Driver Lifestyles
Red, White and The Baxters
The men and women of the American trucking industry have traditionally enjoyed an image of being strong on patriotism and of being dedicated supporters of the U.S. Armed Forces. One would be hard pressed to find expediters who are more committed advocates of our military than Lynn and Shelly Baxter.
Shelly (53) was born and raised in Springfield, OH while Lynn (56) claims a California birthplace though he grew up in San Antonio, TX.
The Baxters have been married since 1991 and each has two children from previous marriages along with ten grandchildren.
Shelly begins their story, "I owned an upholstery business in Texas and Lynn was a scaffolding erection supervisor in construction. We both wanted a change and the kids were grown so we went to truck driving school."
"We spent thirteen years driving tractor-trailers, both as company drivers and as owner-operators, running air freight. For the last three years before expedite we hauled produce, mainly to help out a friend."
She continues, "I had a cousin who was leased to Landstar Express America, so we drove his cargo van for our first six months in expedite. We had just come out of a Volvo 770, so it was a bit of a culture shock."
"We met up with fleet owners Al and Edna Mann of Jacksonville, FL. They have nine straight trucks on with LEA and we liked their arrangement, so we've been with them for around a year and a half. It's worked out very well."
"Expediting allows us to visit our families around the country more often. The trucking industry likes to call expediters in the smaller trucks "paid tourists" but that's OK, that's what we want to be. We clocked 141,000 miles last year so I guess that makes us very busy tourists."
Lynn explains, "We do a lot of AA&E (arms, ammunition and explosives) work for Landstar and it works out very well for us. Landstar is very particular. When they say that safety is Job 1, that's what they mean. A driver has to have a very clean MVR and have experience in the business. When people are thinking about an expedited trucking career, quite often I'll have to direct them to another company."
The Baxters say that the open road is now their home: "We had two houses and we sold both of them. Between visiting the grandkids, going to military bases and the truck shows, we never got back to the house."
Their home on the road is a 2006 Freightliner M2-112 with a 450HP Mercedes MBE 4000 hooked to a 10-speed Eaton Fuller Autoshift transmission. A pusher axle gives the truck a cargo capability of 34,000 lbs. and Lynn says the truck is averaging 9.5 mpg.
The crew's quarters are an Alumi-Bunk 120" sleeper with toilet and shower, 27" flat panel TV with 850 watt DVD surround sound, in motion satellite system, XM Radio along with microwave and convection oven with rotisserie.
The truck presently features Visor back-up and cargo box cameras, but the Baxters are considering another system that includes a dash cam and side-mounted cameras. The truck will also be fitted with a tire pressure monitoring system. Completing the setup is an Alumi-Bunk 20-foot cargo box.
As the photographs accompanying this article demonstrate, the Baxters and the Manns are enthusiastic supporters of the U.S. Armed Forces. Their truck has been transformed, inside and out, into a rolling monument to the nation's service men and women.
Shelly explains, "My son Brian has been in the military since he was 18, originally with the 101st Airborne. He needed a career for after retirement, so he changed his Military Occupational Specialty to a Mortuary Affairs MOS. He's served in Iraq, Afghanistan, Hawaii, Korea, Oman Jordan and the States."
"My daughter Dawn also served in the regular Army then went into the National Guard. She was sent to Iraq even though she was a single mom with five kids."
From the time of the Civil War to the present, the Baxter family and its offshoots have answered the nation's call and have served in the Army, Navy, Marines and Air Force.
Truck owner Al Mann's family has an extensive background of military service as well. Both he and his stepfather were career U.S. Navy men, each retiring after 30 years of service to their country. Al's daughter is serving on the USS Ronald Reagan and his son-in-law is a member of a Reserve unit.
Al's ultimate goal is to have each one of the nine trucks in his fleet decorated with references to each branch of the U.S. Armed Forces.
He says, "My philosophy is to buy a good truck, one with enough power and amenities to keep the husband/wife team happy and on the road. If they stay out on the road, they'll make money for themselves and me."
"When I first met the Baxters, I told them to think of the truck as their own. I have agreed with everything they've come up with in regards to the truck's customization."
Shelly continues, "The interior of the truck is done in red, white and blue with light oak cabinets. Displayed on the table are a Minuteman statue and a Bible signed by the members of Dawn's Guard unit before their deployment to Iraq."
One of Brian's fellow soldiers recently lent the couple one of the 2 Bronze Star medals that he was awarded for service in Iraq and it's displayed in the sleeper.
Also gracing the truck's interior is a flag belonging to her son that was autographed by Col. Oliver North, Vice President Dick Cheney, Robin Williams and other celebrities during their visit to Iraq.
The upper side walls of the cargo box feature pictures of service people that have been sent to the Baxters by soldiers' family members.
The stunning mural that covers the entire sleeper sidewall on both driver and passenger sides was designed by Shelly and her sister Judy, a graphic arts designer based in Texas. They began the task one day at 4:00 pm and finished it the next morning at 3:00 am. The mural was applied to the truck this past January.
The picture depicts two American soldiers - SSG Brian Snook (Shelly's son) and his good friend SGT Sawyer - kneeling in prayer while God's Hands reach down from Heaven to protect them.
The Baxters take great pride in showing their vehicle at military bases and have been invited to exhibit the truck to the patients at Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington, DC.
Lynn and Shelly have begun entering truck show "Pride and Polish"-type events and with great results! At the Great American Truck Show in Dallas, the couple took three trophies - 1st place in Aftermarket Sleeper, 1st place in Technology and 3rd place in the Specialty Class.
Shelly says, "We do the truck shows for a little bit different reason than most of the competitors. We want to get as much exposure as we can for the murals on the side of the truck. If we can win a trophy, so much the better."
Lynn observes, "I have to keep Shelly out of the chrome shops, otherwise we'd be broke. We'll see a part for another make of truck and think about adapting it to ours."Is truck ownership in their future?
Lynn states, "We never want to own our own truck again. It's great working with Al and Edna, it's like having our own truck only without the payment. And, I don't think we'll ever go back to driving big truck."
He comments on their life on the road: "I like driving in the Northeast and Shelly likes driving in the West and Southwest - out there where there's a lot of road and nothing in between."
"We very seldom park in a truck stop anymore. We'll park in a Wal-Mart, Loew's, Home Depot most of the time. I've noticed that, as a rule, expediters don't trash out the parking lots like the big truck drivers do."
"Shelly and I talk to other drivers more now than we did when we were in the big truck. Expediters are kind of the red-headed stepchild of the trucking industry so we stick together."
"The people in this business share a sense of camaraderie, it doesn't matter what company they're with. When we see each other, we'll get together and talk and compare notes."
Al Mann: "The Baxters are great and they believe strongly in what they're doing, i.e. displaying the flag, talking about the troops, etc. They are wonderful people to know. They enjoy doing what they do and they get our name out there."
"I can't do this without them and that applies to all my drivers."