10-4 Magazine March 2022

Cover Feature: By Daniel J. Linss with his dad. He would literally get out of school on the last day, board a plane, and fly to where his dad was. After spending the entire summer out on the road with him, he’d fly home and go back to school. He did this for several years. While still in high school, Ron star ted working at Apace Moving Systems, an agent for Bekins, helping load household goods on the weekends. Eventually, while still in school, he began doing office and industrial (O&I) moves for them. Graduating from high school at 19 years old (remember he was held back in 1st grade) in 1993, he went trucking with his dad full time for two years. He didn’t get his CDL until he turned 21 a couple years later, but that didn’t stop him from doing his fair share of driving with his dad When the name of your trucking company is Deluxe Distribution, your customers most likely assume the service you provide them will be “deluxe” and above average. This would be true of Ron Beer (48) of Orange, California, and his company that primarily services the enter tainment and trade show industry, which is a discerning bunch, for sure. But what they might not expect is this rolling hotel Ron brings with him, providing deluxe accommodations, wherever he goes, while he waits for events to end, so he can pack it all back up and take it to the next event (or bring it all back). Based in Southern California, Ron Beer is the third generation of truckers in his family. His grandfather Gilber t Beer began driving for Greyhound Van Lines out of Chicago in the 1940s. Ron’s father, Ron Beer Sr., followed in his father’s footsteps and began working at Bekins Van Lines in 1955 – he was just 18 years old. Astoundingly, Ron Sr. stayed at Bekins for his entire trucking career. After almost 50 years with Bekins, he “retired” for medical reasons in 2002 and passed away in 2003. Mostly doing bed buggin’ (household goods), Ron Sr. also did some computer moving, and later spearheaded the trade show division at Bekins. In 1968, Ron Sr. married Eatau, known to everyone as Toy, who was from California. At this point, he left the Chicago area and moved to Southern California to be with her. Being his second marriage, Ron Sr. had four children – two boys and two girls – that he brought with him, and Toy had a son of her own. In 1974, Ron Beer Jr. was born in Garden Grove, CA (a suburb about 40 miles south of Los Angeles). This was Ron Sr. and Toy’s only child together, so most of Ron’s siblings were much older than him – some were already adults when he was born! From the beginning, Ron absolutely loved trucks and trucking, and he went out with his dad whenever he could. When Ron was born, his dad was running long haul, and at just three months old, he and his mom got in the truck and ran with Ron’s dad until it was time for Ron to star t kindergar ten. At that point, Ron and Toy got out of the truck – so she thought. Apparently, Ron would still sneak away with his dad in the truck, until he missed so much school, they held him back and made him do 1st grade a second time. But that did not stop young Ron. During every summer break and every school vacation, Ron spent that time in the truck 10 10-4 Magazine / March 2022 DELUXE ACCOMMODATIONS