If you didn’t think owning a 24/7 towing business was enough to keep one busy, meet Chuck
Anderson from Nolte’s Service & 24 Hour Towing in Oshkosh and Appleton, WI. Chuck is not a run of
the mill guy, and spends much of his day out on the road and back in the shop where he and his wife
Lisa consult and manage 11 full time and 6 part time employees. Their service shop, which accounts
for 40% of his business, is staffed by 3 full time technicians who do all repairs (except body work) and
is open 7am-5pm weekdays. The towing end of the business is 24/7, and calls for hands-on
management of staff and trucks.
Chuck has been in the business since 1988 when a good friend got him into the business. As Chuck
states, “once you do it, it’s in your blood. The helping people part is what gets you hooked, and each
day brings different jobs, and new challenges”. In 2010 Chuck took the business over in Oshkosh,
opened an Appleton location, and has been growing ever since. With growth comes new drivers and
training is essential to run a successful tow operation, so Chuck turned to the best for the peace of
mind that his drivers were trained properly and know the right way to do their job. WreckMaster is the
only hands-on comprehensive training program with national certification that focuses on incident
management and quick highway clearance. They provide exceptional training and education from
skilled instructors throughout the US and Canada, giving the towing and recovery operator the skills
required to make them safe, efficient and effective. Over 40,000 students have been certified through
WreckMaster as of today, but as Chuck points out, that is only a fraction of the tow truck operators on
the road today.
It didn’t take long for Chuck to decide to take that training further and become a certified WreckMaster
instructor himself, currently at field instructor level. He joins 15 other Wreckmaster employed trainers
who travel throughout North America, holding classes that run from 2 to 7 days long, from basic
through highly advanced skill levels. In addition to in-house training, Nolte’s sends their drivers to
WreckMaster training and also assists with local classes in addition to hosting classes at his location.
All of this develops the WreckMaster discipline in employees. “The WreckMaster program builds
confidence in the driver, reduces damage claims, helps them understand the equipment they are
using, and makes drivers aware of dangers we face on the road. There is only one way to tie down a
car at Nolte’s, and no shortcuts are acceptable”, says Chuck. He relies on his customers and fellow
employees to give him feedback on his operators out in the field, and is proud of the reputation his
tow operators have earned using their WreckMaster learned skills to help others in distress, even
other tow operators.
To find out more about WreckMaster and see the full list of classes and locations offered, visit:
https://www1.wreckmaster.com/. Feel free to contact Chuck at noltestowing@yahoo.com if you would
like more information on what the classes consist of, or any other questions that you may have.
