We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Blake Pounds. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Blake below.

Blake, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you tell us a story about a time you failed?

Over the years in owning and operating my families towing company there is one time I can recall, that I, myself, consider a pretty big failure.

Back in 2021 I believe it was, we had a call come in for a bad wheel bearing on the interstate. This was late in the evening so it was already dark outside. The customer was around 15-20 minutes away from the shop and my other tow truck operators were busy or off. So, I went out and took the call myself after getting some information from the customer. We were working with a pickup truck and a boat trailer that had a sail boat on it roughly around 20′ or so in length.

When I arrived on scene with my light duty wrecker I remember traffic being quite heavy that night, so my main concern was for the customers safety. I get out like I normally would do and socialize with the customer while I was keeping an eye out for oncoming traffic. Now keep in mind that we were on the shoulder of the interstate so we weren’t neccesarily blocking traffic. The guy was a young fellow on the way back to somewhere near Myrtle Beach from Virginia Beach. Him and his girlfriend had bought a sail boat and was taking it back home. The plan was that he was going to restore the old sail boat and have something nice to spend time in and relax, you know making memories.

So first thing is we get some dollies underneath the trailer that the boat was on. Since the wheel bearings was seized the dollies did their job, acting as a temporary replacement for the trailer axles to get him off the interstate. There was a local trailer repair shop in town a few miles off the interstate, so that is where we go. Turns out the gate is closed and locked so the sail boat ended up needing to be stored overnight until the shop opens the next day. The guy was going to go home and then come back after the repairs were made. So we get his truck disconnected from the trailer and after that he goes ahead and starts to travel back home to South Carolina.

I start working getting it hooked up to my wrecker. I put the trailer hitch on, secured the trailer, strapped everything like I normally would. Just a regular tow, but with a trailer and sail boat. After I get it loaded up and secured I start making the journey to our shop and storage yard about 20 minutes or so down the road. Traffic was no longer a concern since I was not on the interstate anymore; so I was able to drive a little below the speed limit and not feel so much pressure because there wasn’t much traffic. You never want to be an inconvenience to others, but sometimes you have to do what you need to do, to be safe. So due to what I was towing just so I could keep an eye on the situation I had my backup camera on, watching the trailer hitch, and then of course all the strobe lights and necessary work lights on.

I’m going down the road and I get about 5 minutes or so away from the storage yard. I’m starting to go around this curve, running about 35-40 mph which is way below the posted 55 mph speed limit, and I take a quick look at the camera I have on the back of the truck; which is displaying on the screen of the radio. As I am looking I start to slow down to go around the curve, and in a flash the trailer starts to come off the hitch. Now, keep in mind this trailer was secured as we did that to hook up the trailer. We had the right size hitch, and it had its safety pins in the ball. Everything was where it was supposed to be.

In that moment of watching the trailer start to disconnect it seemed as if time had stopped, sort of like slow motion. As I was going into this blind curve the trailer disconnects. As I was watching it in the camera I immediately start looking to my left while it started to drift away chasing the driver side of the truck. Before my eyes looking in the side mirror it appears to be coming right at me and my first instinct was to stop it. The trailer was running away into the curve and I didn’t want anyone to come around and the boat and trailer plow right into them. So as it is approaching my driver side mirror I start to turn into the trailer. As I do that the trailer somehow, magically completely misses my truck and smashes into the guard rail. At this point, I’m already on the opposite lane stationary and turned into the trailer hoping it would not hit me, but preventing it from hitting someone else. As I saw the trailer gruesomely smash into the guard rail the boat itself comes off the trailer and starts plowing onto the road, headed straight towards me in the tow truck. Now looking back at it as it appeared to gracefully stop just a few away from me.

In the few moments that passed after everything had happened it took me a minute, which felt like a lifetime, to compose myself as I was in complete shock and awe of what had just happened. Thankfully no one got hurt and no one was around. Maybe 5 minutes goes by while I am checking out the scene from what happened and composing myself back to reality.

I grab my phone and I start making calls to my team. The first person I call is Austin. He has been a really close friend and has helped me a lot since I re-opened the business. He was actually the first person to join the company and help me when I did re-open the family business. Austin was only a few miles away at the time when he lived close by. I explained in really short what happened and he showed up a few minutes later. While I was waiting for him to arrive I made another phone call. I called another close friend, Joe. Explained to him as well what happened, he loaded up his truck with some extra supplies and also came. He arrived a few minutes after Austin did. While Joe was on his way I made 3 more phone calls. I called my other team member DJ. It was his night off so he came in and brought the flatbed to the scene because I needed him. I also called Travis but he had just got off duty that night; so I called Tyler instead who was also working with us at the time and he brought in a different wrecker to do the recovery and help out.

So I had Austin, Joe, Tyler, and DJ. The last phone call I made was to 911. They sent out two Sheriffs Deputies to come block the road so we could have a clear scene with no distraction from outside the incident. Even throughout the incident I was still in shock, but I had to muster away my feelings so I could take control of the scene and get the road cleared up from the accident I inherently caused.

So while every one is here Joe tells me to go sit down and take a breather. Although I was composed, here I was standing at a loss. Truthfully how I felt was that this wasn’t really happening and that it was a dream. Unfortunately that was not true. This was reality but I was in so much shock. This had never happend to me before. So while I was forced to take a breather; Joe took control and got things set up. He had everyone moving in a direction so we could get this incident cleared. As a few moments pass I walk back into the situation and took over. I started positioning equipment and helping get the rigging setup to recover the boat and trailer.

As Joe and I were preparing to get the boat ready to recover I also remember the Deputy Sheriffs pitching in to help in any way they could. So while Joe and I were tackling the boat; Tyler and DJ were getting the boat trailer and the dollies recovered to load onto the flatbed. Austin was standing away from the scene keeping an eye so us to make sure none of us got hurt.

As they were finishing up on the trailer and dollies Joe was directing me into position with the other wrecker that Tyler had brought so we could start recovering the sail boat. It really didn’t take very long to setup, but it felt like hours had passed by while all this was happening. Though in real time only maybe an hour had passed by. Thinking back at it after all these years had passed; honestly the shock and emotions didn’t go away for a long time. It was devasting for me personally and professionally.

Going back to the boat recovery we had everything loaded up and we couldn’t load the boat back on the trailer, because it was damaged beyond use. There was no other flatbed I had available so we recovered and loaded the boat using the other wrecker. After everything had settled down and made sure that everything was cleaned and picked up; the Deputy Sheriffs on scene proceeded to offer and escort us back to the storage yard. At this point we had everything down to one lane now and no longer blocked both lanes of traffic. As the deputies were allowing traffic to flow again Austin had left and went to the storage yard down the road to open the gates and make sure everything was ready for us when we got back to the yard.

Once traffic had cleared out and passed by, one deputy went ahead of all of us to keep traffic out of the way. He closed part of the road and the other deputy was behind us keeping others from getting too close. Since we needed both lanes to make the journey back to the yard it seemed like everything was working in perfect harmony to make that trip. The boat was suspended in the air with the wrecker and that is how we transported it back. DJ was on the flatbed with the trailer and dollies, Joe was following behind me, and Tyler was driving the wrecker I initially had towing the boat and trailer back to the yard.

We got back to the yard, the deputies went on there way and the rest of us got the boat and trailer unloaded. Then we all went our separate ways that night and went back home. The following day we called the owner to let him know what had happened. The customer was okay, but also heartbroken at the same time. Which of course he should be, it was a boat that he was going to restore.

Now that we have gone through this experience you should know what actually went wrong with this situation. Initially it started out as a blown wheel bearing, but in fact it was also the trailer hitch on the boat itself. Now it was hard to tell at the time but in fact the hitch on the truck was using the wrong ball size. In turn it was not immediately noticeable that the trailer hitch was damaged as well after investigating. After researching the boat trailer it was determined to also not be rated for the size of the sail boat. Even though the trailer was hooked up properly to the wrecker and had no play, there was enough damage to the inside of the trailer hitch causing it to come loose and break away from the wrecker. Even with safety materials in place it made no difference. The trailer hitch, the pin, and the latch was still in the locked postion after it was recovered. What happened should not have happened at all, but the worst did happen even though everything was done right.

A few days later DJ transported the damaged trailer to be repaired. After a week goes by and the trailer is repaired DJ then again picked up the trailer and brought it back to the yard. Travis, my mother, and myself loaded the boat on the trailer so the owner could finally take it back home. We made sure it was secured, he had the right ball, and off he went back to South Carolina. Over the following weeks the owner of the boat let us know he was not going to restore it as it was going to cost to much to repair the sail boat. Which it was going to cost a lot even before the incident that had happened causing more damage to the boat including the damage it already had.

In the events following this incident my team pretty much took over operations for a good while. I wouldn’t step foot in or near a tow truck for almost a year. It’s really hard to have gone through that since in fact I was the owner and also an operator of the company. The team stepped up and understood the situation. They did the best they could to keep things going while I was not operating a truck anymore. We came together as a family and things just worked out. Now, I did keep working office related duties while I was at home and would occasionaly come in to the office. I was on sort of a extended leave to try and cope and process what had happened that night. For some reason it took way longer than I thought it would for me to come back and operate a truck again.

I eventually came back when one of my tow truck operators, Tyler, put in his notice to quit. So it kind of in a way pushed me to come back to reality and I started running a truck again. To be part of the team I had left for a long time was a relief. I felt like I was at home. I had someone ride with me for the longest time because of the incident. I lost my confidence. I lost my happy go lucky attitude. I had lost a lot emotionally. It took me quite a long time to regain that confidence in the ability to do what I loved so much. Serving the community and helping anyway I could in a tow truck is my way of life. For a long time it was much of nothingness.

Still to this day, the events that happened on this horrific day still hurts. It is something I continue to look back on. Moving forward to training myself and others so that it doesn’t happen again. I continue to do the best I can to help our community.

At the end of the day my community drives me. It is my purpose to serve and teach.

Blake, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

If you have never heard of me before it is pretty simple to describe. My name is Blake Pounds and I own and operate a family towing business. Our families business has been around since 1990. We’ve been continuously serving the community for over 30 years.

My grandparents, aunt, and uncle started the business. Back in the day we operated a paint and body shop, state inspection station, a used car lot, and a wrecker service. In the late 2000’s the family business went under. A few years later I re-opened the family business from scratch at around 2014-2015. I spent a few years planning and working a full time job before I decided to go for it and go back into the family business.

Growing up I was always interested in what my family was doing. To be part of something than myself. My grandparents were missionaries and pastors for decades. My aunt and uncle ran the family business. My mother helped with the book keeping, and while she was doing that I was always riding around in the tow truck. That started my passion for the towing industry.

We particiapte in a lot of community events, we volunteer as much as we can. We also support and sponsor a race team, Gray Racing, for the local Hometrack Nascar Series in the Charger and Legends Divisions. Myself and the team over the years treat our community like family. We take care of each other.

Since the new beginning, I have been able to develop our brand and build something I can pass on to the future generations of our family.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

I moved back to North Carolina after being away for many years. I came back in 2013, and worked quite a few different jobs. I was in software tech support, repaired commercial computers, built and designed websites, graphic design, and a lot more.

I worked local truck stops, restaraunts, and for the Town of Smithfield as a subcontractor for utilties. The few years I spent at the Town was a big turning point in my career. They supported me in going out for myself into the towing industry. I had a really good support group. It was a family that I greatly appreciate.

The first year with the Town of Smithfield I hussled day and night to save money. It became sort of a routine. I bought my first home and I bought my first tow truck. The second year I started to slowly move into the tow truck. I would get off from my job with the town early most days after finishing my duties. I read utility meters and worked side jobs to invest in myself.

On my second year aniversary with the Town of Smithfield I put in my notice to quit. After that, things started moving forward with the business and really took off from there. It was a lot of hardwork and dedication. It was not easy and it still isn’t. There are good times and there is lean times.

I’ve been in this business for many years now and it encases my entire life. Dedicating all my resources to help the community. Serving and treating everyone like family.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

From my experience from attempting to maintain a high morale is actively particpating with the people I surroung myself with. At times it is difficult to have and maintain high morale. We go through swings of emotions up and down just like most people do.

When business is doing good or bad, we just pull together like a family and build each other up. We support each other daily in our personal and professional lives. I don’t like to see myself as a leader because of the industry stigma that is associated with it. I like to think I’m just part of the team with more responsibilities. Even though we share a lot of the responsibilities it is more or less like a redundancy so to speak. We all make and choose the directions we all go.

The best advice that I can give is to support the people that support you. Invest in yourself and the people you surround yourself with. Having a postive morale is not always possible, because being part of team is like being part of a family; especially as close as I am with my team. Get to know the people that invest in you. Let the people know you as well. Everything meshes together. It’s not a switch you can turn on and turn off. It has to be geniuine. As long as everyone is on the same page with the goal you want to acheive everything will come together.

With hardwork, sacrifice, and dedication you can do anything you want to do. It’s all about building and investing each other to move forward in positive direction. It takes teamwork to make the dream work.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://poundstowing.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/poundstowing
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/poundstowing

Image Credits
Austin Smith and Blake Pounds