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By JIM GORECKI
It’s no stretch
at all to say that people who are into stock car racing love their
sport. In fact, it’s not much of an exaggeration to say that many of
them live their sport.
And when you have a large number of people that immersed in a
recreational activity, it creates some unique business opportunities for
those who know how to meet the needs of the racing community.
How about a vehicle that the racing team can use to get from one track
to the next, providing team members with comfortable — even fancy —
living facilities with plenty of entertainment opportunities? Oh, and
the vehicle should be able to haul the race car, too.
It’s called a “toter,” and a Dunn County firm will custom build one for
a racing team.
CTF Conversions is hidden away in Rusk, a tiny Dunn County village
bordered by an interstate highway, a grain elevator, fertilizer business
and a handful of farms.
Brothers and business partners Rod and George Brewe, known as “The Brewe
Crew” in local racing circuits, have found a home for their
manufacturing business in buildings once occupied by Dunn Energy
Cooperative.
What is a toter?
A CTF toter is a customized conversion on a late model truck chassis,
with hauling or towing capabilities, along with living quarters similar
to any luxury RV coach seen on the road. Outfitted with whatever
amenities the customer desires, most have fine wood cabinetry, a full
bath, kitchen, and sleeping quarters.
A completed conversion could include A/C units, furnace, fresh water
storage, full size bathroom with shower, private bedroom, granite tiled
floors and countertops, gas range, water heaters, oak cabinets, sofa
beds, above-cab sleeping quarters, microwave, full size
refrigerator/freezer, sink, range, two flat screen TVs, an entertainment
center with VCR, DVD and CD players, a diesel generator, shore power
hookup, fluorescent lights and more.
It really is a
home on wheels, with the hobby in tow.
Fox Valley transplant
CTF Conversions was founded in 1998 by Rod Brewe, a young stock car
driver looking to support himself and finance his fledgling race team.
Rod turned to what he knew best, fabricating race car chassis. Working
out of his home in Kimberly in the Fox River Valley, Rod began
manufacturing oval track race cars out of his home garage for
competitors throughout the Midwest.
In 2001, CTF
moved out of that residential garage and into an industrial shop. As
Rod’s race team, comprised of brothers Jim and George Brewe, gained more
and more notoriety on the race tracks of the Midwest, they felt a
growing need to procure a toter to haul the race team, racecar, tools,
tires, and living quarters for the long weekends. Jim and George Brewe
were both residing with their families in Menomonie, while Rod was a
one-man show at the CTF headquarters in the Fox Valley.
“After pricing out a toter, we realized we had the equipment, and the
talent on the race team, to build our own for a cost that was much more
financially sound than purchasing one,” said George from his office at
Westconsin Credit Union in Menomonie, where he is the office manager.
“The only obstacle holding us back was distance. We needed to relocate
CTF and Rod to Menomonie. In July of 2004, we did just that, and
purchased the building we are currently in.”
Once the CTF team was literally under one roof, it realized that the
toter industry is very selective, and not many companies were
customizing. That is where the word “conversion” fits the CTF business
name.
“People we knew
in racing circles started to contact us about converting or updating the
standard toter they had purchased, and building one that was customized
from the ground up was a natural progression for the business,” said
George.
With the limited availability of customized toters around the country,
CTF Conversions has become a top name in customizing toters. A
user-friendliest aspect of one of their toters is that the driver does
not need a commercial driver’s license. These rigs come packaged with
“auto shift” or “smart transmissions,” said George,
“The customer does not need experience in driving a big rig with a
standard transmission,” said George. “The setup is made to get in and
drive. That is also a great selling point.”
These units are sold and licensed as a private motor coach.
“With changing to the customized motor coaches, we have opened up our
client base, too. Instead of just focusing on the racing market, CTF now
has clients that haul collector cars, show horses, boats, insurance
companies’ disaster relief offices, and even a monster truck. The
possibilities are unlimited,” George said.
Rod, who still finds time to race, runs a WISSOTA sanctioned Street
Stock at the Red Cedar Speedway in Menomonie. So how does he build these
rigs by himself?
He grinned while
leaning on the side of his silver number 53 racer.
“Well, we do have some great suppliers CTF has hooked up with,” he said,
after a recent Friday night racing event. “Some of the components can be
prefabricated for us, so installation goes much faster than building
from scratch. Some of our suppliers are from the Chippewa Valley.
Building those local ties is very important to CTF.
“CTF also subcontracts out some work to local artisans. Case in point,
our custom cabinetry and millwork is done by Chad Amundson of Menomonie.
His cabinetry is absolutely beautiful, and our customers really
appreciate that. His work really helps to set us apart from the
competition.
“My brothers are always involved in one way or another. There is no way
we could run this business if it wasn’t for them. We all work together
to make the business work.”
As with many startup companies, CTF has experienced growing pains.
According to George, the most challenging aspect of getting CTF
Conversions off the ground was, “getting suppliers to trust you.”
“You just can’t walk in there telling them, ‘Hey, I’ve got this great
product that is really going to sell. Can I have a large line of
credit?’ It really takes a solid business plan, and getting local and
regional people involved as customers.“
CTF does have an established supplier network, with companies from
Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa and Indiana.
The main advantage that CTF has over other companies, says George, is
that most of the competition makes standardized models. CTF can make a
one-of-a-kind unit, keeping the customer in mind.
“Each toter is built and tested as if it were our own, before it ever
goes down the road,” George said.
The current business climate has been very positive for CTF Conversions,
with six customized units completed in 2004 and six also in 2005.
“We have run some toters to trade shows in Green Bay and Rockford, and
of course, taken them to race tracks for display. I have on occasion run
an ad in a national publication that targets just the customers we
want,” said George. “We do have a website, too, (www. brewecrew.net) and
that helps us out when people use a search engine to find customized
toters.”
CTF offers two different styles of toters, a TAG Style, and a FIFTH
Wheel Style. The TAG style has more living quarters and usually more
amenities, and will pull a trailer. The FIFTH Wheel style also pulls a
trailer, only it has shorter living quarters, and is usually able to
handle a higher towing weight.
Besides those main styles, George said, “If a customer brings in an idea
that is completely different, or small sketches made on a napkin, we can
work with them to create exactly what their vision is.“
To date, CTF Conver-sions is on pace for its best year yet. Asked if
they have plans for future expansion, George replied, “At this point, no
immediate build up. We are concentrating on building our client base. If
there is a time and a place to grow, the market will dictate that. We’ll
know if that time comes.”
Jim Gorecki is a freelance writer from Menomonie. Contact the Chippewa
Valley Business Report at (715) 723-5515 or through
www.chippewavalleybusinessreport.com.