I am still out of town at the Pumper Show, but I will be back on Monday!
2/27/09
2/25/09
2/23/09
2/20/09
Pro Magazine Article
Pro Magazine wrote an article about our participation in the New York City Marathon. It appears in this month's issue.
26.2 Miles, 2,250 Restrooms
The New York City Marathon is the biggest job of the year for Connecticut portable sanitation contractor A Royal Flush
THE TEAM
A Royal Flush Inc. has its headquarters in Bridgeport, Conn. All administrative and sales functions for the company’s five branches are managed from there. Operations for the marathon were coordinated out of the Bronx office. The race goes through all five New York City boroughs and the company divided tasks mostly along those lines: Bob Ploof in Staten Island, Mauro DaSilva in Brooklyn and Queens, Delfin Hernandez in Manhattan and Jason Melendez at home base in the Bronx. Ed Stead was in charge of trailers and special equipment.
The Bronx’s special event workforce of seven expanded to about 50 as workers from all the branches helped out.
Alexandra Townsend, special event sales and marketing manager, has worked alongside her mother, Debbie Russo, one of the owners, since she was a young teen. She was involved in the pre-planning stages of this event, but for the first time in 13 years was not on hand to help on the day of the race — because she was in the race.
COMPANY HISTORY
The company began in 1989 with the purchase of the portable restroom division of BFI Waste Services of Connecticut by five partners, all still actively involved. Russo handles special events, sales and office administration, Bill Malone does operations and finance, DaSilva is the events coordinator, Michael Streaman manages special projects and construction, and Tim Butler is an attorney.
After a few years, the company expanded into the Bronx. “We were doing a lot of work in New York and over time that was a nightmare because traffic in Connecticut is horrible,” says Townsend. “So we started the Bronx office, which has easy access to all the boroughs.” The company also opened offices in Springfield, Mass., Newburg, New York, and Philadelphia, and now employs 82 people. In general, the company splits its workforce into construction route service technicians, construction pickup and delivery people, and special events workers.
MAKING CONNECTIONS
This was the 13th year the company serviced the New York City Marathon. Because of the size of the event and what that would do for the image of the company, A Royal Flush started going after it from the beginning. “More than anything in the world, we wanted this contract,” says Russo. It took a few years, but when the prior portable restroom contractor was sold and some internal changes were made, “their misfortune became our fortune,” she says, and they got their chance. That was in 1996 and they’ve been doing it ever since. The company works throughout the year for the client, the New York Road Runners.
THE MAIN EVENT
On Sunday morning, Nov. 2, 2008, the Manhattan skyline before them, about 39,000 runners from over 100 countries took off across the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge in Staten Island, beginning a 26.2-mile run through the five boroughs of New York City to the finish line in Central Park. The ING New York City Marathon is the largest marathon in the world. Runners either qualified for the race or were selected by lottery out of 105,000 applications. Two million spectators and 300 million television viewers cheered them on. Elites polished it off in a couple of hours, competing for $600,000 in prize money. Most of the others got there at some point in the 8 1/2 hour time limit, and did it for personal satisfaction.
BY THE NUMBERS
The company supplied 2,250 units, making it one of the largest portable restroom events in the country. Most were forest green Tufways from Satellite Industries. Workers placed 1,500 units at the starting area in Fort Wadsworth Park (a restricted area for runners only), 450 in small banks every mile of the course, and 300 at the finish in Central Park.
The race had several divisions for people with disabilities. The company placed 60 wheelchair-accessible units (Liberty from Satellite Industries) at Fort Wadsworth, and 50 along the route. Twenty-two, 210-gallon Kentucky Tank holding tanks for food vendors and 12 hand-wash stations (The Wave from Satellite Industries) were provided at Fort Wadsworth.
Three ACSI 24-foot Presidential restroom trailers were placed in Central Park for city officials and the media for Saturday night’s pasta party for runners and their families, as well as Sunday’s brunch for the dignitaries. One was placed at the start for the production crew and the media.
LET’S ROLL
The Bronx office began accumulating units in September. “We bring them in for some of the larger events and then roll them right into the marathon inventory,” says Malone.
Two weeks before the race, workers started setting up units and holding tanks in Fort Wadsworth, 100 or so each night. “The Road Runners start using them the week before the race. Basically set up a village out there for food and medical. It takes a couple hundred people,” says Malone.
Saturday, the Bronx office became command central as 50 technicians arrived from other branches for the day-long process of loading and unloading trailers. “We bring in Winnebagos for them to sleep in, we do a catering throughout the whole weekend,” says Malone. “We roll people in and out. After the guys work for 14 hours, then another crew of guys comes in.”
They began with the least disruptive locations and finish up by 3 a.m. with the major thoroughfares.
For setup, the company used eight vacuum trucks pulling 20-unit trailers, one Mitsubishi FE649 for narrow locations, and seven International 4700s.
KEEPIN’ IT CLEAN
Units at Fort Wadsworth were cleaned daily. Saturday night, two vacuum trucks were stationed there, along with two technicians who stayed in a camper. They started pumping as soon as the area began to clear.
The company continued pumping through the day and night in a 400-man/hour marathon of their own “Every year we clock ourselves. We get better at it because we have different layouts, different equipment. Every year we try to reduce the number of hours to do the job,” says Malone.
The pumping service fleet included a 2006 6,000-gallon Dragon Products Ltd. tanker, a 2006 Kenworth septic truck with a 4,400-gallon Progress Tank, and six International 4700 vacuum trucks built by L.C. Tanks with 2,000 gallon (1,500 gallons waste/500 gallons fresh) aluminum tanks and Masport pumps.
A WINNER
“This is by far our largest event, requiring months of preparation and a lot of hard work,” says Townsend.
Russo adds: “In 1996, the order was 750 units, so it’s interesting how our company has grown as the marathon has grown. It’s the last big event of the season and uses nearly everybody in our company, so it’s just a real special event to us.”
2/18/09
2/16/09
President's Day
In case you didn't know, today is President's Day. We will be open for business today, so be sure to call and place the orders for your upcoming spring events. After all, St. Patrick's Day is only a month away!!
As an added bonus, click here for the history of President's Day! You can dazzle your co-workers at lunch with your knowledge!
2/13/09
2/11/09
Congratulations Sully!!!
Hero pilot Capt. Chesley Sullenberger and the crew of Flight 1549 were presented with keys to the city Monday from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The City Hall ceremony capped off a weekend of adulation and interviews.
Sullenberger, who landed his jetliner in the Hudson River when a flock of birds disabled his engines, received a standing ovation Saturday from the audience at a performance of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "South Pacific."
On Sunday, in an interview broadcast on CBS' "60 Minutes," the steadfast pilot described lying awake at nights second-guessing his performance — even though his skillful flying saved the lives of everyone on board.
Sully, your our hero!!!!
2/9/09
College Students Everywhere Are Weeping!
Black-eyed Susans and broad-brimmed hats, trademarks of Preakness Day, may be enduring, but another Pimlico tradition is on the way out: Infield spectators will no longer be allowed to bring their own beer and other beverages into the racetrack.
Maryland Jockey Club officials couched the change in the long-standing policy as part of an overall improvement in the fan experience by also announcing yesterday that infield entertainment for this year's race on May 16 will be expanded to include a rock concert with headliner ZZ Top and a professional women's beach volleyball tournament.
Along with banning outside beer, the new policy prohibits fans from bringing in beverages of any kind, including soft drinks and water, in cans or bottles. Food can still be brought into the infield in coolers that do not exceed specific dimensions. Sixteen-ounce beers will be sold for $3.50.
Tom Chuckas, the Jockey Club's president and chief operating officer, said several factors were involved in changing the track's policy, including public safety. With the infield teeming with 60,000 partyers, the revelry, fueled by free-flowing beer, has occasionally pushed the limit. Last year, 126 people were ejected, six were arrested (two for assault) and track staff made 17 calls for medical assistance.
"We believe that … in changing the alcohol policy there is more opportunity for people who may or may not have come to this in the past to have a more pleasurable experience," Chuckas said.
Last year, the Jockey Club instituted a policy that prohibited spectators in the grandstand and clubhouse areas from bringing alcoholic beverages. Overall attendance dropped by about 9,000 fans, to 112,222, from 2007; most of that decline was in the more expensive seating areas.
"Obviously, the policy excluding beer could have a negative impact on the attendance in the infield," Chuckas said, "but what we're trying to do here is enhance the infield experience for our fans."
Chuckas said prices for this year's Preakness have not changed. Infield tickets are $50 in advance and $60 the day of the race. Seating in the grandstand and clubhouse areas ranges from $75 to $275, and standing room inside is $25.
In addition to ZZ Top, the infield concert lineup includes the hard rock band Buckcherry and a local group to be announced. The women's volleyball tournament, the initial stop on the Toyota Beach East Volleyball Tour, will run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with 240 tons of sand being brought in to create an Olympic-size court. There will also be an interactive entertainment tent that will include a NASCAR driving simulator and a Guitar Hero station.
The change in the beer policy received mixed reaction from Preakness infield regulars.
Dave Kowalewski Jr., 34, has partied on the Preakness infield for the past 13 years and has even chartered buses for the daylong event. But Kowalewski, a city employee who lives in Overlea, won't be back this year; neither will his friends or family, he said.
"I'm a little upset right now," Kowalewski said. "This is our Mardi Gras. Sometimes it gets out of hand, but it's ours. ... I really think they're going to have a remarkable drop-off of fans."
The infield has regularly been the scene of heavy drinking and hard partying, but wilder moments have drawn notoriety in recent years, especially the so-called "Running of the Urinals" in 2007 and 2008. Videos of men dashing across the tops of portable toilets while others hurled what appeared to be full cans of beer at them were widely viewed on YouTube.
While some were disappointed by the change in the Preakness policy, others applauded it.
Clint Anuszewski, 30, a loan officer who lives in Pasadena, thought the raucous infield was a powder keg.
"It was getting dangerous," he said. "By 1 p.m., you had people that decided it's fun to throw these beer cans wherever - throw caution to the wind. ... With $3.50 beers, I think you'll have a lot less people throwing them."
Anuszewski thinks attendance will drop off in the next two to three years but could grow in the long run. He has been an infield regular for 16 years and will be there again this summer, he said.
"You have a lot of people that don't go because of the crowd that's there now," he said. "It will take a couple years for the word of mouth to get out and say, 'Look, man, it's not as bad as it used to be.' I think you'll start getting more people coming back."
Concert promoter Seth Hurwitz, who is responsible for putting together the infield music lineup, said the new Pimlico policy is in accord with the practice at major concerts.
"The rest of the world doesn't let you cart in coolers of beer," Hurwitz said. "I don't think this is something people aren't used to."
The new Pimlico rules follow similar guidelines at the other two Triple Crown races, the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes. The Derby also has an infield area, but Churchill Downs has long prohibited all beverages in cans and bottles, coolers and even backpacks. Belmont Park does not have an infield, but it does have a public party area behind the grandstand called "The Backyard," where patrons are permitted to bring soft drinks but not alcohol.
For the Preakness, infield fans will be able to bring in coolers and backpacks containing food. Coolers, which will be inspected, can be no larger than 28 inches long, 15 inches wide and 17 inches high. Other items permitted in the infield include lightweight plastic lawn chairs, beach blankets, sunscreen lotion, cell phones, cameras (up to 35 mm), camcorders and binoculars. Top-of-the-stretch seats, which are clustered near the starting line in the infield and cost $110, have a smaller limit on coolers.
While the new beer policy could affect attendance in the infield, any negative effect on wagering for Preakness Day is likely to be minimal. Although infield spectators make up about half of the total attendance, the betting from infield patrons amounts to only 5 percent of the total wagered at Pimlico on Preakness Day.
The hope among Jockey Club officials is that the change in the character of the infield will attract more people in their late 20s and early 30s and that some of those new attendees might become loyal fans. Still, there are those who lament the loss of the Preakness' freewheeling days.
Dan Mox, 42, of Pasadena was attending the races at Laurel Park yesterday and said the new beer policy would reduce fighting and make the Preakness a safer event. But then he turned nostalgic.
"I used to go religiously," he said. "We used to drag our beer in coolers. I always remember the Preakness as being open about that kind of stuff. It's tradition. I prefer the old way."
From the Baltimore Sun
2/6/09
Ft. Wadsworth
I was looking at pictures on Flickr and I found this picture. Isn't it great?? This is our toilets, at the base of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, at the start of the New York Marathon!!
2/4/09
This Old House Blog
2/2/09
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