Chuck the Contractor
September 1, 2007
Meet Rick Bennett of Kentucky
Name: Rick Bennett
Where you reside: Dawson Springs, Kentucky
Position/Company: Owner/operator of Rick Bennett Excavating LLC
Responsibilities: “I do it all. I work mostly by myself, with an occasional helper. I do demolition, site preparation, clearing and septic systems. I dig basements, footers, ponds and lakes.”
Year you started in construction: “I started in 1974 working for an engineering firm to help lay out interstate highways. Then I switched over to equipment when I got the opportunity, and I’ve been hooked ever since. I love running equipment.”
How you started in construction: “When I was a teenager, my dad let me help run a derrick crane putting together drag lines. I got interested in heavy equipment, and I’ve been working with it ever since.”
What you like best about construction: ”Knowing that I can talk to people and take what is in their head and go out there and do what they want--just from talking to them. Or taking a blueprint and putting what is on paper on the lay of the land. My favorite is demolition. I have taken down buildings that other operators have backed away from.”
What grinds you: “Dealing with the politics and red tape that goes with some of the jobs.”
What keeps you going in your job: “My family, my children and my grandchildren. I would like to pass this trade down to my grandsons. I would like to help them do anything they want with a piece of equipment. Plus, I enjoy it!”
Craziest thing you’ve seen on a jobsite: “One night we had a light plant going [while] working late on a job, and a big hard shell bug went into a guy’s ear. It went in so far we couldn’t see it, and it was driving the man nuts. We ended up taking him to the emergency room for a doctor to remove the bug. Boy was he glad to get it out!”
Personal philosophy: “Put the Lord first in everything you do.”
Favorite equipment you use in your job: “Rubber tire backhoe.”
Why it’s your favorite: “You can take a rubber tire backhoe and do just about anything you need to do. It’s so versatile.”
Advice for contractors new to the business: “Make every move count and do lots of maintenance. If you have operators working for you, keep an eye on them. Nobody will take care of your equipment like you.”
Do you know a contractor who deserves to be profiled as the next “Chuck”? Use our online entry form to nominate a fellow contractor (or yourself!) to be our next "Chuck."
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