Rim Guard Archives

All About Adam – A Blog on Running Rim Guard

October 3, 2019 By Rim Guard

Adam Donovan: The man. The myth. The legend. In 2017 he became the president of Rim Guard. Ever since he has been determined to change the world one gallon of Beet Juice Tire Ballast at a time. Since 2017 Rim Guard has seen many changes including additional tankers, an expanded staff, updated technology and branding, and an excess of jokes from The Office thanks to Mr. Donovan himself.

Adam graduated from Grand Valley State University with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering. Immediately following he took on a job as a Sales Engineer, traveling the country and selling custom modifications on HVAC equipment. He went on to become the President and CEO of a custom HVAC manufacturer, carrying his expertise in leading and managing teams over to Rim Guard.

We asked Adam some questions on what his transition to Rim Guard looked like and the adventure of running the company.

How did you get involved with Rim Guard?

I was looking to acquire a small business, and while meeting with a banker and M&A firm this opportunity was brought to my attention.

What has been the most rewarding thing about running a business?

Building teams, developing people, and strategically altering the direction of an organization.

What has been the hardest part about running a business?

Building teams, developing people, and strategically altering the direction of an organization……seriously. Building teams and developing people is part of managing the culture which is important, and difficult. When you get it right everyone can feel it and it’s extremely rewarding, but it’s exponentially more painful when you get it wrong. Regarding altering the direction of the organization, growth is important and crucial to the long-term success of any company. Growth is typically synonymous with change, and I love working in a growing, changing environment.

What is something you are currently working on at Rim Guard?

Building our brand and growing sales. The team and I are focused on being more supportive to our current dealer network, adding dealers to our dealer network, and stimulating consumer demand to drive sales to our dealer network.

If you could do anything else as a job, what would you do?

I have been extremely blessed to lead a couple organizations and I am confident that’s what I enjoy and find value and purpose doing. That said I think I would enjoy turning around a financially failing business, I would like the challenge.

If I would have told you ten years ago that you would be running a business that sells Beet Juice Tire Ballast, what would you have said?

How am I doing? I would have been very excited to hear I was running a business. I guess I may have also asked, “What is Beet Juice Tire Ballast?!?!”

Comparison of Tire Ballasts

September 12, 2019 By Rim Guard

So, you want to ballast your tires? Here are your options and some things to consider:

Water
8.3 pounds per gallon. Cheap and readily available. Freezes.
We all know about water. If you aren’t drinking it you’re dead. But it isn’t a great tire ballast option for anyone living in the northern parts of the US. No one wants frozen tires. At 8.3 pounds per gallon, it certainly isn’t the heaviest option.

Calcium Chloride
11 pounds per gallon. Highly corrosive. Cheap.
Many tractor types are getting away from this salt solution as it is highly corrosive. No one wants rusty rims. Calcium Chloride can also damage plants if you spring a leak. Tubes are required for this ballast, otherwise steel wheels will quickly corrode.

Beet Juice
11 pounds/gallon. Non-corrosive. Heavy.
Beet juice is nontoxic and non-corrosive to wheels, and it is also safe for animals. It is freeze resistant to -35°F. Beet Juice gives you the weight of calcium chloride without the corrosive side effect.

Windshield Washer Fluid
Cheap. Light at 7.6 pounds/gallon.
One of the less expensive liquid ballast choices on the market is windshield washer fluid. It is non-corrosive and freeze-resistant down to at least -25°F. The biggest down side to windshield washer fluid is that it weighs only 7.6 pounds per gallon.

Antifreeze
Toxic. Expensive.
Antifreeze (ethylene glycol) in a 50/50 mix with water is freeze resistant to -34°F and weighs 9.4 pounds per gallon. Antifreeze is very attractive to animals but is also very toxic, which could cause issues if your tire ruptures. It is also one of the costliest liquid ballast selections.

All About Sugar Beets

September 5, 2019 By Rim Guard

Without sugar beets, Beet Juice Tire Ballast could not exist! Our proprietary mixture begins with a byproduct of the sugar beet manufacturing process. It isn’t the beet juice you get at the store, and it isn’t made from the beets you might eat at home.

Sugar beets are a type of root crop. They are planted in late March or early April and harvested in September and October. When a sugar beet is fully grown it measures about one foot long and weights two-five pounds.

Sugar beet farms are located in California, Colorado, Idaho, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming. They are processed at 23 factories that are located near the fields they are produced in. These factories run nearly around the clock from October-April.

To find out more about sugar beets and those who farm them, check out www.sugaralliance.org.

References: https://americansugarbeet.org/who-we-are/what-is-a-sugarbeet/