Third annual Tennessee Tow Show draws families to Chattanooga (with video)

photo Emerald Dalton, 12, left, of Lyman, S.C., operates a 65-ton NRC sliding rotator behind the Chattanooga Convention Center on Friday with the assistance of NRC Wreckers owner Jeremy Matthews. Matthews manufactures NRC Wreckers at 18 Pinson Drive in Carterville, GA.

At the third annual Tennessee Tow Show on Friday, Paul Saffelle whipped the steering wheel of his tow truck around as he tried to park a car attached to the end of his truck just inches from another parked car.

The car lurched forward and back as he adjusted the tilt and extension on a remote for the tow. With his left hand, he guided the steering wheel.

In a matter of minutes, Saffelle had parked and detached the car from his truck, just a few inches from the second car's nose.

The tow show consists of demonstrations like this for industry workers, as well as seminars, training classes and chances to buy the tools of the trade, from safety jackets to full-sized trucks. The show was sponsored by TT Publishing Inc., the Tennessee Tow Truck Association, and the International Towing and Recovery Museum, among others.

Clarissa Powell, a publisher with TT Publications Inc., said that since Chattanooga is the birthplace of towing, it made sense to have a show here to draw people from all over the country and world.

"It's grown in the first two years about 20 percent," she said. "Floor space has almost doubled."

That floor space in the Convention Center allows for a tow truck "beauty contest," featuring tricked-out tow trucks and antiques. Several were painted electric shades of pink, while others went with more traditional blues and reds.

Powell said expected attendance this year is 1,250, and many of those attendees are families, kids and all.

"The towing industry is really a mom-and-pop industry," Powell said. "A lot of them make these [shows] their family vacation trips."

That's true for David Williams, who's a second-generation tow-truck driver. He now runs a towing company with his father and brother-in-law. He's been coming to tow shows since he was about 12, when he used to bring roller skates and skate around the trucks, meeting other kids.

He said what he loves most about shows like the Tennessee Tow Show is the chance to network with others in the industry.

"All the new guys get together and talk shop," he said.

Dennis Richards, a representative from towing company Agero, said a major focus at the show has been safety, particularly when it comes to working with vehicles on highways that need to be towed.

"We're probably one of the only companies that focuses on the roadside aspect," he said.

Powell said fatalities are high in the towing industry. Because of this, they're featuring more safety-focused vendors, such as sellers of neon clothing to wear during a tow. She also said the Tennessee Towing Association worked to get the "move over law" -- a law requiring drivers to move over a lane if they see an emergency vehicle on the roadside -- to apply to towers as well.

But Powell said one of the best parts about the show overall is the sense of community in what can often be an independent industry.

"You can still meet people and hug them and feel like you just saw them yesterday," she said.

The tow show will continue today and be open to the public. A remembrance at the Wall of the Fallen will take place at the towing museum at 10 a.m., and exhibits at the Convention Center will be open from noon to 5 p.m. From 1 to 4 p.m., there will be equipment demonstrations in the docking area. The exhibits are free to attend.

Contact staff writer Hannah Smith at hsmith@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6731.

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