Motorcycle Repairers is the new black

Source: Post-Bulletin (Original Article)

By Bob Freund
Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN 

WINONA — Drivers crossing the Minnesota Highway 43 bridge over the Mississippi River in Winona should plan for delays during the next two days as transportation officials inspect the span that was closed for 11 days earlier this month over safety concerns.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation is warning motorists that traffic might be reduced to one lane from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. while inspectors examine the 2,289-foot-long bridge.

The bridge, which carries Minnesota Highway 43 and Wisconsin Highway 54, was closed from June 3 to last Saturday after MnDOT inspectors discovered corrosion on the gusset plates, which connect bridge supports. Before the closure, MnDOT said the average daily traffic was 11,600 vehicles. That number is smaller now because of restrictions on what types of vehicles can cross the bridge.

Traffic will be limited to passenger cars, motorcycles, vans and pickup trucks, MnDOT announced Wednesday. Flaggers will control single-lane traffic.

Large trucks, trucks with trailers, motorhomes, campers, buses, and any vehicle taller than 8 1/2 feet won’t be able to use the bridge Thursday and Friday, continuing the restrictions put in place Saturday when the bridge reopened to traffic.

Pedestrians and bicyclists also are not permitted on the bridge because of safety problems with the sidewalk. They are being ferried back and forth in a vehicle.

Ambulances and other emergency vehicles will continue to be allowed to cross the span.

After the inspection is complete, MnDOT will reopen both lanes of traffic until emergency repairs begin later this summer.

The bridge was built in 1941 and remodeled in 1985. Officials this week St George No Annual Fee Card said it is now slated to be replaced in 2014.

Source: RedOrbit (Original Article)

As Costs Soar, a ‘China Plus One’ Strategy Foreign Investors Look to Neighbors for Factory Sites
Posted on: Wednesday, 18 June 2008, 06:00 CDT
By Keith Bradsher Canon is no longer building or expanding factories in China, but the company is doubling its work force to 8,000 at a printer factory outside Hanoi. Nissan is expanding a vehicle engineering center nearby. Hanesbrands, based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, is building two new factories here. Texhong Textile Group of China is constructing two plants for manufacturing spandex. China remains the most attractive destination for industrial investment in the world, drawing almost $83 billion last year. But, in a strategy that companies are calling “China plus one,” multinationals - worried about soaring costs in China and becoming overly dependent on factories in one country - are increasingly establishing or expanding bases elsewhere on the continent, particularly in Vietnam. The long list of worries about China includes inflation, rapidly rising labor costs, shortages of workers and energy, a strengthening currency, dwindling tax breaks for foreign investors and the possibility of civil unrest. With wages in China now rising close to 25 percent a year in dollar terms in many industries, the vaunted “China price” for a growing list of goods, particularly low-tech products, is no longer such a bargain. Multinationals “should be thinking about all the world and keeping a balance,” and they are doing so by encouraging suppliers to diversify out of China, said Edward Kang, the chief executive of Ever-Glory International, a sportswear manufacturer in Nanjing, China. Ever-Glory sells to Wal-Mart and Kohl’s in the United States, and it is building a factory in Vietnam to supplement its three factories in China. Very few factory jobs are headed from China to the United States, despite high oil costs that are making it more costly to ship goods across the Pacific. The factory the wiggles dvd investments shifting from China to elsewhere …continue reading

Source: Post-Bulletin (Original Article)

RUSHFORD — The funeral for Kerry Gene Schultz will be at 11 a.m. Thursday at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Hart, with the Rev. Merlin Stephen officiating. Burial will be in the church cemetery.

Mr. Schultz, 29, died Saturday (June 14, 2008), of injuries suffered in a motorcycle accident near Chatfield.

He was born Oct. 26, 1978, in Winona and was a 1998 graduate of Rushford-Peterson High School. At age 11 he began working with his dad at Roy’s Small Engine Repair, and was working there up until his death. He was a member of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Rushford and the Rushford Volunteer Fire Department. He enjoyed riding his motorcycle and his greatest passion was fishing.

He is survived by his parents, Roy and Sue (Larson) Schultz of Rushford; a sister, Sarah Schultz of Rushford; his maternal grandmother, Genevieve Milbrandt of Waucoma, Iowa; and his paternal grandmother, Dorothy Schultz of Canton. Other survivors include three nephews, twins Shane and Shawn, and Shannon; and several aunts and uncles. He was preceded in death by his grandfathers, Paul and Adrian, and a stepgrandfather, Delfred.

Friends may call from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Hoff Funeral Home-Rushford Chapel, with a Prayer service at 7:30 p.m. Friends may also call Visa Credit Card an hour before the service Thursday at the church.

www.hofffuneral.com

Source: PR Web (press release) (Original Article)

Trend in concierge services reaches motorsports fans

(Vocus/PRWEB ) June 16, 2008 — Coach-Net Technical and Roadside Assistance recently expanded its new concierge services into a separate division just for motorsports enthusiasts called Motorsports Advantage.

We would attend a major RV rally and see 2,000 to 3,000 RVs

For $109.50 a year, plus $10 application fee, Motorsports Advantage members have access to a dedicated toll free number which they can use 24/7 for personal assistance, including traffic reports, ticket reservations, camping and parking assistance, grocery delivery, finding lowest priced gas, business locator, weather reports, ATM locator and up-to-the-minute point standings and driver stats, plus much more (see extensive list attached).

The growth of concierge services has been identified as one of the top ten trends in the travel industry for 2007-2008, according to the Randall Travel Marketing report. Marketing columnist and consultant Alf Nucifora notes that concierge services have moved from hotel to mainstream with such things as personal shopper services and valet parking at shopping centers. Another example: corporations that have contracted for services to help employees “ameliorate the stress and difficulties of daily life, thereby releasing the employee to devote more time and focus to company matters. Assistance is now available for a variety of needs, including relocation, dining, gifts and shopping, healthcare, travel, entertainment, home repairs, etc.,” says Nucifora.

And if personal assistance can be called upon to help you work better, well, it can help you play better, too. That’s what the folks at Coach-Net saw when they surveyed the growing popularity of motorsports events with RVers, a growing segment of travelers that the company provides roadside assistance for. “We would attend a major RV rally and ANZ MasterCard see 2,000 to 3,000 RVs,” said …continue reading

Source: Leader Times (Original Article)

RURAL VALLEY — Army Pfc. Joshua E. Waltenbaugh has gone on to the next post.

Chaplain Maj. Max Furman told the fallen soldier’s wife, family and friends that Wednesday in recalling a scene from the John Wayne movie, “She Wore a Yellow Ribbon.”

“As Captain Nathan Brittles, on the eve of his retirement, was saying good-bye to a longtime friend and spouse of an officer, her reply to him was ‘we never say good-bye, we say till the next post,’” Furman said during a service for Waltenbaugh at the Carson/Boyer Funeral Home. “Joshua has gone on to his next posting.”

Waltenbaugh, 19, of Shay, Kittanning Township, an Army aircraft powerplant repairer and member of the Army’s Downed Aircraft Recovery Team with the 4th Squadron, 3rd Armored Calvary Regiment out of Fort Hood, Texas, died June 3 in Iraq while serving his country.
story continues below

“Joshua loved life, his country, his family, his community and the Army,” Furman said. “The Army is a lesser place without Joshua. The community is a lesser place without Joshua.”

Because of his service and dedication, Waltenbaugh was given full military honors.

An honor guard of military pallbearers marched Waltenbaugh’s flag-draped casket to the graveside. At full attention, the soldiers proceeded to fold the flag for presentation to the family.

At the top of the hill overlooking mourners at the Rural Valley Cemetery under a brilliant sun and high blue sky on a hot June day, soldiers fired three volleys of rifle shots in a salute to their comrade-in-arms.

“Taps” was played on the hill as the white-gloved guard snapped a salute over Waltenbaugh’s casket.

The Patriot Guard Riders formed a flag line outside the funeral home and at the cemetery.

“We do it to pay respect and honor to our fallen comrades,” said Ralph DeLorme, ride captain for the motorcycle-riding veterans’ group.

Army Maj. Gen. Stephen Reeves presented folded flags and accommodation daylesford medals to Waltenbaugh’s young wife, Misti …continue reading

Source: Leader Times (Original Article)

RURAL VALLEY — Army Pfc. Joshua E. Waltenbaugh has gone on to the next post.

Chaplain Maj. Max Furman told the fallen soldier’s wife, family and friends that Wednesday in recalling a scene from the John Wayne movie, “She Wore a Yellow Ribbon.”

“As Captain Nathan Brittles, on the eve of his retirement, was saying good-bye to a longtime friend and spouse of an officer, her reply to him was ‘we never say good-bye, we say till the next post,’” Furman said during a service for Waltenbaugh at the Carson/Boyer Funeral Home. “Joshua has gone on to his next posting.”

Waltenbaugh, 19, of Shay, Kittanning Township, an Army aircraft powerplant repairer and member of the Army’s Downed Aircraft Recovery Team with the 4th Squadron, 3rd Armored Calvary Regiment out of Fort Hood, Texas, died June 3 in Iraq while serving his country.
story continues below

“Joshua loved life, his country, his family, his community and the Army,” Furman said. “The Army is a lesser place without Joshua. The community is a lesser place without Joshua.”

Because of his service and dedication, Waltenbaugh was given full military honors.

An honor guard of military pallbearers marched Waltenbaugh’s flag-draped casket to the graveside. At full attention, the soldiers proceeded to fold the flag for presentation to the family.

At the top of the hill overlooking mourners at the Rural Valley Cemetery under a brilliant sun and high blue sky on a hot June day, soldiers fired three volleys of rifle shots in a salute to their comrade-in-arms.

“Taps” was played on the hill as the white-gloved guard snapped a salute over Waltenbaugh’s casket.

The Patriot Guard Riders formed a flag line outside the funeral home and at the cemetery.

“We do it to pay respect and honor to our fallen comrades,” said Ralph DeLorme, ride captain for the motorcycle-riding veterans’ group.

Army Maj. Gen. Stephen Reeves presented folded flags and ANZ Frequent Flyer medals to Waltenbaugh’s young wife, Misti …continue reading

Source: Motorsport.com (Original Article)

Baja 500: Deep water, zero viz - and another podium result!

The clay was as hard as concrete, there was lots of dust and zero viz,
the thermometer climbed to 35 degrees Celsius, and already after 25 miles
we found ourselves in deep, murky water. In other words, it was a
fantastic Baja 500, and after 441.15 miles we finished third, scoring
another podium at the finish in Ensenada!

For me, the Baja 500 was a true adventure and a driving feast. I started
and drove the first stint, about 270 miles. Ten days prior to the race
there had been heavy rain. The water had washed away all the dust and
sand from the underlying clay. Then the sun baked the clay until it was
as hard as concrete - a true test for our suspension and chassis. After
25 miles we came to a deep waterhole, where a competitor was stranded in
the middle and blocked our way. After a few minutes Bryan and I made up
our minds to try the track where the motorcycles went, only to get stuck
behind a big log that we hadn’t seen in the murky water. It took us
a good twenty minutes to climb over the trunk with our 640hp monster.

But then we were back in the race. On the highspeed stretches our new
anti rollbar from ZFSachs Race Engineering turned out to be a real
blessing. For the rough stretches we can simply switch it off. So from
the handling side everything wen t really well. But the cooling turned
out to be a little sensitive with engine temperatures rising when we went
fast. It’s a real challenge to get enough air to the coolers
without a body or airducts. So we had to take it a little bit easy.

For the twisty and technical parts of the Baja 500 we had written
detailed pace notes in World Rally Championship style. They turned out to
be quite helpful for some stretches. But in many others the dust was so
dense that we didn’t see a thing. So we just made sure we went
roughly in the right direction and didn’t hit anything big and
solid Lawyers in NSW beginning with V Page 1 …

After six hours we handed …continue reading

Source: Seeking Alpha (Original Article)

Universal Technical Institute, Inc. (UTI)

F2Q08 Earnings Call

May 6, 2008  5:00 pm ET

Executives

Jenny Swanson - Director of Investor Relations

Kimberly J. McWaters - President, Chief Executive Officer

Eugene S. Putnam - Interim Chief Financial Officer

Analysts

Robert Craig - Stifel Nicolaus & Company, Inc.

Mark Marostica - Piper Jaffray

[Evan Doherty] - Banc of America Securities

Gary Bisbee - Lehman Brothers

Corey Greendale - First Analysis Corp.

Jennifer Cho - Credit Suisse

Frank Adkins - BMO Capital Markets

Presentation

Operator

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the Universal Technical Institute, Inc. second quarter fiscal 2008 conference call. (Operator Instructions)

At this time I would like to turn the conference over to Jenny Swanson, Director of Investor Relations of Universal Technical Institute. Please go ahead.

Jenny Swanson

Hello and thank you for joining us today for Universal Technical Institute’s quarterly conference call. During the call we will discuss the results of our second quarter ended March 31, 2008 and then open the call up for your questions.

The company’s earnings release was issued after the market closed today and is available on UTI’s website at www.UTI.edu.

Before we begin we would like to remind everyone that except for historical information presented, the matters discussed today may contain forward-looking statements under the safe harbor provision of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. I’ll refer you to today’s news release for UTI’s comments on that topic.

The safe harbor statement in this release, which I will not repeat here in the interest of time, also applies to all statements made during this conference call. Information in this conference call, including the initial statements Aussie Credit Card by management as well as answers …continue reading

Source: Philadelphia Inquirer (Original Article)

Big Brown’s cracked left front hoof will not be patched until Friday, the day before he races in the Belmont Stakes for a shot at Triple Crown history.
Hoof specialist Ian McKinlay planned to apply an acrylic and fiberglass patch yesterday, but he decided to wait a few days so the crack could heal naturally.
The horse is scheduled for a final workout on the 11/2-mile oval today.
"As far as his foot goes, I don’t even think it’s an issue," McKinlay said.
Hockey Luc Bourdon was remembered as a role model for local youngsters when more than 2,000 people gathered at Centre Rheal Cormier in Shippagan, New Brunswick, to bid farewell to the 21-year-old Vancouver Canucks rookie, who died Thursday when his motorcycle slammed into a tractor-trailer near his family’s home in Shippagan. He had obtained a motorcycle license two weeks ago.
Soccer Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro will miss the European Championship after suffering torn ligaments in his right ankle during the Azzurri’s first training session in Austria.

U.S. defender Jonathan Spector will have surgery to repair torn cartilage in his right hip and will be sidelined for three to six months, causing him to miss the Beijing Olympics.
U.S. forward Landon Donovan will miss the Americans’ exhibition game against Spain tomorrow night because of a tight groin, delaying his 100th international appearance.
Elsewhere: Sven-Goran Eriksson left Manchester City after one season as coach. He is the top candidate to take over the Mexican national team. . . . Houston Dynamo defender Eddie Robinson was suspended for one game and fined $500 for retaliatory actions against FC Dallas midfielder Andre Rocha in a Major League Soccer game last week.
Olympics Olympic great Michael Johnson said he was "shocked" by former teammate Antonio Pettigrew’s doping admission and will return the gold medal the two of them helped the United Aussie MasterCard Credit Card States win in the 4×400-meter relay …continue reading

Source: Motley Fool (Original Article)

Imagine this: You’re flipping through news reports and you land on an item about a company in which you’re invested. It says that a recent earthquake has damaged a key production plant, which will be closed until repairs are made. This is what happened to Tongjitang Chinese Medicines (NYSE: TCM), a specialty pharmaceutical company. The press release notes, “Tongjitang has halted production temporarily and will update investors when additional information is available. … We are committed to the highest quality levels of production. Currently, we are working diligently to make sure that production will be resumed as soon as conditions allow.”

When I saw this, I checked to see if the stock had plunged on the news. Surprisingly, it didn’t. Investors must be keeping cool heads, trusting production to resume shortly, realizing that the problem is manageable and temporary.

Still, the event made me stop to appreciate how quickly a company can get derailed, even temporarily. Most of us probably don’t factor earthquakes into the risks we consider when we evaluate companies as possible investments.

Spreading the risk

This is where diversification can be useful — not in the sense of diversifying your money across many industries and companies, but in the sense of a company having a diversity of plants, and even businesses. If a firm makes mainly one product and it does so from mainly one location, then its risks are concentrated. If its business is typewriters, they may end up obsolete sooner than anyone imagines. Its factory may also burn down or suffer some other problem.

Meanwhile, big companies and conglomerates such as General Electric (NYSE: GE) have spread out their risks. If its jet engine business slumps, there’s always the locomotive business, or the consumer financing business, or even wind turbines, to pick up the slack. Fortune Brands (NYSE: FO) is another biggie, with businesses ranging Aged Domains from spirits (Jim Beam, Maker’s Mark, …continue reading