Proudly serving the industry for which it was named for more than 50 years, Outdoor Power Equipment provides dealers who sell and service outdoor power equipment with valuable information to succeed in a competitive market.
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/391495
6 OCTOBER 2014 OUTDOOR POWER EQUIPMENT www.outdoorpowerequipment.com EPG Media/Specialty Information Media 3300 Fernbrook Lane N, Suite 200 Plymouth, MN 55447 OPE Staff Group Publisher David Voll Associate Publisher John Kmitta Editor Steve Noe Art Director Brian Snook Production Manager Karen Kalinyak DirEct Mail liSt SalES MeritDirect, Jim Scova, (914) 368-1012; e-mail jscova@MeritDirect.com rEPrint SErvicE Joanne Juda, Sr. VP Market Development (630) 399-9864; email jjuda@specialtyim.com EDitOrial aDviSOry BOarD Former Executive Director, EETC (retired) Jim Roche Senior Advisor, Servantage Dixie Sales Jim Starmer Pres., Plano Power Equipment and Whipper Clipper Glen Whitt Director of Sales and Marketing, Central Power Distributors, Inc. John D. Hedges circulatiOn For subscription inquiries and customer service questions, please call (847) 763-9565 or fax (847) 763-9569 business hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. EST Publisher's Notice: We assume no responsibility for the validity of advertising claims in connection with items appearing in Outdoor Power Equipment. Commercial product names are used for the convenience of the reader. Mention of a commer- cial product does not imply endorsement by Outdoor Power Equipment or Specialty Information Media, or preference over similar products not mentioned. EDitOrial OfficES EPG Media/Specialty Information Media 3300 Fernbrook Lane N, Suite 200 Plymouth, MN 55447 accOunt rEPrESEntativES: EaSt Chris Pelikan Senior Account Manager Phone: (954) 964-8676 cpelikan@epgmediallc.com MiDWESt Peggy Tupper Senior Account Manager Phone: (763) 383-4429 ptupper@epgmediallc.com WESt Leslie Palmer Senior Account Manager Phone: (248) 731-7596 lpalmer@specialtyim.com William H. "Bill" Quinn Jr. — who founded this magazine as Lawn Equipment Journal (LEJ) in September 1959, had the foresight to rename it Outdoor Power Equipment (OPE) in September 1969, and served as its publisher for 30 years before selling the magazine — passed away on Sept. 6, 2014, in Fort Worth, Texas. He was 102. All of us at OPE are deeply indebted to Bill for his countless contributions not only to the magazine, but also to the entire industry (see story starting on page 18). Most recently, he graciously wrote an article on OPEs 55th anniversary for our June 2014 issue and was interviewed about the origin of the magazine for a Green Media Podcast, which can be heard at www.outdoorpowerequipment.com. "At Ariens Company, we were all saddened to hear of Bill's passing," said Dan Ariens, chairman and CEO, Ariens Company. "Bill was an icon of the OPE industry and simply put, a wonderful man and tremendous voice for all. From dealers to distributors to the manufacturers, Bill understood the relationships which were so important in making the industry what we are today. Knowing all the personalities at every level made Bill the unique leading authority of his day." In February 2001, I had the great honor and privilege of meeting Bill, his wife Lynn ("Lennie") and their son Rix at the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport en route to a distributor associa- tion meeting in Cancun, Mexico. Although we just met briefly for a pre-planned lunch between flights, it quickly became apparent to me as to why he was so well liked by people in this industry and was able to develop OPE into what many readers referred to as "the bible of the industry." He treated me with the utmost kindness and respect, as if I was the one who founded and published the magazine for three decades, not someone who at that time had served as its editor for slightly more than three years. Bill was highly attentive and inquisitive, asking me one question after another about the state of the magazine and the industry, and soaking in everything that I had to say like a sponge. He also had a terrific sense of humor, making me laugh several times with his back- in-the-day stories. I wound up keeping in touch and becoming friends with Bill over the years, and I found him to be one of the most honest, genuine, sincere, caring, humble and humorous individuals that I've ever met. He was truly a one-of-a-kind per- son who knew how to treat people the right way while living life to its absolute fullest. If the world was filled with more people like Bill, it would be a much happier and better place to live. In his final article for OPE in the June 2014 issue, Bill said, "That $300 I paid down to Tom Murray for the rights to publish the Bicycle Journal — which later led to the creation of Outdoor Power Equipment — just has to be one of the best investments any publisher ever made for any magazine," he said. "What a helluva ride we've had for that $300!" On behalf of everyone at OPE, I would like to extend our sincerest and most heartfelt condolences to the Quinn family. OPE industry loses a legend upfront Editor Steve noe | snoe@specialtyim.com OPE