Runde Auto Chat

It's Valentine's time again this year and maybe you're finding yourself not quite up to snuff in the romance department. Lucky for you we have a romance pro here at Runde's who has treated his wife with love and care for over 45 years. Wayne Konrardy is the definition of a nice guy, an expert when it comes to caring for his family's happiness & a voice of authority regarding where to go for vacations. This year he traveled to the Dominican Republic with his wife Mary to celebrate their 45th anniversary. Take some notes from Wayne and learn how to do vacation right and keep your significant other happy from Wayne!

Where did you go this time Wayne?
The Dominican Republic

Was that the first time you've been there?
This is the 4th time. We go to a different resort every time. We first went there in 1980-something. We’ve been to Iberostar, Dreams Punta Cana, Dreams Palm Beach and this one – the Now Larimar. 

You like any of them more than the other?
I like both of the Dreams and I like the Now Larimar.

Are there a lot of Americans there?
When we first went in the 80's there were very few. Now it's mostly Americans. I think they said it was only about 5-10% before. Now it's over 50% I would guess.

Who all went with you?
It was just my wife and I. My neighbors all know when I'm gone because they are all out shoveling by themselves. They also say that every time I go a storm comes.

Was there an occasion?
We were celebrating our 45th wedding anniversary.

Did you treat her good throughout the entire trip?
Oh yeah! I have to, or else she wouldn't stay with me!

Do you go out of the states a lot to celebrate your anniversaries?
Yes. We always go out of the states, somewhere where it's warm, and we always go somewhere different. We've gone somewhere every year for 22 years for our anniversary. We've been to St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, Jamaica, Hawaii... we just like to go someplace warm where we can go for a week without a lot of flying time.

How long were you in the Dominican Republic?
Seven Nights. We went in January and it was 83 degrees every day while we were there. There was a snowstorm here in Dubuque and we were sitting on a beach enjoying ourselves.

You were really missing out on all of the slippery roads and terrible weather... See any customers while you were there?
Yes. I saw a customer that I sold to from Mexico on a previous trip. I met him in the airport and they were going to the same basic area that we were going to in the hotel right next to us.

Do you often run into customers on your vacations?
Just about every time! I always run across someone I know.

Seems like you just can't run away from work, it follows you wherever you go! Yeah, but it's always nice to see my customers.

Where did you stay?
The Now Larimar Resort. It's a really nice, all inclusive, hotel. We opted to upgrade to the "poolside view" for about $30 more. It gave us a much nicer view on the bottom floor and we could get outside right away. The service and everything was wonderful.

Notice any cultural differences?
Everyone is really outgoing and friendly. You're not supposed to tip there, but we did because we were used to doing it in the states. We gave because the service was so great and I wanted to let them know that they made us happy. That's something that I learned many years ago in the car business - if you're nice to people and you treat them good, they'll come back to you when they need something. 

What did you guys do while you were there?
We went out on what's called a Hobie Cat, it's kind of like a small sail boat. We love to snorkel so we also went snorkeling. We have our own snorkel gear so we take it with us when we go on vacation. But we've done everything there already from our previous trips so mostly we just relaxed, mingled with other people and had fun.

Do you go pretty deep when you go snorkeling?
My wife gets sea-sick so there's no way I'd go far down with her. I'd be nervous going down really far without someone who is an expert and can explain things very clearly. I'm very happy just snorkeling right on top. I've been to some areas where I've walked right out from the beach and saw everything I wanted to see like puffer fish.

What's the most interesting thing you've seen while snorkeling?
Shark, Sea Snakes, Barracuda's, Octopus, and a Manta-Ray - that was probably the most exciting thing I've seen.

Were you nervous at all when you saw the shark?
No, I probably should have been, though. I got more nervous when I saw the Barracuda. I got myself between that and my wife and took her back to the boat right away. I told the guide with us that there was a Barracuda and he said they are friendly - I was thinking "yeah right!"

Do you guys meet a lot of interesting people on these trips?
We've met people from Russia, Canada, Chili... we've even been invited to some people's houses if we were to ever visit the city they live in! We met a lot of really nice people. We met one girl who was on the activity committee there that came up to me and said "I remember you, you were in the Dominican Republic two years ago. I remember your happy face." It's funny how everyone is so outgoing and friendly on the trip, but as soon as they get back on that plane they stop being so bubbly and outgoing because they realize it's time to get back to work and reality! It's too bad that we can't feel like we are on a vacation every day because people would be a lot happier.

Any particular events that you went to?
We went to a lot of shows that they put on near the resort. They had great shows every night. Mostly we went there for relaxing, walking around the beach, going out for great supper then going to a show at night.

How did you get around? Cabs?
No, we had so much fun at the resort we didn't need to leave!

Did the beaches have white sand or brown?
White. White and powdery. The beach there was probably one of the nicer beaches we've been to. It was very nice, and I've seen a lot of beaches. The water there was really pretty, and I'm color blind, so if I think it looks good, it looks pretty good.

Did you eat any interesting or unique food there?
I ate a lot of steak and my wife ate a lot of seafood. We went to Japanese, French, and Italian restaurants, they had them all there, it was really great. I had a desert, and I still don't know what it was. It was a giant brownie with a bunch of different flavors. I told them "whatever it is, get me one more if it!"

How highly would you rank your vacation?
It would definitely be on the top 15. I've been on a lot of vacations and been to a lot of different places.

What was the best vacation you've been on?
I think the trips to Disneyland with my grand kids were my top trips. Also up there is when I went with my sons to Mexico.

What's #1 on the list of places you'd still like to visit?
I'd probably like to go to Italy and see Rome. I'd also like to go to Normandy and Germany.

Any plans for next year?
I'm going to go to Washington DC. I want to see all of the monuments. The World War 2 Monuments and everything else there is to see there. I'm still not sure where I'll be going for my January/February vacation.

If someone were interested in going to the Dominican Republic for the first time, what would you recommend to them?
I'd tell them to make sure they pick out a good resort. Find a place where you don't need to make reservations to eat. That's basically it. I don't go much by the reviews on trip adviser and those online sites because I found out that the people who are displeased are usually the only ones that fill out those reviews and the ones that were happy don't feel a need to fill out anything.

Who was your travel agent and how highly would you recommend them?
I go to Sharon Pitts from House of Travel. I think she's phenomenal. I've gone to her for 20 years now. She does everything exactly the way you would like it. I would highly recommend her.

Anything else you'd like to add about the trip?
You know what amazed me the most about this trip? This has probably been the neatest trip as far as people go. We met some young people from Russia. This young girl came up to my wife and she said "Your flower is beautiful, I love flowers, too" then she held out her hand and said, "My name is Veronica, I'm from Russia, where are you from?" we told her from the United States. So she said "I like Americans" and we told her that we like Russians. She then explained how they traveled 11 hours on a train and 12 hours on an airplane to get to the Dominican Republic. Things like that take you by surprise.

Any special plans for Valentine’s Day?
I've got five girls to buy stuff for, but no I don't think there's anything too special. I'll take my wife out someplace nice to eat. She's not big into the candies anymore. I've learned to buy her flowers only for the weekdays so they last long at work where she can look at them.

Thanks for sharing your most excellent adventure with us Wayne. You're a constant reminder of how to have a good time and treat family right!

Dennis and Phyllis Houston came into Runde's today to pick up a new vehicle for Phyllis to drive around in. Dennis was so impressed by how tough and maintenance free his Silverado was that he bought from here back in '03 so he knew exactly where to go when they needed a new vehicle. This time around they had a chance to sit down for a little interview to go over their experience.

What brought you into Runde's today?
Mostly the internet. We searched online for a vehicle and found one that we liked here. I bought from here before so we decided to come here for our vehicle.

Where are you guys from?
We're from Wyoming, IA. Between Maquoketa and Anamosa, IA.

Who and what is the vehicle for?
Phyllis: It'll be for me, just for general purposes.

What vehicle did you end up with today?
We bought a Buick Enclave - it's a very nice SUV. 

What do you guys do in Wyoming?
Dennis: I'm a farmer.
Phyllis: I work at the University of Iowa.

Oh, I've been to their dentistry school, very nice campus.
Neat, I work in philosophy, linguistics and rhetoric. I'm in the administrative department.

Dennis: She likes to psycho-analyze people, I'm waiting to see what she says about our salesman, Al Kloft.
Phyllis: I do. And I like Al!

How was your overall experience at Runde's?
It was excellent.

On a scale of 1-10 what would you give your experience?
Dennis: A 10. Al was really good and honest and you guys have a great selection of vehicles. Everything was very straight forward.

You say you've bought a vehicle here before. What did you buy?
We got a '03 Chevy 2500HD, mostly for my farming.

How has that been through the years?
Super. I've never been back because there was never anything wrong with it. It has been wonderful.

How long have you two been together?
Since 1977.

Remember the first Date?
Phyllis: Yeah, it was New Year’s Eve. We went to a dance together during a snow storm.

Any family around where you live? We have four daughters. All of them are out of the house. Our youngest one is at Mount Mercy in Cedar Rapids. All of them are within 25 miles of where we live.

Do you have big get-togethers?
For Christmas and thanksgiving we get together if they don't have to go to their spouses families.

Do you guys like going on vacations?
Once in awhile we like to. We got this plan so now we go more often. It's kind of like a time-share, where you can go to these various places to visit. Last year we went to Pennsylvania. We also went to New-York and stayed in a great place.

Any ambitions to go outside of the country?
Dennis: Oh, I don't know. Maybe someday, but not yet.
Phyllis: Yeah, I do want to go outside of the country. I watch Rick Steves on public T.V. and he's always talking about these neat places. But I don't like water and I don't like flying. Dennis: It's hard to go anywhere overseas with fears like that.

If you were to win the lottery, what would you do with the money?
Dennis: I'd keep farming. I love the farming life.
Phyllis: I don't know. I guess just travel more. Maybe we could buy our own plane or boat I'd feel like I have control over it.

That's all the questions I had for you, anything else you'd like to add?
It was a good experience, we enjoyed Al Kloft.

Thank you very much for your time. We appreciate great customers like you!

What's the point of being the biggest, baddest kid on the block with your new drivers licence if all you're going to do is get into an accident and get that license taken away? To prevent such things from happening, proper driving techniques must be used. To help instill these techniques in the drivers of tomorrow (- high school students). Ford offers the Global Driving Skills for Life Program (DSFL). Ford Keeps creeping up and surprising people with their impressive technology, safety and power they offer in their vehicles. The DSFL program is yet another thing that Ford pleasently surprises us with.

If you were like me, you don't have a clue about what this program involves or that it has been around for 9 years. If that is the case, it's time to get educated, as this program is important for the safety of future generations and everyone on the road.

Ford, In conjunction with the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) are now in session of their 9th year of the DSFL. Globally, the program has trained over 500,000 drivers in various age groups. In the United states there is an emphasis on teen driving. The program will visit 30 high schools over 5 states to promote safe driving with specially equipped vehicles and professional driving instructors.

The program focuses on helping teens with speed & space management, driver distraction prevention, hazard recognition and vehicle handling over the course of a day. Last year, DSFL reached 35,000 teen drivers while on the high school tour and they hope to meet or exceed that number this year. "By immersing ourselves in high schools for a day, the Ford Driving Skills for Life program seeks to leave a lasting impression on teens and ultimately make them safer drivers," said Jim Vella, president, Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services. "Inexperience is the leading cause of crashes in young drivers, and this program delivers the key skill sets that increase their knowledge and confidence."

Thinking back to Drivers Ed in high school, I remember being scared of things like parallel parking and certain situations where there were several vehicles around me. Programs like DSFL are great as they are reaching these future drivers right as they are learning and adapting their driving habits. Reinforcing good habits and precautions would make any driver better, not just teens. Maybe it's time for a little refresher in proper driving technique? Check out https://www.drivingskillsforlife.com/ to see the online part of the program and learn some useful tips.

Amanda Elston loves to help animals. As a mobile veterinarian she needs a reliable truck to hold all of her medicine and equipment. Despite a two hour trip to get to here, Amanda knew that she would find what she was looking for at Runde's. And we asked her to reflect on her pleasant experience.

Where are you from?
I'm from Ossian, Ia, It's just South of Decorah, IA. It's about a three hour drive. My boss and I made the trip.

What led you to Runde's?
I'm a veterinarian and I needed a truck for work. I needed a 3/4 ton regular cab, long box truck which was actually really hard to find, but you guys had four or five of them here. Runde's had the a great selection and options we were looking for so we decided to make the long trip to go here to get the truck from you guys.

How did you find us?
Well I was car shopping for over a week and I found out about Runde's online through AutoTrader.com. So we called in and got Al right away. He made sure that everything was at the shop and ready to go for us and made sure we didn't get lost on our way to get here.

On a scale of 1-10, what would you rank your experience at Runde's?
A 10, it was perfect.

You say you are a veterinarian, and you needed the truck for work, what kind of veterinary service do you provide?
It's actually a mobile clinic basically for us. So we will put a very large insert in the back that has a lot of drawers for all of my tools and medicine. And I'll drive that from farm to farm.

Are there particular animals you work with?
I mostly work with cows, Dairy and Beef Cows as well as horses. From time to time I go around and see small animals a couple of days a week, but I mostly work with the bigger animals.

How did you get into that industry?
I had horses when I was younger and I thought I always wanted to be a horse vet. So I went to school down in Florida where I grew up. But then I had to move to where the cows are so I moved here.

You're originally from Florida?
I was born in in Peoria and my family is originally from the Midwest but I grew up in Florida.

How do you like the transition from Florida to the Midwest?
Pretty good, except for the ice... ice is the whole reason why I'm here today.
Oh?

Yeah, I hit a patch of ice and went sideways on my old truck then the ditch caught an edge of the truck and made it roll a bit. Not good, but I was wearing my seat-belt!

Glad you made it out of that situation alright! Are you a farmer yourself?
No, I just go around the farms and take care of the animals.

How far out do you guys go to help out the farm animals?
Within a 25-30 mile radius of our South Winn Veterinary Clinic base.

What do you like to do around the area?
I do a lot of hiking and camping and that kind of stuff. But I'm also kind of a home-body too.

Married? Kids? Pets?
Nope, Single. I have a big old mutt of a dog.

What breed of dog?
They told me she was a Lab and Dalmatian mix when I got her but I think she's got a little Pitbull in her. She's about 55-60 lbs.

What's your favorite movie?
That depends on what category we're talking about. But for Horror, (which is my favroite type of movies) one of the few movies that actually freaked me out was the first Paranormal Activity. I actually lost sleep over that one which is surprising to say considering how many horror flicks I've seen.

Favorite band?
The Drive-By Truckers. They're a Southern rock band.

What would you do with the money if you won the lottery?
I'd probably buy a farm and raise some horses and just invest the rest of it and live off of that.

What would you say made your experience unique at Runde's?
The selection. All of the options and everything available were just fantastic. Al Kloft and everyone we worked with were really nice and knowledgeable. It was just good all around. Everything we looked at here was clean, which was really nice too.

Our brothers at the blue opal have been very busy over the past couple of years. With impressive profits and a strong handle on being one of the kings of car tech, Ford is constantly improving itself for the better at an astonishing rate.

To that affect, Ford has decided to transition to "Go Further" as their new slogan to show its speedy progress. The company believes that the old "Drive One" slogan was more along the lines of getting potential customers to look at Ford after they rebounded from their near bankruptcy in 2008. Also from Ford, the 2013 Ford Escape is now live on their website giving you the chance to deck out your own Escape. The prices aren't final, and the vehicle isn't on sale quite yet, but you can see how slick the vehicle is looking and the impressive options list. Go to http://www.ford.com/suvs/escape/2013/ to check it out!

In other great news, Team Pentastar plans on producing the the Dodge Dart in their Belvidere, Illinois plant. They want to bring 400-500 workers on board to produce the vehicle. Belvidere is just 2 hours away from our Chevy Store in East Dubuque Il., so if you're in the area and are looking for a gig in the auto industry you might want to look into this!