve its 55-ton capacity in a 12.5’ rigid-load base rating while maintaining its structural integrity. The trailer’s three axles are close-coupled and can accept optional pin-on axles for loads requiring four axles in a row.

talbertmfg.com 10 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

AMSOIL launched a new formulation of its Signature Series Synthetic Motor Oil the company said exceeds new and upcoming engine oil specifications. AMSOIL said the new formula provides 75 percent more engine protection against horsepower loss and wear than required by a leading industry

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standard, reduces wear in metal-to-metal contact regions, increases sludge protection, adds thermal stability for easier cold starting and limits oil consumption. Available in 0W-20, 0W-40, 5W-20, 0W-30, 5W-30, 10W-30 and 5W-50.

amsoil.com AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 11

Chock Blocks for Safety by Randall C. Resch

hock blocks have been around for a long, long time. Many commercial trucking fleets require their delivery or service drivers to place a chock under their vehicle’s tires before service or delivery commences. Chock blocks are used to increase safety, in conjunction with a vehicle’s emergency brake system, by preventing unexpected movement of parked or disabled vehicles. Chock blocks are among those towing accessories that seem seldom employed in our industry, yet they should be common to every operator’s routine. Use of chocks should be part of any company’s safety manual. The safe and routine application of parking chocks may be the difference in securing a vehicle that stays put vs. an unexpected rollaway. The chock block is simple to use; it only takes a second to add the additional level of safety. So, why don’t tow operators use chocks more routinely?

Appropriate Safety Gear The process of chocking tires is covered in my company’s Employee Handbook where it states, “ALL tow truck operators, mechanics, forklift operators, and support personnel, based on their individual positions and job tasks, will utilize appropriate safety gear and vehicle retention and stopping equipment (safety straps, chains, chocks, jack stands, etc.) according to federal law, the Califoria Vehicle Code, OSHA, or laws pertaining to safety within the workplace or work environment.” OSHA itself states, “Safety items shall include chock blocks, floor jacks, jack stands, etc., on all vehicles being serviced or during temporary tow/load preparation regardless of size or duration.” These kind of statements are necessary to add full atten12 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Never underestimate the importance of chocked tires. They are one of the most important additions in averting deadly rollaway vehicle accidents in the workplace.

tion to chock-related tasks within the tower’s routine. Like any routine task, company management is responsible to monitor or supervise that chock blocks are used where appropriate. Never underestimate the importance of chocked tires. They are one of the most important additions in averting deadly rollaway vehicle accidents in the workplace. (Never attempt to stop a rolling, runaway vehicle.) Recommended use for chock blocks: • Ensure the tow truck or carrier is in park or appropriate gear before exiting vehicle. • Always engage the tow vehicle’s emergency brake before exiting

the tow truck. • Never trust only the hold ability of the truck’s emergency brake when parked on inclines. • Chocks applied on downward slopes are marginally effective. • Always chock tires before working beneath vehicles.

Solid Platforms During recoveries, lowering the tow truck’s wheel lift to the pavement provides the wrecker a solid platform for (recovery) winching; however, the metal surfaces of the wheel lift’s underside is capable of movement— however slight.

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... continued from p. 12 Before commencing extreme winch procedures, position chock blocks or long 4x4s across rear tire faces. Using long 4x4s provide blocking powers to both dually tires and increases the wrecker’s staying power. Using 4x4s and a lowered wheel lift, the wrecker becomes a solid platform. When using 4x4s for chocking/ blocking safety, push long lengths of 4x4s completely under the wrecker so extra length is not a trip hazard for wrecker operators working either side controls. Operators should always be aware of their body positioning when working the controls for any type of tow truck or carrier. For additional safety, operators should lift and place one foot on top the tow truck’s rear rim while standing with no part of their legs, ankles or feet anywhere near the truck’s rear wheels. In the event something causes the wrecker to break loose from its footing, the operator can quickly push away from a moving truck.

Real Life The following real-life scenarios illustrate the tragic side of towing where operators were killed when their tow vehicles, for whatever reason, broke away. Dec. 12, 2016, Pennsylvania: A tow operator died after being pinned against a rollaway dump truck he’d just unloaded for mechanical work. The operator unloaded a smaller dump onto a slightly sloped area outside a repair garage when it rolled forward, pinning the tower between the dump truck and his rollback. Reports indicate the operator unloaded the truck and it was completely off the carrier’s deck. As the tower returned to the tailboard’s deck pulling the winch cable and securing the V-bridle, the truck rolled forward pinning him against the carrier’s deck. June 5, 2015, Ohio: A 48-year-old tow operator was under a pickup truck trying to disconnect a linkage when a shift in weight caused the vehicle to roll and fall on him. Reports allege the pickup was held up by a 14 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

sling-type truck when the mishap occurred. Co-workers witnessed the accident and called 911; he was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. May 25, 2015, China: A female tow company owner was run over by her tow truck when it started to roll as the taxi she was wheel-lifting came off the pavement. The tower allegedly gave chase and somehow wound up under the truck. April 18, 2015, Indiana: A tow operator was killed after reportedly being trapped under a bus. Authorities said two towers responded to a company’s location to tow a bus. One of the men was able to escape the rolling bus while the other was trapped underneath. Feb. 20, 2015, Ohio: Police confirmed a tow operator was killed after being pinned between his tow truck and the vehicle he was intending to tow from a residence. July 2, 2014, Minnesota: A 45year-old tow operator died after a disabled heavy-duty tow truck rolled over him. An investigation revealed that the tower was sent to tow a disabled tow truck from another company. Workers stated they saw the operator preparing the disabled tow truck, and then heard a shout and ran to check on him. Police discovered that the disabled tow truck rolled back over the tower. May 20, 2014, New York: A tower was outside his tow truck preparing to off-load a disabled vehicle when the truck started to roll forward. As the tow operator attempted to enter the cab of the truck in to stop it from rolling forward, the tow truck’s door hit a telephone pole knocking the towman to the pavement. He was run over by the rear tires as the truck continued to roll. Dec. 11, 2013, Canada: A tow operator was hooking up a vehicle when it unexpectedly moved forward, rolling over him while he was under the vehicle. Aug. 1, 2012, Ohio: An 82-yearold tow operator was hooking a car to his truck when the tow truck began to roll. The tower fell under it and was run over and killed.

April 10, 2012, California: A 47year-old mechanic was killed while working on a disabled tow truck that rolled over him. Nov. 25, 2011, Colorado: Police said a tow operator was killed after being pinned underneath a semitrailer he towed. Police say the operator was unloading the semi from his wrecker when it rolled off support blocks onto him. Police say it appears he was working underneath the semitrailer while working with the tow truck’s remote controls. June 25, 2011, Florida: A 24-yearold tower was found trapped underneath a recreational vehicle. The operator arrived at a repair facility with an RV he was dropping off for service. The tower allegedly returned to the RV’s undercarriage to complete additional tasks when the RV rolled and pinned the man, who was unable to escape.

Make It Stop From the scenarios mentioned above, it’s easy to speculate three possibilities: 1. The tower failed to set the tow truck’s E brake prior to the tower exiting the truck’s cab. 2. The truck’s transmission was not in park. 3. No lumber or chock blocks were used. While the use of chock blocks isn’t OSHA mandated for all vehicles and scenarios, it makes perfect sense to employ chocks as a routine process. Judging on the number of tow operators killed during loading/off-loading incidents, chocks should be part of company policy to ensure the added safety measure for towers. Best practices recommends that tow operators add chocks to their towing and recovery routines. A dozen fatal rollaway scenarios in five years are proof that there is a better way.

Operations Editor Randall C. Resch is a retired California police officer and veteran tow business owner, manager, consultant and trainer. He writes for TowIndustryWeek.com and American Towman, is a member of the International Towing & Recovery Hall of Fame and recipient of the Dave Jones Leadership Award. Email Randy at rreschran@gmail.com.

International Launches New HV Series International’s recently unveiled HV Series severeduty trucks are available in multiple configurations with the company’s A24 big bore engine or the Cummins B6.7 or L9 engines.

by Brendan Dooley

nternational Truck recently launched its HV Series, a severeduty service truck available with the International A26 12.4L big bore engine. The company said the HV is designed to deliver power, refined driver features and reliability. Shortly after the reveal, International provided a ride-and-drive opportunity with it and other updated models for the media. The HV (in dump configuration) with the A26 engine provided plenty of low-end torque, and smoothly shifted through its gears paired to the six-speed Allison automatic with double overdrive. The A26 produces up to 475 horsepower and 1,700-ft./lbs. of torque from a design the company said is up to 700 lbs. lighter than a traditional 15L big bore engine. The series is also available with the Cummins B6.7 and L9 engines. Another HV (chassis only) powered by the Cummins B6.7 with six-speed Allison automatic performed similarly, with less initial pull. “We’ve been building vocational trucks for over a century and in the HV Series our engineers have successfully incorporated driver feedback into

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a severe service truck designed to be easily configurable for any application,” said Denny Mooney, SVP of Global Product Development.

Our engineers have successfully incorporated driver feedback into a severe service truck designed to be easily configurable for any application. The HV models were smartly appointed inside, with controls in easy reach for the driver and arranged by what the driver might use most often, as well as not to block instruments when doing logs. The dash contains

space for up to 30 customizable switches ensuring functionality of any type of body that is mounted on the back. International said the HV (internationaltrucks.com/HVSeries) was redesigned from the inside out and “crafted with driver and body company feedback to ensure the most comfortable and productive environment possible.” With an inside wheel cut of up to 50 degrees, the HV Series can easily navigate tight city streets. The HV Series is available in a variety of specifications: Regular Cab, Extended Cab and Crew Cab. Every HV Series model can be equipped as an option with OnCommand Connection, International’s remote diagnostics system and over-the-air programming.

Editor Brendan Dooley joined AT in January 2011 after serving as the editor of two magazines covering the auto repair industry for shop owners, techs and tool distributors. His experience includes hard news on daily newspapers and editorial leadership at vintage motorcycle and car magazines. Brendan is WreckMaster 6/7A certified.

The Value of Military Veterans as Employees

Veterans bring great value to your business directly and indirectly. Look beyond their rank and branch of service. Pictured, two airmen sprint from an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter after un-securing chocks and chains on the flight deck of the USS Wasp. U.S. Navy photo. by Chad Storlie

ilitary transition is hard. The experience of combat is more than hard. Despite all of the challenges facing veterans in their career transition, they remain proud of their service and view their service as a positive experience in their lives. It would be easy to talk about the challenges facing veterans. Instead, we need to talk about the value that veterans and their military experience bring to business. Military veterans have more benefit for your business and I will show you how to get more. Your veterans are already good employees; I want to show you ways to make them into your next

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generation of business leaders. Hiring veterans has been a hot tag line for years, but what remains to be explored is how organizations can fully benefit from applying the military experience that veterans bring. Consider A.G. Lafley, a former U.S. Navy officer. Lafley is the former chairman/CEO of Proctor & Gamble; he began his working career as a supply officer stationed in Japan. When his first assignment came, he was shocked that he wasn’t assigned to a ship, warehouse or air station. Instead, he was assigned to a small naval base in Japan to run all of the retail stores on the base.

An overseas military base is basically a small U.S. town transplanted onto foreign soil. There is a grocery store, dry cleaners, a bookstore, gas stations and fast food restaurants. Lafley’s military supply training hadn’t prepared him for multiple retail outlets … he had no idea what to do. So, he just dove in. He learned about the business, what the customers wanted, how much inventory to have and when the bills needed to be paid. When he got to P&G, he did the same. He dove in, learned what customers wanted and so on.

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AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 19

Veterans are exposed to a lot during their service, and bring varied skill sets and experiences to your company. Pictured, Marines utilize MK-36 Wreckers to hoist a simulated damaged vehicle during Marine Air Ground Task Force 3 vehicle recovery training. U.S. Marine Corps photo.

... continued from p. 18 Lafley was successful at P&G for a multitude of reasons, but his experience turning around the concessions at the small Navy base in Japan was formative in how he could instantly add value back to P&G by adapting

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and applying his military experience.

Hidden Talents Look beyond a veteran’s rank, branch of service and military occupation for hidden talents. When I initially look at a veteran’s resume, it is very easy—even for me—to make a

snap judgment about a veteran’s suitability based on their rank, branch of service and military occupation. However, snap judgments miss hidden talent. This even happened to me. I was coming back from Iraq as a Special Forces officer, a Green Beret, with a background focus on counter insurgency, combat planning and battlefield operations. I struggled to get employers to focus on the combined value of my business, military and combat experience to improve their companies. I had several informational interviews when examiners lived vicariously through my stories of Baghdad, minefields in Bosnia, parachuting and fast roping. At the end of one interview, I was dismissed with, “We don’t blow our competitors up.” Businesses can easily miss the total value a veteran brings because of the huge disparity between their military skill sets and how the business functions. For example, is there a relationship between a military sniper and a software quality engineer? What is a sniper? What is a software engineer? Well, both are focused on initiative, identifying small changes, working

alone and in a team, technical expertise and developing a complete understanding of the environment in which they operate. For employers to fully understand and capture a veteran’s skill sets, ask them to tell you a story of their most challenging day in the military. Have them paint you a picture of the conditions, what they were assigned to do, the problems they faced and how they successfully completed the mission. As the veteran tells their story, look for instances of creativity, leadership, independence, initiative and technical expertise. These “hidden” skills will lead you to a variety of potential positions and capabilities that you need in your organization. When you look for those “hidden” skills in veterans, you just may reveal the person to be the leader that you want in your organization.

Translate Experience Make veterans translate their military experience into greater value for your business. A great deal of a veteran’s military experience can be applied to create better business operations and customer relationships. One of the problems is that most veterans do not understand how the vast majority of their military skill sets do translate into business use. Veterans possess unique skill sets in planning, post-

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AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 21

... continued from p. 21 completion problem analysis, the use of rehearsals, competitive analysis, team leadership, coaching, risk management, back-up plans, war gaming and networking. In the military, war gaming is the process that tests and adapts battle plans against the full range of expected actions and reactions of the enemy. This is essentially a force-onforce game. I used war gaming extensively in Iraq as I was planning simultaneous, night, helicopter insertions of multiple Special Forces teams. What would the enemy do if they heard helicopters? Could we fly different routes away from enemy locations to keep teams safe?

Businesses can easily miss the total value a veteran brings. Once the war game is complete, the draft plan is modified to ensure the enemy actions are mitigated. The competition is smart and capable; war gaming ensures the best business plan survives and has the best chance of success. War gaming is a simple and systematic process that requires no special tools and works well for new product introductions, running scenarios for price challenges, opening a new location and more. The military loves performance coaching. These sessions occur every 30 to 60 days. A military memberâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s superior sits down in a private session and reviews the major events, the standards of performance and how the member performed against the standards. When an opportunity to improve is discovered, the superior and the member together create a specific and actionable improvement plan. Coaching is directly tied to improvement and helps managers at all levels develop their employees. I used the performance coaching process with a 20-plus-years employee at General Electric. At the 22 â&#x20AC;˘ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

end of the session, she thanked me with tears in her eyes for the attention and concern that I placed on her career even after only a few weeks at the company. A favorite Special Operations planning process of mine is the use of back-up plans with the PACE planning process: Primary, Alternate, Contingency, Emergency. PACE is used to create four independent and effective ways to accomplish critical battlefield processes such as casualty evacuation, ammunition resupply, or departing an objective area. In business, we often times have a great primary plan, but maybe no back-up plans. With PACE, Special Ops teams safeguard success because they plan and anticipate problems and find ways to surmount obstacles. Success isn’t an accident … it is planned.

Added Help Some military veteran employees may need additional time for medical appointments to treat combat injuries as well as some adaptation assistance. Typically, adapting from a military culture to a business culture will be one of their greatest challenges. Pair the military vets with a co-worker (the “Battle Buddy” concept) from another department. This will give the veteran an independent person to ask questions about the company’s culture and norms. The bottom line: military veterans

bring great value to organizations. We want to create and grow military veterans who are leaders in their business and in their community. Veterans already do well for your company— challenge them to do great things. About the author Chad Storlie is an adjunct professor of marketing at Creighton University, retired U.S. Army Special Forces officer and an Iraq combat veteran. He writes on various military, veteran, leadership, higher education and business topics. Follow him on Twitter @CombatToCorp or on LinkedIn.

Challenge Vets Challenge your military veteran employees to do more. Veterans live to be challenged. Employers need to challenge military veterans with a range of business problems to discover all that veterans can do for their organization. An example of a best practice is for an employer to create two lists, small and large business problems. Have the military veteran employees attack the small business problems in cross-functional teams with specific timelines and measured deliverables. Step back and let them solve these problems with initiative, resolve and determination. Schedule frequent check-ins to answer questions and examine progress. As they successfully complete the small challenges, they are automatically training and adapting to be successful at the larger challenge you give them next. Veterans are used to reviewing what they have done, receiving coaching for personal improvement and seeking out additional training to improve. Give veterans timely, specific and actionable feedback in a private setting and a constructive tone. Listen to their suggestions how to improve the department’s operations, and give them additional training to improve their weak points. Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 23

Troubleshooting ‘Won’t Starts’ by Terry Abejuela

f your company provides emergency roadside service, that may include attempting to place a disabled vehicle back on the road in safe driving condition rather than towing or transporting it. Some customers even may request and prefer this type of service over towing. Sometimes an engine doesn’t turn or turns slowly. To provide this type of service, you must ensure you are properly equipped and trained to do it safely, effectively and efficiently. Safety is always our No. 1 concern. Troubleshooting a disabled vehicle should only be attempted in safe conditions. Don’t troubleshoot vehicles that are disabled near a roadway or any unsafe area. If you are not able to place the vehicle in a safe driving condition within 10 minutes, I recommend towing. Do not attempt to perform mechanical repairs that are beyond your training, expertise or company policy. Make sure your customer understands that you are performing minor mechanical first aid only, intended to place the vehicle in a safe driving condition. Emphasize that they should follow up immediately with a qualified mechanic. Avoid making recommendations of what repairs are needed. Err on the side of safety. If you are not 100-percent sure a vehicle is safe to drive … offer a tow. Do not attempt to troubleshoot or place a disabled vehicle back on the road if there are any deficiencies in safety-related systems such as brakes, suspension, lights, tires or steering, to name a few.

Checking the battery state of charge at the battery posts.

Tools To perform troubleshooting and minor mechanical first aid, you will require a minimal set of tools. When choosing the hand tools to carry, keep in mind your experience and training as well as how often you come across various types of disabled vehicles. Whether you are in a service truck vs. a tow truck will influence how many and what kind of tools you might carry. Specifically with “won’t starts,” the minimum tools to accomplish this task includes: • Latex gloves. • Safety glasses. • Fender cover. • Flathead screwdriver. • Phillips screwdriver. • Plastic or rubber mallet. • Pliers, including needle-nose style. • Crescent wrench/or wrench set. • Battery service tools. • Digital volt/ohm meter. 24 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Checking the battery state of charge at the terminals. No drop in voltage indicates good connection between posts and terminals.

Before attempting to start a disabled vehicle ask a few questions to determine if you can try to start the vehicle without potentially causing additional damage. Depending on the specific situation, these might include: • Did the vehicle stall while you were driving? • Does the engine crank/turn over? • Was the vehicle recently repaired or worked on? • How much fuel is in the fuel tank? • When was the last time the vehicle was started? • Were there any unusual noises when it was running last?

Pre-check Before attempting to start the engine, do a quick check of a few items that may indicate it is not safe to attempt to start. Check the engine oil level to

Continued on p. 26 ...

Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 25

... continued from p. 25 ensure it is at the proper level and the oil looks like it should. If the oil on the dipstick is more of a tan color, it may have water or coolant mixed in the oil. It may not be safe to attempt to start the engine. Before attempting to start a disabled vehicle, make sure the transmission is in park or neutral (manual transmission) and the parking brake is set. On many vehicles, the brake pedal must be pressed to start the vehicle. Some vehicles may require the seat belt to be fastened to start the vehicle.

Starting System If an engine doesn’t turn or turns slowly, the culprit is often in the starting system. The starting system includes the ignition switch, starter motor, starter solenoid, neutral safety switch, clutch safety switch, starter relay and battery. If the vehicle is equipped with an alarm system, it may disable the starting system. A common reason for an engine that doesn’t turn or turns slowly is a discharged battery. A rapid clicking noise from the starter solenoid is an indication of a weak battery

Whether you are in a service truck vs. a tow truck will influence how many and what kind of tools you might carry. or poor connection. The best way to test battery state of charge is to test it with a digital volt/ohm meter. Test the state of charge across the battery posts. If it reads 12.6V, the battery is at 100 percent. A .02V drop in voltage is equal to approximately a 25 percent drop in the

26 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Some basic battery service tools to keep on hand.

state of charge. A reading of 12.02V means the battery is at approximately a 50 percent state of charge. If the voltage at the battery posts is 12.6V, test the battery state of charge across the battery terminals. If it is still at 12.6V, the terminals have a good connection to the battery posts. If the voltage drops there is a poor connection. Connect a KAM unit (Keep Alive Memory) before removing the battery terminals to clean them with a battery cleaning wire brush. Follow all instructions, recommendations and cautions from the KAM unit manufacturer. If you don’t use a KAM unit, the disabled vehicle

Continued on p. 28 ...

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AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 27

... continued from p. 26

Some basic battery service tools to keep on hand.

may lose some or all of it’s computer programming and need to be re-programmed by a mechanic. If the battery is less than 10.5V, it will need a jumpstart. Notify your customer that they may have computer-programming issues as a result of the dead battery. Follow all recommended jumpstart procedures to start the vehicle. If the battery voltage is adequate, the problem may be somewhere else in the starting system such as the starter motor or solenoid.

28 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

When attempting to start the engine and you hear a single click, the starter motor may be stuck. The vehicle may be able to be started by tapping on the starter motor with a plastic or rubber mallet. Do not lay under a vehicle while attempting to start it. If you have to get under a vehicle to tap on the starter, get out from under the vehicle before having someone turn the ignition key. It is not uncommon to be dispatched to a won’t-start call simply because the key will not turn in the ignition. When a vehicle is parked, the steering wheel anti-theft lock may be placed under tension by the turning of the steering wheel; the key won’t turn with the normal amount of force. This is common when parked with the wheels against the curb. Jiggle the steering wheel while attempting to turn the ignition key. Before attempting to provide troubleshooting service on won’t starts, make sure you have some basic mechanic training and/or experience and carry the proper tools. Use good judgment when deciding if it is safe for a vehicle to be driven and do not take chances. When in doubt … recommend a tow.

Field Editor Terry Abejuela has 30-plus years of light-duty towing-and-recovery experience. He is also a light-duty Level 1 instructor for the California Tow Truck Association.

Talbert Marks Removable Gooseneck’s 70th Anniversary Talbert Manufacturing (talbertmfg.com) recently celebrated the 70th anniversary of its mechanical gooseneck patent, which was developed by Austin Talbert, engineer and founder of Talbert Construction Equipment Co. Talbert’s first mechanical, detachable gooseneck trailer debuted in 1946 and was patented in 1947. The

Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

mechanical gooseneck revolutionized equipment loading by eliminating the need to drive equipment up and over the trailer tires. The design not only enhanced operators’ safety, but also saved time and hassle. Austin Talbert also designed and patented the industry’s first hydraulic removable gooseneck 15 years later. The hydraulic gooseneck could be

removed in as little as 2 minutes, much faster than the mechanical model. Talbert patented several other heavy-haul trailer technologies, including the first removable rear suspension and the hydraulically steered and suspended trailer for navigating tight turns with longer, over-dimensional loads.

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 29

Days Down on the Farm A loaded grain truck overturns in rural Vermont

A driver’s side view of the grain truck shows it nose up/rear down in the ditch.

by Jim “Buck” Sorrenti

ast winter, the Vermont State Police called Sabil & Sons, based in White River Junction, for an overturned grain truck in a rural area. “A large fully loaded tandem-axle bulk grain truck had attempted to make a delivery to a Vermont farm located at the top of a steep, one-lane ice-covered road,” said Larry Fortier, Sabil’s truck manager. “The driver made it almost to the top of the hill before the truck started sliding backwards for a substantial distance [and] ending up off the road, over a steep embankment and into a small brook.” Co-owner brothers Doug and Wayne Josler, Wayne’s son Zach and operators Tim Keener and Travis Gault responded to the scene in the company’s Mack R model with a Challenger 6802 35-ton, a Kenworth T800 with a Jerr-Dan 25-ton integrated tandem and another T800 backed by an NRC 40-ton sliding rotator. The Sabil crew’s survey found the large fully loaded bulk grain truck was deeply embedded and would be difficult to remove as the tandem-axle

Co-owner Wayne Josler and a helper working in the manlift to offload grain.

grain truck with pusher axle was heavily damaged. The team secured the area and devised a plan to remove the diesel fuel and grain from the casualty. Doug went to work off-loading the diesel from the dual diesel tanks before each of the individual tank compartments was cut open to facilitate removal of the grain. They recruited a Terex 23.5-ton boom truck from Hutch Crane Service in Bradford to assist. “We used a crane to provide access with a manlift to aid in accessing and removing the grain from the damaged body,” Fortier said. Wayne and a helper worked in the manlift to remove the grain from the body of the truck. Once the grain and fuel was removed, they staged the necessary equipment to carry out the recovery plan for the badly damaged grain truck. They strapped the tank portion of the truck for lifting by the NRC rotator while the Challenger and the

Continued on p. 32 ...

The Sabil crew recruited the 23.5-ton Terex boom truck from Hutch Crane Service in Bradford, Vermont. Co-owner Doug Josler working to remove diesel from the tanks. 30 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 31

The NRC rotator lifted the tank portion of the truck.

... continued from p. 31 Jerr-Dan winched from the front. “There were numerous delays as the result of having to start and stop the recovery process whenever there was a large truck that had to access the farm,” Fortier said. “Trucks would arrive to pick up and remove milk and to deliver grain and other items as necessary.” The recovery took three days and one overnight to complete due to the weather, starts and stops and other conditions. The Jerr-Dan unit towed the recovered vehicle from the scene.

About Sabil & Sons William Josler founded Sabil & Sons, based in White River Junction, Vermont, in 1980. The company provides light- to heavy-duty towing, recovery, road service and rigging throughout the New England area. They are an authorized dealer for JerrDan in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, and an Isuzu Commercial Truck dealer.

32 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

This family owned and operated company has grown from a staff of one into the teens. Company president Bill is now retired, but still hands-on. His wife, Sally, was the company VP until she passed away earlier this year. Sons Douglas (VP) and Wayne (parts manager) are co-owners of the company and handle the day-to-day operations. Larry Fortier is the Truck Manager.

Jim “Buck” Sorrenti, a longtime editor of American Towman, has been our field editor for the past few years. He is a freelance writer and photographer with more than 40 years of experience covering motorcycle, hot rod, truck and towing culture. He writes weekly for TowIndustryWeek.com.

Trucks On Scene

• Mack R model/Challenger 6802 35-ton • Kenworth T800/Jerr-Dan 25-ton integrated • Kenworth T800/NRC 40ton sliding rotator • Terex 23.5-ton boom truck

Some of Sabil’s varied fleet.

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The Nine Lives of One Towman Tower lived through roadside dangers to later create ‘Captain Recovery’

The main characters of the Captain Recovery story.

Captain Recovery author Kyle Chirgwin with his Kenworth/Century flatbed truck.

by Brendan Dooley

o towers have more right to the “nine lives” mythos than the feline community? So many towers—too many— have more than one hit-by or near-hit tale from the road. That towers get up again, dust themselves off when they can and get back to work is inspiring. When it comes to the nine lives theory, former towman and tow company owner Kyle Chirgwin has lived it exactly—nine separate instances when he’s been in some type of collision or incident and lived to tell about it (if barely in a few cases). That kind

36 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

of qualifies him as a poster boy for the Spirit Ride. Since retired from active, day-today towing due to medical issues, Kyle has put his knowledge and experience to work by creating a children’s book centered on the exploits of heroic “Captain Recovery” and his team. It all started in 1982 when Kyle was 16 and began towing in Connecticut. That is to say, when he began pumping gas at Nick’s Sunoco and washing their tow trucks on Saturdays. Eventually he began doing tows on Saturdays until a full-time position opened.

“I naturally fell in love with the work; helping people, the excitement and the challenge of getting the job done,” Kyle said. Eventually he became a manager along with towing, and in 1989 moved on to help Kerrigan’s Towing get started with a friend. They built up the tow business with police tows, private impound and other commercial accounts for a few years. It wasn’t long before Kyle decided to start his own company in Fairfield. “Most people who called would always ask for me, so it seemed like a

ormer towman and tow company owner Kyle Chirgwin now writes a children’s book series about Captain Recov-

ery and his adventures; before he departed the everyday life of towing however, Kyle was hit or nearly hit enough times—like so many towers—

and lived to tell about it like the reputed cats’ nine lives. Those incidents, in Kyle’s words, include:

1. I was hooking up a taxi on Route 15 outside Norwalk, Connecticut in 7 a.m. morning rush hour. I’d just finished sliding the L-arm into the tow bar and stood up to get the chain. A car left the roadway, went into the grass and hit me and sent me up and over the hood of the car. I tried to break my fall with my hands, but hit the disabled car’s grille with my chest and landed on the bumper and tow bar. I broke my ankle, three ribs and thought I broke my leg, but it was a bruised femur. (The car never stopped.) I was in the hospital for four days and off work for a few months.

truck and crushed the cab with me in it. I got down on the floor as low as I could; my roof was crushed into the cab trapping me on the floor. It took firefighters about 40 minutes to get me out with the Jaws of Life. It was bizarre, but I walked away with no injuries.

tanker. I went right into the rear wheels of the tanker’s cab and was pushed up into the tank. I remember thinking, ‘At least this is gonna be quick … a quick explosion … I’ll be done.’ The tanker never exploded. I had to start seeing a psychiatrist after that one; they had to peel my fingers from the steering wheel. I just about cried when they pulled everything apart and I saw my truck. I had my seatbelt on, and nothing worse happened to me that day then a bruised knee from hitting my dashboard. I wouldn’t drive on the highway for some two months after. 7. I was hooking up a car and was pushed against my truck after a car drove into the car I was hooking up. It pushed the disabled car over the wheel lift and pinned me between the car and the tow truck. I had minor fractures to my lower back and needed a mobile body cast for months.

2. I was towing a vehicle on my flatbed and was hit by a plow truck that swung wide and slid into my truck. The impact sent my truck down an embankment and into a tree. I bruised my back on that one and was out for a month. 3. In Manhattan, I was sideswiped by a tractor-trailer while I was working the controls on the road side (because the other side was too close in to parked cars to operate from). It hurt real bad, but I ‘tough guyed’ it home because I wasn’t going to stay overnight in a hospital in New York City where I didn’t know anyone. I saw my doctor the next day and came away with nasty bruising on my right hip. 4. In Norwalk, I was hooking a van to my flatbed’s underlift when a car came in from the roadway and slammed into me. I had overall bruises and broke my right wrist, but I was back at work in about 10 days. 5. One of the scariest ones, I had to clean up the yard and was taking cars to the junkyard. I had backed onto the junk scale waiting for buzzer. Meanwhile, around the corner came a huge forklift with two cars stacked at his eye level—the driver didn’t see me on the scale and crashed right into my

Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

8. One year on Christmas Eve in Farifield, Connecticut, it was snowing like crazy and a kid lost control of his pickup truck. He fishtailed around a corner where I was coming to a stop and swung around and hit me nose to nose. If I hadn’t been there, he’d have gone into the ditch. (I always seemed to be a new truck whenever I got hit.) I hurt my upper back and bruised my neck; I was wearing my seatbelt. (I was in the hospital for Christmas, making for one of Mom’s ‘favorite’ holiday memories.)

6. The definite scariest one was when I got sandwiched between a jackknifed semitrailer and fuel tanker on a rainy day on I-95; the crash nearly totaled my brand-new flatbed. I literally thought I was going to die. When the tanker started to jackknife in front of me, I thought I had an escape route left, but the semi behind me began jackknifing and pushed me into the

9. I was in my own car, a big Lincoln, near Providence, Rhode Island, when a pickup started swerving back and forth into the Jersey wall. It turns out he was having a heart attack. I got my Linocln infront of him and he hit my rear bumper and I was able to slow him down and get him stopped. A couple other motorists stopped with me to help get him out; he died before paramedics could get there through all the traffic.

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 37

natural to open my own tow company,” he said. “I had my own truck built, a 1993 Freightliner FL70 with a Century 22’ steel flatbed, and opened Kyle’s Towing & Transport in 1994.” He also met Lisa in the beginning of starting his own shop. They would build the business together (and marry 10 years later in 2004). It was a one-truck operation for about four years, living off of town contracts for plow trucks (“I had a nice beefy tow truck; the biggest flatbed in town for a long time”), forklift and equipment accounts and limo accounts. They were working out of a body shop through that time, until state regulations required tow businesses have a wrecker and a flatbed. “I bought a used GMC, a real owner’s truck, that was a four-wheel drive,” he said. “It was a 1987 GMC K35, because the gross vehicle weight was rated at 11,000 pounds vs. the 10,000 pounds of the similar Chevy … this got me on lists because rules for tow trucks were to be above 11,000 lbs. towing for both state and town.”

Growing Pains Shortly thereafter, they bought a gas station and moved operations out of the body shop. The gas station came with another wrecker, they added another flatbed and “before you know it I had four trucks.” The gas station sold diesel fuel, so they added diesel repairs, and heavy-duty towing to go along with it. Then came a “true medium-duty truck to tow jobber trucks, tractors and the like,” Kyle said. Some of the more lucrative specialty work they picked up included a Jaguar account. “There’s a law in Connecticut that you can’t sell ‘as new’ any car with more than 60 miles,” Kyle said. “I got a call to do the swaps up and down the East Coast at $500 per car. I bought a trailer and would do the transport calls from Connecticut to Pennsylvania to wherever they needed one or two cars to be swapped out between dealerships. “I bought a trailer and I’d work from 3 a.m. every day until the cars were all moved, and bring back two cars back to Connecticut. … It was a 38 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

gravy train for three years, until [the dealership] bought its own truck to do the swaps.” In 2002, they moved operations again and into a larger building. They added a brand new Freightliner/Century 16-ton flatbed. “Business was cranking along,” Kyle said. “We were up to nine trucks by the time I got sick and had to sell the business. “I started not feeling good. I started getting numbness in my right big toe for a couple years and didn’t do anything. I chocked it up to ‘working my ass off.’ Then it started spreading to my other toes, up my foot and to my other foot.”

I wanted kids to be able to read this book and close their eyes and feel like they were there. After a number of tests and doctors, Kyle was diagnosed with Idiopathic Small Fiber Neuropathy. It affects nerves and causes a variety of hurts, including acute, extreme pain. “I kept going back to work,” Kyle said. “I would be bed-ridden, rest up and get back to work. I’d get an operation, then get back to work. … Then I ended up in the hospital after dropping from exhaustion. I’d be in hospital for a month, home for a month, then try to work from a wheelchair and a cane for awhile. “Finally, Lisa said I couldn’t work like that anymore … like my doctor had been saying for months,” Kyle said. “When my licenses came up for renewal, Lisa and I talked about everything together with my parents and we all decided it was time to sell the business before the whole situation got worse.”

Time to Think After the business was sold, it wasn’t like a retirement for Kyle, who

was spending part of the time bedridden. All he wanted to do was continue working. “I was sitting at home with all this time on my hands, and was going to write my own autobiography about myself and the towing world, Kyle said. “I wanted to call it, ‘My Big Tow,’ and show the daily life of the towing business.” Then some of his cousins had children and his thoughts turned from autobiography to children’s book. It was based on how his little cousin Darren might imagine running a big tow company with his sister Kaylee. “I’d been nicknamed ‘Captain Recovery’ when I was towing because I’d never come home without the car. So the children’s book became, ‘My Big Tow; The Adventures of Captain Recovery.’ … I wanted kids to be able to read this book and close their eyes and feel like they were there.” All the character in the book came from Kyle’s life at home and in towing. They included his cousins Darren and Kalee, Fire Chief Hoffy (Farifeild fireman Harry Hofmiller) and Kody and Balto (named after Kyle and Lisa’s two dogs). There was a tragedy, however, after he and Lisa found a publisher that wanted to see a draft. While at an office supply store in 2012, Lisa began having an epileptic seizure and called Kyle at home. He called 911 and rushed to meet her at the hospital. “She had a heart attack when I arrived,” Kyle said. “She died in my arms. She was only 46. “I was determined to finish and see through what Lisa and I had started,” Kyle said. “I rewrote the book to put Lisa in as ‘Auntie Lisa.’ The first Captain Recovery book came out in 2013; book two is written and being illustrated as of press time. A coloring book also is in the works. Find more about Captain Recovery online at http://captain.torrentdigital.com.

American Towman in Mexico

Operations Editor Randall Resch shows off a copy of American Towman Magazine while in Oaxaca, Mexico.

While taking some family R&R time recently in Oaxaca, Mexico, American Towman Magazine Operations Editor Randall Resch also scouted the area for towing and recovery shops and future story inspiration.

40 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

“I looked for tow trucks and tow truck companies. They're few and far between,” Resch said. What he did find “all seemed to be driving with the overhead amber lights on while stuck in traffic.”

They did tour pyramids and immerse in local culture, including Mescal sampling, as well. Now that the American Towman Expo in Baltimore is finished, they may be ready to head back soon.

Isuzu America Techs Take 2nd Isuzu Commercial Truck of America (isuzucv.com) recently announced that its team of American service technicians placed second in the High Technology Diesel division of the 12th annual Isuzu One Grand Prix World Technician Competition. The competition was conducted at Isuzu Motors Limited’s training center in Fujisawa, Japan. Eighty-one technicians from Isuzu distributors in 27 countries entered in the multi-stage competition requiring outstanding performance on written examinations and in hands-on tests of vehicle diagnosis and repair skills. ICTA’s team consisted of Trevor Shrader of CIT Isuzu Truck in Loves Park, Illinois, and Tim McCarty of Rush Isuzu Truck in Atlanta, Georgia. “Trevor and Tim represented ICTA beautifully,” said Shaun Skinner, ICTA president. “Thanks to them, this was our best finish ever in the World Technician Competition. That speaks well of their diagnostic and repair skills, and it’s also a testament to the investment we’ve made in our training centers in both Pennsylvania and California.”

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AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 43

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AmericanSafetySupply.com 44 â&#x20AC;˘ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

888-432-0097 AtlantaWreckerSales.net AtlantaWrecker.com

Atlantic Emergency Solutions

Austin Hinds Motors

AutoReturn

Premier provider of Jerr-Dan towing and recovery vehicles – sales, service, parts, and equipment – office in Manassas, VA, and Yorktown, VA – Call today!

2018 Peterbilt 337 Cummins, Auto Air Brake, Air Ride, Aluminum Wheels, Century 21.5 ft LCG Rollback, 22Head Lightbar, 4 LED work lights, 6 to choose.

Imagine a world where law enforcement tows are distributed fairly between professional companies who meet service standards. Think it's impossible? Think again!

800-442-9700

AustinHindsMotors.com

Atlanticwreckers.com

256-586-8161

413-575-9333 AutoReturn.com

AW Direct

B & Z Sales

B/A Products

Introducing the first ever Magnetic Axle Strap. This unique strap includes magnetic base that hold tight for easier attachment! Exclusively from AW Direct.

2016 Hino, 2017 Century, 21’ steel bed, 102” wide body. Last one special price $84,000. Includes 5 year or 250,000 Aftertreatment Warranty.

Hi-Viz Chain is coming soon to B/A. Grade 100 is available in Hi-Viz yellow and grade 120 is available in Hi-Viz green. USA made.

800-243-3194 800-828-9678

800-530-7941

800-327-3301

BZSalesinc.com

BAProd.com

AWDirect.com

Beacon Software TowLien Lien notification software for towers, salvage and vehicle storage lots. Easy as 123. No contracts or setup fees!

440-237-6653 ext. 3 TowLien.com DispatchAnywhere.com Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

Blust Sales & Service

Casanova Towing Equipment

Demo, 2010 International Cummins, 10 speed, Jake Brake with 2017 Century 5130. Ready to go $169,000.00. Specializing in New & Used BIG Wreckers.

I-Metal wheel lift forklift attachment reduces damages when moving vehicles around the lot. Lift capacity 3,500lbs. Easy installation. Zinc plated. Call us for more information.

513-385-6050

800-746-8802

BlustTowing.Com

CasanovaTowEquipment.com AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 45

Chesapeake Automotive Equipment

Chevron Commercial

COMEUP Industries

Challenger Lifts offers heavy-duty Mobile Column Lifts. )ptions available in 13,500 lb. (CLHM-135) and 18,500 lb. (CLHM-185) capacities operated wirelessly.

Kenworth T800 V-100 Custom built for the McNamara’s Towing – owner Chris Webster CCI has the eye candy of the towing industry!

ComeUp USA offers hydraulic winches in capacities of 8,000 to 50,000 pounds for recovery applications. ComeUp has the solution for all of your recovery needs.

800-604-9653

800-443-5778

503-783-6142

ChesAutoEquip.com

ChevronCommercial.com

ComeUpUSA.com

Crouch Wrecker & Equip. Sales

CTECH Manufacturing

CTTA

Full line of Miller products with a huge inventory of new and used units. We specialize in rotators and heavy duties with turn-key trucks ready for delivery.

Tool Drawer Unit – All aluminum construction with our patented MotionLatch handle to secure equipment when in transit. Add CTECH drawers to any opening in any manufacturers truck body.

The United Coalition for Motor Club Safety and the California Tow Truck Association present INTRO TO TOWING: a new 5-part online course for towing beginners and new hires! Available NOW at ctta.com

715-355-8842

CTTA.com

800-628-5212 CrouchTowTrucks.com

Danco Products Danco sets high standards in hauling solutions. Our truck bodies are strong and dependable. Dealer opportunities are available.

800-453-2626 DancoProducts.com

CTechManufacturing.com

Deep South Wrecker Sales/Loganville DSW is the south’s largest wrecker supplier. The greatest brands built on any chassis of choice. We also offer a variety of towing supplies.

877-711-4338 DeepSouthWreckerSales.com

46 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Driveline Buddy Spring-loaded Suspender installed into the frame of the truck u-shaped cradle to hold the driveline. Safely tow a truck from the front without removing the driveline.

209-401-0069 DriveLineBuddy.com

Dual-Tech Wreckers & Carriers Manufacturer of the original Quad-Rail subframe, imitated but not duplicated!! 1,152 sq inches of slide pad, recovery strong with no reported failures.

800-852-0345 DualTechinc.com

Dynamic Towing Equipment & Mfg.

Eartec

Dynamic has a redesigned rotating flatbed. The Radius spins 12,000 LBS 240 degrees . Has less moving parts then earlier models. Is the perfect unit for all your recovery needs.

800-831-9299

UltraLITE. New breed of Wireless that allow crews to communicate hands free. No base station requires. The most affordable system. ($735 for complete 4 person system)

800-399-5994 Eartec.com

DynamicTow.com

East Penn Truck Equipment

eimpound.com

Elizabeth Truck Center

Full line Miller Industries dealer with two locations to serve you! When you want the best only a tow truck from East Penn Truck Equipment will do.

eimpound.com is a no cost service allowing users to electronically identify the registered owner and lien holder. There eimpound VIN scan app is also available.

724-342-1800 610-694-9234

eimpound.com

2017 Peterbilt 567 Twin Steer w/600HP Cummins, 18 speed, 52K rears/52K New Way air ride, Century 1150R, Roller option, 5 winches, Raptor controls, low rider under lift.

908-355-8800 ElizabethTruckCenter.com/tow-sales

EastPennTrucks.com

Environmental Chemical Solutions

Florida Wrecker

Flow Stop

Spill cleanup. Make money doing the right thing. We train you, give you the tools, and we can bill insurance.

Triple Treat Spill Kit: 9 Wood Dowels 3 of each size, 3 Absorbent Pads, Wooden Mallet, Safety Glasses, 3 FlowStop Footballs & 3 Golfballs, Storage/Carry Case.

877-253-2665

Minute Man Forklift Wrecker a mechanical auto-load wheel lift attachment. Slide onto the forks of any forklift. Spring loaded "C-Hooks" pivot around wheels of the parked vehicle.

Ecschem.com/application /tow-wreckers

813-626-2144

FlowStop.net

GotTowTruck.com

Work the non-traffic sideâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;Stay Safe!

877-356-9767

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 â&#x20AC;˘ 47

Futura Trailers

G. Stone Commercial

Ginn Carrier & Wrecker Sales

Load any vehicle in under a minute with Futura’s low-loader trailer. Lift/lower the trailer by remote control for safer recoveries.

New Ford wreckers and car carriers in stock. We also have a full line of used commercial trucks, new and used trailers, and heavy equipment sales and rentals.

We offer a wide selection of Dynamic Self Loaders and Kilar Rollbacks on loaded Dodge chassis’.

855-744-3877

802-388-9599

FuturaTrailers.com/towsafe

GinnCommercial.com

GStoneEquipment.com

Hino of Fort Pierce

Intek Truck & Equipment Leasing/Financing

We have all of you 2018 Hino 268A needs and great prices.

877-564-9752 678-628-2679 CommercialTrucksofFlorida.com

678-625-4000

Jerr-Dan Corp.

Offers customized and flexible lease & financing options for all new and used towing & recovery equipment. Exclusive finance programs for up to 10 years available in the heavy-duty market.

As an industry leader, Jerr-Dan develops top quality designs. The MPL40 wrecker's customized features include an 8-ton recovery boom and choice of three wheel-grid packages, and the versatility to handle whatever job is set on its path.

973-403-7788

800-926-9666

IntekLeasing.com

Jerrdan.com

Kenworth of South Florida

Len Zermenos

Lift & Tow

An authorized Jerr-Dan distributor. Get your 2018 Kenworth T270’s with Jerr-Dan steel rollbacks. Full service department

New Kilar 19 ft. steel bed $19,900 or complete F550 V10 4x2 gas rollback truck $56,900 wheel lift and side rails optimal.

Coming soon! The new super series wheel lift.

877-564-9752

330-323-5165

LiftandTow.com

CommercialTrucksofFlorida.com Kenworthsf.com

LenZermenos.com

48 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

717-496-0839

Lodar USA

Manufacturer Express

The complete wireless solution – TAKE CONTROL.

We are a one stop shop for all of your towing needs! Check out our new endless Rand slings with sleeves.

940-538-5643 lodar.com LodarUSA.com

201-754-1010 MfrExpress.com

Maryland Carrier & Wrecker Sales/ Beltway Your one-stop shop for Jerr-Dan parts along with quality lighting from TowMate, Federal Signal, and equipment from brands like all-Grip, PhoenixUSA, and Bawer!

844-TOW-GEAR MDCarrierwrecker.com

Matheny Motor Truck Co.

Matjack Jumbo Safelift

McMahon Truck Centers

One of the largest selections of quality equipment from Miller Industries with the Matheny Motors custom touch.

Matjack Hurricane System is now setting a new industry standard for air cushion recovery, lifts trucks in as little as 3 minutes.

855-494-4350

800-827-3755

All new Jerr-Dan wreckers. Ready to work, reconditioned chassis with new Jerr-Dan wreckers. Fleet disposal services and fair trade in values. Jerr-Dan Heavy-Duty solutions.

MathenyTowTrucks.com

Matjack.com

614-252-3111 McMahonTrucks.com/jerrdan

Miller Industries

New England Truckmaster

New England Wrecker Sales

Century 9055 XL heavy-duty integrated wrecker. Newly designed 50-ton unit adds additional weight to front axle and 5 ft. of reach to recovery boom. For improved performance and versatility.

The right price, a service department that takes care of you, a parts department with all you need, and attention to detail when building small wrecker, carrier, or heavy-duty.

The leading distributor for NRC Industries. Providing the industry’s highest level of expertise in design, sales and service. Handling body installs, paint, and frame lengthening.

800-481-0501

800-292-0330

603-658-7171

NETruckMaster.com

NEWrecker.com

Millerind.com Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 49

North American BanCard

Northeast Wrecker Sales

Pacific General Insurance Agency

Towing Industry Exclusive: Wholesale rates starting at. 05%. Free terminals (wireless, iPhone / Android swipe, wired). 0 setup/annual fee.

We are a full line Miller dealer, suppling Century, Chevron, Vulcan and Holmes. We are able to supply and build any truck chassis to our exact specifications.

Our Expert staff has served the towing, auto transport and salvage industries since 1977.

866-481-4604

518-573-8232

TowTruckInsuranceusa.com

Nynab.com

NorthEastWreckerSales.com

800-888-0545

Powerhouse Industries

Prime Industries

Quest Towing Services

New Val 6 FIR2000 Infrared Heater. No-smoke, no-smell, No-noise. Sleek design. Also 12/24v or 16v heavy-duty jumps starters. We’ll get you moving.

We pride ourselves in giving the customers the best available Towing Supplies at super reasonable prices.Your One Stop Towing Supply and wheel simulator shop.

Quest administers roadside, secondary and accident programs for more than 60 clients throughout the United States and welcomes new service providers to join our network.

631-325-5555

800-446-1144

Val6heat.com

Prime-Industries.biz

888-295-2584 TowNetwork.com

Renew Truck Body

Rochester Truck- Hino

Sanderson Truck Equipment

Make your old rusted out truck look new again custom polymer truck bodies, light weight, UV inhibited, more flexible, harder to damage, absorb impact better.

Hino Trucks, a Toyota Group company, offers a product lineup with unmatched reliability and maneuverability, lowest cost of ownership, and superior fuel economy.

2016 Pererbilt 567, 60 Ton Independent Jerr-Dan, Cummins ISX 550hp, Full 18sp Manual, 20K F, 46k R 2-stage 120K Boom, 565 Four Stage 177” 56.5K U/L

844-736-3982

603-335-2084

SandersonTruckEquipment.com

RenewTruckBody.com

RochesterTruck.com

50 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

623-842-8814

Santex International Trucks

Seacrest Insurance Agency

Select Truck & Equipment

2017 INT 4300, 6.7 CUMMINS ISB 300HP, Allison Auto, Air Brake/Air Ride, 22.5” ALU wheels, Vulcan 21' LCG 12 Series. Whelen LED LB, 8K Ramsey Winch.

Sea Crest Insurance Agency has been in business for over 30 years, providing service for companies all over Southern California!

2018 international 4300, 260 hp, ab/ar, 22.5 rubber, Alum Wheels, 22’ Jerr-Dan dual angle XLP, 3 Year Warranty on Engine & Bed, work lights.

800-337-5900

800-896-2120

SeaCrestInsurance.com

SelectTowTrucksMO.com

210-661-8371. SantexEquipment.com

Smyrna Truck & Cargo

Spill Tackle

Steck Mfg. Co.

Authorized Miller distributor selling new and used tow truck parts and service. Please call or visit our website for further information.

Spill Tackle is a bio-preferred absorbent that is 4X more absorbent than clay, exceeds USEPA leachate standards, and is proven to work in all conditions.

4th Wheel Loader allows drivers to safely load and secure vehicles up to 5 tons with busted ball joints, lost or locked wheels on their roll back wreckers.

855-269-5347

228-206-1449

937-222-0062

SmyrnaTruck.com/tow

SpillTackle.com

SteckMfg.com

The Will-Burt Company

Tipton Sales & Parts

Tow Industries

Night Scan light towers provides 360 degrees of overhead light. Improving safety and recovery speed while making you up to $250 per hour.

2017 Ford F-650 "blackout" 22' Jerr-Dan XLP bed, Available in steel or Aluminum, Air Brake, Air Ride. $92,500.

330-684-4000

859-689-4888

Most reputable tow truck dealer in the Southern California area offer new tow trucks, preowned recovery trucks and trucking and trucking equipment.

NightScan.com

Tiptonsap.com

Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

323-660-4866 TowIndustries.com AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 51

Tow Recruiter

towbook Management Software

TowMate

Tow Recruiter is an Interactive job board recruiting candidates for you thru towing industry knowledge, networking and cutting edge technology. Enjoy unlimited access year-long!

Towbook built for the cloud. Work from anywhere. Digital dispatching, mobile apps for iPhone and Android, QuickBooks integration and GPS tracking. No up-front costs and set up quickly.

TowMate is proud to be the Original Wireless Tow Light Manufacturer! Our products have always been Made in the USA and always carry our Lifetime Warranty!

844-486-9562

810-320-5063

800-680-4455

TowRecruiter.com

towbook.com

TowMate.com

Transfer Flow

Tri-State Trailer Sales

Triple K Industries

Transfer Flow has introduced a 60-gallon replacement fuel tank for the 2017 Ford F-250, F-350, and F-450 Super Duty short bed, crew cab diesel trucks.

Full line Landoll dealer. Four Locations: Pittsburgh, Lancaster, Youngstown, Cincinnati. New Landoll 440’s and 430’s in stock at each location. Used trailers available too.

Fifthwheel Quick-Tach or permanent mount. Ratings to 45,000 lbs & reach to 160”. Complete fork package & tire lift included. Excellent financing.

800-442-0056

412-747-7777

TripleKindustries.com

TransferFlow.com

TristateTrailer.com

Truck Body Sales

Urgent.ly On Demand Roadside Assistance

800-624-2892

Utility Trailer Sales S.E. TX

2018 Freightliner M2 / Century 12 Series LCG Features In The Ditch toolboxes and fenders. Also includes Cummins 5yr / 300,000 mile engine Warranty

Urgent.ly pays you more! Earn more money and get more jobs through our on-demand roadside assistance service.

Ecco LED lightbar available in 22”,47”, 50” and 58” length. Configured centrally or independent flashing warning modules. Choice of 3, 4, 6, 9 or 18 LED’s per module including dual color options.

TBSTowTrucks.com

951-522-9922

713-670-2000

GetUrgently.com

UtilityTrailers.com

52 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Warn Industries

West End Service

Whelen Engineering Company

WARN Series 12 Hydraulic-efficient 12,000 lb. capacity winch best-in-class freespool effort down to -40° F. Extreme low temperature aircraft-grade lubricants further reduce freespool effort.

Cummins ISX 585 HP, 18-spd manual, 20K FA, 20K PA, 46K RA on AR, (5) winch rotator, HHU Underlift, wireless controls, boom/tailboard painted charcoal, too many options to list.

Featuring Whelen’s innovative optic technology, V-Series™ warning/perimeter lightheads are versatile and efficient, utilizing multiple planes of light in a single lighthead.

800-425-4455

860-526-9504

WestEndService.com

Whelen.com

WorldClass Insurance Services

Worldwide Equipment Sales

Open communication and professionalism on all levels makes for satisfied clients. “A” rated carriers with competitive pricing.

Full service Jerr-dan, Landoll, Cottrell dealer. Four locations to serve you better. 200+ in stock units ready for immediate delivery.

Worldwide Equipment Sales California

877-789-1523

California 562-287-5200 Illinois 815-725-4400 Michigan 248-324-9040 Nevada 702-269-1471

720-387-0076 Warn.com

WorldClassIns.com Mytowagent.com

Large inventory of Jerr-Dan carriers and tow trucks with choice of chassis. Stocking CA legal 50' Landoll Trailers. Servicing West Coast. Quality equipment at competitive prices!

562-287-5200 NewTowTrucks.com

NewTowTrucks.com

Happy Holidays From all of us at American Towman Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 53

New Zacklift Distributor Zacklift (zacklift.com) recently announced that its new western states distributor is West Oz of Phoenix (Arizona). A truck supply distributor since 2000, West Oz has opened a new Zacklift sales and service building at 5240 S. 43rd Ave. in Phoenix. Along with Zacklift retrofit underlifts, Sales Director John Korkosz offers a full line of new, used and rebuilt truck parts through their online store a truckpartsphoenix.com.

Peterbilt Seeking Its ‘SuperFan’ Peterbilt Motors Co. (peterbilt. com) will celebrate a significant milestone with the production of its 1,000,000th truck in mid-January 2018. To commemorate this event, Peterbilt will celebrate by hosting a SuperFan campaign to identify its ultimate fan. The promotion will recognize five SuperFans through a campaign cul-

minating with a special presentation at the 2018 Mid America Trucking Show in Louisville, Kentucky. One finalist will be selected as the top SuperFan and will be honored with the keys to the unique, 1,000,000th production unit, a fully customized Peterbilt Model 567 Heritage. Peterbilt is accepting submissions from fans throughout the United States and Canada via a dedicated website at Peterbilt.com/SuperFanSearch through Dec. 22. People are encouraged to visit the website and submit their stories, videos and photos that show the passion that makes them a SuperFan. The five finalists will be selected just after the New Year. *** Anthony Gansle, Peterbilt’s director of marketing and sales administration, recently was elected to the Used Truck Association’s board of directors. Peterbilt is an active participant in the used truck industry and with the UTA. “Being a member of the UTA is an important part of the overall business

of Peterbilt. It gives us an opportunity to educate the used truck community on vehicles and new technologies that will be coming to the used market. It also allows us to receive feedback on specifications and concerns specific to the used truck market,” said Gansle.

Kenworth Debuts Remodeled Dealership Kenworth Sales Co. recently unveiled the $4.95 million remodeling and expansion of its Lewiston, Idaho, dealership at a re-opening ceremony with more than 200 customers, company representatives and community leaders. The 18-month renovation increased the number of service bays to 16, said Kyle Treadway, president/dealer principal of Kenworth Sales Co. “We remodeled this facility with our customers clearly in mind, responding to their needs for faster service, improved access and security, increased on-demand parts availability and support from a greater number of knowledgeable technicians who can quickly diagnose their trucks and get them back on the road, increasing their uptime,” Treadway said. Source: kenworth.com.

Tow Equipment Report Available Towing equipment market size is anticipated to see significant growth prospects from 2017 to 2022, according to a report available from absolutereports.com. The report focuses on global and regional market, providing information on major players like manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, traders, customers, investors and more. A release said the report provides an in-depth insight of the industry covering important parameters including market dynamics, opportunities, market share by region, price and gross margin, competitive landscape and profile, new project feasibility analysis, analysis and suggestions on new project investment. Source: military-technologies.net. 54 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Equipment That Goes

Boom How to determine and overcome resistance

To safely perform a recovery, the tower must know how much they’re pulling.

Note: North American Towing Academy President David Lambert was a longtime tower, trainer, AT Expo seminar presenter and recurring contributor to American Towman before his untimely death this spring. This was the last article he sent to me, just a few weeks before he died. I wanted to use it this month in his honor as we close out the year. —Ed.

56 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

by David Lambert

ust like our bodies, towing and recovery equipment has a limited life … an undetermined length of time it will retain its strength to perform. The equipment’s life expectancy is directly related to the amount of abuse we put it through. Every piece of towing and recovery equipment on your truck has a

rating; often it has two: its working load limit and its breaking strength. Knowing the equipment’s rating is only one part of a puzzle every tower must solve before and during a recovery. How can any operator safely perform a recovery if they have no idea how much they’re pulling during a

Continued on p. 58 ...

... continued from p. 56 recovery? So the second part of this puzzle is to determine the amount of resistance that must be overcome to move the load. More pieces of the puzzle would be the knowledge to overcome resistance while working within the limits of the equipment and a knowledge of rigging. Starting with the tow truck’s wrecker class, from light to heavy, each chassis has a rating. Their booms, winches and wire rope have ratings. Chains, shackles, hooks and straps all have ratings. These ratings aren’t recommendations, but rather limits to work within on a recovery. Winches: Most towers know a retracted boom has a greater ability to work than an extended boom, but some may not know a winch seldom has the ability to pull its rated capacity. The ability of a winch to work depends on the number of layers of wire rope on the drum. As layers are added, the winch rating decreases dramatically. The manufacturers’ winch rating is based on a bare drum. If there is only one layer of wire rope going across the drum, the winch has the ability to pull its rated capacity. As winching begins and the cable starts a second layer on the drum, the winch’s ability to pull is reduced. For every layer of wire rope that is added to the drum, the winch’s ability diminishes. An 8,000-lbs. winch with one layer of wire on the drum is rated at 8,000 lbs. At two layers, its rating is about 6,500 lbs. With four layers, the ability to pull is down to approximately 5,000

During pulls and rollovers, ensure chains won’t get pinched by springs or other suspension parts.

58 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

lbs. It works on the same principles as a retracted/extended boom. Wire rope: Breaking a wire rope is not a rare occurrence, but should be. Cables most often break because they’re overloaded; many breaks happen well below the manufacturers’ breaking strength rating. I’ve often heard, “I was only loading a light-duty vehicle onto the bed when it broke.” Wire rope that has been overloaded, kinked, bird nested, or flattened can break at any time, even when showing no sign of wear or damage. The WLL is the maximum amount of pull a tower should pull on a single line. The breaking strength is a “safety factor” for new wire rope at which point the cable is expected to fail, but once the wire has been abused, the point at which the wire might break is reduced. Even cable that has not been abused will eventually lose its strength due to normal wear and tear over time. Field repairs on wire rope are normally done with wedges or cable clamps (Crosby clips). When the clamps are used, three clamps are needed, 3” apart, with the U-bolts placed on the broken end of the wire. Even when properly installed (and torqued based on the size wire rope), the tower should not exceed 70 percent of the wire rope’s rating. Some basic rules to extend the life of the wire rope: • Never use a J-hook to perform the function of a snatch block for changing direction or a side pull. It causes immediate, visible damage. • Wire rope should be wound evenly across the drum, using tension to re-spool the winch after each recovery. • To prevent a load from spinning, a tag line should be used on any load suspended off the ground. • Protect wire rope from sharp edges using padding such as floor mats, fire hose, etc. • Both steel-core and fiber-core wire ropes require lubrication. Steel core most often. • Ensure the size of the wire and the sizes of the pulleys on the boom and the snatch blocks are

Snatch Blocks and Line Angles A snatch block attached to the load can create a two-part line. If the two lines are parallel to one another, each line part will pull 50 percent of the resistance. In order to reduce line tension, there are two rules when using a snatch block: The snatch block must be attached to the load to be moved, and the angle of the lines must be less than 120 degrees when using an anchor. Running a line from the winch, through a snatch block that’s attached to a load, then to an anchor point—rather than back to the truck—will create line angles at the snatch block. Anything other than parallel line parts will increase tension on each line part. The greater the angle, the more tension is on each line part— up to 100 percent when the angle reaches 120 degrees. compatible. Wire rope that is too large for the pulley will damage the wire rope. Recovery chains: All chains used on recoveries should be rated Grade 70 or above (the industry appears to be moving towards Grade 80 as a minimum). The chain grade can be identified either by the stamp on the links or the metal tag. Grades 80, 100 and 120 are all alloy chains, more commonly found on medium- and heavy-duty equipment, and the lowest grade recommended for overhead lifting. While inspecting chains and hooks, look for cracks, bends or links that may have been stretched out of shape. When attaching a grab hook to a link, the tower should follow the old rule about attaching the hook to the non-welded side of the link. During pulls and rollovers, ensure chains won’t get pinched by springs or other suspension parts. Larger loops in the chains are generally easier to remove than smaller, tighter loops once the recovery is completed and the vehicle is back on its wheels.

Resistance While understanding ratings is essential, your safety also centers on your ability to determine resistance and how to overcome that resistance. There are three major factors to consider when performing a recovery: stabilizing the tow truck, determining a direction to pull and estimating the resistance. There are four factors that determine the amount of resistance on the other end of the wire rope: • The vehicle’s weight. • The type of surface. • Any slopes (up or down). • Any damage that affects the vehicle’s ability to roll. Vehicle weight: Light-duty autos will have the vehicle weight on the driver’s doorplate. The tower will have to estimate the weight of larger vehicles. Generally, light-duty vehicles weigh less than 6,000 lbs., mediumduty up to 33,000 lbs. and heavy-duty above 33,000 lbs. Surface types: These are hard,

Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

Breaking a wire rope is not a rare occurrence, but should be.

medium and soft. Hard surfaces are roads, parking lots, ice or just dry dirt. Medium surfaces are up to 3” of sand, dirt, mud or gravel. There are three kinds of soft surfaces: mired to the axle, mired to the wheel well or mired to the windshield (or higher). Nearly all soft surfaces will be affected by suction that can dramatically increase the resistance by two to four times. Slopes: Whether the slope is up or

down, the amount of resistance can increase or decrease and will often overload the wire. Even a slight slope, given the conditions, may exceed the wire’s working load limit. Damage: Any damage that restricts a vehicle from rolling increases the resistance significantly. For each tire that will not roll, add 25 percent of the weight of the vehicle, up to 100 percent. Understanding all parts of the recovery puzzle is essential to the safety of the operator, the equipment, the vehicle and the public. Knowledge of the equipment and frequent equipment inspections can help ensure you go home after your shift. Towing company owners have an obligation to their employees to provide the training that can help ensure their safety. Likewise, each operator has the responsibility to take every opportunity to learn more about this job. Learning through experience alone can be an expensive, dangerous lesson.

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 59

Jerr-Dan Salutes Winer, Annual Parade Jerr-Dan Corp. (jerrdan.com) congratulated its longstanding Jerr-Dan distributor Pat Winer, president of Worldwide Equipment Sales, on the 10th year anniversary of his nonprofit ”Tow Trucks for Tots” charity parade (towtrucksfortots.com). “We are very proud of Pat’s commitment for helping those in need beyond the towing and recovery industry,” said Jeff Irr, senior director of sales for Jerr-Dan. “We are honored to have a long-lasting business relationship with a distributor whose charitable and business contributions have made a profound difference in the communities they serve.” “Tow Trucks for Tots,” is made up of Worldwide employees, the towing community and its suppliers and volunteers, who collect new, unwrapped toys for children during the holiday season. In addition, “Tow Trucks for Tots” currently holds the Guinness Book of World Records for the largest

60 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

tow truck parade that is part of the toy drive. Because of his business contributions to the towing industry and founder of the non-profit “Tow Trucks for Tots,” Winer was a 2017 inductee into the International Towing & Recovery Hall of Fame. “We congratulate Pat for this recognition. In addition to his business contributions to the towing and recovery industry, he’s been a supporter of those in need in our communities pioneering his ‘Tow Trucks for Tots’ community initiative,” said Mike VanAken, director for Jerr-Dan Aftermarket Support. (See page 9 for more.)

General Hayden to Keynote Work Truck Show General Michael Hayden, a retired four-star general and former director of the Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency, will serve as keynote speaker at The Work Truck Show 2018. His address will

take place on March 8 as part of the President’s Breakfast & NTEA Annual Meeting. The Work Truck Show is scheduled March 6-9 at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, Indiana. “This is one of the most relevant keynote addresses you will have the opportunity to hear,” said Todd Davis, 2018 NTEA Convention chairman, and VP of Phenix Enterprises Inc. “General Hayden is an expert on intelligence matters like cyber security, government surveillance and geopolitics, and he has dedicated his life to protecting both American security and liberty. He will offer an invaluable leadership perspective on navigating through key challenges industry businesses face today.” A ticket is required to attend the President’s Breakfast, which is sponsored by Ford Commercial Vehicles. To purchase a ticket and register for the Show, visit worktruckshow.com. Source: ntea.com.

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AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 61

Spirit Ride enters Baltimore as record crowds gather at American Towman Exposition XXIX. Show was indeed "One for the Ages."

Spirit Rides

Triumphantly into Baltimore

Right, David Duchnik at the microphone.

Left, Baltimore’s Police Commissioner Kevin Davis addresses Spirit Ride ceremony inside the Baltimore Convention Center. Above, Police escorte the Spirit Ride into the city, passing by the Convention Center.

by Steve Calitri

ight police motorcycles escorted Spirit and a procession of tow trucks into Baltimore and through the Inner Harbor. Ted’s Towing and operator Willie Ridley carried the ceremonial casket. Spirit was relayed to Ted’s from Linhard’s Towing at B/A Products plant in Columbia before routing to Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. It was the 140th and

62 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

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final relay. The ceremony that evening featured an address by Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin Davis and the presence of Sgt. McKinley Smith and his motorcycle detail. Tow bosses, David Duchnik and Linda Unruh, who lost their sons on the roadsides, also spoke. Spirit now rests through the winter and will resume its Ride in the spring.

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 63

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64 â&#x20AC;¢ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Winter Driving Best Practices by David A. Kolman

Keep an adequate following distance behind plow trucks to void flying sanding materials, snow, ice or debris that could be kicked up from the plowing. Gillfoto image.

inter is considered the most dangerous driving season. In many states, winter weather brings heavy snow, freezing rain, flooding and bitterly cold temperatures—all of which can wreak havoc on road conditions. Complicating things, even though the weather may not look bad when you head out, conditions can change in a hurry. Consequently, winter requires heightened awareness and driving skills. Safety officials offer the following winter driving tips to help ensure that drivers stay safe when operating in winter weather.

In Vehicles • Be sure all vehicles have been winterized to prevent any major problems. • Always wear seat belts. • Be certain all vehicle lights are on and working. • Keep headlights, brake lights, turn signals, running lights and reflective tape clear of snow and

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ice so that other drivers can better see you. • Keep windows and mirrors clean and free of ice to maintain as much visibility as possible. • Brush snow and ice from the vehicle’s rooftop and hood before traveling to help keep the windshield and mirrors clean for better visibility.

Maneuvering • Minimize distractions. • Accelerate carefully and gradually. • Adjust speed according to road conditions. • Maintain a consistent speed. • Don’t use cruise control. • Decrease speed and increase following distance because ice and snow decrease tire traction. This allows more reaction time if something occurs on the roadway ahead. • Anticipate problems. • Look as far down the road as possible and try to spot potential hazards, such as a vehicle on the shoulder.

• Avoid sudden braking and abrupt driving maneuvers. • Steer with smooth, deliberate and precise movements. • Keep in mind that hard acceleration, hard braking and sharp turns all decrease traction. • If evasive action is needed, gentle deceleration and steering around any obstacle may be better than just braking. Less distance is required to steer around an object than to brake to a stop. • Brake early when you see stop signs or red lights. • Signal turns well in advance.

Tire Spray Pay attention to the water coming off the tires of vehicles around you. If you notice a lot of spray coming off the tires, the roadway is wet. If there is relatively less spray, it means the roadway has started to freeze and extra caution is necessary. Little tire spray can also be an indication of black ice.

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AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 65

... continued from p. 65

Trouble Spots To reduce the chance of losing vehicle control, use extra caution and decrease speed when approaching curves, intersections, bridges, overpasses, entrance/exit ramps and windy areas. Be prepared to react if black ice—a thin coat of highly transparent ice that can lead to hazardous driving conditions—is encountered. Black ice forms when the temperature is close to freezing. It is almost invisible to the naked eye and is often mistaken for a wet or newly paved road. Watch out for these clues to possible black ice: • The road surface looks slightly wet like a water puddle. • Low-lying areas that may have standing water or runoff from nearby melting snow banks or puddles. • Bridges, underpasses and intersections can be areas of black ice. So can road areas that are shaded from the sun.

66 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

• Roadside trees and signs have a frosting of ice, even though the road surface only looks wet. • Ice builds up on outside mirror arms or backs, antennas or the top corners of the windshield. • Water spray from tires of vehicles in front of you suddenly stops, indicating an ice patch.

Snowplows Sharing the road with a snowplow, salt or sand truck can create some special challenges, as well as the need for extra caution. To minimize the risk of an accident: • Don’t follow these vehicles too closely, as they stop, turn, reverse or exit frequently—often with little warning. You may not be able to stop in time on a slippery roadway. • Never pass a snowplow. Snowplows create dangerous clouds of blowing snow that may create whiteout conditions, concealing the road and driving hazards. • Never drive between snowplows. Teams of snowplows are

used to clear the roadway faster and safer. Trying to drive between them greatly increases the chances of an accident. • Keep an adequate following distance. There could be flying sanding materials, snow, ice or debris in the clouds of blowing snow kicked up from the plowing. • Yield to snowplows, salt trucks or sanding trucks. Be courteous and give these vehicles the right of way. Winter weather conditions are responsible for some 540,000 accidents and 140,000 injuries every year, according to a U.S. DOT 10-year survey of weather-related accident statistics. By employing safe winter driving best practices and exercising good judgment, you can stay safe on the road and avoid becoming a statistic.

AT Chassis Editor David Kolman is a multi-faceted trucking trade journalist with experience in print, online and broadcasting. He has hosted trucker television and radio programs and helped write trucking industry documentaries and video programs.

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AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 67

Are You the Family Bank? by John S. Freeman

hat do you say when an adult child asks for financial help? Do you know, or are you unprepared and react out of the instant? It is hard to know when to cut off being the family automated teller machine, especially when you are a business owner. Heck, it’s hard enough just to sit down and think clearly about it. But you need to know—preferably while your child is still just a child—and have a plan for when you can and will help and when your best parenting move is to say, “No.” While this sounds like just Parenting 101, it’s also key to your own financial and retirement planning as a business owner. (And know that sometimes what you want to do is not something you can afford financially to do and that’s just a fact of life.) As a parent, what do you believe you are obligated to provide for your children, and through what developmental stages? What is emotionally important for you to take care of (through what ages) and can you afford it? What costs will you consider splitting with your child? When and what are involved when you go hands-off and let your child claim and experience and deal with his/her own victories and failures (including the picking up of the pieces)? What are your rules; what’s important to you as a parent? What are your financial capabilities? A vehicle? During high school, college, after? College or post-high school education expenses are a big question when it comes to financial planning. If post-high school education/training is important to you, then we financial planners suggest you start planning and saving as early as possible. Then, well before they get to senior year, decide and be clear on what level or 68 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

It is hard to know when to cut off being the family automated teller machine, especially when you are a business owner.

type of school you can and will pay for.

Communication Also, we suggest you be clear on how else you might help—maybe help

them find work during high school summers at your company or elsewhere, maybe help search scholarship and financial aid opportunities including

Continued on p. 70 ...

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AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 69

... continued from p. 68 perhaps from your business or industry. What about grad school? Does it change what you will help pay for once your child is married? These are conversations you need to have with your spouse and then with your children when they are young—junior high at the latest—and not next month as your daughter or son finishes high school and is getting ready to leave for college out of state. Once you and your spouse are clear on your goals, if you work formally with a financial planner, it’s helpful to include those goals in your overall financial plan and budget. Clients often tell me that they will pay for college—room, board and tuition—but not beer and pizza. What about books? Have you considered community college and then a university? Are you planning on just four years of school? What if he drops out and later wants to go back or go part time? You can look for help navigating the costs and myriad financial options

70 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

available to your family from your high school guidance office, the financial aid office of the schools your child is interested in and your financial planner.

529 Funds Just one idea: State 529 collegeinvestment plans let parents and grandparents (or any adult) set aside money for post-high school accredited education. Note: Post-high school and accredited. Beautician school, technical programs, community college, Harvard—all can be accredited. Fund 529s cover room, board, tuition, books; some cover mandated college fees such as activity fees. No 529 pays for beer and pizza or “gin and golf balls” in my father’s lingo. Another key thing about a 529 is that you—or the adult who creates the fund for the child—are the fund’s owner. The child does not get control at age 18 or 21 like other savings programs. Since you are the owner, if the funds are not needed you decide what to do with them. If the money is used for college-

approved expenses, the money comes out tax-free. (May be subject to state, local and alternative minimum tax.) If you distribute 529 funds for a notlegit cost (not a clear educational cost at an accredited post-high school institution) that money is taxable to the recipient: the kid. Other than higher education, what other “Bank of Mom and Dad” items are “normal” for you? What about the massive car mechanic’s bill or a car at all? While you may decide to help with the purchase of a car or truck, as a financial planner I recommend you do not pay for vehicle maintenance. The child buys the tires, pays for the gas and the oil changes. Just a thought, but if dad buys the tires, then the young driver tends to leave tire marks on the road and break speed rules instead of conserving gas mileage and tire life.

Adulting 101 Your children’s weddings … I have had clients spend the gamut from about $2,000 on a wedding to $125,000 on an event that was to be a wedding

(but didn’t happen). Again, family rules should be set early. Helping with their first house goes back to the car. If your child pays for the house, she has a tendency to look more at her price range and affordability vs. what she remembers being raised in, which is probably not your first house or apartment. Maybe what your children remember growing up in was actually your third or fourth house. A great rule is to buy your first house first, do not buy your third house first (because the mortgage and upkeep will likely kill your child financially). One thing you can do is to help your child before purchasing to think through his or her monthly budget and income, and then the other pieces involved with housing—taxes, insurance, maintenance, appliances, etc. Do your children have any desire for your furniture or dishes if you’re not using them or upgrade? My wife and I have three children and a house full of stuff we thought they would want in their homes; we still have the stuff (including a dog). Another area I see come up more

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and more is the divorce bailout. Do you have him/her (and grandkids) move in? Do you help with an apartment or house? What do you do? A good answer is, “Yes.” Do what is best, not easy, for your child and grandchildren. Your child may need to be near you to help with the grandkids or transportation, but they may not need to live with you for two to three years. The umbilical cord was cut, but many of us have it reattached regularly.

At Work What about your company and your kid? Do you hire him? Where does she start? Watching this professionally, we have found it can work out for the best when the owner’s child is hired as if he/she was any other applicant. You look at the skills needed for the job and see if the family member fits. Sounds easy, but it’s hard to do for many. If you are interested in your children learning and taking over the family business, they need to learn the family business. They need to

learn the yard. They need to understand earning a paycheck, not a salary. They need to learn about regular clients, contract tows, cash customers and motor clubs. They need to learn. Invest in them, yes, but only if the investment is worth the business risk. Teach your children life lessons early. Set your education plan early. Look at the skills and interests of your kids: Where will they be a good fit? From both professional and personal experience, I have found that once the rules are set and options are communicated, most children move themselves forward within that framework. They need to prove willing and able to work with the money they have available, and they need to earn their own money to contribute and figure out how to do that. About the author John S. Freeman is a registered principal at Keating & Associates in Overland Park, Kan., where they “believe it takes a small business to understand a small business.” Their services for business owners include personal financial organizer, employee benefits, business succession and business consulting.

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 71

Problematic ‘Voluntary’ Repossession by Mark Lacek

’m not sure what happened, but I woke up this morning and I was 62 years old. It was a real “WTF” moment. It seems just the other year I was like … only 32 or something. If this is some kind of joke, it’s not very funny. Wait a minute, isn’t there supposed to be some sort of retirement party now? Isn’t 62 time for me to step out of the way and let the younger guy take over? Is it about time for old Mark and his trusty bag of solutions to jump into the slow lane and make way for those technical whiz wonders to make those hard-to-keep clients satisfied? I think not! Traveling in the fast lane, I check the rearview mirror and don’t see a soul riding my behind … it’s pedal to the metal for me—I’m staying in the fast lane.

Just Shut Up Here’s one for you: I spent two hours in the back of a sheriff’s squad car the other day. Really, this just happened last week. It was during a voluntary repossession on a 40’ cargo trailer. The debtor sent an email two weeks prior with the code to the combination lock and the address to the yard where the trailer was sitting. The client sent me the assignment with a copy of the email from the debtor. 72 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

With an officer on each side of me, I was led to an awaiting squad car, rear door already open and waiting.

When I arrived at the address, the trailer was sitting there exactly as the paperwork described. I opened the lock using the combination provided by the debtor in the email. I pulled into the yard in my trusty Ford F-250 and closed the gate behind me. As I drove around to the back of the property, I noticed two missing wheels and tires on one side of the trailer. A quick look inside the trailer revealed a set of tires and wheels, next to a 5-ton jack. I was busy in about a minute jacking up the trailer. Then I heard those familiar words I usually hear on an episode of “Cops.” “Put your hands in the air.” I turned around and there were about four guns pointed at me. “Do not look back,” the voice roared. “Walk backwards toward my voice.” My 30 years in the repossession business has taught me many lessons. High up on that list is to know when to keep your mouth shut and follow directions. This was definitely one of those keep-your-mouth-shut moments. Especially when there are many guns pointed in my direction, I remind myself to shut my mouth and make no sudden moves. After walking backwards for about 20 feet, I was told to kneel. “Put your hands on your head.” I complied, still not uttering a

word. I felt the officer’s hand on mine, moving it down to my side and behind me until both my wrists were cuffed. With an officer on each side of me, I was led to an awaiting squad car, rear door already open and waiting. A crowd had gathered and about five sheriff’s squad cars were in a small half circle, lights all flashing and weapons going back in leather holsters. I saw two officers shaking hands. I thought that was a good time to state my case. “Sir,” I said to the young officer standing guard. “I have all of the paperwork here in my briefcase, this is a voluntary repossession. I have a repossession assignment as well as an email from the debtor giving me the address the combination to the lock and written permission to enter the property and remove the trailer.” As I said all of this to the young officer, I could see the confusion beginning to set in. After about a minute, the officers were all walking in circles, making phone calls and asking for my paperwork. I could see the officers were trying to find a reason to arrest me ... for something. They inspected my truck and verified my repossession license. They knew, however, they would have to let me loose. They all looked at me like anglers who caught a 20-lbs. bass that still had to be set free.

The deputy contacted the debtor. When he arrived, he told the officers he had forgot that he had sent the email and changed his mind about surrendering the trailer. After about an hour and a half, I was released. (There was a delay in releasing me because the handcuffs were rusted shut and the key wasn’t working.) It also took about another hour to get the feeling back in my legs from forcing my 6’5” frame into the back of that little space. Soon I was on my way back to my repo yard—empty handed—in another voluntary repo gone bad.

Christmas Wishes I’m looking at the calendar and I see January 2018 is right around the corner. I guess it is time to write my Christmas wish list. (A quick look back at 2017 reminds me that I worked my butt off all year, did some good things and even remembered my wedding anniversary and wife’s birthday. Nice!) Anyways, here’s my wish list for 2018:

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1. Clients need to stop blowing smoke up my pants leg. If you’re still a client of mine, it’s because I let you into my world of solutions. Every day I get a call from some lender in need of a miracle after the other guy—who charges less—didn’t help and screwed up the whole assignment.

Clients, please stop asking me to break the law. I’m not sidestepping any law to solve your problems. 2. You’re playing by my rules; my fee is what I quoted you, not what you quoted me. It costs me a ton of money to solve your problem and my hero, President Trump, made it very clear it’s OK to reap a nice profit. I’m not in business to break even.

3. Clients, please stop asking me to break the law. I’m not sidestepping any law to solve your problems. We do not cut locks, climb over backyard fences or go into an attached garage. We do not “yank” anyone out of their car as they do on the “reality” TV shows. 4. It’s OK to be a hard-working stiff, just like me. If I run into you at a conference or convention, whether you’re a client or a fellow repossessor, don’t act as if you don’t get your hands dirty. We both know that the tie you’re wearing likely has been in the closet since the last convention. 5. Hey Mr. Banker, I’m charging the debtor if he wants his personal property back ... and he’s paying cash. It was a job cleaning out his car and putting it into bags. I will call it want I want—admin fee, extra labor, yard fee, whatever— and he’s going to pay. 6. Stop asking for 10 days free storage. No … just, no. I don’t care if the buffoon across town gives you free storage; I don’t. I’m in business to

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AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 73

... continued from p. 73 earn a profit, not break even. 7. Stop asking me to work contingent. If you cancel the repo assignment because the customer brings his account current, it’s probably because

he saw my $80,000 truck pass by his house. That truck carries an insured, well-paid professional behind the wheel and uses valuable fuel, oil, etc. You got paid … I get paid. 8. Stop asking me to charge less

for a voluntary repossession. Voluntary repossessions use the same truck, same agent, same fuel and the same insurance. In fact, I have to contact the debtor who usually asks me to pick the car up at his convenience, not mine. This usually means during rush hour. Often the customer changes his mind when our agent arrives at the location, or the agent has to wait until the customer cleans out the car, removes the hubcaps and custom stereo and says the factory radio is in the trunk. (Sometimes, you wind up squeezed into the back of a squad car like a sardine for an hour or two.) 9. Please do not raise my health care premiums in 2018. 10. Finally, but most important of all, please stop the killing, stop the hurt, stop the threats, stop the acts of evil. Can people just accept each other’s differences? Can we embrace each other’s traditions, foods and cultures? Can we learn from each other and use what we learn to just make the Earth a better place? Can we just stop the fighting? Be safe.

Repo Editor Mark Lacek authored the Certified Commercial Recovery Agent certification program and has more than 30 years of recovery experience. He is the former editor of “Professional Repossessor” magazine. Email him at Mark@commercialassetsolutions.com.

74 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

GoFundMe Honors Repo Agent Jim Ford, of Belleville, Illinois, felt terrible when he had to repossess an elderly couple's car in Red Bud. He raised money through GoFundMe to get it back for them, repaired it and filled it with Thanksgiving goodies. Now, GoFundMe has started GoFundMe Studios, which will share “stories that emerge through GoFundMe.” The first was of Ford and his efforts to help the couple. “Our platform is home to some of the most uplifting, moving stories about the good in people,” said Raquel Rozas, CMO of GoFundMe, in a news release. Ford first tried to work with the bank that financed Stan and Patty Kipping’s car. After that failed, he set up a page on GoFundMe that raised the $2,500 to pay the car plus another $1,000 to help the elderly couple with other bills.

Continued on p. 76 ...

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Find more Repo news each week on

Repotimes.com.

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 75

... continued from p. 75 “I’m really ready to crawl under a rock,” Ford told the “Belleville News-Democrat” at the time, regarding all the attention he’d received. “All I did was set up a GoFundMe page.” Once the story went national, the GoFundMe account raised an additional $23,000 for the couple. Ford’s help also gave the Red Bud couple a happy final few months together. Stan Kipping died earlier this year. “Stan and I were at peace because we weren’t worrying about bill collectors,” Patty Kipping told the BND in April. “I had a happy few months because of what Jim did for us.” Source: bnd.com.

Repo Dispute Hits the Road Michigan authorities were called after an attempt to repossess a car got out of hand last month. The incident began when three employees of a repossession company attempted to repossess the car of a couple from Mount Haley Township, Michigan. During the attempt, a 42-year-old woman jumped in the car. Before she drove away from the scene, one of the repossessors hopped into the passenger seat, and she headed off with him inside the car, according to the Midland County Sheriff’s Office. She could not find her phone to call 911, and drove to a Homer Township store to go inside for help. The woman’s husband, as well as the other two repo agents, followed her to the store. The group argued in the parking lot until deputies and police arrived. Neither side wished to pursue charges and the car was turned over to the repossessors. Source: ourmidland.com.

ALS Resolvion Moves to New Facility Repossession management and skip-tracing services provider ALS Resolvion recently moved into a larger facility in Charlotte, North Carolina. With its new facility, the company stated that it has increased capacity by more than 50 percent. The new space also includes expanded training facilities and more room for IT infrastructure. “With our new facility we will drive better operating results and efficiencies and our clients will gain a better experience as well. Our success has brought growth,” said Jose Mendiola, ALS president. “We simply outgrew the old facility and took the appropriate steps to ensure our new facility will meet our expansion needs over the next 10 years,” Mendiola said. Source: autoremarketing.com. 76 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

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AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 • 77

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MOK?TNU RPJU AKRI>=1U MROJU 6RPIOPRSO@ 26OPITUSLTUGOJ<9 8M=UT?TNCUSNHI>UOMUJOE< ETNTPS@U:LOMUQPT=URMUDTKK=UOMUJOEETNTPS@1 $NOPBOPBU OSU RKKU SQBTSLTNU OMU DLRS 6RPIOPRSOU IRKKMU SLTU HPOS9MU POI>PRGT DNOSSTPU TKTBRPSKCU QPU SLTU MOJTU QEU SLT HPOSUSLRSUMSRSTM=U25RNNCOPBUQPURPU K9 %RGOKCU:NRJOSOQP@1 2 HNU ERGOKCU OMU ?TNCU SOBLS@U 4T LR?TU 0 U ERGOKCU GTGATNMU DLQU DQN> EQNU HMU RPJU DTU PQDU LR?TU SLTU SLONJ BTPTNRSOQPUMSRNSOPB=1U6RPIOPRSOUMROJ@ Editorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s note This article previously appeared on American Towman Magazineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sister site, TowIndustryWeek.com. Check it out for daily news updates and new features each week.

George L. Nitti has written for American Towman since 2009. He started out as a news writer and now writes a weekly feature on TowIndustryWeek.com, Tow Illustrated, which spotlights the tow truck graphics.

by George L. Nitti

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80 â&#x20AC;¢ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Work the non-traffic sideâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM - December 2017 â&#x20AC;¢ 81

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82 â&#x20AC;¢ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

by Steve Calitri

Interstate Towing Wins Contract Interstate Towing, headquartered in Chicopee, Massachusetts, will now be the primary tow company for Southwick. Interstate was approved by the Southwick Select Board on the recommendation of Police Chief David Ricardi and Chief Administrative Officer Karl Stinehart. Ricardi said five companies expressed interest in being the town's tow company of record. After site visits to both finalists and an extensive interview, Ricardi and Stinehart agreed Interstate was the best option for Southwick. "They're very progressive," Ricardi said of Interstate. "They have an app I can give to my officers and they can follow the tow truck route live." Ricardi also said Interstate is a primary service provider for AAA, something other tow companies did not offer.” Source: masslive.com.

Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM -December 2017 • NORTH 83

NORTH 84 â&#x20AC;¢ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM -December 2017 • NORTH 85

Appraisal Course Credited to Towman

Thank you for visiting us at AT Expo

NORTH 86 • December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

The Workforce Development Center at Springfield Technical Community College in Massachusetts is offering a certified auto damage appraisal course, thanks to towman Bill Johnson, according to an STCC release (stcc.edu). The 60-hour course is designed to train insurance claims professionals and auto body technicians for the Massachusetts Auto Damage Appraisers License Examination. The idea for the course came from Johnson, who owns Pleasant Street Auto Body & Repair in South Hadley. He’s also a member of the STCC Board of Trustees. “STCC changed my life,” Johnson said. “I took the course in the late ‘70s. I never attended college. I took this one course, and I got my appraiser’s license, which allowed me to open my body shop. It allowed me to expand into the mechanical, towing and other business entities. It truly was a life-changing experience.” Johnson said people who complete the certificate and obtain an appraiser’s license will be in demand in the job market. “You need to have the ability to look at damage and understand the damage and the dynamics of a crash,” Johnson said. “You have primary damage, secondary damage, hidden damage. You need to understand how to reverse that damage, whether it’s by replacing or repairing. You have to have good negotiation skills and good math skills. This course will help prepare someone looking for an entry-level job as an auto damage appraiser.” Approved by the Massachusetts Division of Insurance, the training offers an in-depth discussion of insurance regulations, policy arbitration and work completion forms. The course will include use of flat rate manual, collision diagnosis, cost estimation and preparation of written estimates. Source: STCC.com.

Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM -December 2017 • NORTH 87

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CopyrightÂŠ2017 American Towman Magazine. Characters and stories are fictitious; no resemblance to real life characters is intended.

Send your thoughts/suggestions on the Adventures to scalitri@towman.com or American Towman, 7 West St, Warwick NY 10990

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AMERICANTOWMAN.COM -December 2017 • SOUTH 83

SOUTH 84 â&#x20AC;¢ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM -December 2017 • SOUTH 85

All Wound Up

Tips and tricks on the back end

Most operators hook each leg of their V-bridle in a key slot on each side of the carrier.

A fifth-wheel pin puller is an inexpensive tool to assist reaching wire rope.

Some operators hook both legs of the V-bridle on the same side of the deck .

by Randy Olson

It is important that the operator regularly inspects the wire rope and has it replaced immediately if it is frayed or damaged. Keeping your wire rope wound neatly and tightly on the winch drum will help prolong the life, but that often is more easily said than done. Most carrier winches are equipped with a spring-loaded tensioner that is usually a steel plate that holds pressure on the wire rope as it is powered in or the winch is free-spooled and

SOUTH 86 â&#x20AC;˘ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

the winch line manually pulled out. One of the inherent problems of this design is that it will also hold pressure on the wire rope causing it to â&#x20AC;&#x153;bird nestâ&#x20AC;? on the drum if the winch is powered out and there is no force pulling the line as it is let out. Different operators have preferred methods on how and where they hook their winch line between tows that have pros and cons to keeping the wire rope wound up neatly. A common method is for operators

to hook each leg of their V-bridle in a key slot on each side of the approach plate and then tightening up the line. The drawback to this is that it is difficult for most operators to reach the wire rope to pull on it as you power it out to prevent bird nesting. Some operators may freewheel the winch and pull it out manually, but that requires extra time and steps if you have a manual winch clutch release. Also, on many carriers, it is only located on the driver’s side putting you in harm’s way with traffic as you disengage and engage it. One easy trick that some operators use is a fifth-wheel pin puller. You can make your own by bending a piece of steel rod, or you can purchase a professional looking, lightweight aluminum one (even available in assorted colors) for just over $10 at many truck stops. The operator can easily grab the wire rope with the puller and pull it toward them as they let the line out from the control station. It also comes in useful to apply a little extra tension as you wind your line in. I am sure that most of you have had times when it was difficult to grab one leg of your V-bridle or to reach a chain or securement strap under a vehicle. The fifth-wheel pin puller is ideal for that, being easier and safer to grab that chain or strap rather than laying across a carrier rail or on the deck and reaching under. Another method you may want to use is to hook both legs of your Vbridle on the same side of the deck; in most instances, from a safety standpoint, that being on the passenger’s side. By employing this method, your wire rope will run diagonally from the winch to the rear of the carrier, allowing the operator to easily reach the wire rope to apply tension as it is wound in or out. In all methods, you should always wear gloves when handling wire rope for safety. Some operators also choose to remove their bridle and lock it in the

Continued on p. S 88 ... Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM -December 2017 • SOUTH 87

... continued from p. S 87 toolbox to prevent theft, and then wind the wire rope all the way in. This is the most time-consuming, taking extra time to wind the winch line in at the end of each tow and also the most unsafe as the operator will usually free-spool the winch and have to walk up the deck to grab the hook to pull the line out. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an easy way to have a slip and fall. As with anything in towing, it is never a one-size-fits-all solution. Many operators and companies have different preferences. Whatever methods you choose, please stay safe out there and if you have a different procedure, we would love to hear from you. Remember regularly to inspect the winch line for damage and keep it tightly and neatly wound up. About the author Longtime towing industry veteran Randy Olson is the VP of Western Operations for Worldwide Equipment Sales. Contact him at rolson@newtowtrucks.com.

SOUTH 88 â&#x20AC;˘ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

All Wound Up Most operators hook each leg of their V-bridle in a key slot on each side of the carrier.

A fifth-wheel pin puller is an inexpensive tool to assist reaching wire rope.

Some operators hook both legs of the V-bridle on the same side of the deck .

by Randy Olson

can be associated with a catastrophic failure if the line breaks sending the vehicle sailing down off the back off your carrier deck. It is important that the operator regularly inspects the wire rope and has it replaced immediately if it is frayed or damaged. Keeping your wire rope wound neatly and tightly on the

MIDWEST 84 â&#x20AC;˘ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Tips and tricks on the back end

winch drum will help prolong the life, but that often is more easily said than done. Most carrier winches are equipped with a spring-loaded tensioner that is usually a steel plate that holds pressure on the wire rope as it is powered in or the winch is free-spooled and the winch line manually pulled out. One of the inherent problems of this design is that it will also hold pressure on the wire rope causing it to “bird nest” on the drum if the winch is powered out and there is no force pulling the line as it is let out.

Remember regularly to inspect the winch line for damage. Different operators have preferred methods on how and where they hook their winch line between tows that have pros and cons to keeping the wire rope wound up neatly. A common method is for operators to hook each leg of their Vbridle in a key slot on each side of the approach plate and then tightening up the line. The drawback to this is that it is difficult for most operators to reach the wire rope to pull on it as you power it out to prevent bird nesting. Some operators may freewheel the winch and pull it out manually, but that requires extra time and steps if you have a manual winch clutch release. Also, on many carriers, it is only located on the driver’s side putting you in harm’s way with traffic as you disengage and engage it. One easy trick that some operators use is a fifth-wheel pin puller. You can make your own by bending a piece of steel rod, or you can purchase a professional looking, lightweight aluminum one (even available in assorted colors) for just over $10 at many truck stops. The operator can easily grab the wire

Continued on p. M 86 ... Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM -December 2017 • MIDWEST 85

... continued from p. M 85 rope with the puller and pull it toward them as they let the line out from the control station. It also comes in useful to apply a little extra tension as you wind your line in. I am sure that most of you have had times when it was difficult to grab one leg of your V-bridle or to reach a chain or securement strap under a vehicle. The fifth-wheel pin puller is ideal for that, being easier and safer to grab that chain or strap rather than laying across a carrier rail or on the deck and reaching under. Another method you may want to use is to hook both legs of your Vbridle on the same side of the deck; in most instances, from a safety standpoint, that being on the passengerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s side. By employing this method, your wire rope will run diagonally from the winch to the rear of the carrier, allowing the operator to easily reach the wire rope to apply tension as it is wound in or out. In all methods, you should always wear gloves when handling wire rope for safety. Some operators also choose to remove their bridle and lock it in the toolbox to prevent theft, and then wind the wire rope all the way in. This is the most time-consuming, taking extra time to wind the winch line in at the end of each tow and also the most unsafe as the operator will usually free-spool the winch and have to walk up the deck to grab the hook to pull the line out. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an easy way to have a slip and fall. As with anything in towing, it is never a one-size-fits-all solution. Many operators and companies have different preferences. Whatever methods you choose, please stay safe out there and if you have a different procedure, we would love to hear from you. Remember regularly to inspect the winch line for damage and keep it tightly and neatly wound up. About the author Longtime towing industry veteran Randy Olson is the VP of Western Operations for Worldwide Equipment Sales. Contact him at rolson@newtowtrucks.com. MIDWEST 86 â&#x20AC;˘ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Work the non-traffic side–Stay Safe!

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MIDWEST 88 â&#x20AC;¢ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

Work the Passenger side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM -December 2017 • WEST 83

All Wound Up Tips and tricks on the back end

Most operators hook each leg of their V-bridle in a key slot on each side of the carrier. by Randy Olson

hen it comes to your car carrier, operators will agree that the most used and often abused component is the wire rope on the winch. Virtually every vehicle on your carrier is loaded and unloaded with the wire rope doing the heavy work. More importantly, we all know the dangers and costs that can be associated with a catastrophic failure if the line breaks sending the vehicle sailing down off the back off your carrier deck. It is important that the operator regularly inspects the wire rope and has it replaced immediately if it is Some operators hook both legs of the V-bridle on the same side of the deck . WEST 84 â&#x20AC;˘ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

frayed or damaged. Keeping your wire rope wound neatly and tightly on the winch drum will help prolong the life, but that often is more easily said than done. Most carrier winches are equipped with a spring-loaded tensioner that is usually a steel plate that holds pressure on the wire rope as it is powered in or the winch is free-spooled and the winch line manually pulled out. One of the inherent problems of this design is that it will also hold pressure on the wire rope causing it to “bird nest” on the drum if the winch is powered out and there is no force pulling the line as it is let out. Different operators have preferred methods on how and where they hook their winch line between tows that have pros and cons to keeping the wire rope wound up neatly. A common method is for operators to hook each leg of their Vbridle in a key slot on each side of the approach plate and then tightening up the line. The drawback to this is that it is difficult for most operators to reach the wire rope to pull on it as you power it out to prevent bird nesting. Some operators may freewheel the winch and pull it out manually, but that requires extra time and steps if you have a manual winch clutch release. Also, on many carriers, it is only located on the driver’s side putting you in harm’s way with traffic as you disengage and engage it. One easy trick that some operators use is a fifth-wheel pin puller. You can make your own by bending a piece of steel rod, or you can purchase a professional looking, lightweight aluminum one (even available in assorted colors) for just over $10 at many truck stops. The operator can easily grab the wire rope with the puller and pull it toward them as they let the line out from the control station. It also comes in useful to apply a little extra tension as you wind your line in. I am sure that most of you have

Continued on p. W 86 ... Work the Passenger side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM -December 2017 • WEST 85

A fifth-wheel pin puller is an inexpensive tool to assist reaching wire rope.

Some operators remove store their bridle in the toolbox and wind the wire rope all the way in.

... continued from p. W 85 had times when it was difficult to grab one leg of your V-bridle or to reach a chain or securement strap under a vehicle. The fifth-wheel pin puller is ideal for that, being easier and safer to grab that chain or strap rather than laying across a carrier rail or on the deck and reaching under. Another method you may want to use is to hook both legs of your V-bridle on the same side of the deck; in most instances, from a safety standpoint, that being on the passengerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s side. By employing this method, your wire rope will run diagonally from

the winch to the rear of the carrier, allowing the operator to easily reach the wire rope to apply tension as it is wound in or out. In all methods, you should always wear gloves when handling wire rope for safety. Some operators also choose to remove their bridle and lock it in the toolbox to prevent theft, and then wind the wire rope all the way in. This is the most time-consuming, taking extra time to wind the winch line in at the end of each tow and also the most unsafe as the operator will usually free-spool the winch and have to walk up the deck to grab the hook to

WEST 86 â&#x20AC;˘ December 2017 - TOWMAN.COM

pull the line out. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an easy way to have a slip and fall. As with anything in towing, it is never a one-size-fits-all solution. Many operators and companies have different preferences. Whatever methods you choose, please stay safe out there and if you have a different procedure, we would love to hear from you. Remember regularly to inspect the winch line for damage and keep it tightly and neatly wound up. About the author Longtime towing industry veteran Randy Olson is the VP of Western Operations for Worldwide Equipment Sales. Contact him at rolson@newtowtrucks.com.

Work the Passenger side–Stay Safe!

AMERICANTOWMAN.COM -December 2017 • WEST 87

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