Pro-Trucker Magazine

Rob Goertzen is this issue’s Rig of The Month. Like many drivers, Rob has been around machinery from a young age. Also, like many drivers, he has at times ventured out into other careers but has always gravitated back to trucking.

My name is Robert Goertzen. I was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba and raised by a loving family with traditions, family values and hard work. I always cherished the values my folks passed on as they told us about growing up on rural farms in southern Manitoba. That is where my interest in trucks and heavy equipment comes from.

On most holidays in the mid-’70s, our family would all squeeze into the Red Buick Skylark and head down to St. Jean Baptiste, Manitoba, a 1-hour drive on the single lane Hwy 75 to spend time with my Grandparents.

Grandpa always told stories about his younger years, about the hardships and hard work and how he did a lot of trucking with his brothers when they were young, hauling grain from farm to elevator, loading and unloading trucks with shovels and getting stuck in snow drifts.

I spent every summer break with my grandparents. Grandpa would haul grain to town, and I would ride shotgun, asking questions about what he was doing and why. I would watch him like a hawk, listening to the engine and seeing how and when he shifted.

In the summer of 1984, my Grandparents retired, and we took over the farm. Moving from the city to the country was a big change, but it allowed me to prove my worth on the farm. It gave me lots to do feeding and caring for the horses and having acres of grass to cut.

My father worked trucking jobs in our rural area, and then he would bring the truck home, where I would help him service and clean it for his next trip. I was there beside him every chance I had.

Star with a low pro bunk, and I would beg him to let me drive it down our ¼ mile-long driveway and back. He finally relented and let me try it. So off I went down to the end of the driveway, turned around and came back. I thought I did a good job and felt pretty proud as I pulled back into the yard. To this day, I will never forget what he told me. He said, “I was listening to the truck the whole time, and you were over-revving the engine. You need to lower your R.P.M. between shifts, and your gear selection is off.” I was like, wow, you heard all that?

After graduating high school, I worked for a local Shell service station with a repair garage and towing service. As time passed, I worked my way up from pumping gas to repairing vehicles. The owner was great and worked with me while I learned to fix vehicles. Then, he taught me how to drive the tow truck. I was in my glory driving a 1987 Ford 550 Tow Truck with a century wrecker on the back. I did a lot of recovery work, rollovers, major accidents and even the odd heavy tow. Life was good because I was living alone, making good money, and driving a tow truck.

I became a Morris Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department member, where I had the opportunity to operate fire equipment as well as First Response Vehicles. I was a volunteer with the department for about 14 years.

After the flood of the century in 1997, I had an opportunity to work for the Rural Municipality of Morris as a heavy equipment operator. I had always been interested in operating heavy equipment, so I jumped at the chance. I started on an EX230 ELC Excavator, building roads, ditch cleanouts, loading trucks, etc.

I was a low man on the seniority list, so I was laid off when winter came. Unfortunately, winter in Manitoba can last up to 5 months or more. I returned to operating the excavator in the spring, and then one day, my foreman suggested I get my Class 1 so I could move my excavator myself. He also said it would make me more versatile and give me something to fall back on during the winter. I told him I wasn’t sure how to get my Class One, and he said he would teach me how to pull trailers on weekends. I told him I wasn’t as concerned about driving as I was about the airbrake test, but he said he could help me with that too. I don’t know about anyone else, but the thought of the airbrake test made me nervous, but with his help, I had no problem. Next came the driving part, which was easy for me, and I aced my Class 1 test.

Wow, what a game-changer. There I was, driving a 1980s Ford Louisville with a 300 Cummins engine and solid spring suspension, pulling a Knight low-bed. My foreman was right; it opened up a whole new world for me, and I went on to pull belly dumps, gravel trailers, spread gravel, and haul equipment.

When the winter layoffs came around, I was hired by Clement Farms to haul grain, pulling Super B’s to elevators in Alberta and Saskatchewan. I was nervous about pulling them but also excited about what a challenge it would be. I drove a 1987 Freightliner Cab Over with a 400 Big Cam Cat engine. The first trip to Calgary from Morris was -35C out with a wind-chill of -42C.

The Trans-Canada Highway between Virden, MB and Regina, SK, was rough at the time because they were twinning the highway. I remember it being so rough that the driver’s door would open. Finding a place to park for the night was challenging. Where could I fit a Super B, and how would I back into a stall?

In the spring, I returned to operating the excavator and hauling my machine around the Municipality, gaining more experience. When the winter layoffs came about that year, I was hired by Westfield Industries to haul grain-handling equipment.

When I was young, I always took notice of the trucks on the road and the Westfield trucks in particular. On Monday mornings, there was always a line of their shiny and clean trucks in front of Burkes Diner in Morris, MB. The drivers would stop there for breakfast and then convoy south of the border. I always thought I would love to do that one day.

When I hired on with Westfield, they gave me the keys to a 1997 Western Star with a 60 Series Detroit, pulling step deck trailers. Westfield Industries was a private carrier that hauled equipment, sometimes deep into the U.S. On some trips, you would return empty; on others, you would load steel as a backhaul. My mentor at that time was Ken Harder. Ken was the most senior driver at Westfield, and he taught me a lot about trucking.

I trucked all over the mid-U.S.A. into Georgia and across the corn belt to Washington State. It was a great experience.

I returned to the R.M. the following spring, and while I liked operating equipment, sitting in one spot excavating a ditch for 5 to 7 days no longer interested me. The challenge had worn off, and I missed being on the highway.

Westfield kept calling me to return, but it would mean a significant change for me and my family. I wasn’t sure what to do. Should I be home every night with my family or go on the road? I finally took the leap and went back to driving for Westfield.

This time they put me in a Cherry Brown 1998 Peterbilt 379 Flattop. It was my first Peterbilt! I drove that flattop for a year, and then I was given a used truck passed down by a senior driver who got a new one. It was a 2004 Peterbilt 379 short nose with a 475 Twin Turbo Cat. Wow! What an upgrade for me.

One day, I asked a senior driver about the green decal on his windshield. He explained that he had a full-scale inspection, and the decal showed he had passed, which meant they didn’t require an inspection again for the season. That set me started on a mission to get a decal. I washed my truck before every trip and inspected it carefully when I returned to ensure it would be ready if I were pulled into the scale.

I had my turn on a Monday morning crossing into North Dakota. The scale was open, and the D.O.T. was doing inspections. It was probably the only time in my driving career that I was looking forward to an inspection, and I was ready – or so I thought! The officer said, “Park and come inside with your log book.” Another Officer met me around the side of the scale house and directed me to dynamite the brakes but not to get out. I don’t know what was going through my head, but I didn’t dynamite my brakes. Instead, I watched them block the drive wheels, and then I jumped out of the truck and went into the office. The inspector went through my logbook, and everything was good until the outside inspector came in. He was mad and said, “You didn’t dynamite your brakes like I asked you to.” I was stunned, not knowing what to say. He then said, “Get out of here”. I asked if he was going to inspect my truck. And he said, “No! Get out! So, to this day, I have never received a decal, but at the same time, I have never had another issue with the scales.

Westfield treated us drivers with great respect, and their goal was to get us home to be with our families for the weekends. All of us appreciated that kind of respect from the company.

Unfortunate circumstances resulted in two failed marriages that I don’t wish on anyone. I don’t blame it on being a driver. I think they just weren’t meant to be. So, in 2006, I left the highway and moved to the Okanagan to care for my daughter. I took on a job with Argo Road Maintenance for the winter operating snowplough, which was a great experience. When spring came around, layoffs were inevitable, so I went to work in operating equipment. I was uncertain about my future when I answered an ad about an Equipment Operator. I guess I didn’t read the whole ad because when I went for the interview, I was told my job description was to overlook equipment operators in a gravel pit. I was a bit unsure, not knowing what to expect, but I decided, what the heck, I’ll give it a try. When I arrived the next day, I was met by a gentleman who said he was struggling with a new operator and asked if I could check on him and show him a few things. I talked to the operator and showed him how I would do the job. Then I stood back and watched him for a while. It turned out that the operator took directions well, and he did a good job. The first fellow congratulated me and said I would make a great instructor. From that day forward, I had a sense of reward and started a new career as a heavy equipment instructor with Taylor Pro Training Ltd. They also trained drivers for Class 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. I enjoyed working there. Passing on my life experiences was quite rewarding.

In 2012, I met the woman of my dreams and life partner, my wife, Jobina. We retired from our careers in 2016. If you call that retirement, I call it doing something else. We built our dream home and bought equipment to build and develop our property. We purchased our first truck, a 2018 Peterbilt 389 Day Cab Legendary Black with an 18-speed transmission. It was full of Chrome and lights and was my dream truck! I hauled aggregates with an Arnes End Dump Trailer custom ordered with a high lift tailgate and colour to match the truck.

Later, I purchased a low bed to transport equipment for contractors in the area. So much for retirement!

In 2020, I ordered a 2020 Peterbilt 348 with a PX9 Engine with an Automatic transmission single axle that I drive today. I ordered a complete cab and chassis and rigged the truck out to be a water tender. Living in the Okanagan during summer, it gets tinder dry, and there is always the risk of fires. Being a volunteer firefighter in the past gave me a lot of ideas on what I needed to rig out a water truck. I had the apparatus fully rigged from OSCO Tanks in Orion, Illinois. They worked with me on what I needed and made the custom tank to order. Today, I drive my 2020 Peterbilt 348 and custom-deliver water to clientele throughout the Okanagan.

I’ve had many great life experiences, and I thank my father and grandfather and the many great people I had the good fortune to work with and for over the years. The road hasn’t always been smooth; there have been a few bumps along the way, but I don’t think I would change a thing if I could.