The Tire Industry Association (TIA) officially added four members to its hall of fame on Oct. 31, 2016, during its annual awards ceremony held on the eve of the 2016 Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show.
Dan Brown, who this year retired as executive vice president of American Tire Distributors Inc. and president of Tire Pros, attended the event with his wife Donna, son Pierce, and daughter Katherine. As their trip to Las Vegas grew nearer he was surprised at how excited his children were for the event. It wasn’t the allure of the city that never sleeps. They were excited “to go to the hall of fame and see his statue.” The family’s going to seek out a wax museum, and Brown joked he’d look for his best likeness.
Richard “Dick” Gust, president of national account sales and director of government affairs for Liberty Tire Recycling, talked about how he entered the industry as a kid, rolling tires around his father’s auto center until he found a good one to clean up and resell as a used tire. Now his company picks up tires from 8,000 of those auto centers each day.
Fredrick Kovac died in 1996 after a career at Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. His brother Harvey accepted the award on his behalf and said, “I’m honored to be here for Fred. I really am. I’d rather he be here.”
Charles “Husky” Sherkin died five years ago, and his son Bob said his dad was like a lot of tire dealers – they seem to have carbon black in their blood. And when you’re a retreader of off-the-road tires, Bob Sherkin said it’s like having carbon black in your blood, only on steroids.
Find the full biographies of the four hall of fame inductees here.
