We recently had a chance to interview Perry Mason of Radio Dubuque to get an inside peek of what goes on behind the scenes of the 3rd of July Air and Fireworks Show. Since then Perry and his crew have picked up the 21 vehicles they needed from Runde's and they are being put to good use by the troops. These are the vehicles that will serve their basic transportation needs as they travel around the Tri-State area over the next week or so.
After they arrived at the Dubuque Regional Airport the other day, we got a chance to take an up-close look at a few of the planes that will be in the show. Enjoy a small glimpse of the planes that will be at the show! And if you're interested in checking the planes out in person or possibly taking a ride on one, CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS.
B-17 Bomber.
The A-10 East Demonstration Team is Greatful for Runde's Vehicles.
Gun turret at the bottom of the B-17 Bomber. Probably one of the most dangerous places to be. The B-17 was said to be a Flying Fortress and after being inside one, I can now see why.
Tim Runde got to fly with the well known aerobatics Mike Wiskus.
The A-10 "Warthog"
Check out our walkthrough video of the B-17 Bomber!
Bob Bush has been a Dubuquer for his entire life. And now he has joined the Runde Chevrolet team as one of our sales gurus. Read on to learn more about Bob, what he likes and what he'd do with 100 million bucks.
Where are you from? Dubuque Iowa, born and raised.
Have you always known about Runde's? Yeah, I've pretty much always known about Runde's. My dad bought a used truck from the Hazel Green store not to long ago. He still has the truck and it's still running good!
How are you liking it here at Runde's? I'm liking it. I'm getting the hang of things and it's going great.
What do you like to do around the area? Hang out with friends, go cook out, watch my buddies fight in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), hang outside, go on the river, and I like to play games like bags (bean bag toss) and Polish horseshoes.
Do you fight in MMA? No, I'm there more for support.
Do you cook? Oh yeah, me and my girlfriend cook a lot and grill. I'm a big season freak, I have tons of seasonings and a bunch of different sauces and marinades I make.
What's your favorite restaurant? Around here - probably the Village Bar for their Prime-rib. The Pepper Sprout is good food. Also Olive Garden, everyone loves Olive Garden. I go to 3 Mile House and Lot 1 for a great Steak Sandwich... I'll also go anywhere that has a good steak.
What's your favorite food? Anything on the grill - Steak, chicken, sausage etc... I also like seafood and Italian.
What's the most complicated food you've made? Probably homemade Fettuccine Chicken Alfredo because you have to start from scratch with the sauce... either that or a whole beef tenderloin because you have to cook them just right or they can easily get overdone.
Do you have any kids? Yes - Collin is 9 years old, he'll be going into 4th grade. He loves to play soccer, it's his favorite. He’s excited for his first tournament that’s on Sunday.
Cool, are you guys keeping track of what's happening in the World Cup? Yeah, Team USA got to stick around in the tournament by beating Algeria, but we were ousted by Ghana in the next round. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.
Do you have any pets? Brooke I have a dog named Porkchop, he's a Shih-Poo which is a mix between a Poodle, Shih-Tzu and a Lhasa Apso. We also have a cat named Cheeba but we call her Weebies. She's not even like a cat, she's like a dog.
Where's your favorite place to go in the Tri-States? Any place where friends are. I liked watching the Dubuque Fighting Saints hockey team. I'm looking forward to the new ice stadium they are building, it’s supposed to be huge.
Are you a hockey fan? Yeah, I played hockey, it's the only sport I've ever played. It's a fun sport overall, wears your legs out but it's fun.
What's the latest movie you've seen? Uhh.... What was the last one I went too... Did you see the new Toy Story 3? No, I didn't see that one, is it good? Yeah, I'd recommend it.
I can't remember the last one I went to but I want to see that new theater they are making in the Mississippi River Museum. They are making a really nice renovation to the place for like 40 million dollars, they are going to have a 4D theater where there are like sharks coming out at you, smoke and mist everywhere… cool stuff.
What do you, your girlfriend and your son like to do together?
The last thing we did is take them to Michael’s Fun World in Davenport, IA. They have a three story jungle gym, trampoline basketball, go-karts outside, big miniature golf course, a jousting area... it was awesome.
Do you like to travel around a lot? Yeah, I go to a Chiefs game at least once a year. We usually go to Florida at least once a year. My girlfriend's grandpa has a condo there in Fort Lauderdale. We just got back last week from a Cubs game; we like to go to various places.
Planning to go anywhere this year? Yeah, We are probably going to Noah's Ark in the Dells before summer is done. I want to try to find the nearest Dave and Busters and try one out. I've been in search for one for a long time but there isn't one really close to us.
What is one invention you couldn't live without? Probably a phone. From talking to people and now we have the internet and GPS available on them ... it's pretty much everything you need.
What kind of music do you like? I'm pretty much open to anything, I'd say my least favorite is probably country. I like rock and old school rock n roll like ACDC and stuff like that.
I bet your radio station is tuned to 97.3 The Rock. Now that my CD player is broke YOU ARE RIGHT, it's on 97.3 but I listen to Bob and Tom in the morning.
What's your favorite sports team? I'm a HUGE Kansas City Chiefs fan. I was born to be a Rams fan because that was my dad’s favorite team but I branched out to the Chiefs because of people like Joe Montana, Derrick Thomas, Priest Holmes... they are just kind of a team I took on. Arrowhead stadium is a great place to go to a football game; it's really loud and a great time.If you were to win the lottery, what would you do with the money... say it's $100 million. I'd probably be getting around $60 million because I'd take cash. Right away, I'd go on a nice trip so I wouldn't have to deal with those people who say they are my "long-lost brother" and stuff like that. Just let the excitement die down a little bit.
Would you bring your Cell Phone? Yes I would. I'd take my current phone and throw it in the garbage and go buy the most expensive phone out there. I would change my number, though, in a heartbeat. Just be in contact with family and close friends.
After I got back from my trip I'd definitely move. I'd figure out where all my family and close friends wants to go and take them there. We'd all get a couple of beach houses, and maybe I'd get a house on the Fiji Islands, that's a place I've always wanted to go - Google it, you'll see what I'm talking about.
Why do you think people should come to Runde's instead of a different dealership? We don't mess around, we don't play games with you, and we give you a great base price on the cars right off the bat. They train you here to be really polite, not pushy and no high-pressure sales. We don't want to scare people. When people walk in here they come in with a smile on their face because they usually are thinking, "We aren’t going to be pressured to buy this right now."
Jeff Kueter, who works in the reconditioning department at Runde Chevrolet celebrated a birthday today. He is commonly known at Runde's as "Lenny", although we really don't know why.
You may have noticed Lenny on some on our other Ads and Newsletters and, in a way, he's sort of become the face of Runde Chevrolet because he's always smiling. Anyway, that smile is a year older now, but I'm sure that won't get him down. He was planning on going out and celebrating his 36th (but he doesn't look a day over 29) B-Day tonight so if you see him out-n-about, wish him a Happy One !!!
To me, a "hero" is someone that inspires or produces change for the better. Having the luxury of waking up to an alarm clock instead of sirens or gunshots is a privilege that most of us probably take for granted. We are lucky to live in such a state where our biggest worry of the day is when you think a cop might have caught you talking on your cell phone while driving. Many have sacrificed for us to get to where we are today and should be recognized and thanked properly. Memorial Day is one of those special days when we are able to recognize the heroes that have worked so hard to defend what we have today.
One the people in the fight for a better tomorrow is Runde's very own Jason Keane. Jason has been involved with the National Guard for 14 years and is preparing for his third deployment in the near future. Read on to find out how this father of three, loving husband, and hard worker still finds time to be a hero.
Welcome back Jason, how was your training? Great, this one was actually really good. I'm back until my deployment, but I was at my AT (annual training) for two weeks.
I heard you had a baby before you went to training, congratulations! When did you have him? He was due on May 10th, but he was born on... (Jason's Boss yells out "the fifth!") ...Jason laughs... Yeah, he would know, I called into work that day.
What's his name? Garrison. He weighed in at 8lbs 5oz and was 20.5 inches. We had him at Mercy Hospital. Every time we go back to Mercy it seems to keep getting better. I would recommend them.
How do the bigger brothers feel about having the baby around? They are both excited to have another sibling.
Who does he look like more - Mom or Dad? A little of both. People actually say he looks most like his grandparents.
Is he named after anyone? No, not really. My kids decided that if we had another boy the third boy would have to have a name that started with a "G" and Garrison was the only one we could all agree on.
Why did they want the name to start with a “G”? My boys names are Grant [12] and Garret [7] so Garrison would make them the 3 G's.
The third time around any easier? It was for me, for my wife it wasn't. To Teresa it was brand new again, but I guess it is physically much easier for me. *Jason cracks a smirk*
That'd make five in the family, right? Any more coming? No, three is good enough.
With Summer coming up and the new baby, I imagine you aren't planning any vacations far away or anything like that. We don't' really go on vacations since the kids were born with the exception of one trip we had quite a few years ago.
Speaking of long trips, how does your family feel about you being in the service? They are pretty proud. Of course they don't want to see me go and I don't want to leave my family but it's something that we are all proud of.
The little guys must be stoked to hear about all the juicy stuff you can tell them when you get back, huh? Oh yeah, I have to change a few of the stories around but they like hearing about it.
What is your position in the National Guard? Recently I was a Diesel Mechanic. But just the last two weeks I trained to be a Door Gunner on a Helicopter firing a machine gun out of the door. We practiced on a range where de-commissioned vehicles such as old tanks and airplanes. It's a lot easier firing out of the aircraft than firing from the ground.
Do you know what your mission will be? I’ll be in Iraq, the mission will mostly be a combination of moving and securing supplies and possibly even troops.
Are you scared of going at all? A little bit, there's always a bit in the back of my mind. On the second deployment we lost five soldiers in our battalion and about 50 wounded that had to go home. This is my third deployment so I'm a little more used to it all.
Do you know how long you are supposed to be there? Deployment is now one year. When you get deployed you have to be mobilized. You have to go to a training site for a few months, and then you do your deployment overseas and come back.
Is this mission part of your fulfillment? This one was not directly a fulfillment, it's more half and half. They needed some men and I volunteered to go because I moved up and gained some leadership which they needed for the mission.
Why did you join the service? *Starts laughing* I originally joined to have money for college, but I've only had one semester of college. Hopefully someday I'll go back and complete it, though.
How do you communicate with your family during your deployment? Usually there are phones over there and sometimes they have living containers which has internet capability so I can talk to my family over a video chat program.
How long have you been in the service? 14 years so far. There's a good chance that I'll be deployed one more time in the six years I have left before I serve my 20 years which is when you can retire if you choose to.
What does Memorial Day mean to you? Memorial Day to me is a time to remember all of the veterans, family and friends that passed on. To me it's mostly remembering the veterans because we lost five men in the last deployment I went on. One of the men I knew pretty well. I saw him every day for a couple of months, it really hits you hard.
What does the word "service" mean to you? Service is simply serving your Country. Doing your duty. I think it's pretty important - but then again I'm kind of torn because my kids say they want to join when they grow older. But after three deployments I'm thinking; "no, no way they're going." I'd like to see them go to college.
What is one thing that you'd want people to realize about the service that might be overlooked or ignored? Well the biggest thing is what the media portrays. Usually you see all this negativity but there are men and women over there working night and day with lack of sleep and food. They go through every day trying to protect the U.S. and the media doesn't always show that the best. They are always worried about what they are doing or did wrong or what they can do better but those people out there are doing their absolute best.
Do you have any plans for Memorial Day? Pretty much just relaxing. I'll probably sleep in, that's for sure.
One more question for you. A year ago, we described you as "The Superman of the Parts Department" do you think that title still suits you? Superman? Mmm... Hmmm... Probably step it up. We'll go with Iron Man.
Have you seen the new Iron Man? It's pretty good. Is it? No, I've seen the first one though, and that's a great movie.
It's an honor to have you with us here at Runde's Jason, thank you for sharing your perspective. It’s great to hear from someone in the service to get a better appreciation for Memorial Day. Congratulations on your new baby and I wish you and your family the best. Best of luck on your deployment.
Sean Dailey is one of Runde’s newest employees. He has been very busy meeting all of the friendly faces in our Ford, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep store and serving the great people of, and around, Manchester their vehicle needs. In the midst of his busy schedule we were able to sneak in a few questions to get to know him better.
So Sean, what exactly do you do here at Runde’s? I am a general sales associate, I sell cars
How long have you been doing that? Two and a half weeks so far.
Are you originally from the Manchester area? No, I was actually born in San Francisco. I joined the military and after moving around for a while, I settled here in Iowa about 19 years ago.
Why Iowa? I moved around a lot as a military kid, and spent some time in Iowa. In fact, my mom married a man from Iowa before we moved back out to Washington. I just like the area and how all of the people have good work ethic and are always friendly.
Which branch of the military did you serve in? I was in the Army for six years.
So what do you do with your free time? I really enjoy playing billiards, messing around with my dog, and spending time with my wife.
Could you consider yourself to be a billiards professional? Almost, but I am not quite good enough yet.
You said you have a wife, how long have the two of you been together? I have been married to my wonderful wife, Judy, for about 14 years.
Do you have any children? Judy has three children; Scott, Kim, and Michelle.
Do you have any pets? Yes, I have a Chihuahua, her name is Liberty.
When you and your family sit down for dinner is it “table time” or head-to-the-living-room-time and all is well so long as nobody spills on the couch or carpet? We all gather around the table for dinner.
Do you have a favorite place to go and relax in the West Delaware area? Strokers Saloon.
Is that your favorite place to eat too? No, I really like to go down to Diny’s steakhouse.
I’m not familiar with the place, what’s good to eat there? Their ham steak is to die for. I get it every time I go there.
If you could own your dream vehicle, what would it be? That truck right there (gesturing to the blue Dodge Ram 1500 Laramie sitting right in front of him.) I sit here all day, every day, looking at it. The more I see it, the more I love it.
Lakers or Celtics? Lakers.
AM or PM? AM.
Happy Gilmore or Billy Madison? Happy Gilmore.
Country Club or a nice relaxing afternoon in the park? Idon’t golf, so I am going to say the park
Push mower or rider? Definitely not pushing, rider.
Casey’s Pizza or Pizza Ranch? Casey’s.
Apartment, ranch style house, farm, or van down by the river? I am going to have to go with the ranch. I sold my place on the river a few years back.
Def Leppard or Bon Jovi? Now that’s a good question, I was kind of a hair band fan when I was younger… Def Leppard
Who is your favorite singer? Ozzy Osbourne.
If we headed out to the lot and checked the CD player of your vehicle, what would we pull out? Poison’s Greatest Hits.
Speaking of vehicles, what do you drive? I have a 2000 pewter Silverado 1500, and I love it. Great reliable truck. My wife and I share cars, but she usually drives our 2004 LeSabre Unlimited. I really, really like that car.
Do you have any really memorable experiences in a car? Well back in 1987 I was going a little too fast on a back road and ended up wrapping my car around a tree.
Scary. Was everyone ok? Yeah, my buddy and I had a few bumps and scratches, but we were fine.
What is your favorite movie of the year? (pausing for literally 5 minutes due to deep thought, and several phone calls) That one football movie was pretty good, The Blindside.
Did you make it to see Avatar? Yeah… The graphics and special effects were phenomenal, but the storyline could have used some work.
What is your favorite movie of all time? Men In Black.
Did you like the sequel?
Heck no.
So when you finally win the lottery, where will you go first? Ireland… Specifically Dublin.
Going over to kiss the Blarney Stone? No, my whole family is from over there, I think it would be cool to see where they came from.
What is your favorite part about working for Runde’s? I’m learning tons of new things and really enjoy interacting and working with the great people here.
Final question, what is your best experience here at Runde’s in the short time that you have worked here? I sold my first vehicle to a couple shortly after I arrived. They were super satisfied and it was great to see them leave here with a new car and a big smile on their faces.
Thank you for letting us get to know you better Sean. Welcome to the Runde family!
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