WEBVTT - America's Truckin Network -- 12/16/25 0:00:01.200 --> 0:00:04.040 This is America's Trucking Network with Kevin Gordon. 0:00:05.960 --> 0:00:09.760 Welcome aboard, Thanks for tuning in on this Tuesday morning. 0:00:10.520 --> 0:00:14.920 We are on the floor twentieth anniversary Rush Enterprises Tech 0:00:15.000 --> 0:00:19.920 Skills Rodeo at the Gaylord opry Land Resort and Convention 0:00:20.079 --> 0:00:23.360 Center in Nashville, Tennessee. And I want to tell you, 0:00:24.480 --> 0:00:26.600 for my first time, I didn't know. 0:00:26.560 --> 0:00:27.560 What to expect. 0:00:28.120 --> 0:00:32.400 But yesterday when I came in actually Sunday, when I 0:00:32.479 --> 0:00:35.120 came into the event or came into the venue to 0:00:35.200 --> 0:00:37.959 get the booth set up, get our equipment set up 0:00:37.960 --> 0:00:41.760 and everything, I was surprised by the number of vendors. 0:00:42.280 --> 0:00:44.840 I come to find out that there's over four hundred 0:00:44.920 --> 0:00:49.240 and forty vendors. They are paying for this, they are 0:00:49.520 --> 0:00:53.200 sponsoring this, and this is an opportunity at this tech 0:00:54.000 --> 0:00:58.120 tech Rodeo of where Rush Enterprises brings together all their 0:00:58.200 --> 0:01:03.320 different technicians MCANX and they've expanded this into not only 0:01:03.360 --> 0:01:06.520 people in the collision center, but also the leasing, the 0:01:06.560 --> 0:01:10.880 parts department, the sales department, all different aspects of their 0:01:10.920 --> 0:01:16.440 business coming into what they call their Skills Rodeo to 0:01:16.480 --> 0:01:21.080 show their skills through certain testing, written tests. 0:01:20.680 --> 0:01:22.320 And the qualifications even. 0:01:22.120 --> 0:01:25.559 To get here, and then they test their skills while 0:01:25.560 --> 0:01:31.640 they're here and award the prizes. And it's absolutely remarkable. 0:01:32.000 --> 0:01:36.800 Now where we are located, it's amazing because we're right 0:01:36.880 --> 0:01:38.920 at the beginning, right in the front. Kind of set 0:01:38.959 --> 0:01:41.600 the stage for you. Right across from us is a 0:01:41.640 --> 0:01:44.920 display from International Truck and a little bit over as 0:01:45.120 --> 0:01:48.680 Peter Bilt, I look up the aisle here I can 0:01:48.720 --> 0:01:52.480 see Azuzu, and I see Lucas Oil, and I see 0:01:52.480 --> 0:01:55.400 some of the other vendors, and we'll probably talk about 0:01:55.400 --> 0:01:57.480 them over the next couple of days because we're here. 0:01:57.960 --> 0:02:02.200 We're here today, we'll be here Tom and the the 0:02:02.400 --> 0:02:05.280 actual well actually, since this is running at night, we 0:02:05.280 --> 0:02:09.840 were there actually Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and then at Tuesday 0:02:09.919 --> 0:02:13.240 night they we'll have the various awards ceremony. Uh So 0:02:14.040 --> 0:02:16.800 it's it's been a lot of fun up to this point. 0:02:17.120 --> 0:02:18.960 Kind of let me set the stage. 0:02:18.560 --> 0:02:21.520 For you how we got here, because they say, you 0:02:21.560 --> 0:02:24.600 know the old saying showing up is half the battle. 0:02:24.840 --> 0:02:29.760 Well it was more than half the battle. Uh you know, 0:02:29.919 --> 0:02:32.440 having to pack up everything to bring it to the show, 0:02:32.480 --> 0:02:35.480 and making sure that you know when you're traveling but 0:02:35.600 --> 0:02:38.840 making sure that I had all the recording equipment and 0:02:39.240 --> 0:02:41.840 everything set up so that we could actually do the 0:02:41.880 --> 0:02:45.919 show from here. That was interesting, but you know, we've 0:02:45.919 --> 0:02:48.280 done it before, We've gone down to Mats and kind 0:02:48.280 --> 0:02:50.960 of figured we had a handle on it, but of 0:02:50.960 --> 0:02:52.960 course you have to throw the wrinkle into it. On 0:02:53.080 --> 0:02:56.320 Saturday when we drove down, we what we had what 0:02:56.480 --> 0:03:01.520 three weather emergencies or weather advisories we nugain in between 0:03:01.600 --> 0:03:06.120 the week left in between what was an advisory one 0:03:06.200 --> 0:03:10.040 and Advisory two. And on our way down here we 0:03:10.080 --> 0:03:13.040 stopped for dinner and I think we had Advisory three 0:03:13.080 --> 0:03:16.720 on the way as well. But getting to the and 0:03:16.760 --> 0:03:18.560 I got to tell you, if you've never been to 0:03:18.600 --> 0:03:22.280 the Gaylord opper Land Resort and Convention Center, it is 0:03:22.400 --> 0:03:28.120 just absolutely amazing. All under one roof the amount of 0:03:28.160 --> 0:03:31.840 the convention center, of the floor space, and just the 0:03:31.960 --> 0:03:35.920 venue itself for the resort hotel, all the amenities that 0:03:36.000 --> 0:03:39.440 you can imagine they have this They have actually two 0:03:39.680 --> 0:03:44.520 atriums and the it's kind of well, it's basically the 0:03:45.520 --> 0:03:48.040 rooms are set up as a horseshoe if you will, 0:03:48.160 --> 0:03:53.800 or brackets and the balconies all look over this courtyard 0:03:53.880 --> 0:03:59.040 and one is the restaurant area and there's water features 0:03:59.080 --> 0:04:01.880 and so on, and then another one that's actually this 0:04:02.040 --> 0:04:04.760 canal that runs through and that you can actually take 0:04:04.800 --> 0:04:09.800 a little boat ride through and see the entire the 0:04:09.920 --> 0:04:14.760 entire area. Walking around, you go down these different corridors 0:04:15.160 --> 0:04:17.599 and it's not just a hotel, but you go down 0:04:17.640 --> 0:04:22.440 to this area between the two atriums and there's a 0:04:22.480 --> 0:04:23.520 whole bunch of shops. 0:04:23.760 --> 0:04:25.480 You actually feel like you're. 0:04:25.360 --> 0:04:28.800 Walking through a city and walking through city streets and 0:04:28.839 --> 0:04:33.000 doing a window shopping and seeing all the different different 0:04:33.000 --> 0:04:36.160 shops on either side and all the stuff that's available. 0:04:36.320 --> 0:04:37.360 And of course they have all. 0:04:37.279 --> 0:04:39.800 The amenities in terms of spas and all that sort 0:04:39.839 --> 0:04:46.000 of thing, which is amazing. But coming in on it 0:04:46.080 --> 0:04:50.240 was kind of an interesting scheduling process. We got in 0:04:50.320 --> 0:04:53.680 on Saturday, kind of late because of the delays and 0:04:53.760 --> 0:04:58.240 a little bit of snow delay and whatever. But Sunday 0:04:58.839 --> 0:05:01.120 they had the venue where a lot of the vendors 0:05:01.160 --> 0:05:05.000 were getting set up. But at the same time they 0:05:05.080 --> 0:05:08.360 also have the beginning of the competition, and so they 0:05:08.360 --> 0:05:12.760 had the body shop competition over in Smyrna Tech, Tennessee, 0:05:13.120 --> 0:05:16.359 which is about a twenty twenty twenty five minute drive 0:05:16.680 --> 0:05:20.159 from here, and since it's part of the competition, I 0:05:20.160 --> 0:05:24.040 wanted to drive over and see that, and so getting 0:05:24.080 --> 0:05:27.120 the directions for that, and then going to watch that 0:05:27.279 --> 0:05:30.200 and seeing them compete, and then trying to time it 0:05:30.240 --> 0:05:33.080 so that I got back here in order to set 0:05:33.080 --> 0:05:37.080 the booth up and everything. And then we had a 0:05:37.160 --> 0:05:40.479 cruise last night on the General Jackson that was again 0:05:40.520 --> 0:05:46.640 sponsored by Rush Truck Centers, Dinner and Entertainment. It's about 0:05:46.680 --> 0:05:49.520 a four hour cruise I think it was from start 0:05:49.560 --> 0:05:51.680 to finish by the time he got on the boat. 0:05:51.839 --> 0:05:54.520 And again, if you've not been down to Nashville and 0:05:54.600 --> 0:05:57.719 tried that, of course I wouldn't suggest doing it. 0:05:58.640 --> 0:06:00.560 What was attempt last night? 0:06:00.600 --> 0:06:02.760 It started out I think at eighteen degrees and by 0:06:02.800 --> 0:06:04.920 the time we got off the boat it was five 0:06:05.080 --> 0:06:09.159 with a windchill factor in the minus figures, So not 0:06:09.240 --> 0:06:11.120 a whole lot of time spent out on the deck 0:06:11.160 --> 0:06:14.039 and taking pictures. But you'd run out there and try 0:06:14.080 --> 0:06:15.840 to take a couple of pictures of the scenery and 0:06:15.960 --> 0:06:19.960 drown through the downtown Nashville area and try to get 0:06:19.960 --> 0:06:23.480 some of those pictures, but then run back in and 0:06:23.560 --> 0:06:25.440 wore them up. A little bit and run back out 0:06:25.440 --> 0:06:26.960 and try to get a few more pictures. 0:06:27.240 --> 0:06:29.359 But it was a lot of fun crews. 0:06:29.400 --> 0:06:33.200 But yesterday Sunday morning, I got up and I went 0:06:33.200 --> 0:06:38.320 over to the Collision center again down in Smyrna, Tennessee. 0:06:38.520 --> 0:06:41.120 And the way they set this up is they have 0:06:41.560 --> 0:06:46.320 two basic competitions. They have the competition of the repair 0:06:46.560 --> 0:06:51.719 and then the painting process. And in the collision department 0:06:52.040 --> 0:06:55.880 they had a fender, a fiberglass fender that had two 0:06:55.880 --> 0:06:58.960 of the corners broken off and holes punched in them 0:07:00.080 --> 0:07:02.200 in that period of time. As far as the competition, 0:07:02.720 --> 0:07:06.239 you have to fill the hole, square the thing off, 0:07:06.680 --> 0:07:10.400 get it polished and then ready to be painted. And 0:07:11.680 --> 0:07:15.280 watching these people again it's not something I've ever watched before. 0:07:16.040 --> 0:07:19.960 But the sponsor, one of the sponsors of the competition, 0:07:20.200 --> 0:07:24.800 three M products. They were here and it's interesting to 0:07:24.840 --> 0:07:28.360 see the judges walking around with their clipboards and looking 0:07:28.400 --> 0:07:31.640 at any all the individual stations where these people were 0:07:31.640 --> 0:07:35.720 working and talking to the people afterwards, they were saying 0:07:35.720 --> 0:07:38.760 it was a little nerve wracking again if they've only 0:07:38.800 --> 0:07:40.600 done it, if it is their first time, but some 0:07:40.640 --> 0:07:42.800 of the people that have been here before, it's not 0:07:42.920 --> 0:07:47.240 so challenged or not so intimidating, because as you're working 0:07:47.280 --> 0:07:49.880 and you're doing something, you got somebody walking by and 0:07:49.880 --> 0:07:52.000 they're looking at what you're doing, and they're writing something 0:07:52.040 --> 0:07:54.160 on a note, or they're doing check marks or something 0:07:54.200 --> 0:07:57.920 like that. You're going, well, what are they looking at you? 0:07:58.560 --> 0:08:02.640 What are they seeing? What are they not? So it's 0:08:02.720 --> 0:08:06.160 fascinating for it's really fascinating from that aspect. And as 0:08:06.360 --> 0:08:09.480 they were describing to me, I had the opportunity to 0:08:09.520 --> 0:08:13.000 talk to Mitch Davison. He is head of the collision 0:08:13.280 --> 0:08:15.720 department for Rush Trucks Center, and we'll have him on 0:08:15.880 --> 0:08:18.240 over the sometime over the next couple of days to 0:08:18.280 --> 0:08:22.320 talk to him. But how the three m people will 0:08:22.320 --> 0:08:26.560 go through and there is they will judge on approach, 0:08:28.120 --> 0:08:33.800 how they repair, how they go about because apparently on 0:08:32.920 --> 0:08:36.559 the repair of these holes and stuff, there's a couple 0:08:36.559 --> 0:08:39.240 of different methods or ways that you can do that. 0:08:39.880 --> 0:08:43.520 So they judge them based on the what selection they made, 0:08:43.960 --> 0:08:47.120 and then of course their technique of putting it together. Now, 0:08:47.120 --> 0:08:49.480 on the paint side, they had two fenders that were 0:08:49.520 --> 0:08:54.240 there that they were repairing or not repairing, but painting, 0:08:54.880 --> 0:08:59.600 and to see them buff the thing out, do the 0:08:59.600 --> 0:09:03.400 prime and then they had colors to choose from and 0:09:03.440 --> 0:09:06.480 they were going to then do the colors of the 0:09:06.520 --> 0:09:10.440 individual fenders and they talked about that. They had to 0:09:10.480 --> 0:09:13.120 make sure that well, one of the things is they 0:09:13.120 --> 0:09:16.000 could put striping on it, so you could put a design, 0:09:16.080 --> 0:09:19.680 and they told them, well, time permitting, be as creative 0:09:19.720 --> 0:09:22.320 as you want, because that will be part of the 0:09:22.400 --> 0:09:26.000 judging process. And so seeing the technicians work on those 0:09:26.040 --> 0:09:30.160 and how they're looking at that and how they're approaching that, 0:09:31.080 --> 0:09:35.480 polishing it and so on. It was. It was very 0:09:35.520 --> 0:09:38.600 interesting and I don't know who's going to win. They 0:09:38.640 --> 0:09:42.760 haven't announced that yet, but they've got the semi finalists, 0:09:42.800 --> 0:09:46.160 some of the lists there. But the competition is just 0:09:46.320 --> 0:09:49.800 intense and the number of people involved. And we've got 0:09:49.840 --> 0:09:51.880 a couple of interviews coming up. We're going to be 0:09:51.920 --> 0:09:55.800 talking with Jody Pollard in the next segment. Jody Pollard 0:09:55.960 --> 0:10:00.000 is the senior vice president of the senior vice president 0:10:00.160 --> 0:10:03.840 Vehicle Aftermarket Sales and Rob Nixon, vice president of sales. 0:10:04.080 --> 0:10:06.800 We've talked to them, talk about the talk to them 0:10:06.840 --> 0:10:09.640 on this program before and then to finish up, we're 0:10:09.640 --> 0:10:12.240 going to be talking with Chris Purcell. He was the 0:10:12.360 --> 0:10:16.680 Grand Champion winner last year and in twenty twenty one, 0:10:16.720 --> 0:10:19.160 and hopefully he wants to try to repeat this year. 0:10:19.320 --> 0:10:24.080 I'm Kevin Gordon, America's truck In Network seven hundred WLW. 0:10:25.720 --> 0:10:26.200 I need. 0:10:26.200 --> 0:10:29.560 This is the Reething reward on America's Trucking Network on 0:10:29.760 --> 0:10:31.240 seven hundred WLW. 0:10:32.160 --> 0:10:34.680 Lionel Racing is announced the top ten die cast of 0:10:34.720 --> 0:10:38.960 twenty twenty five. Number one is Justin Allgeiers Traveler Whiskey Chevrolet. 0:10:39.320 --> 0:10:43.080 Number two Dale Earnhardt Junior Budweiser Speedway Classic Late Model 0:10:43.360 --> 0:10:47.440 number three Justin Allgeiers Traveler Whiskey Race Version. Number four 0:10:47.480 --> 0:10:49.480 on the list of top ten die casts of twenty 0:10:49.520 --> 0:10:53.320 twenty five is Chase Elliott NAPA Children's Healthcare of Atlanta 0:10:53.360 --> 0:10:56.640 Echo Park Win. Fifth on the list is William Byron's 0:10:56.679 --> 0:11:00.320 Exalta Daytona five hundred win. Number six on the die 0:11:00.360 --> 0:11:04.560 cast list is Kyle Larson Hendrickcars dot Com Championship Car. 0:11:05.000 --> 0:11:09.120 Number seven is Kyle Larson's Hendrickcars dot Com Phoenix Race Version. 0:11:09.520 --> 0:11:12.600 Number eight is Connor Zelich Red Bull. Number nine on 0:11:12.640 --> 0:11:15.880 the list is Josh Berry's Motorcraft Las Vegas win and 0:11:16.000 --> 0:11:19.120 number ten Shane van Gisbergen's Red Bull car. 0:11:20.040 --> 0:11:23.160 I need this is the racing reward on America's Drugging 0:11:23.200 --> 0:11:31.560 Network on seven hundred WLW, Say Dennison, a t n it's. 0:11:31.400 --> 0:11:34.400 Former Bengal and Pro Football Hall of Famer Anthony Munos. 0:11:34.440 --> 0:11:36.520 Did you know that ninety five percent of the Anthony 0:11:36.600 --> 0:11:39.200 Munos Foundation's funding coast directly. 0:11:38.800 --> 0:11:42.800 Trico aftermarket sales and Rob Nixon, VP of Sales. If 0:11:42.840 --> 0:11:45.680 you listen to America's Trucking Network before, you know we've 0:11:45.679 --> 0:11:48.880 talked to these two gentlemen before, usually by phone, but 0:11:49.040 --> 0:11:54.360 actually here at the twentieth anniversary of the Rush Enterprises 0:11:55.360 --> 0:11:58.560 Tech Skills Rodeo, we actually get to do this in person, 0:11:58.600 --> 0:12:00.280 which is really a thrill for. 0:12:00.320 --> 0:12:02.440 This is great and here for us to do this 0:12:02.480 --> 0:12:02.960 in person. 0:12:03.240 --> 0:12:05.400 It is now. 0:12:05.440 --> 0:12:07.360 I think we spoke a couple of years ago at 0:12:07.400 --> 0:12:08.160 the MATS. 0:12:08.440 --> 0:12:10.880 Conference when we were given the truck away. Yeah, that 0:12:11.000 --> 0:12:12.360 was a pretty unique event. 0:12:12.440 --> 0:12:13.600 That was quite an event. 0:12:13.760 --> 0:12:17.000 Yeah, now so far, this being my first time here, 0:12:17.120 --> 0:12:22.920 this blows me away. The dedication of Rush Enterprises to 0:12:23.320 --> 0:12:28.200 this end of the business and the amount of time, effort, 0:12:28.400 --> 0:12:31.200 money put into this because you described that last night 0:12:31.480 --> 0:12:33.920 very well, so kind of go through that with us 0:12:33.920 --> 0:12:34.320 a little bit. 0:12:34.440 --> 0:12:38.040 Yes, people, twenty years ago, right here in Nashville, Tennessee, 0:12:38.080 --> 0:12:41.080 we started our first tech Skills rodeo. It really was 0:12:41.280 --> 0:12:44.120 just primarily focused on our technicians. We thought about it, 0:12:44.160 --> 0:12:46.680 how do you recruit somebody to come work for you, 0:12:46.800 --> 0:12:50.400 but also how do you retain them and then incentivize 0:12:50.400 --> 0:12:52.640 them to do all the training and to really hone 0:12:52.640 --> 0:12:55.160 their skill set throughout the year. And we said, you know, 0:12:55.240 --> 0:12:57.920 a tech rodeo might be the way to solve for that. 0:12:58.480 --> 0:13:01.120 So that's where it all originated within the thought process 0:13:01.200 --> 0:13:04.240 because we knew technicians are very hard to attract and 0:13:04.559 --> 0:13:06.599 to keep inside your business, and they're the heartbeat of 0:13:06.640 --> 0:13:09.520 the dealership. So that's how the rodeo kind of started 0:13:09.600 --> 0:13:11.960 in concept and theory and we put it in action. 0:13:12.080 --> 0:13:13.880 It's crazy what it's turned into. 0:13:15.320 --> 0:13:15.560 Now. 0:13:15.640 --> 0:13:18.559 We we really kind of touch every point of sale 0:13:18.559 --> 0:13:22.680 person We had our dealership parts of personnel, after market 0:13:22.720 --> 0:13:24.720 sales reps, obviously. 0:13:24.360 --> 0:13:25.839 Technicians that evolved. 0:13:26.040 --> 0:13:28.160 We just you know, when you start off with the 0:13:28.200 --> 0:13:31.400 tech Skills rodeo, you've got the people in the service department. 0:13:31.960 --> 0:13:36.120 Then I guess a natural natural evolution of that would 0:13:36.120 --> 0:13:37.880 be maybe the collision center. I don't know if that 0:13:38.000 --> 0:13:40.200 body shop personnel. And then all of a sudden, I 0:13:40.200 --> 0:13:43.040 guess maybe it was was it was it pressure from 0:13:43.080 --> 0:13:45.280 the other members of the team and say, well, hey, 0:13:45.280 --> 0:13:48.240 what about our skills, let us get involved from the sales, 0:13:48.400 --> 0:13:49.040 leasing and. 0:13:49.000 --> 0:13:50.200 All that great question. 0:13:50.440 --> 0:13:53.760 We even dropped technicians skills rodeo, that's what it was. 0:13:53.800 --> 0:13:54.280 Originally. 0:13:54.320 --> 0:13:57.400 We dropped it to just tech because of the technical 0:13:57.440 --> 0:14:01.280 attributes of every single person that compete here at the rodeo. 0:14:01.600 --> 0:14:05.160 And the reason really was we tried to understand, hey, 0:14:05.200 --> 0:14:07.400 we had this one particular purpose in mind on how 0:14:07.400 --> 0:14:09.760 you retain technicians, but how do we use this as 0:14:09.800 --> 0:14:14.679 an overall engagement event for employees that may not necessarily 0:14:14.720 --> 0:14:17.920 get the recognition that they need every single day. And 0:14:18.160 --> 0:14:21.120 really it's about their enrichment of their career and that 0:14:21.160 --> 0:14:22.960 they have a place that they can feel like is 0:14:23.040 --> 0:14:25.840 going to invest in them for a bounty full career. 0:14:25.960 --> 0:14:28.480 So parts of people were you know, parts of people 0:14:28.480 --> 0:14:31.280 are pretty unique individuals. They got to be accurate one 0:14:31.320 --> 0:14:32.960 hundred percent of the time, or a lot of things 0:14:33.000 --> 0:14:37.360 downstream don't get right right, So that's well, let's recognize them. 0:14:37.440 --> 0:14:40.520 Let's make sure that they we recognize the best of 0:14:40.560 --> 0:14:44.160 the best collision. Have you've seen some of this work 0:14:44.200 --> 0:14:47.720 here at the show. These guys are masterpieces on how 0:14:47.720 --> 0:14:51.760 they do collision and paintwork. And then we talked about 0:14:52.160 --> 0:14:55.280 our overall purpose as a company, how can we incorporate 0:14:57.320 --> 0:15:01.960 the real mission behind what we do? And at Rush Enterprises, 0:15:02.000 --> 0:15:03.960 you know we have a purpose. It's to keep the 0:15:03.960 --> 0:15:07.200 global economy up and running by committing to our customers 0:15:07.240 --> 0:15:09.960 that we give them the maximum amount of uptime. And 0:15:10.080 --> 0:15:14.080 so we bought our salespeople a part of that process 0:15:14.160 --> 0:15:17.320 well as well, because it's a real culture thing here 0:15:17.360 --> 0:15:20.360 at Rush. And probably what you've witnessed Kevin over the 0:15:20.440 --> 0:15:24.240 last twenty four hours is people love this rodeo. I 0:15:24.280 --> 0:15:29.080 mean they they get really excited about it. And there's 0:15:29.160 --> 0:15:31.280 obviously some unique things that are going to happen on 0:15:31.320 --> 0:15:34.320 Tuesday night. We potentially can crown a new champion. I 0:15:34.360 --> 0:15:36.760 saw you talk to Chris Purcell a few minutes ago, 0:15:37.480 --> 0:15:41.200 and he's all about the rodeo. Really humble guy, very 0:15:41.280 --> 0:15:45.600 talented technician, but I mean the first time he won, 0:15:45.680 --> 0:15:48.840 he won over sixteen thousand dollars in cash and prizes. 0:15:48.960 --> 0:15:51.360 That's a life changing event. Oh yeah, especially in a 0:15:51.440 --> 0:15:53.400 time of year where you know, you could use a 0:15:53.400 --> 0:15:57.360 little extra cash on Christmas time. And what's unique why 0:15:57.400 --> 0:15:59.640 we called it the rodeo is because really the time 0:15:59.720 --> 0:16:02.840 frame you see everybody wearing Western attire here. It's like 0:16:02.880 --> 0:16:05.680 our little version of the NFR, you know, So the 0:16:05.760 --> 0:16:06.880 National Finals Rodeo. 0:16:07.480 --> 0:16:11.480 And so on Tuesday night we'll. 0:16:11.240 --> 0:16:13.600 Give out two hundred and eighty eight thousand dollars to 0:16:13.680 --> 0:16:17.120 our employees and in twenty years of doing that, that 0:16:17.200 --> 0:16:20.200 will eclipse the three million dollar mark. And making sure 0:16:20.240 --> 0:16:23.360 our employees know that they are our most important asset 0:16:23.600 --> 0:16:26.200 and we try to treat them with the respect and 0:16:26.240 --> 0:16:29.280 dignity and a job. A lot of times it just 0:16:29.320 --> 0:16:32.120 gets forgotten. So that's what this thing is all about. 0:16:32.200 --> 0:16:34.480 I'm really proud to be a part of it. Russy's 0:16:34.560 --> 0:16:37.680 extremely enthusiastic about this event, and everybody who works on 0:16:37.720 --> 0:16:41.000 this committee they have regular jobs too. They really throw 0:16:41.040 --> 0:16:42.920 their heart and soul and making sure that our employees 0:16:42.960 --> 0:16:46.440 have a grand time. And lastly, it's really a way 0:16:46.480 --> 0:16:50.280 to bridge the relationships and partnerships with our suppliers, you know, 0:16:50.320 --> 0:16:52.720 we're pushing their products every day and a lot of 0:16:52.720 --> 0:16:55.720 times that knowledge is transferred here at the rodeo and 0:16:55.800 --> 0:16:58.920 what new product lines are out there, so we can 0:16:58.960 --> 0:17:02.920 go tell our customers the next thing that they're on 0:17:02.960 --> 0:17:04.520 the horizon with the product lines. 0:17:04.840 --> 0:17:07.280 We're speaking with Jody Pollard, he is a senior vice 0:17:07.280 --> 0:17:12.600 president Vehicle Aftermarket Sales, and we're gonna be talking roun event, 0:17:12.880 --> 0:17:16.639 but this aspect of it, and we mentioned that you 0:17:16.760 --> 0:17:21.440 mentioned the individual of suppliers. The fact that their participation 0:17:21.680 --> 0:17:24.960 in this and the various displays around here is mind 0:17:25.000 --> 0:17:28.600 boggling because you know, when I walked in, I didn't 0:17:28.600 --> 0:17:31.520 know what to expect and it was beyond the expectations 0:17:31.560 --> 0:17:35.560 that I had yesterday filling and setting up the station. 0:17:35.359 --> 0:17:36.840 And looking around everything. 0:17:37.400 --> 0:17:40.879 Now, this is not cheap to put this on and 0:17:41.040 --> 0:17:44.720 for people that you know they sounds tech rodeo and 0:17:44.760 --> 0:17:47.560 this sort of thing. Now, there is a lot of planning, 0:17:47.640 --> 0:17:49.679 there's a lot of investment, and there's a lot of 0:17:49.720 --> 0:17:52.719 logistics and a lot of money involved in this. 0:17:53.359 --> 0:17:57.600 Yeah, and again, yeah, this is not cheap. And moving 0:17:57.600 --> 0:17:59.960 it to Nashville to kind of commemorate the twentieth annivers 0:18:00.359 --> 0:18:03.760 had its own logistical challenges. And obviously you you plan 0:18:03.920 --> 0:18:08.320 for these things a year round, but this one you 0:18:08.359 --> 0:18:12.320 had to plan about four years in advance. And you know, 0:18:12.359 --> 0:18:14.800 the trucking industry has had a little bit of challenges 0:18:14.840 --> 0:18:17.200 this past year, so it was extremely nervous in terms 0:18:17.200 --> 0:18:20.720 of how we could fund this event. So I put 0:18:20.760 --> 0:18:24.760 my best timeshare salesman had on and UH went to 0:18:24.800 --> 0:18:27.760 talk to our suppliers and they have just completely amazed me. 0:18:27.840 --> 0:18:29.919 They floored me in terms of they believe in this 0:18:30.040 --> 0:18:34.000 Rodeo two and they stepped up in every tremendous amount 0:18:34.040 --> 0:18:37.199 of way to make sure that we we had a 0:18:37.240 --> 0:18:41.280 really good event. And UH we fully funded by the suppliers, 0:18:41.280 --> 0:18:45.080 fully funded, fully funded. And the thing that I would 0:18:45.119 --> 0:18:47.800 tell you is like the unique connection we bring every 0:18:47.880 --> 0:18:52.479 single aftermarket sales rep to Nashville. There are four hundred 0:18:52.520 --> 0:18:55.640 in our company, and so for them, that's the value 0:18:55.960 --> 0:18:58.080 because they get to touch to every they get to 0:18:58.080 --> 0:19:00.880 touch and talk to every single after market sales rep 0:19:01.200 --> 0:19:02.600 about their product line. 0:19:03.600 --> 0:19:04.600 So that's the real. 0:19:04.440 --> 0:19:07.760 Value that we brought in about seven years ago and 0:19:07.840 --> 0:19:10.359 making sure that every single aftermarket sales rep is here 0:19:10.400 --> 0:19:12.800 and we have a sales conference even on Sunday. You 0:19:12.800 --> 0:19:15.280 didn't get to witness that, but eight am on Sunday 0:19:15.320 --> 0:19:19.439 we have a sales conference and we're challenging them on 0:19:19.600 --> 0:19:23.040 how you know, they can meet our strategic objectives in 0:19:23.080 --> 0:19:24.040 this year and beyond. 0:19:24.320 --> 0:19:25.040 That's incredible. 0:19:25.040 --> 0:19:27.520 But this event, it's like seven events in one and 0:19:27.560 --> 0:19:30.520 you'll see tonight it's a pretty cool event to where 0:19:30.560 --> 0:19:34.120 we bring who will be competing tomorrow in the finals. 0:19:34.160 --> 0:19:37.359 You know they're all testing right now, but who's going 0:19:37.440 --> 0:19:39.520 to be the finalist to go after the big money 0:19:39.880 --> 0:19:43.160 on Tuesday gets announced tonight, So it's always a special time. 0:19:43.440 --> 0:19:47.600 Okay, let's bring Robin here and we'll introduce him and 0:19:47.640 --> 0:19:51.320 then we'll transition to the next segment because we're getting 0:19:51.359 --> 0:19:53.080 up against a little bit of a break here. So 0:19:53.960 --> 0:19:56.600 Rob Nixon, VP of Sales, I want to talk a 0:19:56.640 --> 0:19:57.600 little bit about. 0:19:58.400 --> 0:20:00.560 Yeah, I'll just you know, really add to what Jodi 0:20:00.600 --> 0:20:01.160 spoke about. 0:20:01.320 --> 0:20:03.560 We're on the trade show floor right now where we've 0:20:03.560 --> 0:20:06.640 brought in all of our suppliers and vendors, and at RUSH, 0:20:06.720 --> 0:20:10.800 we really pride ourselves as being product solutions providers. You know, 0:20:10.800 --> 0:20:13.520 if I'm an aftermarket salesperson and I'm calling on a 0:20:13.520 --> 0:20:15.840 customer and they've got something unique or they need a 0:20:15.920 --> 0:20:18.720 product solution, We've got to learn about that product. 0:20:18.720 --> 0:20:19.760 So it gives us. 0:20:19.600 --> 0:20:23.560 An opportunity to gain product knowledge, meet our suppliers so 0:20:23.600 --> 0:20:26.359 that we've got personal relationships with them and we really 0:20:26.400 --> 0:20:29.639 know who's who so that we can better serve our customers. 0:20:29.880 --> 0:20:32.600 So in total, you know, there's four hundred and forty 0:20:33.119 --> 0:20:35.720 aftermarket salespeople here that includes our That's. 0:20:35.560 --> 0:20:37.880 Why I was curious about how many people are involved. 0:20:38.119 --> 0:20:39.240 Four and forty. 0:20:39.440 --> 0:20:43.840 So imagine, folks, You've got technicians from around the country 0:20:44.000 --> 0:20:47.240 coming here to compete, and you've got four hundred and 0:20:47.280 --> 0:20:50.879 forty vendors that support this right that bring their equipment 0:20:50.960 --> 0:20:53.560 and their stuff here for people to compete. And the 0:20:53.560 --> 0:20:55.359 cost of this thing is three million dollars. 0:20:55.600 --> 0:20:56.720 Yep, we'll have to. 0:20:56.720 --> 0:20:58.160 Pick this up on the other side of the break 0:20:58.280 --> 0:21:02.560 let that sink in free putting the the just the 0:21:02.920 --> 0:21:05.879 sheer volume of this alone is incredible. 0:21:06.200 --> 0:21:09.080 Yeah, it is a big annual event, and it's really 0:21:09.480 --> 0:21:11.200 you know, the one time per year that we get 0:21:11.200 --> 0:21:14.200 to bring everybody together, and it gives us an opportunity 0:21:14.240 --> 0:21:17.160 to not only talk about our results prior year, but 0:21:17.320 --> 0:21:19.200 really what we're focused on is the future. 0:21:19.280 --> 0:21:21.240 What a strategy. 0:21:21.240 --> 0:21:24.040 What are we trying to accomplish at RUSH as an 0:21:24.040 --> 0:21:27.480 aftermarket sales team? And so you know my expectations, and 0:21:27.520 --> 0:21:29.920 I know they did. They'll walk out of this event 0:21:29.960 --> 0:21:31.240 and they understand. 0:21:30.760 --> 0:21:33.239 Stop right, sure what they expect when we come back. 0:21:33.320 --> 0:21:33.600 Okay. 0:21:33.760 --> 0:21:38.920 I'm Kevin Gordonmericus Tructing Network seven hundred WLW. 0:21:39.000 --> 0:21:45.960 News Traffic and Weather News Radio seven hundred w l W, Cincinnati. 0:21:46.440 --> 0:21:50.359