The last word

When we first met up with Iraq war veteran Sean McEndree in August 2005, he was hauling cattle for National Carriers and still recovering from wounds sustained in combat. He had plans back then to turn his truck into a rolling memorial dedicated to the men and women of the armed services who have fallen in that conflict — especially his good friend, Sergeant Barry Meza, KIA on Dec. 19, 2004.

Little did we know that was only the beginning of more trials for Sean and his wife Diane, also a veteran of the Iraq war. A mean steer got loose during loading and stomped him hard in September that year, putting him back in the hospital with a separated hip and broken femur. Laid up for a year and half, McEndree had to sell his truck and feared his driving career was over for good.

But after moving back to Copperas Cove, TX, McEndree “got that twinkle back in my eye” and started looking to drive again, he told us. After hooking up with Freymiller Inc. to haul refrigerated goods, he and Diane revived their old operating authority — Veterans Express LLC — and got a new truck in January. That rig promptly went into the hands of the Chrome Shop Mafia for a four-week, $39,000 paint job and show-truck upgrade.

For more photos of “Fallen Heroes 2,”go to www.fallenheroessemi.com.

What we in the U.S. think of as a fast parts delivery operation pales in comparison to what fleet owners in Sao Paulo, Brazil have come to expect. Mike Pennington, ArvinMeritor's global marketing communications director told FleetOwner that major distributor networks in Brazil's biggest city and manufacturing hub rely on “Motoboys” to expedite auto and truck parts orders to wherever they need to be but fast.

Pennington said the Motoboys initiative “started years ago and has proved to be very effective in business expansion and coverage, besides making important gains in time delivery.” He noted that Sao Paulo customers insist on deliveries in one to two hours despite heavy traffic caused by 20 million city residents.

At Pellegrino, one of Brazil's leading parts suppliers, dozens of Motoboys start working at 8 pm to deliver small parts to clients up to 22 miles away from the distribution center, related Pennington. He added that similar motorcycle operators usually transport parts for light and heavy vehicles while the largest components are delivered by car or, yes, truck.

“Brakes are not the place to cut corners. When purchasing replacement parts, if the price is too good to be true, it probably is. With knockoffs populating the shelves in retail locations across North America, every week we learn of yet another situation where a disappointed consumer thought they were buying “the real McCoy” but they walked away with just the opposite.”
— Andy Cifranic, brand manager, Bendix

Horse Power Transportation, Mason, TX