Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/791967
32 | Overdrive | March 2017 T hree owner-operators are finalists for the 2016 Owner-Operator of the Year award, pro- duced by the Truckload Carriers Association and Overdrive. Gary Buchs, Philip Keith and Kevin Kocmich are competing for a $25,000 cash prize. The winner will be announced March 28 at TCA's annual meeting in Nasvhille, Tennes- see. A 2016 Company Driver of the Year, also winning $25,000, will be named from finalists William Poteet of Saddle Creek Transportation, Mur- ray Manuliak of Bison Transport and David McGowan of WEL Companies. The four runners-up will receive $2,500 each. The contests are sponsored by Cummins and Love's Travel Stops. The awards recognize the winner's safety record, efforts to enhance the industry's image and contributions to the community. For the owner- operator award, business acumen is an additional consideration. To be eligible for the contest, appli- cants had to have one million con- secutive accident-free miles. Discovering value in other people L ike other experienced long-haul drivers, Gary Buchs, 62, of Colfax, Illinois, has spent thousands of solo hours behind the wheel. Yet he attributes his success to being able to interact with so many people daily. Buchs has logged 2.3 million accident free miles in his 27-year driving career that began with driving trucks around the farm where he grew up. His com- mercial trucking career started in the late 1980s, hauling regionally around St. Louis for Roadway and spot-driving for farms. Later, he drove for Nu-Way Transportation and in 2003 leased to Landstar Systems. "Part of my decision to join them was that I was hiring them to do what they do best, so that I was able to do what I do best," Buchs says. "I was able to use my people skills to seek accounts that were looking for stronger cus- tomer service." Buchs typical- ly stays around the Midwest, hauling multiple- stop loads, often of high value, such as kitchen cabinets and the- ater sets. Because those loads tend to pay more, he can do short runs and still bring home a good profit. Because Buchs averages only about 300 miles a day, he has held onto the truck he bought when he signed on with Landstar – a 2000 Freightliner Century. "I knew maintenance costs would be low, and I don't drive to California and back," he says. "A long run for me is 500 miles." One of Buchs' most challenging safety concerns is refraining from getting caught up in the emotion of what's going on around him on the road. Outside of safety, he advises new owner-operators to know why you want to do the job, learn how to control fixed costs and not overcommit regarding your capabilities. Buchs also teaches local students how to drive safely around trucks. "I tell them to make the decision to keep yourself safe first, which keeps the people in the truck safe and all the other drivers around the truck safe," he says. Those concerns extend to his wife, Marcia Peterson Buchs, two children and three grandchildren. "I base so many of my decisions around these people." Buchs' best day is one where he can get in and out of a delivery site with no complications. "If you do your job right, don't cause any damage and show up on time, the customer feels great, and they don't dwell on you," he says. $25,000 AWAITS TOP OWNER-OPERATOR BY MATT COLE GARY BUCHS: He finds profit in short, multi-stop runs.