[BC] Tower Company's

[Gary Peterson]

No argument on the name chosen for the Rocky Mountain tower company.  I
guess we've had different experiences.  The long-haired fellow was Ed Heuser
(sp?).  I first met him when he and his crew was (were?) stacking a 500'
Utility stick, for a local FM upgrade (now KKMK), within walking distance of
my home.  I saw the tower going up and would walk over and chat with Ed.
1985 was a particularly tough winter and Ed and crew kept going as the
weather allowed.

In 1990, I had occasion to build an AM directional (KIMM).  Ed and crew
stacked the Utility towers and installed the ground system.  They moved
right along, in spite of high winds.  A year or so later, I had Ed stack a
500' Utility for Tom Brokaw's new FM in Rapid City (KIQK).  Up to this
point, the tower crew were employees of Utility Tower Co. of OKC, OK.  

A couple of years after that, Brokaw's company (Tom-Tom Communications) lost
a court battle with NIMBYs and we had to move the 500 footer 0.6 miles to a
location where the NIMBYs were S.O.L.  Utility no longer did tower
installations.  Former Utility crews had formed their own company (RMEC),
headquartered in OK.  I hired Rocky Mtn. Erection Co. to move the tower.
The station was under court order to have the tower gone from its original
location by 1 September.  I think the year was 1993.  It took several months
for the FCC to issue a CP for the move.  Ed and crew came in during the
Sturgis motorcycle rally.  The closest empty motel rooms were in Chadron,
NE.  Of course, we wanted the station off-air as little as possible...and we
had to beat the deadline or go dark and/or face monetary forfeitures.  Ed
and crew had to commute from Chadron for the first week.  They got the move
done and beat the deadline and the station lost very little air time.  I
heard a couple of years ago that Ed had passed away (some illness, but
specific cause unknown to me).  To say the least...he was a colorful
character and did like his Budweiser at night.

Most recently, I had occasion to change out a ten bay FM antenna on
Veteran's Peak, near Sturgis, SD (KRCS).  Bill Johnson and his guys came in
and did the job quickly and efficiently.  They worked from shortly after sun
up until pretty close to sundown (early October).  A rep for the antenna
company was here to do the final fine matching and said that he was
impressed with their work.

Maybe you might have dealt with Ed during a time when his health was in the
process of failing.

Gary

    

>  > Rocky Mountain Erection...
" I've never liked the name for that reason. Just not "professional" using
 double-entendre like that.
 Rumor that the long-hair with the limp that ran the crew died. I don't
know.
 The black guy on the crew was very good.
 The rest, so-so.
 They were over-all OK. Not outstanding, but OK.
 Like to work short days, like 7A to about 2P and knock off.
 Never did like that aspect.
 Cowboy "