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What Happens When Competitors Train Together For Safety And Growth · Towing News Now

• 0:04
  SPEAKER_04: You're on the train to success with April and Wes Wilburn.
• 0:09
  SPEAKER_04: I'm DJ Harrington, the co-host, better known as the Toad Doctor.
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_04: We're all on our way to the town of proper towing and recovery, along with our producer, Chuck Camp in the studio.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_04: Don't go to the town of woulda, coulda, shoulda.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_04: You could have done this.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_04: You should have done that.
• 0:30
  SPEAKER_04: Listen every week to thought-provoking wisdom from great guests.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_04: So if you have Spotify, iTunes, Pandora, Stitcher, iHeartMedia, or the number one podcast, or maybe Amazon, or wherever you get your podcast, turn in on Wednesday and be turned on all week long.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_04: If you are a state association and want your announcements or upcoming state association news, or maybe a post show that's coming up, let us know.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_04: Our podcast studio phone number is 706-409-5603.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_04: I'm proud to be part of a great team at the American Drone Recovery Institute.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_04: Let's make 2025 our best year ever.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_04: I will turn it to April and West.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_05: Well, DJ, as always, I appreciate the kind words and of course to all the listeners.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_05: We're very thankful that you're here for our podcast this week.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_05: We got a great guest for you.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_05: Of course, we we we pre-record the stuff, so we're coming up on New Year's as we listen to So first of all.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_05: Uh everybody for uh New Year's going to add it.
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_05: Uh ready to go for the new year that we do here.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_05: Uh resolution.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_05: I do a certain day.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_05: So I'm not real busy.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_05: I believe the resolutions are all throughout the year after now.
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_05: I just hope everybody's getting ready for the new year.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_05: I'm super excited.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_05: We've got that 12 plays of leadership between coming up at the end of January.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_05: Something new, it's something I'm very excited for the Cardinal Legacy leadership team is bringing to the industry.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_05: January twenty ninth and sodium order website www.com backslash event or um po w r I dot com as well.
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_05: So we got a great interview today.
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_05: Uh a member of a cardinal team.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_05: Uh interview that you took the class at Kansas City.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_05: So that's gonna be a good interview.
• 3:48
  SPEAKER_05: I'm kind of let the ball drop on that.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_05: I'm gonna get back on that.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_05: As a matter of fact, I've been working on that subject.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_05: And you know, one of the things I've noticed is I saw the third one I've seen in let's say 12 months, where an employee of a telecompany was able to uh steal thousands, hundreds tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of hours from a telecompany.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_05: Three cases of it around the country.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_05: I think it was over 200,000 hours they got away with over two years.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_05: So that's all my friends in the telling you the tree.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_05: Without being white, so I just thought I just thought that was interesting.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_05: All right, well, we have a grade interview today.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_05: Uh so we'll take a quick break.
• 6:45
  SPEAKER_02: The American Towing and Recovery Institute is honored to have the support of the INA Towing Network.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_02: Together, we all make a difference.
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_02: INA Towing Network Simplified Solutions, superior service.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_04: Welcome back, listeners.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_04: Of course, you know you're listening to the number one podcast in the towing and recovery industry.
• 7:08
  SPEAKER_04: You're listening to the American Towing and Recovery Institute podcast with Wes and April Woolburn, DJ Harrington, the tow doctor, and we have a special guest this week.
• 7:19
  SPEAKER_04: I know you're gonna love this program.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_04: Now, every week we're available, and remember this we're available on Spotify, iTunes, Pandora, Stitcher, HiHeartMedia, or wherever you get your podcast.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_04: So without further ado, let me pass it over to our number one man, Wet Wilburn.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_05: DJ, thank you as always for two kinds.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_05: We definitely appreciate your efforts for this podcast and uh getting us over 20,000 subscribers.
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_05: Friends listening out there, if you haven't subscribed, please hit that subscribe button.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_05: We really appreciate it.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_05: So uh our interview this week is with a fellow team member of the Cardinal Toe Legacy Group.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_05: Um Justin Thomas, the manager of Laser Toe out of Kansas City, recently hosted a class.
• 8:15
  SPEAKER_05: So Justin, uh do me a favor, introduce yourself to our listeners.
• 8:20
  SPEAKER_03: Hi everybody.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_03: How's everybody doing today?
• 8:23
  SPEAKER_03: I'm Justin Thomas with Laser Toe in Kansas City, Missouri.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_05: Which you guys are part of the Cardinal Toe and Legacy Group as well.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, sir.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_03: We uh we joined the uh the group of the uh Cardinal Legacy Group um in March of 2025.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_03: Um and we're super excited with um all the advancements that uh have already come and advancements that are in the future um for many different aspects of growth.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_05: So tell us a little bit about your background uh and how you got involved with the towing industry.
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_03: Uh I got into towing uh here at Laser.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_03: Um it was originally uh a laser pipe services.
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_03: Um I got involved with them in 2004.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_03: Um I was green as green can be, fresh off the streets.
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_03: Um decided I wanted to try the towing industry and uh I fell in love with it.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_03: Uh I I started out as a light duty rollback driver.
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_03: Um they they got some information that I had a class A CDL and I ended up um jumping in and out of a heavy wrecker uh medium duty flatbed and I advanced into um transportation side of it with uh a land all and uh later in in time was an RGN and I ran uh seven axle and eleven axle loads coast to coast.
• 10:02
  SPEAKER_05: Oh wow, that that's a a lot of experience with uh overdimensional.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_05: That's good good experience with the towing industry, isn't it?
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_03: It is.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_03: Um it gives you uh still a a a broad horizon between um hauling equipment and towing.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_03: Um, you know, I've I've there was many times that I still use my towing background for um back hauls or taking taking different things.
• 10:33
  SPEAKER_03: Um it would be motor coaches, um uh rail equipment, uh pretty much anything, boats.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_03: I took I took large boats all the time all over the United States.
• 10:44
  SPEAKER_03: So it was uh it it's been a it's been a great ride.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_03: Um it it's it's been fun and interesting and and uh I've advanced uh in the last seven years.
• 10:54
  SPEAKER_03: Uh I've advanced into the management side of everything and and uh mainly concentrated early on with the transportation side and helping with that.
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_03: Um and then um started working towards more of the day-to-day operation um as uh our previous owners were actually getting ready to retire.
• 11:16
  SPEAKER_05: So the transportation side, that's a specialty of Asian tow, isn't it?
• 11:21
  SPEAKER_03: It is one of our specialties, yes.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_03: We we uh it's still one of our biggest bread and butters.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_03: Um we still are probably one of the largest in this area for uh land all work and RG N word.
• 11:36
  SPEAKER_05: So you what's your current position at the company?
• 11:39
  SPEAKER_03: My current position right now is operations manager.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_03: Uh I mainly deal with the digit day-to-day operation of the of the business.
• 11:48
  SPEAKER_03: Um it may be it changes, you know.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_03: This week we had our our uh our fun little snowstorm and it just uh so I'm in and out of a truck and and just you know helping with dispatch and helping with drivers and um still still answering all the fun emails of different questions from hires up.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_05: So for for I don't even know who declared it during the Kansas City market.
• 12:16
  SPEAKER_05: Um was this the first first snowstorm of the year?
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_03: This is our yeah, this is this was our first snowstorm of the year.
• 12:24
  SPEAKER_03: It was uh the normal first snowstorm.
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_03: They uh they said we were gonna get it dusty, and I think we got around five or six inches.
• 12:32
  SPEAKER_05: Yeah, that always presents problems in a big metro area, especially Kansas City's kind of hilly.
• 12:38
  SPEAKER_05: Has a fair amount of hills, doesn't it?
• 12:41
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, sir.
• 12:41
  SPEAKER_03: Uh our elevated bridges are usually very interesting.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_03: And um, yeah, a lot of uh a lot of the Kansas City uh area is still very, very hilly.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_03: Um and uh the municipalities weren't um on on top of it as they usually are.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_03: And um it uh it caused caused some havoc.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_03: Um but uh you know the drivers drivers enjoyed it.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_03: Um, you know, as anybody else in the industry knows, that first snowstorm is usually usually the the the the icebreaker for everybody to uh get out there and remember exactly what we're doing.
• 13:21
  SPEAKER_05: Yeah, absolutely.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_05: Yeah, it was always a challenge that first storm of the year, especially when it hit, like you said, the uh the calls were adjusted and you got four to five inches.
• 13:33
  SPEAKER_05: Um I'm sure that created havoc on the roads.
• 13:38
  SPEAKER_03: It did.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_03: It it caused it caused some different havoc for uh, you know, our our ETAs and things like that, mainly just because travel time uh from from uh customer to customer just was astronomical due to uh the blockage on the roadways, um and just just trying to navigate around.
• 13:59
  SPEAKER_03: Um a lot of times it's easier to jump off on a side street and and uh traverse that way than it is to stay on the interstates, you know.
• 14:06
  SPEAKER_03: It's it's the opposite during the the bad snows uh than it is on a sunny 70 day, you know, 70 degree weather day.
• 14:15
  SPEAKER_05: That's where knowing the uh knowing the streets really pays off.
• 14:19
  SPEAKER_05: You can't count on GPS for everything, can you?
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_03: No, uh that's uh you know, I when I got into this, we didn't have the GPSs.
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_03: It was still kind of new on the market and they weren't mobile, they're very, very expensive, and you had to run them off of a laptop.
• 14:36
  SPEAKER_03: Um I still remember my very first one was a USB style that plugged into my laptop, and it was, I want to say, almost$900.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_03: And back then that was a lot of money.
• 14:47
  SPEAKER_03: Um but uh yeah, learning learning streets and learning your your different block numbers is uh can make you pretty effective in many different situations when it comes to this business.
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_05: You you got out in towing and you got out for a little while.
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_05: Talk to us a little bit about what you uh what you did when you got out of towing for a minute.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_03: I took a break from towing.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_03: Um as everybody's ever been in it, you know, you you you get burnt out at times and and uh you try to step away from it.
• 15:21
  SPEAKER_05: With a capital B, right?
• 15:23
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, yeah.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_03: And uh it happens to everybody.
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_03: I've I've yet to know anybody in this industry that doesn't get burnt out and just try to walk away.
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_03: Um but uh I just uh I took I took a hiatus for a little bit.
• 15:39
  SPEAKER_03: Um I went um I I went to a a company that I I I worked for as a young child coming in uh you know I was 14 years old when I started with this company and I was pulling parts as a summer job to help build uh um their miniature locomotives and uh their mobile rail car movers.
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_03: And I worked for them for throughout high school and and um when I graduated I went on left them and went on to uh traveling and I I started traveling for an excavating company and operating equipment and um so then I got into the trucking side of it, but uh when I got out of the trucking side of everything, I I I went back to um a local company here in Kansas City named Shuttle Wagon, and um I was a on-site trainer, um a traveling on-site trainer, I should say, a remote trainer, um for operations of uh mobile train car movers.
• 16:39
  SPEAKER_03: So I would travel 50 weeks a year and um help install, do safety training post accidents, um different things like that.
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_03: So I I was I was on the I went to the rail side of transportation for a while.
• 16:55
  SPEAKER_05: Right.
• 16:56
  SPEAKER_05: I find that interesting, but I also find interesting that you were basically full-time presenter of information.
• 17:04
  SPEAKER_03: I was.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_03: Um I built my own training classes on PowerPoint um and uh went through and and set up training classes to um teach them how to operate it uh successfully and safely.
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_03: Um and also went through on the safety side of it and did re-certifications and uh train the trainer courses.
• 17:28
  SPEAKER_05: What what a background.
• 17:30
  SPEAKER_05: We're so excited to announce here today that you're coming on board with American Television Recovery Institute helping with the training.
• 17:38
  SPEAKER_03: Um I'm very excited for that part of it too.
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_03: It's um it's another another one of my passions is um is is the training.
• 17:48
  SPEAKER_03: Um because uh you know this is an ever-evolving uh industry that we're in right now.
• 17:54
  SPEAKER_03: It uh it never stays the same.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_03: Um I I did some training yesterday remotely here in my office for uh a p a potential new customer, and um they they are very strict on some certain things, and so they they wanted to go through and and make sure that we were we were prepared for that.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_05: Well you can't ask for a better opportunity to present who you are as a company than that, can you?
• 18:21
  SPEAKER_03: No, sir.
• 18:22
  SPEAKER_03: That's uh like I said, I'm I'm I'm very excited because it's uh there's uh when I when I stated that when we we got brought on with the Cardinal Legacy Group, that um the opportunities not not only for myself but for all my team members too, um is is amazing.
• 18:41
  SPEAKER_03: Uh that that I can't think of a of a different word for it.
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_05: Well, I agree.
• 18:46
  SPEAKER_05: What I also think is amazing is now this thing is it's a group of us with this presenting this information.
• 18:55
  SPEAKER_05: A group of us preparing and presenting this information, I should say.
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_03: Having having a group of us with um different backgrounds um of teaching, uh different backgrounds of knowledge, uh different backgrounds of of experience.
• 19:14
  SPEAKER_03: Um us us as a group have uh have done amazing with uh some of our classes that we've already presented.
• 19:23
  SPEAKER_03: We held a class here in October uh in Kansas City.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_03: Um laser laser hosted one and it and it was amazing.
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_05: Justin, hang on one second, it was amazing, but you know what else is amazing, and I don't feel commercial, but we gotta take a break for electrical vehicles.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_01: We have developed an app that gives you all the manufacturers or one for when that number happens.
• 19:54
  SPEAKER_01: Whether you are fire, power, or space, we've got a
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_04: Welcome back, listeners.
• 21:28
  SPEAKER_04: Of course, you're listening to the American Towing Recovery Institute podcast.
• 21:34
  SPEAKER_04: West and April Wilburn, DJ Harrington, our guest today, Justin Thomas with the laser towing out of Kansas City.
• 21:43
  SPEAKER_04: And it they're all part of the famous Cardinal Legacy Towing Group, in which we now more and more hear such good stuff about this company.
• 21:55
  SPEAKER_04: But what I want to remind all of you, please remember to like, review, and share with everyone.
• 22:03
  SPEAKER_04: Hit the you know the the like button, just like Wes says.
• 22:09
  SPEAKER_04: And by all means, if you know a professional that could be on this podcast, we have a hotline number right here in the studio 706-409-5603, and we'll be happy to have them on.
• 22:26
  SPEAKER_04: Now, as we go back, Justin, in October, there were three different classes held up in the Kansas City market.
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_04: Could you share a little bit with our audience?
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_04: What were some of your takeaways from this?
• 22:42
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, DJ, thank you very much.
• 22:44
  SPEAKER_03: Um we we did we we did something that that uh was a a trial.
• 22:49
  SPEAKER_03: Um we did the three classes in one one fail swoop.
• 22:54
  SPEAKER_03: Um we did a an EV class, uh, electric electronic vehicle and uh alternative fuel class, and then we did a light duty training and uh a two-day heavy training class.
• 23:08
  SPEAKER_05: Um Ed we didn't interfere with the Chiefs game as well.
• 23:12
  SPEAKER_03: Correct.
• 23:12
  SPEAKER_03: We and we did that was another new one.
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_03: We uh we we kicked around the schedule so we don't interrupt our famous uh Kansas City Chiefs who aren't really doing so well this year, but we're all still Chiefs fans no matter what.
• 23:26
  SPEAKER_05: I was gonna say that's not the point, is it?
• 23:29
  SPEAKER_03: No, no, no, no.
• 23:30
  SPEAKER_03: We're still we're still Kansas City fans.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_03: It's you know, we're not Bears fans still, so we're okay.
• 23:36
  SPEAKER_04: I blame it on Taylor Swift.
• 23:40
  SPEAKER_03: That's yeah, yeah.
• 23:42
  SPEAKER_05: Kansas City fans have been uh loyal to Kansas City for a lot longer than Taylor Swift's went around, I'll tell you that much.
• 23:49
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, we we we were still fans back before they were they were really, really good.
• 23:54
  SPEAKER_03: So um, but um, yeah, we we even adjusted the schedule to start out earlier in the week so it didn't carry over the weekend.
• 24:03
  SPEAKER_03: And we did that not only for the the the Sunday football stuff, we did that because in our industry, uh everybody knows it's a it's a it's an industry that is uh feast or fame and and you work when you work, and most of the time you're working long hours, long shifts, extended day shifts.
• 24:23
  SPEAKER_03: Um uh you usually work a 12 hours or 12-day shift and then have two days off.
• 24:30
  SPEAKER_03: And if that's your weekend off when the class kicks on, you're literally working three weekends in a row.
• 24:36
  SPEAKER_03: And that's you know, we we're trying to switch some things in the industry.
• 24:43
  SPEAKER_05: No, that's a great point.
• 24:45
  SPEAKER_05: And I have great appreciation for people, you know, take all planning these classes, thinking about the operator and how it affects them.
• 24:53
  SPEAKER_05: Because you're right, uh the average towing company that puts them on working three weekends in a row.
• 24:59
  SPEAKER_03: And it's um, you know, and that's that's one of the things that as as we come across um we're trying to evolve that.
• 25:08
  SPEAKER_03: We're trying to uh brighten the future of the towing industry, and that's that's one of my another one of my big excitements that that I have for this complete group.
• 25:19
  SPEAKER_03: Um but during the classes, um I I I was number one, I was very impressed with everybody's um involvement, um not only from uh lasers uh standpoint of of of everybody of my team that was helping or enjoyed the class themselves, but um in this market when you you know it's hard to have a competitor and still be able to have a conversation with them.
• 25:49
  SPEAKER_03: And I've noticed during these classes that I've I've helped out with um you get these the you you get your your your biggest competition together and all that goes out the window, and you're all there to to learn and help and uh advise.
• 26:07
  SPEAKER_03: And I and I I I feel that that outside of the class it would it would still take a lot more effect.
• 26:13
  SPEAKER_03: Um maybe in in time that'll come across, but uh being able to advance everybody uh to the safety aspect of what we have to deal with day in, day out, um, is very, very important to me.
• 26:32
  SPEAKER_03: Um and teaching the new techniques, the new equipment.
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_03: Um like I said, it's an ever-evolving never it just keeps continuing to change day in and day out.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_05: Well, it does, and definitely uh if you're not trying to move forward, you're going backwards because the world's moving all around you, there's no doubt about that.
• 26:59
  SPEAKER_05: DJ, what he's trying to say in a real nice kind of way is we have they had at the light at the EV class on the Wednesday night, then we got a one-day late duty on the Thursday, and then a two-day, Friday, Saturday heavy duty course.
• 27:15
  SPEAKER_05: Got a whole group, what, 25-30 for every each group group?
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_03: It was it was yeah, our our class size was uh 28, 30 or 35, 28, and 30, I think.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_05: Yeah, that sounds about right.
• 27:30
  SPEAKER_05: Group of Kansas City Togers.
• 27:32
  SPEAKER_05: Now some of these guys are wrecked chasers, so that you know they're great right with the program type of folks.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_05: But they all gap they all gather together, they always treat each other with respect, they break bread together, and uh they w wish each other well before they go out there and take care of business on the streets.
• 27:51
  SPEAKER_05: But part of it was the great host that Laser was, put it got us a great uh set up for the training for all all the events.
• 28:00
  SPEAKER_05: And uh I you couldn't want for anything, DJ.
• 28:02
  SPEAKER_05: They food, uh, you know, drink, whatever you wanted, they had they had to be taken care of.
• 28:07
  SPEAKER_05: So, you know, you guys really did a great job setting up for the training.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_03: Well, thank you.
• 28:13
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, you know, between the the sponsorship from uh um our local dealer here in Kansas City, um you know that they were they were able to um they they didn't even ask questions, they jumped in and said, We we got you, get what you get what you need and and uh we got you, no big deal.
• 28:32
  SPEAKER_03: Um that was my Meyer's truck and that was my Meyer truck that got they got bought out by Matheny, but it's it's still Meyer truck here in Kansas City, Olatha, Kansas, yes sir.
• 28:43
  SPEAKER_05: Yeah, they stepped right up and witch those guys have been a long-term supporter of training and education as well.
• 28:49
  SPEAKER_05: Correct.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_05: So yeah, that's that's good that you point out as a team effort, and your team definitely s stood up tall and put it together and make it happen.
• 28:58
  SPEAKER_05: Um JT was of course there helping with the training just like yourself, and it was a r real good event.
• 29:06
  SPEAKER_03: It was a it was a great event, uh the best the best takeout that I could take of the whole thing was to actually see operators exchange numbers and contact information to try to stay in touch outside of the class.
• 29:23
  SPEAKER_03: That that is the first step to breaking that grounds of, well, you're a competitor, I don't want I don't want anything to do with you.
• 29:34
  SPEAKER_05: That's right.
• 29:35
  SPEAKER_05: Um everybody being together and having each other's contact information, it just makes the industry that much more powerful, makes everybody's life a little bit easier.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_05: So that's good to hear and good to see.
• 29:50
  SPEAKER_05: So uh we're gonna be back there this fall.
• 29:55
  SPEAKER_05: What are the dates we'll we'll be back to Kansas City?
• 29:59
  SPEAKER_03: So we're gonna hold we're gonna host another class um here in Gran V, Missouri, um, which is just a south suburb of Kansas City.
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_03: Um October 14th, October 15th, and October 16th and 17th.
• 30:14
  SPEAKER_03: Uh October 14th is gonna be our uh light duty recovery class.
• 30:19
  SPEAKER_03: October 15th is going to be something new that I'm kind of excited to uh see take into shape is gonna be our um leadership class, and that's gonna be a three-hour leadership class for um advancement for leaderships and management.
• 30:38
  SPEAKER_05: Um and then it's really just gonna be a great course.
• 30:41
  SPEAKER_05: I can't believe the effort the organization is putting into that right now.
• 30:46
  SPEAKER_05: Uh I'm super excited just to be a small part of it, but it's really something our industry is lacking.
• 30:52
  SPEAKER_05: And this is an example of where the Cardinal Telling Legacy Group is is helping take things to the next level.
• 30:58
  SPEAKER_05: They when they take on a project, they step up and get it get involved and make it happen, don't they?
• 31:04
  SPEAKER_03: They do, and that's where uh uh like I said, I'm I'm super excited to see this um flagship start to take off.
• 31:13
  SPEAKER_03: Um and that that's gonna be a three-hour class.
• 31:16
  SPEAKER_03: And then we're gonna we're gonna go ahead and combine our EV class uh uh the same day at 3 30 to 6 30 um in the afternoon.
• 31:27
  SPEAKER_03: Good, good um and then October 16th and 17th is gonna be our two-day heavy class with uh some rotator.
• 31:36
  SPEAKER_05: Well that's nice.
• 31:37
  SPEAKER_05: That I really think that the reason that class is our most popular class because it covers the vast majority of the industry, whether you're operating a 25-ton or 50-ton or of rotator, there's so good information you can take home and use the next morning from right from the class.
• 31:56
  SPEAKER_03: There's many, there's many different things in that class that are uh uh given to uh every one uh of the attendees that uh changes your initial thoughts and your process of doing things.
• 32:14
  SPEAKER_03: Um, you know, when I came into this, um, you know, I I learned I learned uh the first time I went through the class myself, I I learned something that I never knew that was taught to me completely wrong early on into the in in the into my career.
• 32:32
  SPEAKER_05: Well all of us have you know in the process of gathering information.
• 32:37
  SPEAKER_05: I think all of us have gathered wrong information at times, so the trick is is to be open-minded about it.
• 32:44
  SPEAKER_05: Um you know, one of the things I try to say to groups when I talk to 'em is I'm not here to tell you what to think.
• 32:52
  SPEAKER_05: If I do my job right, I hope to give you things to think about.
• 32:55
  SPEAKER_05: And that's all you can hope to do at a c at a class.
• 32:59
  SPEAKER_05: Correct.
• 33:01
  SPEAKER_03: We don't know it all.
• 33:02
  SPEAKER_03: I'll never cling to that.
• 33:05
  SPEAKER_03: Because I I still learn every time I go to a class, I still learn something from somebody else.
• 33:12
  SPEAKER_03: Uh it's it's quite it like I said, it's it's actually a pretty it's a it's a neat class to go to because everybody has um different ways, different thought thought processes.
• 33:24
  SPEAKER_03: And um you we're all getting to the finish line.
• 33:27
  SPEAKER_03: We just want to do it safely and efficiently.
• 33:30
  SPEAKER_05: Absolutely.
• 33:32
  SPEAKER_05: And one of the things I find exciting is you guys are still out there doing real jobs or are part of the educational process that we're you know presenting nowadays.
• 33:42
  SPEAKER_05: So that's where I really think is uh it's just got me pumped up, is just super excited about the 26th training season coming up.
• 33:51
  SPEAKER_03: I'm very excited about 2026.
• 33:55
  SPEAKER_03: Uh I'm I'm super excited to start see the the dates start filling up and um get these these uh class hosts to reach and reaching out to us and and uh getting them lined up so we can we can get we can get after it and and and you know some some weeks are long weeks for us, as anybody knows.
• 34:17
  SPEAKER_03: You know, we're running a regular job and then we jump into uh the different side of it.
• 34:23
  SPEAKER_05: Well, and that's what's exciting about uh several different people with the talent to do it and the inf and the uh the uh intelligence to do it are willing to step up and be involved in the training process.
• 34:35
  SPEAKER_05: And uh that's another thing that's just got me super pumped about the 26th training season coming up on us.
• 34:41
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, sir.
• 34:42
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, having some of these other uh these other other operators that are are wanting to uh come advance with us too.
• 34:51
  SPEAKER_03: Uh just watching it grow is is gonna be super exciting.
• 34:56
  SPEAKER_05: Absolutely.
• 34:58
  SPEAKER_05: So, Justin, if our listeners want to get in touch with you, is there a good email address or how how can they get in touch with you?
• 35:05
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, if you guys would like to get in touch with me um about anything in the market area or any of the extra training stuff that we're doing, uh you can reach me at Justin, J U S T I N dot Thomas, T-H O M A S at Laser L-A-Z-E-R-T-O-W dot com.
• 35:28
  SPEAKER_05: Thank you, Justin.
• 35:31
  SPEAKER_05: You know, I uh you talk about the dates we're getting on the map and stuff.
• 35:35
  SPEAKER_05: That that's another thing that I think we we should point out as a team effort.
• 35:39
  SPEAKER_05: I need to give uh Megan a lot of credit.
• 35:42
  SPEAKER_05: She's working diligently along with JT, who's uh recovering well from his medical situation.
• 35:50
  SPEAKER_05: Uh they're working hard on putting this this spring training uh program together.
• 35:58
  SPEAKER_05: So make sure you go to our website and take a look for that.
• 36:03
  SPEAKER_05: Cardinal legacytowing.com backslash event.
• 36:09
  SPEAKER_05: And that would that's our latest up to date of all all the classes we have scheduled.
• 36:14
  SPEAKER_05: If you like to host the class, reach out to us.
• 36:17
  SPEAKER_05: Uh and we'd love to talk to you about that as well.
• 36:21
  SPEAKER_05: Uh Justin, thank you for a great interview today.
• 36:25
  SPEAKER_05: DJ is always uh I'm sorry, DJ, I didn't ask.
• 36:28
  SPEAKER_05: Do you have any questions for Justin?
• 36:31
  SPEAKER_04: No, I think Justin is a good guy.
• 36:34
  SPEAKER_04: He has helped a lot of people in this industry.
• 36:38
  SPEAKER_04: And I want to tell all our listeners, you know, we have twenty thousand listeners plus.
• 36:44
  SPEAKER_04: And if you think it's expensive to train your people try not training your people and have them stay.
• 36:53
  SPEAKER_04: So it's one of these things where if you think it's expensive to train your people and have them leave, that's when the guy says, Well, try not training your people and have them stay.
• 37:03
  SPEAKER_04: And then all of a sudden, then you find out what safety is all about.
• 37:08
  SPEAKER_04: And these classes that Justin's talking about are so vital for the safety of this industry.
• 37:17
  SPEAKER_04: So these men and women that are working the white line, this is a training that will continue to help each and every one of them.
• 37:26
  SPEAKER_04: And the leadership training that's coming out of the Cardinal Legacy Towing Group is fantastic.
• 37:36
  SPEAKER_04: And you gotta participate if you're in that area.
• 37:40
  SPEAKER_04: All right, that's my say that Wes.
• 37:43
  SPEAKER_04: And I'm glad to have Justin on the podcast, but he's a great guy.
• 37:48
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you very much.
• 37:49
  SPEAKER_04: I appreciate it, guys.
• 37:51
  SPEAKER_05: Thank you, Justin.
• 37:52
  SPEAKER_05: I appreciate you.