If you needed evidence of owner-operator Greg Parks' maintenance prowess, you need look no farther than the 2015 Western Star daycab that is his principal hauler. While the truck was close to new when he bought it in 2015 -- "it was just two months old," Parks said -- there's an element of its history that made his success with it all the more remarkable.
"I bought it as salvage," he said. It'd been almost entirely underwater when its original operator, who hauled logs with it, went around flood-warning-intended barricades, then proceeded to get stuck in high water not far from the two-man diesel shop Parks has owned and operated in Camden, Arkansas, since the 1990s. "The water came up to as high as the sun visor."
Next morning, the river had fallen and the owners brought it to Parks' shop. "We drained all the water and oil and diesel out of it -- oil had come up to the valve cover," said Parks. "Their insurance company said it’s totaled. I bought it back a month later," installed three new batteries and fired it back up, figuring it wasn't in the water long enough to "hurt everything." While he changed the "gauges, switches and electronic stuff in the dash, the wiring is all original."
It's been running strong ever since, working 6-10 extra-complicated jobs a year that Parks sandwiches between more regular mechanicking work.
Parks' G and T Boat Transport specializes in moving houseboats.
Today, Parks owns three trailers built for the purpose, a 50-footer, another that will haul a 70-foot houseboat and, finally,
The biggest boats can bring $50K in revenue, he said, though the entire process could take you a week or two to complete, with a lot of disassembling and reassembling involved.
