Okay, so saying?“I have to play golf when I’m at the PERA?Annual
Convention” doesn’t sound like the toughest way to spend an afternoon. But when you’re A; not much of a golfer (me), B; teamed with some industry bigwigs (Peter Butterfield of LKQ, Ken Carter of MAHLE?Clevite and Robert?Yarbrough of Bishop International) and C; expected to contribute something to a scramble foursome, the stress level can start to rise.
Luckily, we found Bubba.
Bubba happens to be a buckeye, which also happens to be the Official Tree of the Great State of Ohio from which Mr. Carter and I both hail. Bubba became, after a mediocre first few holes, our team mascot and propelled us to first place in last month’s Annual PERA?Golf Outing in Seattle, WA.
It’s probably more accurate to say that the efforts of Messrs. Yarbrough, Carter and Butterfield did more to contribute to our victory than my finding the lucky buckeye did, but we’ll just give credit to Bubba.
Obviously, giving credit where credit is due is important, and I’d like to heap some praise on someone else who may feel that she’s treated like a nut, Engine Builder graphic designer extraordinaire, Nichole Anderson. As you’ve no doubt noticed by now, Engine Builder has undergone a fairly significant redesign. We think it’s a cleaner, fresher and more contemporary look, and we owe much of it to Nichole.
While I?hope that working with me isn’t as frustrating as golfing with me, I?will admit that things don’t always go as smoothly as I (or anyone else) would like. Thanks to the great efforts of the crack team of Senior Executive Editor Brendan Baker, Ad Services Queen Tina Purnell and the aforementioned Designer Par Excellence Anderson (in addition to a few others), my false swings and failings never got the chance to derail this project.
We hope you like the design and promise even more improvements in the months ahead, both in print, online and in various other formats. Engine Builder will continue to address this industry’s changing needs and we appreciate your comments on how we’re doing.
For me in Seattle, the challenge of trying to golf in the presence of greatness paled in comparison to the chance to talk openly about the challenges we face. As we all know, things aren’t easy in this industry. But as those of us who participated at the PERA?Convention can attest, there’s a great network of support for all of us.
Gone are the days when industry members operated on an island – today, teamwork is much more evident. Remanufacturers and suppliers alike were readily exchanging ideas, questions and solutions.
Certainly, business is still business and healthy competition will be necessary for the continued survival of our industry. But we’re all in this together and whatever skill set you happen to bring to the party, know that your contributions will be appreciated by the rest of the team.