It was 1973, I had been in college a year with the intentions of teaching art but found myself filling sketch books observing and drawing concrete trucks in local producer’s boneyard. I had sat in classes in high school longing to get a summer job in construction just to be around concrete trucks. I had built models of them and had already gained some knowledge on how they worked, who made the mixers, and what trucks they were mounted on. I’d started taking pictures for reference material for the models. When I was much younger my collection of Tonka, Hubbley, Structo, Nylint mixer truck toys kept me content in my backyard construction site. In the house the building continued with the Matchbox mixers and a train layout with at least 2 of my own ideas of a concrete plants. I remember my dad would take me by concrete plants near downtown Jacksonville where he worked just so he could share in my enjoyment. He was an attorney. Back to 1973. I decided to ask the manager of Concrete Products Inc. if he’d hire me for the summer. I don’t know what I’d do, but just hire me. He already knew me from sitting and drawing the old trucks on their yard. They hired me! I kept the warehouse up, unloaded rail cars, assisted the mechanics and started doing maintenance on the trucks. All the old drivers were facinated that a college boy wanted to do this work. They started teaching me to drive. Diamond Reo DC101’s, Detroit V-6’s, 13 spd Roadrangers and front drive axles. Started just driving across the yard then it led to me washing trucks out at the end of the day. They’d let me ride to jobs ever so often and unload when we got there. By the way, the next school year had started and I decided to keep working and take college courses at night. I had gotten a Chauffer’s license in the mean time then one day the manager asked me if I would get one of the trucks and help on a big pour that had started and a driver hadn’t shown up for work. I was 19, and had just done a complete about face in career choices, I was a concrete mixer driver!

About three years went by and Concrete Products kept tempting me move into dispatch but it just wasn’t happening. Then Florida Rock came into town buying the Lone Star plant and I knew they were a much bigger company, at the time I didn’t realize how big. The next year passed and I was curious about their operation and knew by now they were buying companies all over the state. And, they were puting up a state of the art plant in Tallahassee. I decided to leave at this point. So I quit on a friday and started with them on the following monday.

Went through about half a day of training and got a truck assignment, a 1968 Mack DM with a mechanical drive 10yd Rex on it. What the heck! I just gave up a brand new 1976 Mack at the old place and this was a step back in time. This beast didn’t even have a hydraulic drive mixer.
TO BE CONTINUED!