As the winter closes in I begin to think about having my snow tires installed. I always worry that I will put it off too long and a snow storm will hit. If that happens then I will have to line up with thousands of others who also put off having their snow tires installed for too long!! 
Thinking about this made me recall a time in November 1969, I was working at the K Mart Auto Centre in Dartmouth, NS. We had just received a huge shipment of retread snow tires ready for the winter sales. Having barely separated by size and stowed them on the racks, it began to snow heavy just as we closed. The store had a flyer running and our retread snow tires were advertised at a low low price. Probably the best price in the city. Our head office (Uniroyal Tires) had located an amazing re-treader in Ontario with equally amazing prices. Hence the huge shipment received, they look good with nice chunky treads and at an amazing price. Oh!sorry, I already mentioned the amazing price. Anyway, just to be clear they were really cheap!!!The following morning I arrived at work and opened up to a line of cars stretching right across the parking lot waiting to purchase our re-tread snow tires. Needless to say it was a very hectic and busy morning, installing snow tires on car after car. People were so pleased with our quick service and the excellent prices. We were equally happy listening to the cash register dinging as more and more dollars landed in the till. Finally we could stop for a cup of coffee and a break as the last car departed across the lot. That is when it happened!! First, one customer came back slipping and sliding across the snow covered parking area. He couldn’t get his car up the slight ramp into the service bays, so he climbed out and came toward me with arms flailing, blustering and red faced, it was clear he was a little upset. In the trunk of his car were the two re-tread tracks, and on the back of his car two bald tires. The re-treads had separated from the tires before he got five miles from the store. As you can imagine the remaining and amazingly cheap re-treads came back one by one. We once again had a line of cars waiting for service and refund. It was a dreadful two days in which we lost all of our profits. We dealt with one angry customer after another, and trying to satisfy them with our now very limited stock of new snow tires that cost two or three times as much was near to impossible. Gee, it should have been enough to drive me to drink, maybe it did, can’t remember now it was a long time ago!! However, I think I will have a drink now, in memory and sympathy just in case I didn’t have a drink those long days ago, if you know what I mean!!!!
God Bless and keep reading
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