Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/893962
Voices 10 | Overdrive | October 2017 Running his four-truck fleet, P.O.E. Farm, brings enough headaches of its own, but John Hodges, 35, pushes the envelope even further. Hodges, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, also runs a cattle farm, pastors a church and stays close to his wife and four children. He demonstrates the potential for what can be accomplished if you can dream big and multitask well. His main customer is Scotts, a global provider of lawn care products. Scotts has a facility just east of Tuscaloosa, and Hodges delivers mostly within a 300-mile radius. Two of his four trucks are pre-2000 with engines of the same vintage, so they're exempt from the electronic logging device mandate. In addition to his '98 Freightliner Classic, "my all-time favorite is my 1980 Freightliner FLD 120," he says. As for the other newer ones, well, that's where his long-range plan comes into play. The low-mileage agri- cultural work he anticipates will put those trucks into exempt mode, but that's not the main goal. "I'm transitioning to hauling cattle," Hodges says. He has 30 head of cattle on his 120-acre farm in Boligee, Alabama, his hometown, not far from Clinton, Ala- bama, where he pastors St. Matthew Baptist Church. "I grew up on a farm" working with pickups and small trailers, he says. "Now I'm going back into it." Hodges believes he can work full time hauling cat- tle for himself and others nearby. "I want to be the feed lot," he says. "They sell them to me prior to going to the butcher. I pay for feed, housing, transpor- tation." There's also the hope of reduced stress due to "less regulations, less people in your pocket," he says. "Cows don't give me as big of a headache as dealing with shippers, brokers, customers and drivers." Hodges recalls pray- ing for a career path that would enable him to care well for his family. "God told me, 'You already have the land. Utilize it.' I already have the mindset and training for it." In ad- dition, beef processing isn't seasonal, and the demand isn't likely to wane. In the meantime, he's of- ten asked how he balances his many responsibilities. "To whom much is given, much is required," Hodges says. "God gives his wis- dom. He gives strength. I do it because of God's grace and his favor." – Max Heine Catch a longer version of this story and a video interview with John Hodges at OverdriveOnline.com – search "John Hodges." Small fleet's transition plan sidesteps ELDs Max Heine John Hodges drives a 1998 Freightliner. He's netted about $200,000 annually from the fleet business in recent years, along with about $50,000 a year from his cattle farm. Todd Dills ELD mandate: Another slap on the hand " I feel like I'm getting scolded, [along with other] guys who try to keep their equipment up, buying new equipment for this state, trying to be right for this other state or a federal law — and they go and pass another law that brings us down and costs us more money out of our pocket. Why am I trying to be the good one out here? " — Independent owner-operator Erick Engbarth on his frustrations with costly regulations that yield little if any benefit. Hear Engbarth's take on the ELD man- date, California emissions rules and more in the Sept. 16 edition of the Overdrive Radio podcast. You'll see a link at the top of the OverdriveOnline.com home page.