To me, the farm equipment industry has always been a grand theatre, and I've had a front-row seat for 40 years. It's not always a spectacular show, but it's constantly changing.

Our parts and service businesses are now running as profit centers rather than a dealership expense. In 1975, our shop rate was $17.50/hour with a real reluctance to raise. Now most shop rates are north of $140/hour. 

I grew up on a small farm and had other family members who were farming much larger farms, so I felt right at home in the industry. It did not take long for me to understand that the best job in the company was calling on farm equipment dealers, and that is where I wanted to be.