American Towing and Recovery Institute onThe Go
American Towing and Recovery Institute onThe Go
SPECIAL INTERVIEW with Mike Seamon
Get ready for the Florida Tow Show this April! This year, we're excited to spotlight the incredible opportunities awaiting towing professionals at the world’s largest towing event. Dive into discussions featuring exclusive insights on the latest advancements in towing technology, innovative electric vehicles, and recovery equipment that will drive your business forward.
In this interview with Mike Seamon, we delve into what makes the Florida Tow Show a must-attend event. You'll learn about the popular Women's Luncheon, which continues to grow as an essential gathering for women in the industry to connect and share experiences exclusively among their peers. Additionally, we’ll provide details about educational seminars designed to enhance your skills and knowledge, whether you’re well-established in the industry or just starting.
Located in sunny Orlando, the event is not merely a professional gathering but also a fantastic opportunity for families. Attendees can enjoy the surrounding attractions while making connections that will serve them well in their careers. This is more than just a show; it’s a celebration of the towing industry and the community that supports it.
As we discuss the importance of networking and sharing knowledge within the towing community, you'll understand why so many attendees say the show feels like a family reunion. Be part of a collective voice advocating for best practices, government regulations, and continuous growth within the profession.
Don't miss your chance to be part of this unforgettable experience! Mark your calendars for the Florida Tow Show in April, and make sure to tune in for all the exciting details we’ll cover in this episode. We encourage you to subscribe, share, and join us as we celebrate this vibrant industry!
Welcome one and all to the American Towing Recovery Institute podcast. I want to remind all of you that the American Towing Recovery Institute aims to promote professionalism, safety and education within the towing and recovery industry. Remember, we provide training and certification programs for towing operators. We also advocate for industry standards and best practices, support research and develop all new techniques, including research and development of electric and alternative fuel vehicles With extensive research, with the EV Clever app, available now on Apple and Google Play stores, Foster cooperation among industry stakeholders. Please, if you need to contact us, we're always at wwwamtowriorg Now. Here is Towing News Now.
Speaker 2:DJ, as always, I appreciate your kind words. Welcome everybody. Glad to be here today. April, how are you doing?
Speaker 3:I'm doing fantastic and we have a very good guest for this week.
Speaker 2:We really do DJ. How are you doing today?
Speaker 4:I'm doing fantastic and I'm like April, I look forward to our guest today, because he's a phenomenal person who has done a lot for our industry.
Speaker 2:Absolutely Without any further ado. I want to introduce to some present to others A friend of the podcast been a returning guest, mike Seaman, with Professional Record Operators of Florida. Of course, that's the organization that puts together the world's largest international tow show and if you haven't been, you should go. It's really a great event and we're going to talk about that some today. Mike, welcome, how are you today?
Speaker 5:Thank you, wes, april DJ Glad to be on. I'm sitting here on the patio at Applebee's in Central Florida. It is approaching 77 degrees today, get down in the low 50s tonight. I looked at the weather across the country. Some people are looking at 40 is going to be the best it's ever going to get for you today and you get down a really cold at night. So, uh, we'll have 80 degree weather back in april. It'll be, uh, we'll. We'll have it here pretty soon anyway, but so we'll have um blue skies, palm trees, lazy river everything that anyone could want for vacation.
Speaker 3:All right, hold on, Mike, because we're getting one of these Amber Alert things over our phones.
Speaker 5:We get those all the time too.
Speaker 3:Yeah, okay. Well, that sounds great with the weather. I am looking forward to it. We're a little bit better than the 40 degrees and the less than that throughout the country, but I'm definitely looking forward to Florida in April.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and of course go ahead, Mike.
Speaker 5:No, I say good.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and of course we're talking about the Florida toe show. It's going to be April 10th through the 12th, that's in Orlando, florida. The main hotel is the Orlando Bruno Vista. Are there still rooms available at the host hotel, mike?
Speaker 5:We may be sold out now it was getting really close the other day but we have the Hilton. There's two Hiltons, they're sister hotels. Our second hotel that we used to have the show at until we moved three blocks away to have more space. We have, uh, we have rooms there. We have, um, fleet net provides a shuttle, uh, that would be running back between hotels all day long till, uh, till late at night. Uh, you can see on floridatoeshowcom. You can see the complete schedule as we know it. There are probably going to be some more additions, a few things maybe, but it's a short walk if you like to walk. If not, ride the shuttle bus for free. Both of them are Hilton's. If you're trying to reserve a room, you can use your Hilton honors number, but you have to go through our website and click on it to get the discounted rates to start with.
Speaker 3:That shuttle bus to and from the hotels is one example of how you go above and beyond to make it as easy as you can for anybody who's attending that show.
Speaker 2:And everything's always free.
Speaker 5:That's another benefit of the show. Yes, that's what we're known for. We're known for sunshine. We're known for everything to be free Sunshine. We're known for everything to be free. And the only way we've ever been able to do that all these years is by our great exhibitors. On Thursday night, kickoff Jordan all attendees will have free food and drinks. Friday night Miller does demo with drinks.
Speaker 5:We're starting something new this year Friday night at 6 o'clock, right outside will be the family fun night with different types of games, and all the Driscoll family has wanted us to do this for a couple years now, so we made space for it During the day. On Friday and Saturday we got something really neat. It's called Be the Hamster. It's a local company that makes these. It's kind of like a hamster wheel made out of wood and you walk on it and it moves and they make their own snow cones. If the kids are too small to do it by themselves, the parents can be with them, but it's not that difficult. It's really neat. I met him at a local fair kind of thing here, and so we booked him for Friday and Saturday. That will be, if my memory's right, 11 to 4.
Speaker 5:Free snow cones outside, right beside the Hino raffle truck where you can buy a $10 ticket and maybe take home Wes. What are they now? $135,000? Oh yeah, easy, it's a Hino extended cab with a Chevron self-loader wheel lift this year. Oh wow, top of the line. Top of the line, yeah, that's all you need. And that is sponsored by Miller and naturally the bed is Miller and the truck is Hino.
Speaker 3:And that's something that you announced at the show as well. Correct the winner of that show?
Speaker 5:Yes, announce at the show as well. Correct the winner? Yes, it's, it's, it's we've. I think we're, I think we're on like a 12th year, a 12th year with Hino now. Uh, we had a a lot of years in Florida with Ford and Jordan and uh, ford uh changed their business plan and they cut out a lot of shows, and ours was one of them, and so Hino stepped up to provide the truck and Miller stepped up to provide the bed on it. We travel across the country with it some Great tow shows, like Ohio, we're at Tommy's in Texas and it's around locally at different meetings and stuff. So we're promoting our sponsors.
Speaker 2:Well, that's a great deal, though. It really is. The money goes to the association, to fund projects and whatnot, doesn't it?
Speaker 5:Absolutely All the money that professional rec operators of florida state association, we um, were incorporated in 1977. Um, our uh good friend has passed away now, date jones. It started uh, one of the principles that started pwf um uh had a small show in Daytona in 78. Then it was moved to Orlando and we've grown from just a handful of our board members doing everything for a couple days to world's largest international and we have quite a few crowds.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely. One of the things I like about the show is the whole vibe of it. You talked about the Thursday night and Friday night events. It's kind of almost a street festival, just very laid back, very open to people mingling and interacting and enjoying an adult beverage and a meal out in the parking lot.
Speaker 5:Adult beverages, sodas for kids. But the big thing is camaraderie. It's always been. I've been amazed over the years impressed, I should say not amazed. Impressed. Impressed, I should say not amazed, impressed that um, employees owners, um office workers, drivers, I they, they like to talk to each other, they, they can share um stories, sometimes, uh, just like in the field I grew up being a mechanic in the field of automotive Um, in the field of automotive, somebody says, hey, I found this, this is what fixed it. Co-truck drivers, we talked to each other and say I had this and guess what I did? I say wow, that's kind of neat. I never thought of that.
Speaker 3:That would make my life easier. Sometimes that show is the one time of the year year if you can get there once a year, but sometimes you it's a couple. You know every couple years that you get to see the people that you haven't visited with for a long time to always felt like it almost feels like a family reunion when you go exactly, exactly.
Speaker 2:It is a family reunion. We're just not related by blood. It absolutely is. Mike, I need to ask you to hang around for a second. We've got to take a short commercial break and we'll be right back after the break. Can you hang around with us?
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Speaker 4:Welcome back listeners. You know you listened to the number one podcast. It's the new Tully News Channel and we have a special guest and this is is great. Remember we're available on Spotify, itunes, pandora, stitcher, iheartmedia, amazon or wherever you get your podcasts. And we're going to go back to Mike Seaman and talk about this family reunion, because that's what it's all about.
Speaker 4:And I want to remind all of you you know the Hindo truck they're talking about. The tickets are a whole $10. So everyone, when you get there, you buy yourself a handful of tickets and be part of the success of this whole industry, because some of these people that have gone home with it, when you go and ask them, how many tickets did you buy, they bought five tickets and they land up winning the truck. So this is a really a a fantastic. And when they say it's an international, it is the best. You're online to get your free hot dog from all states and all of a sudden, you got a german couple in front of you and an Italian couple behind you. It is the family-est, wonderful. This is the best of the year. I think it's the best one myself.
Speaker 3:And DJ, I just want to say one thing Even though you have a German family in front of you and an Italian family behind you, we're all speaking the same language. It's the Turkish language.
Speaker 4:You got that right.
Speaker 2:Absolutely so. For someone that hasn't been before, Mike, what can they expect when they come to the show? Can you tell us a little bit about the outside exhibits and the inside exhibits?
Speaker 5:Well, there's a lot of interesting things that goes on at Florida Toe Show. I'm there for 12 days. I start the week before um on monday. Uh, we, they start putting the tents up. Um, it takes days to do that. Uh, we allow trucks to come in. They're washed, they're the setup, a lot going on in the background before a lot of the attendees get there, maybe on Thursday or Wednesday, and they see everything done.
Speaker 5:We've got a lot of behind-the-scenes employees at PWF employees and, of course, we have our dedicated board members and everybody should belong to their, should belong to their state associations, because the association works for the members and the industry. We're we've got some. Like I said, we've got some. We always have new things. We have new exhibitors. It's never been there before. We're able to put new people in from time to time. We're always full, we're always sold out. We have two lots outside. We have two large ballrooms inside. We have 175 exhibitors total. Um, this is a place that you're going to find out what's new, because historically it's always been that all the exhibitors a lot of the exhibitors, I should say is looking for um, introducing new things, and it's become known that you come to florida in april. That's where you're going to see new things, new trucks. The first rotator arrived at the florida tow show with a police escort boy, it sure did that.
Speaker 2:I was there for that.
Speaker 3:That was something incredible so what year was that?
Speaker 5:about we were we it no, no, no later than 90, I would think. Yeah, 89, 90, somewhere in there I'm thinking, yeah, we were still at the Twin Towers and we grew, we outgrew that place. But yes, it was, our friend has now passed away. That was. Nobody had ever seen one before and that was a huge event and it happened in Florida. And don't be surprised in April if you see some things that you've never seen before.
Speaker 2:That was a Black Cat. I think, is what they called that truck, wasn't it?
Speaker 5:I think he had a name for it. Yes, sir, yeah.
Speaker 2:I know in 91, I was there when Ernie's had that big Oshkosh and that was something that was introduced in the first month. I know in 91, I was there when Ernie's had that big Oshkosh.
Speaker 5:And that was something that was introduced in the first movie. I remember Ernie's very well. I've been involved with PWF since the early 80s and I've been a part of the show since then.
Speaker 2:And naturally, taken over the management of it 25 years ago.
Speaker 5:Yeah, and you've seen a lot over the years, haven't you? Yes, and DJ was talking about the tickets. I've got a couple Funny stories we had. I drew the. I don't draw the ticket, hino draws it. I'm not allowed to win, PWF employees are not allowed Not allowed to win and Hino is not allowed to win. So Sherry from Hino Pulls the winning ticket. And when I called the number, a lady answered and they were at St Pete Beach, they were from Canada, she bought her husband for his birthday or something. She bought him a ticket on Friday, $10, and a ticket on Saturday and $20 won a truck.
Speaker 3:Well, that's a good deal, Yep.
Speaker 4:There you go.
Speaker 5:And then, when things were really bad and people couldn't get chassis, one winner came with money, came with a tag, already had insurance available and he just bought tickets and he won the truck and went to Pennsylvania.
Speaker 3:That's a lot of faith in that purchase of those tickets when he knew that truck.
Speaker 5:Well, I mean the, that's the almighty power, if you ask me yeah needed a truck, probably good working person and 100 one um yeah, it's went to it's over the years it's it's went to people in florida, california, um, just pennsylvania, pennsylvania, canada. Our good friend, ralph Cena from New Hampshire. He runs the New Hampshire Tow Show. It's a great event. Everybody should attend that if they get a chance. He was there with his family. He had a whole family there. They rented a house and there was a lot of them and when I called him he was down the street with a family Because, like Wes, like you said, it's a family affair.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, it always has been, and you know. You're right about a lot of announcements happening there. Every year. It seems that new things are introduced, new acquisitions et cetera happen. So that's one of the reasons to be there is to see what's happening live.
Speaker 5:Yep, this year you're going to be there with a new free, absolutely free. We have secluded a beverage sponsored by Purpose Wrecker, one of our very good exhibitors orange juice and donuts, danish in the mornings, and we're able to see quite a few. But it's imperative that people pre-register. Because you pre-register, I will have a seat for you. If you show up and there's people standing every place, then that's not going to be so good for you.
Speaker 2:Right, and you guys do do do an excellent job of accommodating people. But it is so helpful when people sign up ahead of time, especially with the course that we're doing, because there's going to be a certificate issued and we want to have all that kind of stuff pre-printed so we can handle that efficiently. So I can't stress enough to pre if you're attending our one day training on the thursday to pre-register also, just if you're attending the show to pre-register. It's so much smoother than having to stand in that line to fill everything out. Besides our training you have a lot of other great training going on there as well.
Speaker 5:I see there's a all, let's don't get all, let's don't get off yours, just shit. Um, this is, this is, this is something that everybody is going to going to need to be interested in. Um, it's heavy duty, uh, ev and and rotator um, this is not rolling over tractor trailers. This is telling you things that you need to know, cause, cause, long time ago, when I was a mechanic, I went to bear front end alignment school and and they, they told us, you're, you guys, are already doing this stuff. We're teaching you why you're doing it and some and some and some tricks of the trade. And so people were out there doing this stuff already. But I had opportunity to be a part of a small event in central florida with um volvo and mac trucks and the volvo electric truck, which I doubt they tell me, they doubt they're going to have one available in april, but there's a possibility, but it's a slim possibility. A lot to know about these heavy-duty electric trucks, a lot to know about electric vehicles.
Speaker 2:Absolutely correct and that's awesome to hear you know. That's another thing about the show is you guys go out of your way to have new and modern stuff there. That's another thing about the show. You guys go out of your way to have new and modern stuff there. Hopefully we can get this in any truck, but you guys always go above and beyond having the latest and the greatest of stuff.
Speaker 5:Again the class is free. Please sign up. All Friday and Saturday Allstate is having education training, if you will, throughout the day. Go on our website, look at the schedule, see what you're interested in. There's two sessions. It takes four hours to be certified for traffic incident management. We will have that there. They will get that certification. Florida Highway Patrol I was on a team's meeting with them yesterday. They put it in their new rotation rules. You will have to have that within 180 days of your employment with a Florida towler that's doing Florida Highway Patrol rotation calls.
Speaker 2:Alabama's enacted a similar thing in their state police policy as well, and that's another thing I'll give you all credit for that. Tim's training is excellent and it's sometimes hard scarce to be able to get to and it's sometimes hard, scarce to be able to get to. So by having it there at the show, people can, you know, knock down something off their bucket list or their checklist. They need to get done, and you know, and do it at an enjoyable pace.
Speaker 5:Absolutely. And Wes you remember when we were going throughout the state some years ago doing training and my small part of it was the um, maintenance of traffic, Um, and and people would ask questions um that you and I could respond to about different circumstances, as in placing cones and and maybe a car might hit the cone, and my response was I'd rather, I'd rather hear that car hitting cones than see that car hitting me. That's right, and I and I and I'll worry about that lexus front bumper later, but first I'm gonna worry about me yeah, absolutely so, so, so.
Speaker 5:So they, they will have an opportunity to talk to an expert and maybe their thinking might not quite be right for lack of better words and they get instruction. And again, it's free. Pre-register, pre-register we do have a large room for these classes for Thursday, friday and Saturday, but we do have a tremendous amount of people that come to the Florida Toe Show.
Speaker 2:Yeah, again, I cannot stress enough to pre-register online for everything. It makes things so much easier. I've gone to a lot of these things and you know, just avoid spending time in line. And again, I give your staff credit, Mike. They always do a great job to accommodate the crowd, whoever shows up.
Speaker 3:If they can, if they can. But registering online guarantees you that spot. Showing up at the last minute. Don't do the best to accommodate, but there's no guarantees to that.
Speaker 5:Yeah, I keep. I keep adding more um more stations, because, as we grow, I don't like to see a line for very few, very few minutes of people waiting to get their their um restoration badge to be able to do everything. It's a show and and and it's free. You don't have to pay for anything. You don't get too free and you gotta pay for other people, um triple a sponsors, the restoration um we're, we're pretty free in Florida.
Speaker 2:Oh, it is absolutely Now. One of the things is this isn't free, so we need to take a moment for a commercial break, but we'll be right back.
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Speaker 4:We look forward to serving you welcome back listeners to the number one podcast in the towing, the recovery industry. This is towing news channel and we have the great mike seaman on. And I tell Mike, I wrote an article a couple of years ago and I was. This was a guy who said I'm going to the Florida Tow Show for the first time. What should I do? And I was laying out number one find out where the Indotruck is and go buy a couple of tickets. You don't need to buy a bunch, buy five or 10 and you're in.
Speaker 4:And I said make sure you go and find out how to register for the woman's luncheon, because there's a woman's luncheon put on by Ruthie and every year it gets bigger and better and they give away so many door prizes that you cannot believe how much is given away. So if you want this, this is great news. I want to remind all of our listeners I cannot thank you enough for being the number one podcast. Remember to like, review and share everywhere. And if you want to hear another industry expert like Mike Seaman, just dial the hotline number at the podcast center 706-409-5603. And April and Wes will do their very best to put them on the next podcast. So, wes, I'll turn it back over to you and April. Thank you.
Speaker 2:Mike, what can you tell us about, what's different from y'all's toe show, than other toe shows that are out there?
Speaker 5:from y'all's toe show than other toe shows that are out there. Well, as I travel across the country all these years and, um, we don't wait we know that that some toe shows um doesn't have as many exhibitors as ours. We're very fortunate. In florida we have, we have a great location, we have great weather, we have great people. We're very, we people, we're very, we're blessed, we're very fortunate Um, some other associations, um, that has has shows, um, uh, they're wonderful and everybody should attend because you, you, you never know who you're going to meet, what you're, you know what you're going to learn, um, but, uh, take a vacation.
Speaker 5:Florida, um, it's, it's, uh, it's going to take you a couple days to see and do everything, um, and and, like I said, the camaraderie hanging out by the pool area, uh, we have a lazy room for the kids, uh, just just all kind of things, sort of family. It's very family oriented, just like Ohio is. But just, you know, don't be afraid to go to another place because you saw and you said, okay, I've seen everything there is to see. No, travel around, go to Ohio, go to Florida, you'll see different things.
Speaker 3:Also, you're just a walk away from Disney Springs, from where that hotel is too, mike.
Speaker 5:Walk across the street the hotel. Naturally, we have Disney buses, we have a lot of attendees and some exhibitors that they vacation, that um, uh, they vacation. They may uh come and stay or come earlier, stay longer, or or some of our exhibitors, they will come and and after it's done they will bring the family in, the wife or whoever uh, husband and um, and they and they stay in Florida and vacation in the warm weather, you know, before they go home. So so that's not only a work event but it's their vacation.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and it's also a prime one of their prime weeks for spring breaks too, so that all plays into that as well.
Speaker 5:Yes, and a year, many years ago. All kids seem to get out of school at the same time Now, even in Florida oh my God where they they. They come and go on different weeks and stuff. But if a kid is doing pretty good in school, it's not that bad to take them out for a couple of days and a lot of teachers, will you know, let them do their homework and stuff remotely. A lot different than it was years ago, I mean with technology.
Speaker 3:That is very true.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and that was. Y'all did work hard years ago to get that weekend. That was prime for everybody for the schools being out. But like you say, times have changed now.
Speaker 5:Well, our show always revolves around when is Easter. And for the people that don't know why Easter changes when is Easter? And for the people that don't know why Easter changes, easter is based on a certain time period from the biblical times, that is, in the end of March and into April, and Easter is always going to be on the Sunday of that week that's closest to the full moon, because in biblical times they needed the moon to walk. That's why our co-show is not the same week every year. It could be earlier in April and it could be a little bit later in April, but it will always revolve around the weeks before or after Easter right, that makes sense.
Speaker 2:The PWF Professional Record Operators of Florida, the organization that hosts the what do they do with the funds that they gain from the show and whatnot?
Speaker 5:Well, we, we spend a lot of money, um, our association does. We spend a lot of money on um legislation. Um, and I've actually, I've actually traveled to other States. I can remember going to Ohio one time, uh, to help them with a um uh, uh, they had a luncheon with the uh, the Senate leadership there. Um, I told him I was from Florida. I didn't, I didn't pretend I was. I was from Ohio, um, but the um. But I've had a lot of experience.
Speaker 5:I'm a registered lobbyist for the towing industry in Florida. I have a lot of experience dealing with politicians. I know the process. My favorite saying is you like the process when it's working for you and you don't like it when it's not working for you. But you know the old jokes are don't tell my mother I'm a lobbyist. She thinks I'm a piano player in a whorehouse. You don't want to see the sausage being made. Sometimes it's not pretty. But that's the process and I understand it and PWF understands it and our leadership understands it.
Speaker 5:And when we have statutes that are great for the towing industry and we do we have probably the best in the country. Other states can look at it. Because when I walk into a senator or representative's office in Florida and we're pushing something, the first words out of their mouth how does somebody else do it? How does another else do it? How's another state do it? And my philosophy is I will always have the answer for them because when I walk in, I have the answers. I don't have to go back, I don't have to say you're a Senator, let me get the answer and I'll get back with you. I have the answers. My people have the answers with me.
Speaker 3:We pride ourself on that and other states can take this and, you know, be a model for them for how to move forward with legislation and get it advanced and go to you and say how did you get this to happen? Or what do you need for this to happen?
Speaker 5:Absolutely. I get calls from different people, from associations from across the state, whether it be Alabama or any other state, and they ask questions about trying to do something. And sometimes a typical question is how did you guys get legislation and statute that if someone on a police call on public property not a private property, joe public property how can you restrict them and make them pay something for their tow and storage? They say we want to restrict their driver's license. You're never going to have that happen. You're never going to get that done, but we restrict them from renewing their tag.
Speaker 2:And folks listen up. This is huge. This is one of the best pieces of legislation that I'm aware of in the country to help put a dent in that problem about cars getting abandoned on you. So tell us about how that works. It's got to be a police call. It can't be a private property tow.
Speaker 5:It has to be a law enforcement tow on public property which is, you know, a roadway or whatever, and they're allowed to put a it's called a wreck operator lien. They're allowed to put that in the system with our Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles DMV, if you will vehicles DMV. If you will, and if Wes wants to go and buy a new car or a used car, he can and he can buy a new tag. But if he has a tag it needs to be renewed. He's got to pay the tow or that record operator lien which consists of the tow recovery and seven-day storage On a typical passenger vehicle accident or tow. We're talking about maybe $300 or something. If we're talking about a RV or or something, you got got some recovery involved in it and all um, it could be more and wes will have to pay that before he can renew revalidation sticker, renew his tag. He already has on his car, his mobile home in florida, uh, his boat, his landscape trailer, anything he owns.
Speaker 2:And it works, doesn't it?
Speaker 5:Got to pay the toer.
Speaker 2:And it works, doesn't it? They don't get paid on everyone, but they get paid on everyone.
Speaker 5:And toers are getting people walked in on a timely basis saying I need to pay you and I need the release form. The TOR is the only one that has a release form in Florida. You can't go online and get that release form.
Speaker 3:Let me ask a question how long did it take to get that legislation passed?
Speaker 5:When I first became the executive director of PWF, under circumstances that wasn't good a death, and that was in 2000. I remember, with a senator in our lobbying firm, I was in Miami and I pitched it to him and I said something that sparked an interest. I called it walkaways. I just made it up and they liked it. We got it passed in the next session and our session is always 90 days in the or 60 days, I'm sorry, in the spring. So we got it, but it was something that you know, we've been wanting to do for a long time and and I learned through the process. I didn't know anything before I started, but I learned how to talk and how to act and and PWF was able to to convince them. This is the right thing to do.
Speaker 2:And part of this has been you guys have always been very savvy about being active politically and involved in fundraisers and things like that, haven't you?
Speaker 5:We do a lot. We go to a lot of events. We have things in Florida called Lincoln Day Dinners. It's a Republican fundraiser for different ones, naturally PWF. We donate to a lot of entities. Somebody that knows the towing industry that's going to listen to them, not just somebody that just got out of college that decides they want to be sheriff. So, yes, we might support locally things when it's going to benefit a lot of towers.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so it's good friends to have.
Speaker 5:Absolutely, and when you need to talk to someone, when they know who you are, you'll get to talk to them.
Speaker 2:That's right. That's how the game is played, isn't it?
Speaker 5:When I'm in an elevator in Tallahassee and people look at me, we have a pin that we had made a gold pin, not solid gold, naturally. It's got a tow truck on it and it says PWF. We've taught them, they know what that is. They'll look at me and say, mike, how's the towers? Or Mike, what is the towers looking for this year? They know us. Looking for this year, they know us. And that's what other states. Unfortunately, sometimes they don't have the finances. You know to be proactive, as we do, but our raffle truck, you know we help the industry throughout, wherever and of course, the tow show, you know helps and you know we're bringing people together.
Speaker 2:That's right. You guys do a great job of that I appreciate that. I want you to hang around until after the break. We'll take one more quick break and I want to talk about some of the what goes on there with Ruth and her group so we'll be right back folks Parkinson's resources.
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Speaker 4:Welcome back listeners. To the Toei News Channel. We have Mike Seaman from Florida. To the Toei News channel, we have Mike Seaman from Florida. This has been a great one. Remember, by all means, we need to see you in Florida for the greatest show on earth April. I'll pass it over to you.
Speaker 3:Thank you, DJ Mike. I know every year you guys do a women's luncheon and it just seems to get bigger and the food is phenomenal. The prizes are really well, you are sponsored. Can you talk about that a little bit?
Speaker 5:absolutely. It's um, it's um. It started out pretty good, actually, um, and it's grown um. There do charge a fee for the tickets. They do a different menu every year. This year, if my memory's right, it is going to be wraps and different things. Jungle juice they have a different theme every year Ruth Landau From Friars Towing In Daytona Beach and Clarissa Powell From Tow Times.
Speaker 5:They put on a great show. It's Only ladies. There's no men in there. They have fun. We have sponsors For Crouch's crouches, record sponsors, t-shirts, uh, geico sponsors, the event, um and others, uh, donate things for the goodie bag. So, yes, dj, they, they walk away with a, with a lot, a lot of good stuff and and they have some other things they do in there. I know about it, but I'm not involved. They're capable of handling it. But come to the tow show booth where we sell T-shirts and such at the show. That's where you're going to find the ladies to get the tickets. For the lunch it has to be 21 and over because they will have alcoholic beverages, so unfortunately you can't bring the younger people with you.
Speaker 3:That's better. To me that's better. That jungle juice is some pretty good stuff.
Speaker 5:And it's going to come with a Jordan logo, mason jar. There we go. Like I said, we have a lot of sponsors at the Florida Toast Show. That helps out, oh yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's a fact. And you know something else? I'm just sitting here listening. One of the reasons the show is successful is Mike handles almost every detail himself. When he said from memory about the menu that's because he looks the menu over, tries to get the best value for the association dollar, I sincerely give you credit, Mike.
Speaker 5:Well, I get all the credit, but I have a lot of good people supporting us staff the Driscolls, ruth Landau go right down the list. I'm not going to list because I'll leave a bunch of people out, but we have a lot. And what people don't see? Because when people attendees show up they just see it there. We have a lot of people working in the background. That's paid employees that we have Security go right down the list. We are in charge of everything that we do there. We just don't show up and say, hey, hotel, just make it happen for us. We're the ones that are doing it.
Speaker 3:We did a show a few years back, a very small show compared to what you do, very, very small. You were at it, so you've seen how small it was and for that small show it was a lot of work. And what you guys pull off every year it does seem like when you get there, it just seems like it's there. You know, you don't know what it takes to get that going. So I have a little bit of an appreciation for it, as does Wes, and you know what we were doing. So you guys put a lot into that and it starts. It starts six months before this show even started for next year.
Speaker 5:So well, um, I have, we have have a great office of stevie higgins. Been with us, uh, pushing, 35 years now. Um, she, she knows all of you by first name. Uh, she knows all our exhibitors. She knows you know she handles a lot of stuff that I get credit for, but she's wonderful. I had great office, ladies and men, when I had my towing business in Central Florida for many years out of my towing. It's great to have good employees.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean I say you can't buy that for paid employees, but you really can't, because that type of dedication is something that you either have the dedication or you don't have it the dedication, or you don't, you don't have it.
Speaker 5:Dedication is something that that uh ever everybody strives to have. Um, some companies unfortunately can't achieve it. Um, but pwf, florida toe show, uh, my business and and and all all our board members and all their businesses. They've been around a long time. They did show up last week.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they're a part of what is happening. Yeah, it's a great team effort. We're excited to be a part of it again. Folks, if you've been, you know how great it is. You just need to buy the ticket and be there. If you haven't been, you don't know what you're missing. You work hard, take your family, get away, relax.
Speaker 5:Where can they find more information on the Internet? Mike Tartatoshowcom. We have everything. We just made a couple additions today. We're constantly adding things to the front page the family fun night and some of the pictures and things that we're going to have there. But, yeah, a lot of information when you could pre-register for your class, pre-register for the show. I haven't looked in the last five days. Probably last time I looked, pre-registration doing good, uh, we don't give out numbers, we don't give. We don't sell our list, we don't give our list away. There are even. Even somebody that gives us a free truck does not get the list of attendees. We our our thing with our attendees is your information. The only why we have your information is for us to notify you of something about the tow show. We don't give it to other people to try to sell you anything. The attendees, I mean the exhibitors there. They have a lead retrieval system where they can scan your badge and be able to communicate back with you.
Speaker 2:Now that is a good point, mike. That is a great point because I know others, the for-profit Toshio Group they saw that list more than once from what I understand, and that's one of the things we like about you guys is you're for the industry. The money goes back into the industry. You said a mouthful when you talked about other states wanting to copy other states. A whole lot of states want to copy Florida right now politically because of the great job things are done down there. I can't encourage folks enough to continue to support this great show. We look forward to seeing you there this April, mike. Anything you'd like to say in closing?
Speaker 5:We're just glad to have everybody and, like I said, the weather's going to be good. Bring sunscreen, bring the family. We have the kids event by Allstate on Saturday. That's an event that we haven't talked about. That's a restoration for them to get their badges because the kids have their own badges that they wear at the show that's sponsored by Allstate and that's a great event. We've got the Sisters Towing family, the Murphys they do a tremendous job. We have all kinds of things going on at that and it could be any age kid, naturally. Over the years I've seen, you know, once they get to be a teenager you know they're more out there playing with tow trucks and not eat peanut butter jelly sandwiches with the younger kids, but they don't turn anybody away. But the older kids, that's not something that's going to interest them.
Speaker 3:Well, my closing comment is is I'm going to bring my SPF 8 or whatever, you know, whatever is going to get me a tan, because I am looking forward to going to Florida. I'm looking forward to the class that we're going to do on that Thursday.
Speaker 5:And free hot dogs and french fries on Saturday out in the outside of the lot and again, that's Allstate.
Speaker 3:And I'm also looking forward to seeing people that I haven't seen in two years because I didn't go last year, I went the year before, so I'm looking forward to seeing old friends again.
Speaker 5:Absolutely.
Speaker 2:DJ any closing comments.
Speaker 4:Here's my list for all our listeners Comfortable shoes, yes, suntan lotion, just like Mike said, and so did April. A big hat or a ball cap, if not, don't worry, sure, dan will give you one. Sunglasses, I put on my list, mike. The Free Hot Dogs of All-State were phenomenal, and all the free is for me. The Kids' Event put on by Allstate is phenomenal. You're not going to believe how much the sisters do for those kids. Mike told us in the beginning of this no snow, no cold weather, and a lot of our listeners are in cold weather right now. So get out of the cold, come to sunny Florida and see how God has treated the people in the great state of Florida. That's my closing comments.
Speaker 2:I'm sure I'd say an amen after that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I'm ready to go.
Speaker 4:Amen, brother. Oh yeah, and you can hear Bill Georges. You know he's been on our podcast. He's going to be one of the speakers down there.
Speaker 2:Bill always does a great job, a great job.
Speaker 4:He's been on our podcast many, many times. I want to thank our listeners.
Speaker 2:We ran a little bit long today, but hopefully you enjoyed it. Mike, thank you for coming on and sharing the information with us. We look forward to seeing you down there in April sunny Florida. And thanks for everything you do for the industry, Not only for the industry.
Speaker 5:Thanks for having me All right, thank you.
Speaker 2:We'll see you next time. Listeners, be safe out there and it's a wrap.
Speaker 3:All right.
Speaker 1:Dang Wes, you're on fire today.
Speaker 3:Yeah, he was very good Sounds good. Thanks, mike, thank you Mike.
Speaker 5:All right, see you later. Thank God, mike.