A Cargill employee loads grain on the truck of Clint Metzger, Metger and Sons Trucking, Hills, last week. Metzger is hauling the grain to Sioux City for Cargill.
By Jolene Farley
Metzger and Sons Trucking began in 1986 with one straight truck hauling grain locally. Clint Metzger started the business, and eventually his uncle, Arlyn, and brother, Ross, joined him.
Ross, 29, and Clint, 33, and Arlyn Metzger, 40, are all involved in the business full-time with four other alternating part-time truckers.
The company's four trucks haul grain and livestock for local farmers and elevators mostly to Minnesota, South Dakota, Nebraska and Iowa.
A family business, Metzger Trucking carries on a tradition began by Elmer Metzger of Larchwood, Iowa, in 1940.
After two knee replacements, Elmer, 83, still 'keeps on truckin,' hauling up to five loads a week with his own rig and helping out his son and grandsons when needed.
"I just keep at it," Elmer said Tuesday. When asked if he was spry for his age, he laughed. "Ask my wife," he said.
Elmer plans to continue driving "as long as I can get in and out of the truck".
Elmer's work ethic was passed on to his son and grandsons at Metzger Trucking, where drivers typically work 12 to 14 hours per day.
Ross Metzger begins his day around 3:30 to 4 a.m. and continues working until he has unloaded his grain, usually at a bean processing plant or a feed mill.
The farming industry has changed over the years, according to Ross. "The small guys are getting out and the bigger keep getting bigger."
The number of crop loads hauled this fall was lower compared with other years, according to Ross.
He attributes a lack of rain, hail in some areas and a lot of farmers building bins and storing more grain themselves.
The trucking business has become more competitive and challenging. Some farmers and elevators are purchasing their own trucks and hauling their own loads.
Over the years, regulations have increased and laws are stricter, according to Ross.
The Metzgers hired an outside licensing firm to handle licensing their trucks and some additional paperwork. The firm updates them on any new laws pertaining to their industry. Drivers themselves, however, are required to fill out log books detailing the number of hours they drive.
Metzger Trucking has no immediate expansion plans. "We will just keep doing what we are doing and take care of what we got," Ross said.
He said Metzger Trucking is "dedicated to our work." Elmer confirmed their dedication, stating, "They are doing all right. They do a good job."