DEEP ROOTS - John Highley

DEEP ROOTS

Legend Nominee: John Highley

Remember the days of elementary school when students shared their most prized possessions during show and tell for all their classmates to see? One by one, each child would stand before their peers and present an item, then explain its special meaning. Younger elementary students also love the idea of career day. Because the professionals are talking to children as young as five years old, typically when a police officer or firefighter comes into the class dressed in full gear and talks about his or her exciting job and the risks that accompany their line of work, most kids are instantly awe-struck.

For this Legend driver, his mentor was his father, Dave; a bus driver, truck driver, a prideful and passionate hard-working man. Instead of inviting his idol to school for his friends to meet, the two were busy traveling the roads where the real learning experiences were shared. Career-focused mentoring can help young people understand how to achieve their goals, while allowing them to open their minds and imaginations to possible professions. Mentoring relationships have powerful positive effects and can truly make a difference in the lives of children by encouraging personal growth and development, in their academics and as a future professional.

Missouri native, John Highley has been in the trucking industry over 30 years, 15 in the trade show business. He is one of the few drivers of our generation lucky enough to have been surrounded by truckers his entire life and mentored by many. One of his earliest memories was the day his dad drove him to kindergarten in an old Ford F9000. From that day on, John was hooked! His love for trucks flourished as he grew older, hence his current truck: a 2017 Kenworth W900 with a 120-inch sleeper.

FROM DAY ONE

Age six, on a road trip to visit his great aunt in Gulf Port, Mississippi, John and his family piled up in their pickup truck with a camper on it and headed down south. It was the usual routine riding with his father, Dave was on the CB radio communicating with another truck driver they were running with, who was in a single-cab Mac. They all stopped to grab a bite to eat at a truck stop, along with the other driver. Afterwards, everyone was outside as John sat in the cab of the old Mac. John continues,

“I was blowing his horn, just having a good ol’ time in his truck. I’ll never forget it. He even let me ride with him… so, I’m sitting on his tool box talking to my dad on his CB as we’re going down the road. I remember it was noisy and loud… and dusty and dirty inside his truck, but I loved it! My dad was in our pickup truck while I rode with the other guy as he told me what to say to my dad. At the time I didn’t understand any of what they were saying, but I was loving every bit of it.”

The biggest piece of advice John says is to listen to the older drivers, because they have a lot to offer. Adding, “You can learn from other people’s experiences. A lot of drivers like to call themselves old school drivers. I don’t even consider myself one and I’ve been doing this for over thirty years. I’m talking about the guys that were driving a truck back in the 70’s and before that.” For John, growing up around truckers of that era greatly influenced his way of thinking and approach on life.

When John first started driving over the road, he would walk into a truck stop, pick out a spot to sit and place his thermos on the table. A waitress would come over and sit down in the booth across from him. After jotting down his order, the two enjoyed a casual conversation. Stating that truck stop staff (specifically for him, the trucker-friendly 76 gas stations) had a great understanding of who a trucker was as soon as one walked through the door. Their recognition was greeted with a good meal served with a friendly smile. The simplest of conversations went a long way with a driver that’s been cooped up in a truck for hours on end.

“How’ve you been?”

“How’s your day going?”

“Where ya headed?”

Then, without asking or being told, the waitress would retrieve his thermos, rinse it out and fill it with hot water to keep it warm. That way when the water is replaced with coffee, it remains hot longer. When it was time for him to hit the road again, his thermos would reappear full of fresh hot coffee. The candid moments such as these aren’t as common due to the rush of today’s busy lifestyles. Truck stops that provide a family-oriented atmosphere will always hold a special place in the hearts of truckers, like John that truly enjoyed the familiarity of a warm welcome.

A good bit of John’s teachings surfaced years before he could drive. Explaining, that as a kid riding with his father, Dave would turn their trips into a game. Saying, “He would let off the accelerator as he’s driving, glance over at me and ask if I knew why he was slowing down. It was my job to look down the road and see what he was reacting to; whether it was a car on the side of the road or something like that. Even today those things come back to me.” As John began his trucking career, Dave would remind him to constantly reevaluate his driving techniques over time. If he found himself involved with too many close-calls, avoid blaming other circumstances, instead look in the mirror. Double check to be sure you haven’t picked up any bad habits. Maybe you’re following closer than you should be or running a little too fast for conditions. Overall, see to it that you have not become complacent in error. Little bits of wisdom shared over a lifetime of practice, Dave’s influence on his son’s trucking career began from day one.

DYED-IN-THE-WOOL

Still residing on his family’s property, the history that goes along with John’s house is a story within itself. His ancestry first took root in the small town of Park Hills, located in Missouri. His mom’s father was born in the family’s original house, which his grandfather later torn down when he wed John’s grandmother. They salvaged what pieces they could and built a new home in its place. John’s mother, Linda was born there and many years later, his parents exchanged vows in the house, as well. John and his wife, Wendy now reside in the same dwelling where his family lived out their most precious days together. Not only has John inherited their home, but the core values they embodied; honor, respect and love. Wendy and John enjoy a simplistic life. Stating, “We’re not all about money, we’re about living out life experiences with the ones you love.”

John grew up riding the backroads of Missouri, Arkansas and Tennessee with his father. In 1965, Dave landed a job as a bus driver for Greyhound Bus Lines, he drove trucks hauling steel out of Indiana on his off days. He worked for the Southern Division of Greyhound, also known as the Wooden Axle Division out of St. Louis. The informal title was because the only Interstate available was from St. Louis to I-270, all other access were two-lane roads.

At age 15, John snagged a job at the local gas station pumping gas, checking oil and washing windows. There was a small wrecker company that had a few Class A trucks pass through. As soon as he turned 18 with his chauffeur license in hand, John started driving for them part-time. Any breakdown within a 150-mile radius, his job was to take them a new tractor and bring back the old one. He had finally achieved his dream of getting behind the steering wheel of something big, just as he had imagined doing since a young boy admiring his dad from the passenger’s seat.

One of the guys he worked with at the gas station told him about a company located in St. Louis that was looking for a driver to run teamster. He immediately put in for the position and his trucking career took off from there. The first big rig he drove was one of their company trucks, a 1971 International Transtar cabover. For the next ten years, he hauled scrap metal throughout the mid-west part of the country.

Raised in a union family with a good union job, John assumed it would be the lifetime job of his career and settled in, never imaging after ten years he would consider moving on. “When things started going sideways, I thought I could do better being my own boss.” In 1997, he purchased a brand new 1998 Freightliner. Adding, “When I bought my truck I had no idea what I was doing. I was only going on information I had learned from my mentors along the way. I worked on equipment a lot, so I felt confident to fix things on the side of the road. Plus, back then when you left for the road you were pretty much on your own. Everything was through pay phone communication. It was hard, but I grew fond of that independence.” He leased on to a company for four years, meanwhile taking in the necessary elements needed to further his career.

“I did all my homework. I’d check out the areas I had to deadhead through to get loads… tried to learn the markets… where to make money and where to stay away from. Once I felt I had a good grasp on things, I made my move.”

In 2002, John leased on to Landstar, which he considers the business move a huge factor as to the testament of his success story. Stating, “I consider Landstar a part of my trucking family. They have been an instrumental part of who I am today.” A year later, John managed to earn the business of Landstar agent, Joe Van Duzer. Highly respected within the industry for his knowledge and experience of the business, Joe has a very select number of drivers he uses to haul his specialized freight. John continues, “Joe and his family have become my second family. They are phenomenal people! Over the last fifteen years, the great relationship that Joe I share goes back to why loyalty means so much to me. It’s just in me to prove that I would do anything to help. I’ve always shown extreme loyalty to this agency down here and it has paid back ten-fold. I don’t look at each trip, I look at the end of the year and if my numbers are good, it’s because of my agent. Joe is the reason I was able to buy the truck I have right now.”

A RARE BREED

U.S. Marine and former truck driver, longtime friend, Chuck Ceccacci says it’s the brotherhood of trucking that John values and represents that defines him as a true ambassador for the trucking industry. “I think the world of John and Wendy. I have never known a man to have more integrity and loyalty outside of the Marine Corps, than John Highley! I could go on and on about him, but this is the gospel……John is the prime example of an American Trucker, a biker to his core, and a true patriot that loves his family, friends, and his country.”

With a career high of 3-million lifetime miles, it’s the friendships and many people he has met from all corners of the country that has made his career running over the road meaningful. Add in the countless sunsets and sunrises along the Columbia River Gorge and the old school comraderie among drivers at various truck stops, every detail serves as a reminder of the extraordinary life truckers identify. Saying, “I love every aspect of my job!” When he explains in his opinion, what defines a truck driver, it goes back to his code of ethics passed down from his father: keep your equipment looking good, dress well, and conduct yourself in a professional manner. Most importantly, to succeed in the trucking industry as a driver you must do a far better job than the other guys. He says, “It’s not enough to just do your job. If you want to stay in business, you have to prove why you are the best choice, give them the professional service they deserve.”

His future plans are for Wendy to join him out on the road full-time and travel the country together. Having rode with her husband on long trips before, Wendy is no stranger to the trucking lifestyle. Also born and raised in Missouri, she had never ventured far from home until she jumped in the truck with John. On one six-month adventure, the couple covered 37 states. Wendy continues,

“I saw the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, we did carriage rides through Central Park -you name it! He was like a little kid in a candy store, trying to show me the world. That’s just who he is. John is a very patient, meticulous, kind-hearted man. I couldn’t be prouder of him.”

Together, they share Wendy’s two daughters and three grandchildren, who are all within an hour’s distance from home. They enjoy taking long motorcycle trips all over the country. John carries one on the truck behind the sleeper for when he can escape for a quick ride.

I’d like to thank John for sharing with us his childhood and mirroring the deep-rooted values of his exceptional mentors, so we too can witness the beauty of respect in all its form.