WattsMack

Dart Transit Company, Eagan, Minn., this year celebrates 75 years in business.View the full article

So - Spring is upon us and it feels really good. Although I did stand on top of a six foot pile of old snow in Star Lake last week to photograph the roof of a building! Probably the last one of those for a while. Without counting any unhatched chickens - our building business is looking better by the day. We have done what we had to do to cut the expenses and get the ovehead down. And we have gotten very aggressive with finding new work, and leasing our unused properties to get some cash flowing. Interesting unexpected twist unfolding right now.... A friend of mine called a couple of months ago inquiring for a friend of his, about buying an old Mack. (gotta love these "friend of a friend of a friend" stories) The buyer lives in Florida. I told him to look around Florida. There are several pretty nice B models that I know of in Florida. So I sent them searching. The story goes quiet for a couple of months. Anyway, my friend called last week to ask about buying my B-67 project as a completed truck. Now, I'm not usually speechless. But I was close there for a minute. Seems his Florida buddy wants a finished truck. (Smart Fella) And, he thinks he wants mine. Supposedly flying here on Sunday. We'll see..... could be a whole new venture. Ah the webs we weave. View the full blog entry

Date Added: Today, 07:43 PM Vehicle Owner: dvs00022 View this new addition to the Garage

At their meeting in Mexico City last week, President Barack Obama and Mexican President Felipe Calderón announced that they are committed to resolve the fight over long-distance cross-border trucking between the U.S. and Mexico,View the full article

Expect to see some sort of action taken toward federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions, now that the Environmental Protection Agency has officially said greenhouse gases contribute to air pollution that may endanger public health or welfare.View the full article

Richard "Dick" Sweebe, president and CEO of Diamond Companies in Memphis, Tenn., won the Truck Dealer of the Year Award, sponsored jointly by Heavy Duty Trucking magazine and the American Truck Dealers.View the full article

The American Truck Dealers association named the International LoneStar the first ATD Commercial Truck of the Year.View the full article

Ontario will allow up to 100 longer combination vehicles to participate in a pilot project where specially certified drivers will pull two 53-foot trailers, known as Rocky Mountain doubles.View the full article

The U.S. Coast Guard is asking for comments on ideas it has to improve the Transportation Worker Identification Credential.View the full article

Amidst one of the worst U.S. economic downturns, the chairman of the American Truck Dealers Saturday commended his fellow dealers for attending the group's annual convention in Washington, D.C., and encouraged them to think beyond depressing headlines.View the full article

K. Neal International, an International truck dealer in Hyattsville, Md., has been named to DiversityBusiness.com's Div500, the 9th annual listing of the nation's top 500 diversity-owned businesses.View the full article

Well, I mowed the grass early this morning, had to wait 'til daylight to finish though, because the batteries went dead in the flashlight. Then I went to Concord and finished putting that hood on the mixer. Don't remember when it was last started, but it fired right up. I dumped about 800 gallons of water out of the drum and let it run about 15 minutes. Then I stopped at Carson's Store and got 2 rolls of chicken wire and made a fence around the garden. The chicken wire was way more expensive than I thought it would be-$28 for a 50' long, 3' high roll and I needed 2 rolls. I could probably go to the vegetable stand in Gladys and buy $56 worth of produce and get more than the total output of my garden, but I can't let the creatures get the best of me, right? They're already eating my cabbage plants! I feel like Bill Murray after the gopher in "Caddyshack". Fence looks pretty good too. I left some extra at the bottom, folded it out on the grass, then laid 4x4's on it. The owl certainly doesn't do his job, the pepper spray didn't work, Other Dog the beagle won't work, so maybe this will do the job. I hope so, because there's only one option left that I can see- fried rabbit...squirrell stew...rabbit pot pie...squirrell and dumplings...rabbit on a stick...sauteed squirrell with peppers and onions...marinated grilled rabbit...barbecued squirrell-what am I saying?!!I couldn't do that!..could I?..hell yeah I could! Attached thumbnail(s) // // // // // // View the full blog entry

Only made one round this week. Thought I was going to Lisbon, Ohio or Mercer, Pa. with treated lumber Tuesday, so I lollygagged around here in no particular hurry to leave, but when I got to headquarters I had a load going to Roxana, Il. WTF?!! If i'd known that I would have left 2 hours ago! Brought lumber back to Moneta. Some of what I saw along the way- some trucks on rt. 60 in West Virginia this used to be known as "dead man's curve" on rt. 60. Used to be a lot of truck traffic on this road before I-64 was finished. trucks at the truckstop W.V. coal train a colorful Peterbilt barge on the Kentucky river, near Paducah, Ky. a cement mixer at the Pilot in Oak Grove, Ky. a field of dozers a load of big yellow engines The Peaks of Otter from rt. 122 there's still lots of ice storm damage visible around Paducah. Attached thumbnail(s) // // // // // // // // // // // View the full blog entry

A District Court judge has denied the Federal Maritime Commission's request for an injunction of certain elements of the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach's Clean Truck Program.View the full article

The Transportation Security Administration needs to improve its terrorism threat assessments of the truck and bus industries, says the Government Accountability Office.View the full article

The Obama administration announced a new U.S. push to transform travel in America, creating high-speed rail lines from city to city, reducing dependence on cars and planes, reducing congestion and greenhouse gases, and spurring economic development.View the full article

The U.S. aftermarket for medium- and heavy-duty truck parts and components will increase 3.8 percent annually to $17.1 billion in 2013, according to a new study from The Freedonia Group, Inc., a Cleveland-based industry research firm.View the full article

Aurora Parts & Accessories, the nation's largest supplier of aftermarket semitrailer parts, has reached an agreement with Supreme Corporation to distribute Supreme's Original Equipment PartsView the full article

Kumho Tire Co., Seoul, South Korea, announced the appointment of Mr. Jong Ho Kim (J.H. Kim) as CEO and president.View the full article

Date Added: Today, 09:26 PM Vehicle Owner: sixfourkid View this new addition to the Garage

In its monthly Short-Term Energy Outlook, the U.S. Energy Information Agency predicted this week that diesel fuel prices, which averaged $4.37 per gallon last summer, will average $2.27 this summer.View the full article

A new committee formed by the Technology & Maintenance Council of American Trucking Associations will take on some long-standing issues between fleets and service providersView the full article

The slack economy and low sales have caused Cummins Inc. to drop its ComfortGuard auxiliary power unit, but it will continue to honor warranties for those in use and support them indefinitely with parts and service.View the full article

Portland, Ore.-based truck tank and trailer manufacturer Beall Corp. has hired Rusty Watson as southern regional sales manager to establish a distributor network and call on major fleets from Texas to Florida.View the full article

Trebar Kenworth celebrated the 50th anniversary of one of its co-founders as a Kenworth dealer with a major trade event and other activities in Boise, Idaho.View the full article