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AT THE REQUEST OF ATTORNEYS REPRESENTING RANDY SORENSON,  I HAVE REMOVED CERTAIN SENTENCES AND PHRASES WHICH WERE STATED AS FACT.  I WANT TO MAKE IT CLEAR THAT I AM EXPRESSING MY OWN OPINION ON THESE MATTERS, BASED UPON MY OBSERVATIONS OF A SERIES OF EVENTS.  I CANNOT SAY WITHOUT QUESTION THAT THESE ARE FACTS, BUT ONLY THAT THEY ARE MY OPINION.

FURTHERMORE, I WANT CLARIFY THAT I HAVE NOT EVER SAID THAT RANDY SORENSON IS RELATED TO DEBBIE KALLINIKOS WITH BW INSURANCE.  I DID CONFIRM THAT I HAD HEARD THE SAME RUMOR.  I STATE HEREBY AS CLEARLY AS POSSIBLE:  I DO NOT HAVE ANY EVIDENCE TO PROVE THAT RANDY SORENSON AND DEBBIE KALLINIKOS ARE RELATED IN ANY WAY.  I HAVE NEVER MADE SUCH A STATEMENT IN ANY PUBLIC FORUM.

Those of you who know me know that I have opposed the PEVOA (Professional Escort Vehicle Operator’s Association) leadership on the basis of an apparent conflict of interest on the part of PEVOA President and founder, Randy Sorenson.  For nearly three years I have been outspoken in my concern for the apparent conflict of interest.  I have refused, until recently, to join because I feel that Mr. Sorenson is using PEVOA and his position as its president to line his own pockets.  I am not saying he is taking PEVOA funds for his personal use.  (THIS SENTENCE WAS EXCISED AT THE REQUEST OF MR. SORENSON’S ATTORNEYS.)

It is my opinion that such an appearance tarnishes the image of PEVOA and limits its credibility to represent our industry.  I have suggested solutions that would remove the appearance of a conflict of interest, but neither the PEVOA board of directors nor Mr. Sorenson have accepted these proposed solutions.  Their attitude is that there is no conflict of interest:  therefore there is no need to remove the appearance of one.

Back in September of last year, I decided that I would be more effective as a member of PEVOA than as an outsider looking in.  I applied for membership in accordance with all of their rules, regulations, and by-laws (until this article was posted, PEVOA published their by laws online.  They have now decided to hide those bylaws and will make them available only by written request.  One can only assume they want to screen who actually receives them.  I WILL GLADLY PROVIDE A COPY OF THE CURRENT PEVOA BYLAWS TO ANYONE WHO REQUESTS THEM THROUGH PRIVATE EMAIL TO ME.)  Here are the requirements for Class 1 membership to PEVOA, according to their by-laws (summarized):

para. 4.  Class 1 members must be directly involved in the pilot car industry.

para. 4.1.  They must pay their dues and be elected to membership by the board of directors.

para. 4.2.  They must comply with the pilot car drivers best practices guidelines.

para. 4.3.  They must hold at least one state pilot car certification.

para. 4.4.  They shall have the right to vote on issues before the association.

The back of the application form (http://pevoa.com/class%201%20membership%20application_110308.pdf)  <if you click on this, you will go to the USPILOTCAR.COM site and view their application form.  You will need to press the BACK arrow to return to this article>has a block of text in red entitled PEVOA CODE OF CONDUCT AND CODE OF ETHICS.  It has four points.  Here they are in summary form:  (1) a member will agree to adhere to all the standards established by PEVOA including the best practices guidelines; (2) a member will not misrepresent his/her business; (3) a member will show due regard for other members and do nothing to harm other members’ business or reputation through misrepresentation or other means; (4)  a member will cooperate with other members in sound and lawful programs intended to improve the quality of the service of our business.

To my knowledge, I qualify under all of those requirements (except for the board approval part)…and yet the PEVOA Board of Directors rejected my application for membership.  I am unable to scan and present their original rejection letter, so I will summarize what they had to say.  (I have nothing to hide, unlike the PEVOA BOARD OF DIRECTORS.  I WILL BE HAPPY TO SEND A FILE COPY OF THEIR FIRST REJECTION LETTER TO ANYONE WHO REQUESTS IT BY PRIVATE EMAIL TO ME.)

They said that they can consider not only the information on the application letters, but also other sources of information.  They pointed out that I agreed to comply with the Association by-laws as well as the ethical conduct as described on the application form.  They then listed the items which they used to reach their decisions:  (1) the completed application form; (2) 30 internet posts that I made in which PEVOA was mentioned; (3) one private email that I sent to a member of the PEVOA BOD.  It concludes by saying that the Board voted unanimously to reject my application, but also encouraged me to appeal their decision.

Here is the body of the email I sent to Randy Stirrett on September 25, 2007:

Randy Stirrett <randystirrett@yahoo.com> wrote:

Elton,

 

I have been reading the posts on the groups. You say you support the concept of PEVOA in principal, but have a problem with a certain individual in the PEVOA leadership. May I ask who this individual is, and what the problem is? I very interested in knowing what the problems are.

 

Thanks

Randy Stirrett

I am home this week, following nearly six weeks of being involved in moving a 21foot oversize load from Rodeo, NM, to Houston, TX.

This load was far more problematic than any with which I have been involved, and apparently the problems began LONG before I got involved.  They began moving this load back in September from Torrance, CA, through the state of Arizona.

I first got involved around the first of November when the dispatcher called to ask me to perform a route survey for this load.  I was in Las Vegas at the time, having just dropped a load there.

Typically, when I do a route survey, I make personal contact with the various utilities along the route.  That is time-consuming, so my rates reflect that.  It involves stopping and getting pole numbers, circuit numbers, etc., and then researching to find out who owns the utilities.  Then, I contact the line supervisor or operations manager for each utility, and if possible, meet nose-to-nose with that person.  If I believe we will need traffic control help while going through various communities, I personally contact the appropriate law enforcement agency.  During this process, I develop a contact list in the order we will need to call them.

The dispatcher asked me if I would give her a break if I let her do all the utility contacts.  She assured me that she would deal with them and they would know where all of their low road crossings were located.  Not having to do all that I normally do would have cut the time required to do this survey by half.  Since the load already was sitting because of the lack of NM permit, I was willing to accept her offer of help.  LITTLE DID I KNOW!  That will be the recurring theme of this blog.

On the first and second days of the survey, I broke my pole.  That should have been adequate warning to me.  After repairing my pole, I completed the survey and submitted it to the trucking company.  Later, they called and wanted me to research another potential route that involved 75 miles of dirt, rock and gravel road.  If it had worked out, it would have saved about 500 miles for the trucking company.  It took me five hours and two rear tires to survey that route, only to learn that it wouldn’t work because there were about a dozen cattleguards that were about 8 inches too narrow for the load.  I saw only three vehicles during that five hour period.

Days later, the permitting company called me and wanted me to run the route again, marking every low wire, about how high it was, and what type of wire (fiberoptic, telephone, power, etc.).  They said THEY would use that information to contact the various utilities along the way.  I did as they requested at my own expense, since I should have done it in the first place.  Unfortunately for me, I had relied upon the dispatcher to take care of that side of the survey.

Throughout this process, the dispatcher was contacting the utilities she could identify along our route, seeking letters of approval for the route from them.  In one specific case, a large telephone company responded in writing that they had no overhead wires along our route and there would be no problem.  I immediately saw that was erroneous and contacted the company representative myself with specific information.  After he went out and reviewed our route in person, he called me back to say that there was one particular fiberoptics line that was already as high as he could move it, and it was too tight to be lifted three feet by our bucket trucks.  That meant I had to review another route around that section of road.

Finally, we got our permit, letters of approval and a private bucket truck and began our move on December 3…one whole day.  On the second day, the lineman for the power company showed up to let us know that there was NO WAY we could travel the approved route because of multiple high voltage low wires.  So, we spent the entire day looking for a new way to get around El Paso.  Ultimately we had to have the El Paso police department shut down four miles of a four lane divided highway so we could get through El Paso.

On day three, we moved along quite well, until we neared the Ruidoso, NM, area.  About ten miles from Ruidoso, the head of the NM DOT permit office called me personally and said there was NO WAY we were going to get through Ruidoso, and to get the load to the nearest safe place and shut down.  Remember that we already had a permit approved by her office.  She informed me that we could not go through Ruidoso, despite the permit, because we had completely missed notifying a major telephone provider.  They had four low and tight fiberoptic lines that they would have had to cut to get us through on that day.  The director of the state permit office said that I needed to perform a route survey for a new route around Ruidoso and to request a new permit.  That process took another seven days and numerous phone calls on my part to work out varioius problems.

In the meantime, the trucking company repowered the load.  In other words, they replaced the initial driver with another one because he had lost his wallet, including CDL, medical card, fuel card, cash in various currencies, and etc.  The new driver had brought along his own escort.  Somehow, the state permit office thought I was going to be pulled from the load, and they were going to refuse to let the load move without either me, or a new route survey.  We got all that worked out and moved the following day with two high pole escorts.  We also picked up a new rear escort, an executive with the shipping company.

After that, we moved along fairly well.  I ran in front with the two bucket trucks (the executive ordered a second one for us).  When I hit a low wire, I stopped and one or both of the bucket trucks would pull up under the wire to lift it.  The second high pole came forward and stopped under the wire to let the bucket truck know how far up they needed to lift it, while I moved on to the next low wire.  We repeated that process for about 1400 miles.  Throughout this process, I was on the phone trying to identify the next utility company (primarily power companies) and notify them that we would need their help.  I also was calling the next community or political entity (county sheriff’s office or city police) to alert them that we would be coming through their area and would be having a negative impact on traffic.  It was a slow process.  We were averaging about 140 miles per day, and taking about ten hours to do that.  Do the math:  we were averaging about 14 mph.

Finally with the help of an outstanding Houston police motorcycle escort team, we delivered the load shipside at a Houston port late on December 16th.

As a result of this experience, I will NEVER EVER allow the customer to do the utility contacts.  Under about 18 feet, there are few problems, but for loads higher than 18 feet, prior coordination is critical!  I have found that if I give the utility companies adequate advance notice, they generally do not charge the trucking company to move their wires.  After all, it is in their interest that we notify them and involve them in the process.  That way, they do not suffer damage to their equipment by some company that sneaks through with an OD load, tears down wires and then disappears down the highway.  For those companies that DO charge, that is a reasonable expense of moving the load that the trucking company should expect to pay.

Here are the other problems we encountered:  there is no single source of information for identifying the above ground utilities that might be impacted by our load route.  There are “one call” centers in all the states, but their systems are not set  up to handle requests for above ground utilities.  For one to issue a list of utilities, their systems apparently automatically send out notices to every single utility, underground as well as above ground.  The end result is that we wind up getting letters of approval from everyone from private pipeline companies to city water departments and beyond.  During our second permit request in NM, the permit office abruptly changed the rules and REQUIRED us to go through the “one call center”.  I think they may have backed off of that requirement for the time being.

We also encountered utilitiy companies, and even some political entities (such as the Mescalero Apache Indian Reservation), who approved our routes without actually traveling or at least specifically reviewing the requested routes.  The Mescalero reservation very quickly found us a new and better route through their area.  As I mentioned before, in some cases, the “worker bee”, that linesman who had to escort us, let us know that we couldn’t use those routes, despite letters of approval and permits.  That is the problem when dealing with the desk drivers and not directly with the “boots on the ground”.

I learned a lot of valuable lessons from this experience, and will apply them to all future route surveys for high loads.

We dropped our load this afternoon at the Climax Mine on top of Fremont Pass, north of Leadville, CO.  Now I am in Pueblo, CO, heading home.

Our load was 27 feet wide.  That means that on a typical two lane road, the load hung over each shoulder.  We ran with four escorts-two up front and two in the back.  The lead escort was out forward about 1/2 mile, while I ran about 200 yards directly in front of the load.  The other two escorts trailed the load, holding off traffic when we were approaching narrow sections, skinny bridges and the like, and advising the driver when traffic got too backed up.

Being the second front escort in a situation like this is VERY stressful.  As vehicles would approach, I weaved into the oncoming lane of traffic to get their attention and then moved back into our lane of travel.  As the vehicles got closer, I waved a bright orange flag out the driver’s door window and waved them to the shoulder.  Some of the bridges we crossed were so tight that there couldn’t have been more than one foot on either side of the load.  In those cases, I raced ahead and then pulled completely into the oncoming lane of traffic and stopped traffic or attempted to do so.

Occasionally, vehicles would go around me but very quickly came to a stop once they saw the load.  In one case, I could see that the woman driver was going to try to go around me, so I inched forward and forced her to stop.  Let’s just say she was QUITE demonstrative in her unhappiness with me, until her daughter pointed out that our load covered the entire bridge.  As I passed her, she was smiling at me and saying “thank you”.

We had one incident in which a little blue haired lady was on her cell phone as she passed me.  She actually drove UNDER the load.  I am not sure she ever saw it.  If her car had been just four inches higher, it would have become and instant convertible.

Then, there are the folks who absolutely hate escorts and oversize loads.  One guy flipped off every escort and the truck driver.  Several miles down the road, we were stopped by a highway patrol officer who said they had reports that our load was travelling without escorts or a permit.  It actually helped us because he provided us with police escort the last 30 miles of the trip and arranged for city/county escort through a couple of small towns along the way.

We have spent the weekend in Colorado Springs, Co.  Our load is 27′ wide and therefore too wide to be allowed on the highways over the weekend.

Tomorrow, we have to drive about 50 miles back to where we left it, and then we take it up into the high mountains southwest of Denver.  That area got some snow today, but according to the radar, it didn’t last long.  Colorado will not let OD loads move if they impose the chain law for trucks.  Hopefully it has not been imposed for the area where we are going.  We should be able to drop tomorrow (Monday).

Incidentally, I hope to have my site repaired soon.  Another family member also is highly talented in software and web hosting.  I am hoping he will be able to resolve these issues so that you and I can have full use of this site.

Folks…I want to apologize for the errors on this site.  I am aware of them and have been for several weeks.

Unfortunately I am technically incapable of correcting them, and my web designer is busy with a new and exciting business venture which is taking all of her time right now.

I will resume writing daily blogs and can only wait until a later time for these errors to be repaired.  In the meantime, I encourage you to review my blogs in the hopes that something might be of interest and use to you.

Thank you for your consideration.

I am in Houston tonight, for the third straight night.  Sunday night, we got in two hours after sunset and had to wait until Monday morning to deliver our load.

I picked up a load heading back near my home…supposed to leave today, but didn’t.  Sooo, I got to stay two additional nights here.

I sat all day in the yard with my driver waiting to get him loaded.  The latest word we have is that he will be loaded by about midday on Wednesday.  Then we will head to the OK/CO state line on US 287.

Tonight I am in Stratford, TX, en route to pick up a load in Siebert, CO.  We’re going to Houston.  Weather is rough to the west of us AND there is a Flash Flood Watch out.  That could make life interesting tomorrow when we come back this way.  There is a 50% chance of rain tomorrow and tomorrow night.

There are those people who will tell you that the pilot car industry is an easy way to make money.  Don’t believe it!

Oh, there ARE people who slap on a Wal Mart winky light, handwrite a sign and duct tape it to the door, and use a $39 CB radio and POOF! they are in business.  Those folks might make what they think is good money for a little while, but ultimately they wither on the vine.

I am not saying that you need tens of thousands of dollars to break into this business.  However, there ARE some basic expenses that you should plan to meet if you are serious about being in business for yourself.

Let’s assume that you have a serviceable vehicle that you can use for your business.  Whether it is a car, van, or pickup truck, you will have to spend at least $1000 to make it ready.  You will need at least one reliable amber colored light.  That is going to cost you about $150 for just one.  You might get good service from that Wal Mart winky light for a couple of weeks, but not much more than that.  You really should plan on having at least TWO lights.  Only a few states allow one light;  most require two rotating or strobe lights.  Some states, such as New York, require 47 inch light bars.  Those will cost you between $250 at $2100, depending on how fancy you want to be.  Generally, you can find light bars on sale on eBay, or at local government auctions when police departments swap out their older light bars for new styles.

Incidentally, one hidden cost in using lights is the demand on the alternator and/or the battery of your vehicle.  You should be prepared to replace your alternator more often than normal, or to install a heavy duty alternator.  Many folks simply carry a spare alternator with them.

You are going to need at least a good CB radio.  That $39 dollar radio might work well if you plan just to chase loads.  Their limited power output limits the distance you can be from the load, and THAT becomes a problem if you get too far out front of the load.  You’ll just have to experiment with it.  I have found serviceable radios at pawn shops, and sometimes at  yard sales.  I have bought radios through eBay, and through retailers.  Generally, you will spend around $130 for a new brand name CB radio…more if you want more features.  For example, my backup radio has the weather channels, along with a switch that allows me to jump from CH 19 to CH 9 to whatever channel I have dialed in.  Having the weather channels available allows you to keep up with what is going on around you or along your route of travel.  The channel switch is useful if you are on a load where the driver wants to be on something other than the standard road channel 19.  If you are on two lane roads out front, and on another channel, being able to switch to CH 19 with a quick flip of the channel allows you to warn oncoming big trucks about your load and then quickly go back to your escort channel.

You will need AT LEAST two OVERSIZE LOAD signs.  First, let’s talk about front and rear bumper signs.  Many people use the flexible, foldable signs that you can purchase at truck stops.  Here is a piece of advice:  stay away from the plastic signs!  They tend to sag and stretch, especially during hot weather.  I actually have seen signs droop enough to fall under the front wheels and get ripped from the vehicle.  Sometimes, the vehicle is damaged, depending upon how the signs were mounted.  It has been so long since I have used those, but I am thinking the price runs around $20.  If  you use metal or wood signs, plan to spend about $100, give or take a few dollars.  In addition,  you are going to need to figure out how to mount those signs.  Keep these factors in mind:  you want to keep open the opening to your grill and radiator; you want to leave your license plate visible; and you want to ensure that you do not cover your lights, including front headlights and turn signals, as well as brake lights and turn signals.

If  you operate in states that require overhead signs, don’t even THINK about using flexible signs.  I have seen some people attempt it, and it never seems to work.  Sooo…you are going to need to plan on some sort of mounting system.  If you have a pickup truck, you can purchase or build a “headache rack” on which to mount your signs.  If you drive a van or car, obviously you will need to find a mounting sytem on line or have someone build you one.  Either way, you are probably going to spend something in the range of $150 for the mounting system alone, plus the cost of the sign (again…about $100).  Most states which require overhead signs will not allow expanded metal signs out of concern that sunlight shining through them make the OVERSIZE LOAD invisible.  They will allow louvered signs, providing the louvers overlap enough that the sun cannot shine through to the other side.  Solid signs, even when angled, will cost you about 3 MPG when you use it.  Expanded metal signs drop your fuel economy about the same amount.  Louvered signs only drop it between 1 to 1.5 MPG.  That is a HUGE difference the more miles you drive.  Louvered signs will cost you about $300, if you can find them.

Then, there are the “little” things that you’ve got to have.  You will need at least three 18 inch high orange traffic cones.  You can get those at the Home Depot or Lowe’s, or online for about $16 to $18 apiece.  Truck stops have those cones, but most of the ones I have seen are 16 inches, not 18 inches.  You can purchase collapsible cones for about $120 per set.  I have written about those on this site before.

You will need at least two sets of traffic triangles.  Usually, they come three to a set.  They are available at Wal Mart, truck stops, and online for about $15 each.  Some states require three sets.  You will need a first aid kit.  In most states, even the most basic first aid kit is acceptable.  If you really want to be useful at an accident scene, you will want a more extensive kit.  The basic kits are available for around $6-7.  More useful kits will cost more than $20, or more than $100.  In addition, you will need at least ten pounds of fire extinguishers.  Most states will allow two five-pound fire extinguishers.  You can find them online, at hardware stores, truck stops, and safety equipment stores.  Plan on spending about $20 apiece for those.  (Speaking from personal experience, ten pounds of fire extinguishers don’t go very far on a fire…just a word of caution!)

Once you’ve got all of that together, you will need to get the right kind of insurance for your vehicle.  Above all, BE SURE THAT YOU HAVE COMMERCIAL LIABILITY INSURANCE.  If you plan to operate only in your own state, you might be able to get along with basic liability coverage.  However, most states require a higher coverage.  Some states require up to $1 million commercial liability, and a few others require $1 million GENERAL LIABILTY insurance as well.  Those can cost you between $1600 to $2500 per year, depending upon a lot of factors.

Now…you’ve got to think about operating funds.  There are those people new to this business, and a few “seasoned” operators, who operate solely on payment at the end of the run basis.  In my experience, those are rare indeed.  Realistically, you should plan on waiting at least 30 days for your money.  If you operate through a broker, add another two weeks to that.  You probably need about $2000 in hand to be able to operate one month without any income.  That does NOT include your rent or mortgage payment and utilities.

There are lots of incidentals that will pop up unexpectedly that will cost you money.  For example, one critical expense will be the cost of certification.  In my next issue, I will discuss certification requirements and make suggestions for your training.

Quite often, people considering our business post on the various groups, or call some of us, or email some of us, wanting to know about the pilot car business.

Of course they have all sorts of questions: can you make money at it? How much does it cost to get into it? What do I need to know? What certifications or permits do I need? What kind of equipment do I need to get?

Others far more experienced than I have written on these subjects, so I am in good company when I attempt to answer these questions from my own perspective. This is the first in a series of articles that I will be writing on the subject. I invite my colleagues to comment on these articles and to correct me when I am wrong. I also invite questions from the readers of this series.

The fundamental question that a “newbie” should consider is this: do you REALLY want to be a pilot car operator?

This is not an easy life, particularly for someone with a family. If I had family obligations, including a wife, children at home, ailing parents, etc., I doubt I would be IN this business. It is true that some people can make a good living in this business with relatively short runs, thus allowing one to maintain the semblance of a family life. Unfortunately, this is rare. It generally depends upon physical location. For example, if one lives near a state line where there are differing pilot car requirements. The best example I can think of for this is those people who live along the Oklahoma panhandle. The panhandle is only about 40 miles wide between Texas and Colorado or Kansas. Often, oversize loads need escorts just across the state of Oklahoma. Thus, people living in that area could easily stay busy just running short runs for a fixed rate, and make a good living, while being at home every night.

The challenges we face in this business are almost the same as the challenges that big rig (over-the-road) truck drivers. I believe that truck drivers probably have an easier time getting loads. There are load boards available, dispatchers, or trucking companies to whom drivers can lease. While there are some pilot car load boards, they are not nearly as sophisticated or as numerous as for the truck drivers.

There is wear and tear on your vehicle to consider. Even more important, do you have an extra vehicle that you can use for this business? Surely you do not want to leave your family without transportation while you are out on a run.

One should consider the financial aspects of being in business for one’s self. Of course there is a lot of freedom when you work for yourself. On the other hand, you miss the “bennies” of working for someone else. Foremost, especially if you have a family at home, is the availability of health insurance through an employer. Add to that the workers’ compensation insurance in the event you are injured on the job. In our business, I do not know of any independent pilot car services company that offers workers’ compensation. There may be some states in the New England area that require this, but that is the exception, rather than the rule. Working for someone else means there is an hourly wage or a salary that you can depend upon (providing you keep your job and your employer doesn’t sell out or shut down).

This business can be a “feast or famine” type of business. To a certain extent, it is seasonal. Obviously, more oversize loads (or OD loads) move during the warmer months of the year. In the southern tier of states, this is not such a problem, but if you live in the northern tier, it COULD be a problem if you want to stay in your immediate area. There are ways to avoid the seasonal aspect, or to prepare for it. It simply takes self discipline and/or planning.

That brings us to the critical issue of self discipline. You MUST be self disciplined in this business, like any independently owned business. Self discipline is important for a variety of reasons. You must be reliable, meaning that if you give your work to meet a load at a time and place, you must be there. You must exercise self discipline in the maintenance of your vehicle, your paperwork, your business relationships. If you are not a self starter and want to be in this business, work for someone else.

There are many issues that you need to consider before getting into this business. My next issue will deal with the financial aspects of owning your own pilot car services company.

I’m in Gallup, NM, tonight.  I figure it costs me less to stay here than to drive 400 miles home and then 700 miles to Green River, UT, for my next load.

The Green River load has been sitting there for about two weeks, awaiting California permits and state police escort.  I’ve been told that the permits have been issued, but that there are no state police escorts available right now.  We aren’t the only people with that problem.  The permit service told us today that there are at least 7 OD loads in Blythe, CA, awaiting state police escort.  I am wondering if all the wildfires around the state of California are causing part of the problem.