In for the long haul
By MISTY WILLIAMS, Californian staff writer
THURSDAY JUNE 13, 2002

Ron Lallo, president of Gazelle Transportation, stands in front of part of his fleet, which earned a state association safety award.

Filled with speeding cars wildly darting in and out of traffic, the tangled web of Southern California freeways can be intimidating for any driver.

But for the operator of an 80,000-pound truck, busy, urban freeways are an outright nightmare.

"A truck like that in an accident could devastate multiple cars," said Mark Antu, a former truck driver turned dispatcher for Gazelle Transportation, a tanker-trucking company in Bakersfield. "L.A. is a tough gig going back and forth."
For Ron Lallo, president of Gazelle, safety concerns take top priority.
The company has more than 50 drivers, 98 percent of whom have had no moving violations in the past 12 months; and 80 percent have spotless records, according to a recent report the company compiled for insurance purposes, Lallo said.

"We take a lot of pride in the people we put behind our trucks," he said.
This regard for safety has paid off.
In May, Gazelle was named by the California Trucking Association as the safest trucking fleet in California for 2001 in the liquid tank and vacuum category.

The trucking company has been accident-free for about 14 months, Lallo said.
It can be a difficult task, as Gazelle drivers are expected to drive 3.5 million miles this year (and haul approximately 250 million gallons of mostly crude oil throughout the state each year).

This safety record has helped Lallo build and maintain solid customer relationships, he said.

"It's probably the most important issue for us -- both safety in terms of protecting our employees, their people, and certainly since they're driving on the highway," said Lloyd Clary, ChevronTexaco's manager of crude supply for California and a Gazelle customer.

Lallo, who began working as a mechanic at Gazelle when it opened 10 years ago, took on the challenge of building a strong customer base when he became president of the company four years later at age 24. "It was one of the scariest times in my life," he said.

But having a background in maintenance has helped him manage what is now a fleet of 28 trucks, he said. "None of those guys can pull the wool over my eyes," Lallo said with a smile. "I've been there."

To help maintain safety standards, Lallo holds monthly safety meetings that also serve to update drivers on the state of business. "I share my goals and visions with them," he said.

Each meeting is interactive, Lallo said, where drivers can talk about near misses and share advice on how to avoid dangerous situations. Meetings can also be devoted to discussing certain types of accidents, such as a rear-end collision.

One of the chief concerns of truck drivers, Lallo said, is uneducated motorists. "The typical motorist doesn't understand that an 80,000-pound vehicle can't stop on a dime," he said.

Antu, who drove a truck for 12 years, said the No. 1 problem for truckers is cars cutting in front of them and then slamming on the breaks to exit the freeway.

"They need to be more aware that they need to give us a cushion," Antu said. "We need to stay a certain distance away."

Each year there are approximately 5,000 deaths involving trucks, but many are not necessarily the fault of the truck driver, said Warren Hoemann, vice president of the California Trucking Association.

In fact the U. S. Department of Transportation reported that 70 percent of such accidents are caused by drivers of cars, Hoemann said, which makes driver education crucial.

"The way we communicate with each other is by sight," Hoemann said. "We try to teach motorists that if you're around a big rig, and you can't see a big-rig driver in his or her mirror, then they can't see you."

Long hours and time away from family can also take a toll on truckers, Antu said.
Since Gazelle is a 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week operation, drivers may work their 10- to 13-hour shifts during the day or late at night and into the early morning hours, Lallo said.

With no set hours, truckers must sleep whenever possible, at night or in the middle of the afternoon, Antu said.

"It's like having jet lag because you never have that internal time clock," he said.
Such unpredictable schedules can be tough on families too, Antu said.

Personal problems can also affect a driver's ability to drive safely, Lallo said. To combat this problem, Lallo said he has an "open door policy," where he encourages workers to come and talk to him about any problems they might have, both personal and work-related.

"One of the things I enjoy the most is guys coming in and talking," Lallo said. "They're telling me they trust me and I'm more than a guy just sitting behind a desk."

The importance of family is something the company emphasizes, Lallo said. They hold Christmas parties and barbecues where employees' spouses and children are encouraged to attend.

"We try to get to know everybody and know their kids," Antu said. "It's a big family, and we try to keep it that way."

Lallo said what he enjoys most about his job is interacting with customers, employees and their families.

"It's a people thing," Lallo said. "The day I come in here and I'm grumpy and unhappy is the day I know I need to do something different."