Valentine’s Day Gift Ideas For That Car Guy In Your Life
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By Counterman
Scheduling of delivery drivers can be one of the more difficult personnel-related tasks for any manager. Often at the lower end of your pay scale and frequently staffed by part-time employees, these positions can be difficult to screen, fill and maintain. They are a critical link to commercial success, yet their value is easily overlooked when weekly schedules are created.
In many retail environments, analysis of prior hour-by-hour sales figures often shapes the forecast for staffing future shifts. Adequate staffing at the front counter is critical to assisting customers and moving merchandise efficiently, but in order to accurately forecast demand for delivery drivers, we must ignore the majority of retail sales, which occur in-store or, increasingly, as online purchases. Unless your business model includes “home delivery” to retail customers, staffing your delivery needs will revolve exclusively around your commercial accounts.
Having adequate delivery capability to maintain (or strengthen) your commercial relationships can look different for each location. Vehicle and personnel numbers will vary based primarily on that individual store’s customer mix and the type of market served. Wholesale jobbers generally serve a broader geographic area than retailers, due in part to their smaller store network. A chain retailer is more likely to have a greater concentration of individual stores per square mile, each serving a smaller area, while the jobber maintains a larger commercial customer base spread across a larger geographic area.
As a result, jobbers tend to make better use of scheduled route delivery, in contrast to focusing on frequent short “on-demand” deliveries in the immediate area. These schedules are much easier to forecast, as they are somewhat consistent throughout the business day. When scheduling for the “hot-shot” portion of your delivery needs, however, the natural ebb and flow of your store’s daily routine become an important factor. There are key points throughout each day that require additional delivery staffing.
Many stores enjoy some form of overnight warehouse delivery, and those daily orders will be expected at shops across your territory as soon as possible the following morning. Between those “first thing in the morning” deliveries and the daily ritual of vehicle pre-checks, the first hour of the workday can be a beehive of activity for your delivery staff. By the time your trucks are returning from their early rounds, orders generated from those 8 a.m. diagnostic appointments at shops across your market have begun to filter in, resulting in another rush. Customer calls ramp up again before and during the traditional lunch hour, as shops try to arrange deliveries to arrive before technicians return from their breaks. Another flurry of dispatches will be in response to the afternoon’s diagnostics, with shops hoping to wrap up repairs before end of day, and to beat the overnight order deadlines for the next day’s business.
In addition to customer-driven rushes, we may also see a spike in driver demand centered around our own incoming deliveries. Stores with midday warehouse deliveries will see a surge in demand around these times, as well as those created by UPS or FedEx drop-offs. Most of our best customers already know what time to expect such special orders, and the volume of “where’s my stuff?” calls will add to the sense of immediacy felt by everyone on staff!
Delivery scheduling can also be adversely affected by seasonality and holidays. Freezing or snowy weather not only creates delays in parts deliveries from the warehouse and at store levels, but it can also limit an individual driver’s ability to report for duty as scheduled, creating a gap in coverage. Coupled with the longer delivery times required for the remaining staff to complete routes safely, it can create temporary bottlenecks. Holidays also create personnel issues, as we attempt to find coverage for those days that everyone wants to spend with family and friends. Travel-intensive holidays like Memorial Day, Independence Day and Labor Day also create an increased demand from shops prepping vehicles for extended trips, with added pressure for everyone to complete repairs, often at the last minute.
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By NAPA
Ron Capps and the
link hidden, please login to view Funny Car team delivered a standout performance Sunday at the NHRA Winternationals at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip, racing to the final round of the milestone 1,000th NHRA Funny Car event before a narrow loss to Matt Hagan. After qualifying No. 2, Capps ran a series of passes in the 3.80-second range, including low E.T. of the event, on the way to his 159th career final round. With the runner-up finish, Capps is now tied for the Funny Car points lead with Hagan following race three of the 20-race NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season.
Funny Car’s first qualifying session on Friday was a challenging one for Capps and his fellow competitors, but with Dean ‘Guido’ Antonelli turning the knobs, he charged to a 4.007-second pass at 314.17 mph in the second session. That was the third-quickest performance of the round, rewarding Capps with one championship bonus point and the provisional No. 3 position. By reaching the semifinals at the NHRA Arizona Nationals, which he ultimately won, Capps earned a spot in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge during Saturday qualifying. Capps left the line first against Paul Lee, but he started to lose traction and backed off the throttle. He then rebounded to a 3.919 E.T. at 330.88 mph in the final session to grab two more bonus points and climb up to the No. 2 position in the final qualifying order.
In the first round of eliminations on Sunday, Capps left the starting line ahead of young gun Dylan Winefsky, and though he lost traction, pedaled, dropped cylinders, and shut off early, he crossed the finish line first with a 4.977 E.T. Capps came back stronger in the quarterfinals, where he fired off low E.T. of the round, a 3.884-second pass at 332.34 mph, to defeat Alexis DeJoria. Capps and Antonelli lowered the boom yet again in the semifinals with a 3.863 E.T. at 330.31 mph – low E.T. of the event – to hold off rookie Jordan Vandergriff and his 3.889 E.T.
Following a quick turnaround to race under the lights in the 1,000th NHRA Funny Car final round, Capps lined up next to fellow multi-time world champion Matt Hagan for the 85th time in eliminations. The NAPA Auto Care machine moved off the starting line first, but Hagan pulled ahead at the finish line, with Capps recording a 3.893 E.T. at 334.32 mph to Hagan’s winning 3.876 E.T.
“You really couldn’t ask for a better final in a lot of different ways,” Capps said. “It was really mano a mano with both teams – ‘Stretch’ (Mike Knudsen, Hagan’s crew chief) and Guido and then Matt and me. I get up for racing Matt. He was a teammate of mine for a long time and I know how good he is. To me, that’s like a ‘Snake’ and ‘Jungle Jim’ race back in the day. You’ve got a great car, you get up there and you throw down, then you add the fact that it’s Pomona on a late Sunday night under the lights and the 1,000th win in Funny Car is on the line. There’s so many cool things about it. I’m bummed it didn’t go our way, but at the same time, we have a good hot rod, and we moved up in points. I’m just so proud of Guido and the guys.”
Capps will look to solidify the points lead at the next stop on the NHRA Mission Foods Series schedule, the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals, April 24-26, at zMAX Dragway in Concord, North Carolina.
Start / Finish: No. 2 / def. in final round
Points Standing / Total: No. 1 / 251 pts. (tied)
Next Race: April 24-26, NHRA 4-Wide Nationals, Concord, NC
How to Watch or Listen: FS1,
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By NAPA
Chase Elliott qualified 18th for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Elliott finished the first stage in 16th and followed that up with a 13th-place finish in stage two. In the final stage, the 30-year-old driver avoided damage after a late-race spin and ultimately finished 22nd. Elliott leaves Bristol fifth in the Cup Series points standings, 122 markers behind the leader. Chase Elliott and the No. 9
link hidden, please login to view team qualified 18th for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway. The 30-year-old gained ground on the initial start of the race but got stuck in the top lane before clearing down into the 21st position on lap eight. Elliott was running in that same spot when the first caution of the race came out on lap 62. The team ultimately decided not to pit in order to gain track position. With everyone ahead of him pitting, Elliott led the field back to green on lap 71. He held strong inside the top five until slipping to sixth on lap 106. As the run went on, Elliott fought hard for position before fading outside the top 10, ending the first stage in 16th place. Under the stage-ending caution, Elliott reported that he “overbuilt the right rear and was hanging on from there.” Crew chief Alan Gustafson called him to pit road for four fresh tires and fuel.
Elliott started stage two in 14th on lap 137 and improved to 13th before the yellow flag was displayed for an incident on lap 144. Staying out, Elliott opted for the inside of row six for the lap-152 restart. He continued to run inside the top 15 and was scored in 13th when the race was slowed for a caution on lap 160. Elliott relayed that the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet was “borderline a little snug, especially on the bottom.” The team opted not to pit, along with a majority of the field, and Elliott restarted 13th on lap 169. The 2020 Cup Series champion worked his way to 11th on lap 188 before ending the second stage in 13th on lap 250. Elliott brought his No. 9 Chevy to the attention of his crew for four tires, fuel and an air-pressure adjustment to try to improve the handling.
A fast pit stop put Elliott in 11th for the choose. He opted to start the final stage from the outside of row six. He continued to run inside the top 12 until slipping to 13th on lap 271. Elliott reported a loose handling condition during the run. When a caution came out on lap 312, he was scored in 19th. The team reversed the air-pressure adjustment during the pit stop for four tires and fuel. Elliott restarted 17th on lap 321 and was running in the same position when the yellow flag was displayed on lap 381. He reported the handling was “in a better place.” Elliott visited pit road for four tires, fuel and a slight air-pressure adjustment under the caution. He was 15th to choose his lane, deciding on the outside. Elliott gained positions on the restart, advancing as high as 12th.
He was running in 14th when the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevy got loose on lap 421, but Elliott was able to save it. Over the course of the run, Elliott faded to 18th and went a lap down on lap 447. He did manage to gain a position, but then got loose and spun on lap 477, bringing out the caution. Elliott was able to avoid damage in the spin. He brought the No. 9 Chevy to pit road for four tires and fuel. He restarted 22nd and was up to 21st when another incident slowed the race with fewer than five laps to go, sending the race into overtime. Elliott tried to gain ground in the closing laps before ultimately finishing the race in 22nd.
Elliott is now fifth in the Cup Series points standings, 122 markers behind the leader.
Start / Finish: 18 / 22
Points Standing / Total: 5th / 264 pts. (-122)
Next Race: Sunday, April 19, Kansas Speedway
How to Watch or Listen: 2:00 p.m. ET on FOX, SiriusXM or MRN
NAPA:
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