When I was 14, I started work at a lawn mower repair shop. We were a Stihl (Homelite, Poulan, McCullough, Echo etc.) dealer (1977) and about every other brand under the sun. I became a 2 cycle expert by the time I was 17. When I quit college and moved to Raleigh, NC, I was a small equipment mechanic that transitioned into a heavy equipment mechanic that eventually transitioned into Parts and Service Manager. One of the places I worked was at a Vermeer dealer in Cary, NC where I ran parts, service, and also did inside sales of stump grinders, brush chippers, and trenchers. I even had my own stump grinding business that I did on the side for 3 years.