Retirement sale for Lakeside Specialized Transportation in Las Vegas

Ritchie Bros. is honored to feature a selection of 23 Truck Tractors, 14 dump trucks, and 58 dump trailers from Lakeside Specialized Transportation at our Las Vegas November 25 auction. These trucks have been kept in pristine condition and will sell to the highest bidder in a Timed Auction sale with bidding opening Nov 19.

We sat down with Lakeside founder, Jim Fernhoff, to discuss the story behind his company and why he is selling an incredible lineup of trucks. 

Jim, what’s the story behind Lakeside Specialized Transportation?

Well, I had one tow truck in 1980 and by ‘83 we came up with the name Lakeside Towing because we were at Lake Tahoe. We quickly grew over the years to become the largest towing company in the Sierras. Fast forward to ‘96, we bought our first dirt truck and broke ground on a location in Nevada.

From ‘99 till 2008, we grew to over 100 trucks and moved out of the towing business and ventured into commercial properties. Currently we’re up about 50 trucks and around 100-125 trailers. But 45 years later, now it’s my turn to retire. So here we are.

Tell us a little bit about your maintenance program at Lakeside.

We built this shop brand new, and it was built just for maintaining our own equipment. We have 4 full-time mechanics and we’re real big on having all the parts on hand. We do all our repair work here except for engine work. And that’s done at the local Peterbilt dealer.

Tell us about what made you decide to retire?

Well 45 years is a long time in business through a lot of different up and downs and things that happen in your life. I think it was just time for another chapter in the book – to do something different; pursue some things that I want to do in life. I’m 72 years old and I’m in good health. But who knows when the final day comes? So, I want to do something, and it was just time.

What made you decide to use Richard Bros. for your retirement sale?

I’ve had a great relationship with Richard Bros. over the years and it was time. It was the right time to sell, and I think it was with the right people. We have a great relationship with Ritchie Bros. and it’s kind of a family type of deal.

Tell me about your first experience with Ritchie Bros.

In 2014 it got to the point where California said that we had to go 100% smog trucks, so we had an auction. I think we had 31 trucks at the time. And we take care of our trucks. We take pride in our trucks. And I think that particular auction brought in $2,000,000 more than what we were anticipating. We were just rolled the money into buying more trucks. Almost all my trucks I’ve gone through Ritchie Bros. to sell. Most of the equipment we’ve ever bought has been brand new because we have a different color, and we can order brand new in our color.

For those interested in this incredible opportunity register to bid today and join us for an open house Nov 20-21, 8 AM–4 PM, at 2855 US-40, Verdi, NV, 89439. Bidding opens Nov 19. For details or to book a private inspection, call our Las Vegas site at +1.702.644.2468.

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