“I may seem unusual when compared to most end users of this type of equipment. I’m not a contractor or a landscaper or even in the construction business. I have an automotive repair shop. I started my business in 1989 with around $500 in the bank. I inherited a mostly dead 1969 Yale G82C forklift. I managed to get it running and fixed its major parts. That little lift helped me in many ways to build my business for over 10 years. It made me understand the importance of having a multiuse machine around. It did everything from pulling engines to moving trailers and even cars. As useful as it was, I realized it was limited and that I needed a more versatile machine with more than just one dimension of capability. I always dreamed about owning a Bobcat® machine. I would periodically rent one to take care of bigger jobs around the shop yard and at home, and I was impressed with the versatility and maneuverability Bobcat machines offered. They made life easier.

“In January of 2002, I got a phone call from my alarm company around midnight telling me my fire alarm had been set off and that the fire department was headed to the building. When I got there my worst fears were realized: My building was on fire. Firefighters dragged out as many bits and pieces of my business that they safely could as the building burned. Sadly, the next morning, the building was gone and with it many years of hard work. The old Yale lift that had been my buddy for a decade was also gone. The pieces of my little business lay in ruins and I felt helpless. I was in shock at the magnitude of the destruction that a fire brings.

“Within two weeks we located a place we could move the remains of the business to. I knew immediately I needed a Bobcat machine. I called Mr. Duhon at Duhon Machinery and told him what we had been through and what we needed. He sold me a machine on my signature, and I paid him monthly over six months. It was a 753 skid-steer loader with a general purpose bucket, a whisker broom and a set of pallet forks. In all the gloom of the disaster, this machine made so many things possible: moving debris and equipment, loading and unloading trailers, and more.

“Since that miserable day in 2002, my shop has recovered and my new best buddy, my Bobcat machine, is affectionately known as ‘Robert.’ We were able to buy a larger property. ‘Robert’ and I have rebuilt my little business from the ashes. This machine takes on every job I give it, from putting out the garbage and moving the Dumpster around to pulling engines and moving trailers. I use it with the whisker broom to sweep the asphalt driveways. Recently, I used it with some local rental attachments to break up cement and auger some holes for a new fence line. My 753 skid-steer loader is a Katrina survivor: It saw use for Hurricane Katrina in advance of the storm. I used it to dig out drainage ditches and to move everything inside the buildings. It survived the storm and afterwards it was a vital tool around my neighborhood, clearing the streets and properties of storm debris.

“I plan on doing more landscaping around the property and my Bobcat machine will get the call to help out. Many people who stop by think it’s odd that an automotive repair shop would need a skid-steer loader around. I simply tell them I could not operate this shop without my Bobcat machine. I have a great deal of respect for the engineers and designers who created this machine to continue the Bobcat tradition of making our jobs easier. As a mechanic by trade, I would like to point out that this machine has remarkable durability. In the six years of its service life with me, my skid-steer loader has been in the shop only twice. Both times the repairs were for normal wear and tear, and the turnaround time was about a week.

“I enjoyed this little reflection on my decision to buy a Bobcat. Winner of this contest or not, I’ve considered myself a winner since the day I bought my first Bobcat machine. Thanks, Bobcat!”