FEW & FAR BETWEEN - Linwood Kellett
FEW & FAR BETWEEN
Legend Nominee: Linwood Kellett
There are not too many people that can attest to the success and longevity of a career comprised over more than half a century. Especially in a line of work, such as the trucking industry. The newer era of business is becoming more tailor-made to suit the drivers, but this particular Legend driver sought out a career as a trucker back when the vehicles used for transportation weren’t exactly the main focus, and manual labor was as equal (if not more) work than the drive alone.
Born in Lufkin, Texas; though raised in the beautiful city of Waxahachie, where he still resides just outside of town, 76-year-old Linwood Kellett has stories upon stories about his life growing up the son of a trucker. And, how being surrounded by many family members who were also in the business impacted his decision to follow in line with his kin. Being the youngest of four children, born right after the Great Depression subsided, his family, along with all of America was affected. The devastation struck worldwide. The Depression caused many farmers to lose their farms and left others unemployed.
As, Linwood states in our interview; the trucking industry has always provided a means of living and enabled him to provide for his family, just as his father found his own way. During the Depression, his father earned $1.00 a day working for WPA; a work program for the government building county roads and bridges. In the 1940’s after the Depression, his father became an owner operator. He had two log trucks that he used to haul logs to local saw mills. In his day, hauling logs was a very physical job, not only referring to the boots on the ground. His father had a team of mules, attached to each one was a hitch and harness. Starting with the timber, after he cut them one by one they were tied to the hitch, and pulled out of the woods to the truck by a mule. The evolution of business from then and now are worlds apart, though the dedication to one’s craft remains the same.
The heart inside of Linwood’s chest beat for the day he could finally drive a truck like his father. He laughs as he describes a couple of his most memorable moments as a young boy, painting a clear image: no older than four, Linwood sat outdoors on a box that he imagined was his own personal driver’s seat, then he’d drive a large stick into the ground and sit there for hours shifting gears; driving his truck. On into grade school he told his teacher that nothing else mattered because, “I’m going to drive a truck!” And so, he did.
Linwood started with hay and grain trucks. Then, by 19 he was in a B61 Mack. Again, the progression of equipment and trucks continue to advance by the day. The more in detail he spoke of the first truck introducing him to the profession, the more I’m astonished that he’s even alive to share this interview. We both couldn’t help but laugh…
“It had a 170 horsepower Thermodyne engine, and of course there was no such thing as an air ride suspension seat. There was no power steering or air conditioning, and it had a very poor heating system. We had to put card board over the radiators to generate more heat. We barely had brakes!”
…I believe that’s when I realized Mr. Linwood was quite the character. Very comical, this man.
“And we had to lay a box between the seats to sleep.”
Never mind all the cons, because for the simple fact that he was behind the wheel driving that beast was a dream come true, for Linwood. The gentleman he was hauling cotton seed for offered him a job to drive up to Davenport, Iowa. Linwood says, “It was my first trip out of Texas, I didn’t know my north from the south. I just went for it.” That was the beginning of many adventures. He later was hired as a company driver with the business owner for seven years. Then the company was later taken under new ownership by the son, Linwood spent another eight years driving with him. He has traveled all 48 states, and even made it up to Canada often. “I started doing this in 1962. There is nowhere I haven’t been, and I’ve drove every type of truck there is.” Over his career of 55 years as a professional truck driver he has pulled tanker, reefer and flatbed; hauled rock, cement, produce, mail and LTD for various freight lines. His credentials are as precedent as the wisdom he shares from his years of experience over the road.
In speaking with his wife of 31 years, Niki; she says that Linwood loves trucks so much that he has always been a trucker at heart, since childhood and continues to live and breathe them just as much now. Trucking is his life. So much so, he had retired from trucking only to return a year and a half later. With his quick wit he adds, “Bury me deep with my truck at my feet.” With the extreme complexity of this world, it’s comforting when you meet an individual that has mastered the discovery in life’s simple possessions. He continues with, “At my age, you view things differently. Success for me is that I own my house that my wife and I get to call home. I have one foot in a grave and the other on a banana peel. Every day is a holiday and every night is a Sunday. I’ve been very fortunate, God has truly blessed me.”
His journey up to now has not gone without struggle. 2015 proved to be his year of grief, strife, and strength as test results read conclusive: throat cancer. The unexpected news came with a quick wave of sequences in order to give Linwood a fighting chance of survival. Multiple sessions of chemotherapy, followed by radiation treatments literally tore apart his body from the inside out. His weight dramatically dropped from 330 down to 220 in less than six months. Battling sickness brought on by the efforts of such powerful medicine used in overcoming the deadly disease from spreading, Linwood became weaker before he was able to regain the energy to heal. He says, “I’ve never felt so sick. Having to endure weeks of chemo and radiation almost killed me.” Today, Linwood is cancer free and refuses to succumb in any way other than to live out his life-long dream: driving a truck.
By not giving up easily, no matter the situation at hand is what defines his identity, according to Niki. That same unshakeable and headstrong mentality that he has demonstrated throughout his life, is the same tactic he used to win her over. She recalls their first meeting to be short and brief through mutual friends. Their second encounter was a day she remembers very vividly, as he won her over.
“I was on my way home from work on Highway Loop 12 in Dallas. I was in bumper to bumper traffic when I noticed a guy running down the service road onto the highway. I thought it was the strangest thing. Then, the guy ran up to my window and started knocking. I recognized him and asked what he was doing. He replied with, ‘I’m going home with you!’ As I’m laughing, I asked him, ‘Where is your car (little did I know he didn’t have one; he only had the truck he was driving at the time)’… he said that he was on a break and had parked his truck when he saw me in my car.”
I asked Niki what she did next, if she let him get in the car with her…
“I did! And here we are, thirty-something years later.”
Niki says that her husband’s great sense of humor is what draws everybody in. He never meets a stranger. Truck drivers that he has crossed paths with from years ago remain in contact with him. She even receives phone calls from wives of other drivers, wanting to share stories of how Linwood helped their husbands while out on the road. Acknowledging his good deeds as a part of his unwavering behavior goes hand in hand with how he was taught to treat his fellow men and women of the road. Giving respect, earns respect.
As an old school trucker, schooled by the original heroes of the highway, Linwood runs down the order in which he perceives the image of truckers has unfolded. When his father and uncles all drove trucks, khaki pants and button up shirts with fifth-wheel caps made up the proper attire. Soon after, cowboy hats, big belt buckles and shinny boots. Then, couples took to the road running together as teams. Today, a woman is as qualified to haul a load just as quick, on time, and efficient as a man. Which is quite alright with Linwood. “I believe that women make great truck drivers. For one, they keep a truck clean. And they’re a lot better at paperwork. That’s a given. Honestly, I think being a truck driver isn’t just for a certain body of people. It’s a gift that is born in you. I was raised around trucks all my life. And once you drive one, you’ll never be satisfied doing anything else. Just like farmers are meant to farm, and nurses are meant to take care of people. Each job requires something special to love what they do. I guess the good Lord wants a few of us to be truck drivers,” he said.
One change that he has noticed taking place throughout the truckers realm, but hopes to see it revived is drivers turning away from using their CB radios. Having spent many long nights traveling over the road, chatting with unfamiliar voices on the opposite end of his channel lightened the burden that his drive was not alone. Back when the only form of exchanging information and room for small talk came through a CB was a much simpler time. When truckers shared a connection, almost like a secret means of correspondence only for truck drivers to overhear.
While his sons; Ray and Darrell were very young, they both joined him in the truck. Each had their airtime talking and listening on the CB, while Linwood pointed his truck in the direction of their sweet escape. His son, Ray started riding as young as four years old. The sleeping accommodations were still very similar to when he, himself was a boy; three years old riding with his father in a truck for the first time going to faraway places. Linwood explains, “I would carry my wife out with me while she was pregnant with Ray, and the three of us would go for days. Later, Ray’s bed was made on the floor board of the truck. A year later, Darrell was born, and at some point, they all traveled in the truck while I worked.” I laughed with him, at the image of a child curled up at his mother’s feet, fast asleep with a smile on his face. Those were the good ol’ days. Now owner of Rayco, located in Waxahachie, Ray has 20 years’ experience trucking, and is an owner operator himself of 10 years.
Linwood goes back to the many changes he has seen over the years within the trucking industry. The truck stops’ friendly attendants standing ready at the pumps to bump tires and clean windows, who often know their customers by name. The more commonly used automatic transmissions, that Linwood said was accommodating during his hours spent in traffic. He continues, stating that Elogs aren’t that bad to keep up with and the camera faced towards him while he drives is no longer a distraction. The ‘beep’ that alerts a driver when he or she gets near a specific line that is also implemented for safety, he understands goes along with the entire spectra to assist in the protection of their well-being. Though some of the traditions that he felt made trucking authentic has evolved, he knows that to stay current and relevant one must be accepting to change.
Linwood’s age is not a factor that should discredit his value as a professional behind the wheel. Never underestimate a seasoned driver. For what their eyes have experienced we can only wish to see in a lifetime. There are very few truck drivers that help bridge the gap between the older generation of truckers with the new faces of our industry. To be able to share one’s story, rich with years of history is a pleasure we should all learn from.
Truck drivers are the backbone to this great nation’s vitality. Without them; young, new, veteran and experienced we would all be at a disadvantage. Linwood currently drives for the mail hauling division of Salmon Companies; a third-generation family business that is a nationwide key supplier for the USPS.