I’m dealing with a strange dilemma here this week. We’re preparing our July issue, which for the past three years has been dedicated to the Technology & Maintenance Council (TMC) SuperTech technician competition. Lee Long, George Arrants and the many volunteers who make SuperTech happen every year are true heroes; I can’t say enough good things about these folks who contribute so much time and effort to providing this opportunity for fleet technicians to learn and grow.

On the other hand, the powers that be at TMC have decided, for reasons unknown, not to support our July SuperTech issue this year. It just seems strange to me that they don’t want to reach out to our 65,000 readers to tell them about this great event. My worry is that, without broad industry support, SuperTech will just become a rote exercise, with the same fleets entering and the same technicians winning year after year. That’s great for the techs who keep winning, of course, but it doesn’t do much to build up the industry in general.

I think I can speak with some authority on this subject. I was on the board of directors of the old Service Technicians Society when it was started at SAE, and I stuck with the group when it migrated to TMC and became the Professional Technicians Development Committee. I was on the Committee when the idea for SuperTech was hatched and I have taken part in every event in one way or another. I want to do all I can to make sure this event keeps growing and providing opportunities for fleet technicians, but it’s frustrating when the parent organization decides to go it alone.

The registration process for Nebraska SuperTech is now complete. For the past eight months, we’ve merely been thinking about getting to this point. Now that we’re finally here, I’m pleased to announce we have 28 technicians signed up to be involved with the first-ever Nebraska SuperTech competition.

We had some last minute additions from several fleets in the area, which makes it feel more and more like a well-balanced, state-wide competition. We have technicians from the fleet level, and the dealership level. And the techs represent many different cities and towns in the state.

The next step in the process will be for the technicians to take a written exam, proctored at five of the state’s community colleges, Central Community College at Hastings, Northeast Community College, Metropolitan Community College, Mid Plans Community College and Southeast Community College. It’s been a pleasure for the steering committee to work with the community colleges. They’ve been instrumental in helping us with the written exam portion of the test.

Thanks to everyone in Nebraska who is signed up to compete in the first ever Nebraska SuperTech, and good luck on the exam next week!

I was happy to see the news from President Obama this week about raining fuel economy standards and lowering greenhouse gas emissions levels on cars and light trucks sold in America. You may not agree with the particulars of the new standards, but at this point I think most Americans would agree that drastic measures need to be taken to revitalize our auto industry and reduce our dependence on foreign oil.

The real question is whether the American public will ever value fuel economy as much as we do power and speed. Last week I was reading new car preview feature in a consumer automobile magazine, and every time a hybrid, flex-fuel or electric car was reviewed, the journalist slipped in a sly comment to the effect that “of course now that gas prices are coming down this car doesn’t seem like such a good idea.” One of the magazine’s clueless writers even said, “Now that gasoline is practically free again….” Practically free? Really? Seems to me gas prices are going up again, just in time for summer traveling.

That type of ignorance will be hard to root out, but the time has come for dramatic change, and the President’s new standards may be the first giant step in the right direction. Here’s hoping…

A few weeks ago, I stood before a room of 75 people and asked, “How many of you have heard about SuperTech?” Imagine my dismay when only one person raised her hand. Imagine my further dismay when I realized the person who raised her hand worked for the Nebraska Trucking Association.

What can a committee do when the hard work it did publicity-wise hasn’t been working? Keep on keeping on.

Even though no one had heard of SuperTech, I still stood up there and gave an impassioned speech about the competition. I convinced several people to sign up. I recently drove four hours to North Platte, Neb., to get some interest from the western part of the state. I walked into a shop, along with their service manager, and we had a “question and answer” session, and were able to get three technicians signed up on the spot. I’m calling a lot of people I’ve met through networking sessions, and I’m talking to them about SuperTech. Slowly but surely, the word is getting out. We’ve got close to 20 technicians signed up so far.

The point is, if you launch a competition, it takes a lot of hard work. You’re also going to have to get used to rejection. But if you have the commitment and passion to the project, you just have to pick yourself up, find a new person to talk to and move forward.

Today we’re introducing a new feature on our website: a new, vastly improved Fleet Maintenance Product Guide to help you make more informed purchases for your fleet. Now you can find information on hundreds of companies that cater to the needs of fleet maintenance managers, as well as thousands of products and services that will make your life a lot easier.

We’ve organized the new Product Guide in a way that we think will make it a breeze to use; you can search for products by specific category, brand name or manufacturer, browse products from all categories alphabetically, or take a peek at the latest products added to the database (we’re adding new ones all the time).

We hope that you’ll be a regular visitor to the new Product Guide. To see what all the excitement is about, simply click on the Product Guide tab above, and you’re on your way! And if your technicians are in the market for new tools, be sure to check out the Product Guide hosted by our sister publication, Professional Tool & Equipment News, at http://directory.pten.com/home

A little further to the right on your screen you’ll find the FMX Library tab, where we’ve also made a new addition. Our friends at Vehicle Inspection Systems have written a piece that will help you get your drivers prepared for this summer’s Road Check event–you won’t want to miss it!

I apologize for not blogging sooner. I’ve been busy with Omaha Truck Center, Inc.’s inaugural UltimateTech competition. I am pleased to report the event took place on April 21 at our Technical Advancement Center. We are the first Freightliner group in the country to successfully hold a competition modeled after the national SuperTech competition.

We started out with a field of 111 of our professional diesel technicians. After some initial tests, we invited the top two from each of our locations, for a total of 16, to Omaha to compete in a hands-on skills contest.

Our first place winner was Ray Wordekemper from Omaha. Second place went to David Holliman from Salina. Third place went to John Ecis from Omaha. Jeff Schlecht from Norfolk had the highest written score. Wordekemper will represent OTC at national SuperTech in Raleigh in September.

I am so proud of each and every one of our 111 technicians who took the test. These men and women had no idea what to expect, yet still decided to jump right in and give it a try. Congratulations to each and every one of you. And good luck to Ray at nationals!