boys and their toys - at tank town usa
It's a sunset worthy of a Super Bowl victory. But instead of touchdowns and silver trophies, it's a military tank (it has everything except the main gun) and a demolished car. And I drove it, and I crushed it! What a way to play!
Todd Liebross gets to play everyday. As business owner, repairman and tank driver, Todd provides Super Bowl moments, only with tanks and mud.
Tank Town USA, located in Blue Ridge, Georgia, is in the business of driving smiles. In between Blue Ridge and Blairsville on Highway 76 in Morgantown, on some acres within sight of the highway sits a few tanks, backhoes and other reclaimed vehicles, surrounded by mud and some really lucky people who understand that therapy (and fun) is best achieved on big imposing machines. During our January visit, a steady stream of people lined up (with reservations) to crush cars and drive tanks (two separate packages). A sight that makes Todd an even happier man. In fact, everyone leaves happy. "No one ever left that I thought had a bad time," says Todd.
So as drivers slide down into the FV432 Armored Personnel Carrier and the other straps into the seat situated on top of the tanks body, they obviously wonder what all the fuss is about. After all, most people have never done this, and wonder if it is really worth the money. Todd climbs aboard, sitting within an ear's shot of the driver, instructing through the mud pits and the climbs. And as the people dismount the tank about 40-minutes later, not one bellows regrets. "I wanna do that again," each says with grins as big as its sunset backdrop.
Todd Liebross gets to play everyday. As business owner, repairman and tank driver, Todd provides Super Bowl moments, only with tanks and mud.
Tank Town USA, located in Blue Ridge, Georgia, is in the business of driving smiles. In between Blue Ridge and Blairsville on Highway 76 in Morgantown, on some acres within sight of the highway sits a few tanks, backhoes and other reclaimed vehicles, surrounded by mud and some really lucky people who understand that therapy (and fun) is best achieved on big imposing machines. During our January visit, a steady stream of people lined up (with reservations) to crush cars and drive tanks (two separate packages). A sight that makes Todd an even happier man. In fact, everyone leaves happy. "No one ever left that I thought had a bad time," says Todd.
So as drivers slide down into the FV432 Armored Personnel Carrier and the other straps into the seat situated on top of the tanks body, they obviously wonder what all the fuss is about. After all, most people have never done this, and wonder if it is really worth the money. Todd climbs aboard, sitting within an ear's shot of the driver, instructing through the mud pits and the climbs. And as the people dismount the tank about 40-minutes later, not one bellows regrets. "I wanna do that again," each says with grins as big as its sunset backdrop.
Meet Todd
Well, the short version is I grew up in Atlanta until I was 15 at which time my family moved to Blairsville, GA. I was a 1993 graduate of Union County High followed by Young Harris College and ended my college career at UGA where I graduated with a B.A. in History. Even though times were good for job seekers in the mid-90's they seemed to always be tough for the Liberal Arts types, so in 1999 I shipped out on a commercial cargo ship working in the engine room. Since I was single, foot-loose and fancy free, I traveled the world working for various shipping lines as well as the U.S. Navy (as a civilian mariner) on military supply ships for about 8 years. I also did a stint in the Marine Corps Reserve as an aircraft hydraulics mechanic. Around 2007, I moved back to the Blairsville area and in 2010 started a family. I continued to sail on commercial ships until April of 2013, when I opened Tank Town full time.
Todd on board
A tank of an idea?
Adrienne Richardson (rider) gave Andreous Smith a tank experience for Christmas. One drives, the other rides and then they swap places. A great gift? After a 20-minute drive, Smith says, "Oh, yeah . . . yeah!"
I'd love to say that I thought of it myself, but the reality is I saw it on the internet! Around the time my son was born in 2010, I was on Yahoo Finance, and they had a headline that said "Guy makes money driving tanks" about a business in England doing essentially the same thing I have going now. I watched that and thought it was something I'd be good at doing too. Four years later here we are.
Being on the right track?
I'd say probably 85% of my customers are from the Atlanta area or Florida. They either know about Blue Ridge and Tank Town or randomly stumble across me once they arrive here. That last 15% are the ones that are coming specifically for Tank Town and have no clue about the North Georgia Area. Obviously, tanks completely destroying cars makes for a great story so I have to admit that I'm not entirely shocked it's happened. The most satisfying development lately is that now I am seeing the word of mouth reservations. I'm hearing lots of "My friends came and did this last summer. They said we just had to come and do it". When I hear that, I know I'm on the right track.
Michael Chapple (driver) makes a few laps through the mud before the pinnacle of his trip, crushing a car. His wife Myrna gave this to him for Valentine's Day. "I'm always looking for something different," she says. How will she top this?
Coolest thing on a machine?
The main portion of the business is usually between two and four people followed by our group events that are both private parties and corporate events. We do get lots of parents and grandparents bringing the kids out for something exciting, but the overwhelming majority of participants are in the 40 to 60 year range. Even if you care nothing about the military or military equipment, just about everyone wants to experience driving a tank as it is like nothing else you will ever drive. I've had professional heavy equipment operators tell me it's the coolest thing they've ever done on a machine.
Who drives?
Richardson and Smith: two thumbs up!
I suppose the most surprising thing has been that my business is pretty well split between men and women drivers. When I started my research on how to open a business like this, I ran on the assumption that it would be predominantly male oriented. Once I opened, I quickly realized that women were coming out to drive in pretty big numbers, and they were really enthusiastic about the experience. I'll be expanding my vehicle fleet and hope to have some heavier tanks in the near future so that will be a different twist on things. As for my most memorable experience, I'd have to say it was our oldest Car Crusher who was 91 and a WWII D-Day veteran. It was raining and cold that day, but he didn't let that slow him down.
Heaven on earth with tons to do?
Whenever I leave the area for travel and come back home, I'm always struck by how beautiful and relaxing the area can be. There is a lot to be said for having a vacation here locally where you don't have to force yourself to do much of anything or fight traffic just to go out to dinner! Having said that, I'm always partial to the Ocoee river rafting tours. I've been down the river with most of the companies, and they all do an equally good job of making it an exciting adventure. I am really impressed with the quality of the restaurants that are now open in Blue Ridge. We have places that offer menus comparable to what you would find in a major city. As a long time area resident, I never thought I'd put the words "Blue Ridge" and "upscale" in the same sentence, but amazingly we really are there. And of course, Tank Town first!
Crushing Volvos!
