SPEAKING FROM EXPERIENCE Ray J. Haight
See Ya Down the Road Well folks, my writing column days have come to an end. I have enjoyed sharing my thoughts with ‘you all’ over the past seventeen years but it’s time for me to open a new trucking chapter in my life. Some fifty-plus years ago, when my dad brought home a truck and parked it in the driveway, I was star-struck! I thought it was such a beautiful sight. As a little kid, I can remember asking if I could wash the truck and being thrilled to be able to do so.
Fast forward a couple of years... I’m in the jump seat next to my dad. It’s summer break from high school and I am getting paid ten bucks a day to help him peddle freight all around Detroit. Three hundred to a thousand boxes, all floor loaded. Five to six drops minimum for National Freightways, Central Transport, Old Dominion, just to name a few. They were long days, hard work and a blast. I loved every minute of it! Less than ten years later, I found myself trucking to San Clemente, California. I still vividly remember heading across Nevada one early morning. The temperature was perfect, the sun was just coming up and I had my arm out the window. The engine sounded pristine and was complimented by good radio tunes. I could see for miles across the desert. That, of course, is not my only memory of the ten years I put behind the wheel, but it is one of my favorites. I wish everyone could experience one of those moments and the drivers out there will know what I mean. I experienced a ‘sink or swim’ incident early in my driving career when both my folks passed away at very young ages. Three trucks were left 10 • OVER THE ROAD
to me, along with the payments but also with one excellent, loyal customer who decided to give a twenty-three-year-old the chance to keep servicing their business. A few years earlier, I had met my wife at that same business. She ran a tow motor on the loading dock. Without her support and the odd kick in the pants, I would not be writing this article today. Fast forward again and now the company is forty-plus trucks, mostly Owner-Operators. Unfortunately, I had what business people call a near-death experience. I almost went bankrupt! It was of my own making, and I was fully responsible. I probably disappointed a few folks but eventually, everyone got paid and, in time, I got everything cleaned up, thanks to some family members helping me out. A couple of employees even jumped ship and planned a minor coup. Those were dark days. However, Wendy, a key employee, stayed, and today she is still my hero. The loyal customer I mentioned also hung in and the two of them were vital to my eventual success. After a couple of years up and running again, I was approached by a local accounting firm asking if I would be interested in a partnership arrangement with a company in Guelph. With this new arrangement, I paid off all my debt and, even though the arrangement cost me half of my company’s shares, it turned out to be a great relief. Without that partner; Southwestern Express, I would be painting a much different picture today. Some scars and scares remain and, unfortunately, they get opened in my mind from time to time. From there, it is kind of a FEBRUARY 2022
