Country
Friday, September 20, 2019
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Focusing on Today’s Rural Environment
Volume 7, Edition 13
Elton Hittle stands in front of his semi-truck Sept. 5 at his home near Sauk Centre. Hittle has been trucking since 1950.
l u a H o t n r o B Hittle nears seven decades of trucking By MARK KLAPHAKE and JENNIFER COYNE Staff Writers
SAUK CENTRE – Today, the average American has 11 jobs in their lifetime, according to the United States Department of Labor. Elton Hittle got behind the wheel of a semi-truck in 1950. Today, at the age of 88, he is still trucking. “I’ve put on over 7.5 million miles in my career,” Hittle said. “I still enjoy it.” Hittle drives truck several times a week for Lyle Gamradt Inc., of Sauk Centre. He typically hauls feed, with most of his routes now in Minnesota. “I’ve slowed it down to maybe 1,000 miles a week now,” Hittle said. The trucker’s work schedule now is
a far cry from his beginning years in the trucking business where it was common for Hittle to put on 2,000 miles a week, traveling throughout the United States and into Mexico. Sixty-nine years ago, Hittle started driving truck for Virgil Merten, where he would haul livestock. Shortly thereafter, Hittle worked with his wife, Beverly’s, father, when his longest weeks as a trucker happened. Often times, he would leave Monday morning with livestock heading south to Mexico and returned late Friday night. The trips to Mexico were unique. Hittle would travel to Kansas to unload and feed the animals. Later, he would reload for the rest of the trip. Once in Texas, Hittle had to present health documents of the animals on his trailer. “Then, we’d get into Laredo, (Tex-
This month in the
COUNTRY
ALL PHOTOS BY MARK KLAPHAKE
Elton Hittle backs his semi-truck up his driveway Sept. 5 at his home in Sauk Centre. Hittle has put on more than 7.5 million miles in his trucking career.
as), and unload from there. We didn’t go any further,” Hittle said. “The Mexican government was buying cattle and Mexican people would haul the cattle to the government farms.” Also during that time, he was running cattle to stockyards in the Upper
4
Johnny wants to farm Diane Leukam Column
5
The Gun Gal Osakis
Midwest. Once the cattle were unloaded at their destination, Hittle would sleep for a short time in his sleeper cab, then awake the next day ready to return HITTLE continued on page 2
8
The Fladeboes go to Washington Kandiyohi
12 From the barn to the ball field: Farming
17 Raising cattle, kids naturally Long Prairie
9
Weather forecast in a black box Roger Strom Column
14 First-place finish Villard
21 Country Cooking 22 Plane conversation Sauk Centre