Building an Off-Road Empire with Brent Goegebuer on Episode 319

Brent Goegebuer joins Big Rich Klein to discuss a life dedicated to the off-road industry. Raised in rural Washington, Goegebuer's passion for trucks and the outdoors led him to open his first four-wheel drive shop before age 21, working his way up from a graveyard wire mill shift to corporate success.

The interview follows his two-decade journey at Four Wheel Parts, where he transformed event management into profit centers and grew the company from 40 stores to 125 under leadership of Greg and George Adler. Known for its family-oriented culture, Four Wheel Parts became an industry hub that launched countless careers in off-roading.

Goegebuer shares how his team weathered the 2007-2009 economic downturn by maintaining aggressive marketing while competitors pulled back—a strategy that positioned them at the top post-recession. He discusses the company's evolution, the launch of Truck Fest events that brought together vendors and enthusiasts, and the unexpected plot twist when he reunited with Greg to revive these events after recent corporate changes.

Today, Goegebuer serves as Vice President for AccuAir Suspension (air suspension systems for Jeeps available through Mopar) and Arnott Cycles (similar technology for Harley-Davidson motorcycles). A father of four and devoted son caring for his 85-year-old mother, Goegebuer balances business ventures with renewed travel passions across Europe, Australia, and beyond.

Transcript

[00:00:05.320] - Big Rich Klein

Welcome to Conversations with Big Rich. This is an interview-style podcast. Those interviewed are all involved in the off-road industry. Being involved, like all my guests are, is a lifestyle, not just a job. I talk to past, present, and future legends, as well as business owners, employees, media, and land use warriors— men and women who have found their way into this exciting and addictive lifestyle we call off-road. We their personal history, struggles, successes, and reboots. We dive into what drives them to stay active in off-road. We all hope to shed some light on how to find a path into this world that we live and love and call off-road.

[00:00:46.610] - Speaker 2

Whether you're crawling the red rocks of Moab or hauling your toys to the trail, Maxxis has the tires you can trust for performance and durability. Four wheels or two, Maxxis tires are the choice of champions. Because they know that whether for work or play, for fun or competition, Maxxis tires deliver. Choose Maxxis. Tread victoriously.

[00:01:13.460] - Big Rich Klein

On today's episode of Conversations with Big Rich, my guest started off in a small Pacific Northwest town, learned to work hard as a youth, and opened up his first four-wheel drive shop in his 20s. Then was approached by Four Wheel Parts, and the rest is now a history of growth and passion. My guest is Brett Goegebuer. Good morning, Brett Goegebuer. How are you doing today? Did I get your name right?

[00:01:41.250] - Brent Goegebuer

You got it right. Good morning. And I am doing great.

[00:01:44.050] - Big Rich Klein

Excellent. Excellent. I'm really looking forward to this, this interview. We've been in the— both of us have been in the business a long time.

[00:01:53.200] - Brent Goegebuer

And you're saying we're old?

[00:01:55.190] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, I'm saying, well, I'm a lot older than you. We were just pre-talking before the interview here. And, you know, you just had a 55th birthday. I just had my 68th. So.

[00:02:06.020] - Brent Goegebuer

Oh, wow.

[00:02:06.350] - Big Rich Klein

I'm a little bit older.

[00:02:07.970] - Brent Goegebuer

So every, every one is a good day.

[00:02:11.790] - Big Rich Klein

Yes, it's better than the other option, you know, and that's dirt in your face.

[00:02:17.340] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, exactly.

[00:02:19.280] - Big Rich Klein

So let's, let's jump in with the interview with the first question I ask everybody. Where were you born and raised?

[00:02:27.040] - Brent Goegebuer

I was born in a small town called Buckley, Washington, little farming logging town.

[00:02:33.790] - Big Rich Klein

And where is that in relationship to, say, Seattle?

[00:02:37.900] - Brent Goegebuer

Well, it's probably an hour east, right at the foothills of Mount Rainier. So I grew up 6 miles, as the crow flies, from Mount Rainier. Okay, um, so, you know, just a very lot of opportunities in, in that life with, you know, skiing on the weekends. The school bus would take us every weekend, and, and I milk cows for money. So it was, you know, different world than I live in now, right?

[00:03:00.940] - Big Rich Klein

And so living, you know, that's, that's pretty rural, it sounds like, if you've got cows, milk cows, and, and, and ranching and stuff, or farming, I guess. So if you have milk cows, is that ranching or is it farming?

[00:03:15.060] - Brent Goegebuer

It's farming. And my family didn't have them. I would, you know, I had friends and they, they owned dairy. So that was how you made money in the summer. We would, we'd buck hay and every morning before school I would milk cows and I'd get done with football or track and milk again. You know, the cows never took Christmas off, but it was a good steady income.

[00:03:34.300] - Big Rich Klein

They never took Christmas off. That's true.

[00:03:36.130] - Brent Goegebuer

They didn't.

[00:03:36.880] - Big Rich Klein

Kind of like Mexican restaurants.

[00:03:38.530] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, that's true. That's very true.

[00:03:41.810] - Big Rich Klein

So then let's, uh, let's talk about those early years. Um, what was, what was school like? Was it a pretty small school or did you bus to a larger school area?

[00:03:53.050] - Brent Goegebuer

Uh, no, 80 people in my graduating class.

[00:03:55.380] - Big Rich Klein

Wow, that's small.

[00:03:56.810] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, and I pretty much grew up with everyone, you know, from preschool to high school, knew everyone there. So I thought it was a a great way to grow up. And, you know, had the friends that still come and support me at King of the Hammers and my different races, or the friends I had back then, they— we've all stayed a close-knit group, and I fly them out, and, uh, it's just been a great life.

[00:04:18.390] - Big Rich Klein

That's awesome. And were you— would you consider yourself a good student or one of those that was always looking out the window waiting to get back outside?

[00:04:27.940] - Brent Goegebuer

Uh, I was an average student. I tried hard because I knew I needed to go to college. I knew I needed the grades, but I really I didn't enjoy school, just being very upfront. Um, but yeah, I was always waiting to be outside. I dreamt about trucks, I dreamt about skiing. I just loved, uh, track and field and went to— and went to nationals in that. And it's, you know, high school was an avenue to get to college so I could keep running and doing all those other things I liked.

[00:04:52.670] - Big Rich Klein

So what did— what distances did you run?

[00:04:56.830] - Brent Goegebuer

Uh, the 100 and the 200 was my big deal. Sprints.

[00:05:00.150] - Big Rich Klein

Okay. And do you remember what your time in the 100 was?

[00:05:04.120] - Brent Goegebuer

Uh, I, I do remember my time. Um, uh, I did 10.9 in the 100, which isn't— is fast, not record like Olympics at all. And then, uh, I think, I think it was 21.7 in the 200. So very, very good times for a high school student. Yeah, took me into college offers and that kind of stuff.

[00:05:22.880] - Big Rich Klein

That's great. It's awesome. And, uh, what was your favorite classes besides PE?

[00:05:30.840] - Brent Goegebuer

Uh, yeah, besides PE, it was metal shop, honestly. So I did learn how to weld. We had metal shop, we had a lot of agriculture classes, you know, being in a rural area. So I had a teacher, Mr. Ross, and he taught me how to weld. And I had no idea that that would be such a handy thing in the future for me.

[00:05:49.060] - Big Rich Klein

Nice. That's one thing I've never learned to do is weld. I, uh, Everything that I— it looks like seagull poop is everything I weld.

[00:05:59.350] - Brent Goegebuer

Oh, I didn't say I was any good anymore. So I've got, you know, friends, Kirby and Troy and everyone, that amazing welders and bender, but, uh, I let them do the welding now.

[00:06:09.750] - Big Rich Klein

Exactly. I, I figure that, you know what, those guys are professional at their jobs, let them do it.

[00:06:16.160] - Brent Goegebuer

Exactly, 100%. But it was, uh, it definitely came in handy, and then You know, I don't even know if they offer those classes anymore.

[00:06:23.140] - Big Rich Klein

In most places it doesn't, it seems to, because all the interviews I have, that's what they, you know, they all talk about how, you know, especially guys younger than you or I, especially right around that 50, maybe 52 down, is when all the classes started going away. So that's, that's really a shame. And I think, though, we're going to start seeing all that stuff come back. Especially with everybody being worried about AI, because there's certain things that AI is not going to be— AI is not going to go out there and herd up cows and milk them.

[00:06:56.600] - Brent Goegebuer

100%. And for me, the last 2 years I got to take auto shop, which was a, a big deal. And it was in the next town. We were too small to have it, but the school allowed me to drive to the next town, which is called Enumclaw, and take auto shop. So pretty good deal.

[00:07:13.060] - Big Rich Klein

Emclaw, I know.

[00:07:14.730] - Brent Goegebuer

You do know? Yeah, it's a little bigger.

[00:07:16.270] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, plus it's got one of those names, you know. I mean, it's hard to forget that name.

[00:07:21.220] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, every, every town's got some Indian name there.

[00:07:24.530] - Big Rich Klein

Oh man, some of them there's no way I can pronounce them. You know, I was worried about pronouncing your, your last name right, but some of the towns up there I'll never get right.

[00:07:35.190] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, it's funny, but yeah, when you grow up with them, you learn them all. But anyway, very great opportunity that the schools, however, traded funding so students could go and, you know, learn a little bit about cars. And I, I bought a 4x4 at 16. I worked, like I said, I milked cows, so got my dad to co-sign on a loan and, uh, bought a brand new Toyota truck back then. And before I even took it to school, you know, I had 35s and a Warn winch and all that stuff. So it was a, it was a pretty cool deal, kind of like the much bigger Marty McFly truck.

[00:08:08.670] - Big Rich Klein

So, so milking cows was profitable enough to fix up a Toyota?

[00:08:16.180] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, back in those days, that was a really— it paid really good. So, you know, it was a, it was a blessing job for me to have.

[00:08:24.430] - Big Rich Klein

And, uh, you said that you played football as well. What position? With that speed, were you like a running back?

[00:08:32.050] - Brent Goegebuer

I was a running back. Yeah, but I just didn't have the size. So you got to remember, I was 143 pounds back in the day.

[00:08:37.990] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, that's pretty light for a—

[00:08:39.610] - Brent Goegebuer

pretty light.

[00:08:40.320] - Big Rich Klein

You have to be really fast.

[00:08:42.340] - Brent Goegebuer

Yep.

[00:08:43.370] - Big Rich Klein

And have great moves. Yeah.

[00:08:45.700] - Brent Goegebuer

And it was a, it was a lot. So I didn't stick with that, but track was my thing.

[00:08:49.570] - Big Rich Klein

And, uh, and you said it helped you get scholarships.

[00:08:54.850] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, it got me a lot of offers. I ended up going to school to be an air traffic controller.

[00:08:59.120] - Big Rich Klein

Oh wow.

[00:09:00.710] - Brent Goegebuer

Um, like my father, there was a hiring freeze, which led right into, um, why I did that. I worked graveyard at a wire mill, which is a very tough job. Um, but I ended up saving enough to open up my first off-road shop. I was fascinated by trucks and Jeeps and everything like that. So at a very young age, I opened up an off-road shop in Enumclaw, and that's where I got in.

[00:09:23.630] - Big Rich Klein

Okay, and what age do you think that was at?

[00:09:26.260] - Brent Goegebuer

Uh, just under 21.

[00:09:28.820] - Big Rich Klein

Okay.

[00:09:30.740] - Brent Goegebuer

And so I thought I could think about— and I actually went to the bank. My mom knew the president of the bank in Enumclaw, and I went and she got me a meeting and everything. And I went in and said, I have this much money, and, uh, you know, let's just face it, a half-assed business plan for such a young kid. And he went in and said, you don't have enough money saved, you need this, and we'll open you a line of credit. And I want a better business plan. So a year to the date of that, I quit my job the wire mill working nights and, uh, you know, opened my first shop.

[00:09:59.800] - Big Rich Klein

Wow, that's, uh, that's awesome that you were, you know, able to, uh, to have a banker that was willing to, to give you the advice and, and get you going in the right direction.

[00:10:12.860] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, it was— worked out great. So that was, uh, 8 years of my life. And then after that ended, I ended up doing same kind of, I guess, as you had put on a couple rock crawling championships, and I met someone from 4 Wheel Parts. That was a regional manager named Ripper, and he was almost like a second dad, kind of guided me. But he hired me, and, uh, I ended up, uh, going to corporate, you know, within a year, pretty fast, right?

[00:10:39.030] - Big Rich Klein

And those, uh, let's talk about those, those early days of your rock crawling, um, being a promoter and putting on events up in Washington. You did that in— what is that area called?

[00:10:51.450] - Brent Goegebuer

Uh, well, it's Clay Elm. It's over by the— it's really on the Columbia River, right? So it was, uh, it was a great deal. But again, and then one more thing that, you know, just kind of opened another opportunity. One door closes, one new one opens.

[00:11:03.730] - Big Rich Klein

And what did you think of that property owner?

[00:11:09.260] - Brent Goegebuer

He was a handful. He was pretty easy. It was not great. Yeah, it was not a great relationship ever.

[00:11:16.890] - Big Rich Klein

So my dad and I went up there after you guys, you were done putting on events there, and we had been over, we were looking for someplace, and we had been over Goldendale, and then, uh, that was where we were proposed to go. And I did it all because of, in Goldendale, and looked at the first event sites over there because of what the trials bikes did. And so then we went up and actually looked at the property, and I went, oh my God, I can't use this property, it's the rocks are not big enough. They were too small.

[00:11:49.200] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah.

[00:11:50.230] - Big Rich Klein

And I looked around, couldn't find anything, and I canceled the event. So I started looking and I thought, you know what, I know that you had done events. So I went up and found the guy, met him out on his property, and first, one of the first things he does is pull out a rifle and sets it on his hood and says, you know, basically like, well, you know, I won't be pushed around or anything. And I'm thinking What is going on here? You know, and I'm thinking, okay, well, you know, he didn't, he didn't realize that we were both concealed carry at that time.

[00:12:26.320] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, it was gonna take a handful to pick up that rifle. He was a wild card. He would show up, then he'd be at the gate taking cash. It was just, you know, not a great place, not a great relationship to end with that gentleman. He was, he was the Wild West, right?

[00:12:44.050] - Big Rich Klein

So we never put one on there because I'd heard that you had had similar situations with him and, or like you're, like you're talking about. But, uh, the, uh, the rocks were certainly interesting, just big drops, big climbs, and lots of sand.

[00:12:59.780] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, it was, uh, it wasn't ideal, but in Washington there wasn't a lot of good choices, you know. I'm glad you found an area that worked, but it was, it was slim pickings, you know.

[00:13:09.590] - Big Rich Klein

Well, we got lucky because when we canceled the event, you know, we didn't— social media wasn't really a thing back then. It was all Pirate, right?

[00:13:17.560] - Brent Goegebuer

So exactly.

[00:13:18.970] - Big Rich Klein

I announced it on Pirate and I did everything that I could on our own website, you know, canceled, that kind of thing. But the— we had probably, oh, 200 people that showed up in town that weekend and looking for the event. And so they went to the chamber and said, hey, you know, where's the rock crawl? And the lady that was working the chamber was like, what is a rock crawl? Didn't know anything about it, right? So they— somebody gave her my phone number. She called me up like on that Monday after, you know, because all this was happening on Friday. She called me up, may have been over the weekend, and she goes, all right, I need to know what this rock crawl thing is and I need to find you whatever it is so that you can bring your event here. And so I explained it to her, and within a week she goes, come on up and look at some pieces of property we've got. You know, we found some canyons with rocks, and we've got the fairgrounds that has a hillside and all this kind of stuff. So that's what we did.

[00:14:20.300] - Big Rich Klein

We went up and looked at it, and next thing you know, we had events there, and we had huge turnouts there. Where the— but the town really got behind it for a while, and, you know, we took over the park and had bands and the, uh, the VFW or one of those groups would come out and set up in the park. Econe Park would set up a, uh, a beer booth, and we'd have the bands at night and a big old party with big screen and, you know, off-road videos going and stuff. And it was really pretty cool, you know, something in the neighborhood of 8,000 to 10,000 people coming into Goldendale, and it was pretty off the wall. But it was, it was, it was pretty fun.

[00:15:04.250] - Brent Goegebuer

That's so— the little towns really can get behind you and embrace, right, those activities, which is really nice.

[00:15:11.340] - Big Rich Klein

So, so Ripper got you into 4WheelParts?

[00:15:15.570] - Brent Goegebuer

Got me into 4WheelParts. Uh, I went and I had to start from the bottom, and I told them I want to go to corporate. They said, you've got to start at the bottom. So luckily, with so many, you know, I had a lot of knowledge obviously already of selling and then the off-road. So yeah, uh, Ripper got me in there and I worked with him for, I mean, honestly, 23 years, 20, somewhere in there. But I, I started a local store, got their new store open, um, and then right away there was a call, could you, you know, could you come to corporate and we want to talk about events? Because they knew I had done events. I got on a plane and flew to Southern California and met George Adler and Greg Adler, and we didn't come to an agreement at first. And there was another gentleman named Rob Foreman who was my boss, and he, he was actually doing, you know, most of the interview. But in the end, we, we met at a figure, and I picked up my family and we moved from our little rural town to Los Angeles, which was a shock.

[00:16:13.170] - Big Rich Klein

I loved Rob Foreman.

[00:16:16.230] - Brent Goegebuer

Rob was full of energy and full of life.

[00:16:18.720] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, such a great guy. Such a great guy because 4 Wheel Parts was one of our first, one of my first sponsors there, um, with, uh, with CalRocks back in the day.

[00:16:30.610] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, 100%. Yeah.

[00:16:32.840] - Big Rich Klein

And, and what time frame did you go to work? What was the year that you went to work for 4 Wheel Parts?

[00:16:38.800] - Brent Goegebuer

Somewhere 2000-ish, I'm gonna guess.

[00:16:41.950] - Big Rich Klein

Okay. And then how many years until you jumped into the corporate end?

[00:16:47.380] - Brent Goegebuer

Uh, one.

[00:16:48.180] - Big Rich Klein

One? Oh wow, that was really quick.

[00:16:49.950] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, yeah, pretty fast.

[00:16:51.810] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, you, uh, you had a lot to offer them then.

[00:16:54.610] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, it worked out great. Yep. And we, we had come together to put some events that, you know, it was an event that Rob and I won called Truck Fest. So we, we put one on in Ontario, California. This is 23 years ago. So it was a slash wholesale day. And what happened is they made us rent the building for 2 days and what for wholesale. We only needed it once, so we just said, you know what, we're going to open it to retail. And it's really like a mini SEMA if you hadn't been to one, where people can come and buy. And there's, you know, 75 to 100 vendors from, from tires, wheels, suspensions, but you can actually buy stuff there. So we put the first one on and we went— our eyes were opened, you know. We're like, wow, who knew that was going to be walk, you know, elbow to elbow, and everyone wanted this. So that was the start. So I think we've In reality, we've probably done 175 of those in the last 23 years. Wow.

[00:17:48.430] - Big Rich Klein

And the— I have so many friends that worked at stores or managed stores in different parts of the nation, and it, it's amazing how many people came through the 4 Wheel Parts into the industry.

[00:18:05.070] - Brent Goegebuer

You're exactly right. Most— so many people work there, a store somewhere, have a story somewhere that they worked as a mechanic, they worked as a salesman. And you got to give it to the Adler's, they were business savvy. And I learned a ton every day. You know, Greg or George would say something that just like, wow, I didn't think of it that way.

[00:18:24.810] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, Greg is— Greg has hit a home— couple of home runs.

[00:18:29.020] - Brent Goegebuer

He's a very smart gentleman. You know, I respect him. And he's gave me a ton of opportunities. And you know, you've got to be appreciative of this. He gave you the opportunity, it was up to you to take them and I was very fortunate that I did.

[00:18:41.850] - Big Rich Klein

Right. So, um, when you started at the corporate level, how many stores did Four Wheel Parts have at that time?

[00:18:55.480] - Brent Goegebuer

I want to say around 40-ish, 45.

[00:18:58.480] - Big Rich Klein

Around 40-ish. Okay.

[00:19:00.320] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah. And we got to 125. As you know, we grew it in those years.

[00:19:05.120] - Big Rich Klein

Right up to $125 million. And that was kind of like the— as I heard it, somebody else say that it was kind of like the golden umbrella when they got to the $125 million. And to where it was like that Greg could step away, sell it, and it was— and they— somebody stepped in to buy it.

[00:19:30.410] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, we did get sold. Um, obviously that's what you do. It's the American dream. You build your business, you, you sell it, you know, and hopefully it's to the right people. It, it sold to a large company, as you know.

[00:19:44.030] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah.

[00:19:45.470] - Brent Goegebuer

Um, and, you know, and they made a lot of changes that, you know, uh, if you're asking me as an employee, weren't great, right? You know, because, I mean, from the outside, Florida Parks look like this big huge entity, and, you know, you loved or hated them, but on the inside they were family. Every person had each other's back. We fought like family, but, you know, when it came down to the fight, they had— they were there for you, knives out, you know. And, uh, that came down from Greg and George. And, you know, I had— I, like, my father passed in the middle of being there, and they did everything they could, whatever time you need. So a ton of respect the way they treated people and treated them like family.

[00:20:25.130] - Big Rich Klein

And you moved down there, you moved down to LA with your family. Yeah, you were married at that time. And how did you meet your wife?

[00:20:33.960] - Brent Goegebuer

I met my wife at a car show in Yumclaw called the Jungle. So we were married 18 years, and, you know, things don't always work out, but I got 4 amazing kids, uh, and my daughter, 29. There's Tiana, Hudson, Stetson, and Dayton, and they're all doing great, and they love vehicles for sure. They are car enthusiasts, right?

[00:20:53.870] - Big Rich Klein

And you said that One of your sons just came to visit, um, yesterday, and, uh, it sounded like— is he— came in for a wedding or something?

[00:21:07.020] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, he came in for a bachelor party in San Diego, and I got a late call, and, uh, Dad, can we meet up? So we, we met up and we went and had lunch on the water in San Diego, and then we got to go do the tour of the aircraft carrier down there, which was, uh, the Midway. So that was a great way to spend the day with my son and catch up. And he's got— he brought my first granddaughter in. Her name's Josie. So that's a new thing for us. She's going to be 5 months old. So a lot of changes lately for my family, right?

[00:21:35.670] - Big Rich Klein

And, and where are they? Where are your kids located? Are they all like in the same area or did they spread out?

[00:21:45.860] - Brent Goegebuer

3 of my 3 boys are back up in Washington where they grew up their younger years. And then my daughter is in, in Texas with her husband.

[00:21:53.440] - Big Rich Klein

Okay. All right. I like Texas.

[00:21:56.850] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, she's in Fort Worth and she seems very happy and they're doing well and I'm very proud of them.

[00:22:01.200] - Big Rich Klein

Great. And so let's, let's go back to 4WheelParts. Okay. 40 stores, go to 125. That's a, that's a heck of a growth for, oh, 18 years. Or so.

[00:22:17.650] - Brent Goegebuer

A lot of years. Yeah, I was there 23, 23 years.

[00:22:21.400] - Big Rich Klein

And so that's a, that's quite a growth pattern there. And everybody that, that I know that at least at the manager level and stuff said it was definitely a family and it, and the Adlers took care of everybody. Um, you know, like you said yourself with the passing of your dad, what was, what was the thing about about them that, that was the most intriguing? Was it, was it that, that sense of family, or what was it?

[00:22:54.480] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, I mean, well, a lot of it was a ferocity that, that they pushed. Greg knew how to get the right team in place at corporate and in stores where each person did their own job. We had a guy running wholesale, we had a guy running the internet. Each person kind of competed with each other. So he was basically what he, you know, he, he ran the orchestra of chaos. Everybody pushed, pushed, pushed, but Greg knew how to manage all these personalities, and that's what made us successful. We all wanted to grow, we all wanted to be the best, you know. There wasn't an event I went to that I didn't want the most sales or the stores to have, you know, a record sale day. And but he knew how to manage all those, how to push it, how to say the right things, and that was the winning combination. I believe that's what made them, you know, very, very successful, was managing personalities and knowing when to pull back and, and when family was number one, you know, when business needed to go number two. Yeah.

[00:23:51.690] - Big Rich Klein

And, uh, your job there was, was it to run the shows, the Salesforce shows and stuff, or what?

[00:24:00.990] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, for the first years it was all It was, uh, yeah, exactly that. It was outside events, marketing on outside events. So I bought our, our first semi-truck, and, you know, we had got up to 7 of them, you know, that we had going to the shows.

[00:24:15.020] - Big Rich Klein

Wow.

[00:24:15.580] - Brent Goegebuer

And, and grew just— we were able to take these events and turn them into profit centers where I put a satellite, you know, back before Elon Musk, you know, made it super easy for all of us. But they, they made it easy to get, you know, I got a satellite and was able to run sales from events and You know, we'd have some small number and the next year we'd come back with the truck and inventory and do it right. And, and, you know, just made it into like its own mobile store.

[00:24:39.730] - Big Rich Klein

Right. That, that works really well. We, I worked for Sears Automotive for a number of years as a store manager. And one of the things that we used to do is go to like the Good Guys shows and we would take truckloads of tires and, you know, semi-trucks would show up there. We'd unload them, set up a big display of tires and do tire sales there and tires and rims. And we would, you know, most of the time what it was is the people could take the tires with them. Rims were a little harder, you know, getting the right, you know, offset and bolt pattern and all that. Of course, the rim selections back then weren't quite as like they are nowadays. There seemed to be more of a consistency between patterns and stuff and offsets. But we, uh, especially for, for hot rodders, and, you know, the— they could take the tires with them, go to the local store, you know, they'd get a deal on mounting and all that kind of stuff. And we did great at the events, and I really enjoyed it because it was getting out of the box and being able to meet the customer you know, in their environment.

[00:25:51.970] - Big Rich Klein

Did you feel the same way with, with Four Wheel Parts and the, and the shows that you guys did?

[00:25:56.370] - Brent Goegebuer

100%. The people coming to these events were passionate, and they had the same passion that I had and our, you know, our team had. They were there because they wanted to be. They paid money to be there, and it was our job to offer them a good deal or a good service. And yeah, it was one of those, you know, relationships that built on each other. But events grew and grew and you know, and right up until we hit the old COVID and there was a reset.

[00:26:19.610] - Big Rich Klein

Right. And how was it during that, the 2007, '08, '09, when the housing market and the economy took a dump? Did you guys, did you guys weather that really well or did the stores kind of suffer?

[00:26:38.010] - Brent Goegebuer

Well, everyone's— every company suffered and the Atlas had to make a lot of hard decisions. Greg did. And, and let people, you know, where we needed to make money. We still were a business, you know, and it hates to let family members go and those kind of things, employees go. But they made decisions. We didn't. We pulled back. But in marketing, we really kept pushing. So a lot of, you know, unfortunately smaller businesses went down that people pulled back what they were doing, and we, we went more on what we were doing. We spent more. We stayed strong in the magazines and the ads that were popular back then. And, uh, it came out, you know, when you came out of that recession, we were really on top. It was a great time, right? We weathered the storm.

[00:27:18.260] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah. Um, that's one of the things that always, that always amazed me, is that how companies, when, when sales would, would start to drop, one of the first things they do is cut an advertising budget. And it's like, well, if you're not advertising you're not going to sell.

[00:27:39.550] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, it's, it's one of those very, you know, double-edged swords. That was a tough deal. But yeah, I, I really believe that we really came out on top because we kept pushing, we kept on the gas. We had to make adjustments just like everybody else, right? But we, you know, we stayed pretty, pretty strong in marketing and, uh, and, and came out. Like I said, it really, really brought some good years in those future years. For growth.

[00:28:03.270] - Big Rich Klein

And I know that like the Reno store was a franchise store and wasn't company-owned. I guess the name was, but it was leased out, that kind of thing. Um, how many stores—

[00:28:14.290] - Brent Goegebuer

actually, that was our— so, well, that might have been pre that, but the Reno store that's been there the last 10 years, or, you know, that's a spot that, uh, they found and we put— we opened it and it's been our team the whole time. So it was, it was definitely company-owned.

[00:28:28.200] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, I think it was back in the early 2000s is what I'm thinking.

[00:28:31.570] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, very likely. Yeah.

[00:28:34.090] - Big Rich Klein

So, okay. And so that mo— all the stores at that point, say 10 years ago, were, were company-owned?

[00:28:42.160] - Brent Goegebuer

Exactly. When I had first started, there even was a, like, a Floral Parks, Mexico that was more of a friend handshake. But, um, as we grew, you had to end those things. As you're looking to get sold, you know, you need to, you need to own your assets, and that's what we did.

[00:28:54.440] - Big Rich Klein

Right, right. And, uh, what are the kind of— what kind of things did you enjoy as a family for recreation when you were working at 4 Wheel Parts? Because I, I'm sure that consumed a lot of your time, um, but did you have time to continue wheeling, or what kind of activities did you guys do?

[00:29:17.140] - Brent Goegebuer

Uh, we did, and luckily during those years— so I mean, I, I go way back— I got to do Top Truck Challenge and And we went to that, and they had that little mini Rubicon. I had never seen rocks, you know, even, even of that small scale when I was in Washington. So it was an eye-opener. But that's when things, you know, kind of, okay, I need to build a different car, get bigger. King of the Hammers came around, uh, Greg did it. So my family was very supportive going to the races at King of the Hammers and, you know, taking the motorhomes. We would go to the events up in, in Lake Tahoe and rent a little motorhome, and I would set up a little booth and all the kids would come. So they'd get to camp and, you know, made a lot of great friends like Scott Becker and different people up there. Uh, but the kids really got to do a lot more outdoor stuff. And I can remember my son, you know, at 3 years old asleep in the, in the baby chair. We're wheeling like crazy through the mud and he's sound asleep.

[00:30:09.470] - Brent Goegebuer

Great memory.

[00:30:12.200] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, I had my, uh, my daughter, her first, uh her first— well, it wasn't a rollover, it was just kind of a flop on the Rubicon. And I think she was probably about 8 or 10 months old. I mean, we had her pretty much duct taped into a car seat. She couldn't move much at all, but she just sat back there and laughed, thought it was the funniest thing.

[00:30:34.890] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, it's— those are great memories. But yeah, they really got to grow up in our world. And as the Truck Fest got bigger, the kids would get to go— they get to go to Hawaii and do different things and if anyone went in those years to Off-Road Expo, my kids would be out front handing out bags, you know, and they're 7 years old. They actually, they loved growing up and it really helped them be a lot more social and be more successful, I think, having all that, that experience, you know, just with adults and, and being out there in the world.

[00:31:02.340] - Big Rich Klein

Right. And so, um, did you get a chance to wheel much, you know, personally, without not being like a competition or for work. But, you know, when, you know, if you did go out to an event, um, did you guys go out to trail ride events like some of the Cal Four Wheel events, or what kind of— or was it just mostly the Truck Fests?

[00:31:25.420] - Brent Goegebuer

No, no, we went to a ton of events, and I was there, got to do the Rubicon so many times with all my friends, and, you know, and what do you call fellow, you know, companies that all turned into really great friends. Yeah, we, we got to do a lot of wheeling. Um, in the last few years, not so much, but always, you know, Moab and all those different things. I got to enjoy all of it. Texas, Tennessee, um, the old Superlift Park. You remember that? Oh yeah, that's a wheel, all that. And just all over the country, really. I was very fortunate to get to go to the different places, and it was, you know, I got to call it work.

[00:31:59.300] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, that's awesome. That's awesome. I, I think as an event promoter I, I, my wheeling ended up becoming mostly winter wheeling, um, because we were so much, you know, spending so much time going to events and coming back that it was hard to find time to, to really, you know, especially hit the Rubicon, which is I consider my home trail. So it was, it was more winter wheeling than it was, you know, especially in the, the heyday of our rock crawling events. Um, I can say now I get to wheel a lot more, but that's, uh, you know, that— and that's, that's great.

[00:32:41.620] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, you're, you're lucky in that. And I— and right now, in this stage of my life, the wheeling's been a lot less. I just got— did go to Easter Jeep, had a great time, got to do quite a bit of wheeling, but it's really, you know, I'm juggling different things these days, different you know, roles. And it just— time is precious, you know. Plus, kids are growing up and you got to see grandkids, and time's precious, right?

[00:33:06.800] - Big Rich Klein

So, so what are you doing nowadays? Are you, are you more like a freelance consultant, or, you know, do you have a name badge and a business card with somebody that, uh, that you didn't post on LinkedIn?

[00:33:21.500] - Brent Goegebuer

I haven't changed. Yeah, I do need to update all those. I'll be upfront, but I You know, after all those years of being at everything and in front of everything, you just kind of take a step back and, and, uh, you know, regroup. But yeah, so now I'm Vice President of AccuAir Suspension, and we do air suspensions for Jeeps. Um, you can get them right through Mopar. So it's a new thing that obviously not everyone knows you can put air suspension in a Jeep, so it takes some— a while to get used to because I grew up in the, you know, springs, coilover world and racing world and Even I said, wow, I don't know about this. But once I drove one and realized how stable it was and what you could do to lower it down to get in, you know, I was like, this, this has a future and can get, can get legs. And it has gotten legs. So it's growing and growing. And I've now been there a year and a half.

[00:34:06.480] - Big Rich Klein

Oh nice.

[00:34:06.660] - Brent Goegebuer

And then I also am vice president of, uh, it's called Arnott Cycles. So we do the same thing but for Harley. So you go to Sturgis and you see these guys dropping their bikes down and Harleys. So I also run with that division, and I work with Mark Turner, who's been in the industry forever and has been great. So we're growing and keep pushing on that path. And some weird little twist too, as you know, I left Four Wheel Parts, as you know, when the Wheel Pros action happened, and then that was a lot of downsizing and selling. And now I am back working with Greg, and we are putting the Truck Fest back on.

[00:34:42.930] - Big Rich Klein

Okay, great.

[00:34:44.290] - Brent Goegebuer

So that's a huge deal and great for the company, great for marketing, and then great for our vendors because our vendors get a lot more— they only get sales, but they get to be right there with customers and shake hands in a real-world environment like we used to do. So we are started— have started those back up. We just did Dallas a month ago, and we have Ontario, California coming up here in May.

[00:35:04.440] - Big Rich Klein

Excellent. I'm glad to— I'm glad to hear that, that Like I said, you know, that Greg, I mean, his timing just seemed to be so good on all that, um, you know, selling it and then watching those guys, watching that big corporation come in and start making changes. And everybody, everybody in the industry I think was, was moaning when they saw the stuff that they were trying to do and just thinking like, what, why are they ruining this? And then all of a sudden, you know, it's, it's on to another person, on to another person. And then bam, you know, it's, uh, Greg picks it back up.

[00:35:45.030] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, it's a very surprising twist though. But you know what made it successful is the passion. He, he is very passionate. If you guys ever spent— you've spent time with him.

[00:35:54.590] - Big Rich Klein

Yes.

[00:35:55.690] - Brent Goegebuer

Um, and most of the people he employs around him are very, very passionate. And that goes down through his ranks and teams and You know, you got to, you got to repair the damage that got when you sell companies. And he's the right guy to do that and build it back up. So on the right track. And, you know, the industry's— it's a weird time in the world right now, as we all know, with gas prices and that kind of stuff. But, you know, they're going to— they'll come out ahead as they usually do. He's got a plan.

[00:36:22.000] - Big Rich Klein

Right. And I think the gas prices are temporary because of the situation worldwide. But I think that you're going to I think that personally, I think that it's going to come down. It may not come down to where it was previously, and California will never come down until we, we change leadership in this state and, and open it back up to, to business and not be so anti-business. But we'll see.

[00:36:50.800] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, exactly. We will see. So, but great to see things are still going. You've got the, you know, your events, different events. That are coming back and are starting to grow again and love seeing that.

[00:37:01.240] - Big Rich Klein

And yeah, our small events are 50+ cars anymore again, you know, I mean, I don't know if we'll ever hit the 80 to 100 cars at events again, but, you know, it's— we're getting nice solid numbers, good spectator counts. So people are starting to get out again, even, even with the gas prices the way they are. So it's, uh, that's encouraging. And then I got a young guy that, that, that's my partner that's buying the business, and he's, he's all gung-ho. He used to compete, um, and now he's, uh, now he's the business owner. So it's good to see.

[00:37:41.450] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, that is good. And, you know, in, in our younger days, we didn't compete with people buying internet games so much and all of the other things that they can do and stay in the house. It was a lot lot more of a lifestyle for more people, you know, and newer generations into different things. And usually those things make swings back, so I hope that swing back is soon, right?

[00:38:03.070] - Big Rich Klein

And I think that's what's good is with, like, with the situation with We Rock is that Jake Goode, who used to be Kansas City store four-wheel parts manager, um, and then went out on his own shop, but he was, you know, he's He's now the We Rock— he's the half of the business that's taking care of the events. We do a lot of behind the scenes, but eventually he will— he'll be 100% owner. And it's with him and his kids and being a lot younger, you know, he's in his 40s, the kids are in their 20s, they're, you know, they're a lot more savvy to technology. So, you know, they do like live shows on Wednesdays, and they, you know, they're— they've got, uh, the live streaming is, is right on, you know, right on par with what they need to be, you know, all that kind of stuff, which I never felt like I had the time to do all that. It was— I just wanted to put on a good competition for the drivers, and I figured— and that was my goal from day one was if I have a good competition and the drivers love it, everything else will happen.

[00:39:18.620] - Big Rich Klein

But as technology grows and the spectators didn't, you know, because they were out doing other things or, you know, at home, getting to them now is more important.

[00:39:30.780] - Brent Goegebuer

And it is. I mean, just speaking for myself, I went back to college and to UC Irvine to go back and make sure I understood all the internet marketing. It's a big deal. And you, you know, I needed to grasp it more than what I had just learned. And the live streams are huge, uh, as you know. And now you're chasing AI. So what's the first thing that comes up when you Google something? The AI answer is a paragraph, what AI thinks. So now you've really got to capture that. How can you be the Bible or the, you know, the word for that part when AI comes up that has something to do with your business? So it's changed again.

[00:40:05.610] - Big Rich Klein

Yep.

[00:40:06.660] - Brent Goegebuer

You don't just go to websites. AI answers first.

[00:40:09.770] - Big Rich Klein

I do miss the days of, uh, forums though.

[00:40:12.260] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, there's nothing like Pirate. Ever been out there again, at least in our industry.

[00:40:17.390] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, hopefully somebody comes up with something that, that where people can interact more, um, easy to search. You can find all of the tech. Um, I know that there's a there's somebody that's working on something like that right now that I can't talk about yet because don't want the competition. But, uh, you know, I'm too old and too stupid to do that kind of stuff, but the one thing I can do is help market something like that. So I'm hoping that, uh, I'm hoping that the guy gets us off the ground here pretty soon and we can rock and roll on it. But I think people will be really surprised in, in the being able to take social media and forums and kind of combine the two to, to something people haven't seen yet. So it'll be interesting.

[00:41:05.920] - Brent Goegebuer

And that's exciting. And I look forward to hearing that. I would love to see the kind of the change come back where you've actually got a lot more passionate people in those forums, not just what do they call the guys on there just typing bad answers.

[00:41:19.410] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, because what they do is they, they want to be the know-it-all. So if somebody asks a question, what they do is they do a Google search, get the information from somebody that doesn't really know, or they watch a video of somebody doing an install that has absolutely no clue what they're really doing. And, you know, they're not, it's not experts, people that have been doing it for, you know, 25 years. And there's just so much misinformation out there, it's insane. Absolutely.

[00:41:51.260] - Brent Goegebuer

It is for sure. And everyone's so tough on the internet. Just make it different.

[00:41:55.430] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah.

[00:41:56.180] - Brent Goegebuer

And say things you would never say in the real world.

[00:42:01.120] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, that's one of the things that gets me in trouble because I will say the same thing face to face. People go, "Oh yeah, you want to come say that to my face?" And I'm saying, "Sure, where do I meet you?" And then all of a sudden the screen goes blank.

[00:42:18.830] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, what happened to you? But yeah, we're very fortunate. I'm fortunate to be in the industry this long, you know. It's all I've ever done, it's all I know, and it's, it's what I care about. And got to enjoy it with friends and family all these years. So not looking to retire anytime soon. I got tons of energy, and as long as, you know, you stay healthy, you just keep pushing, right? And I want to see us— I want to see the industry keep continuing to grow and new things always looking for something new, which, you know, you go through spurts, I think, where a bunch of technology jumps and then it kind of slows up, even in our industry.

[00:42:53.180] - Big Rich Klein

And so where are you living now? Are you, are you still in Southern California?

[00:42:57.970] - Brent Goegebuer

So I have a home in Southern California and a home in Washington State, actually the home where I grew up.

[00:43:03.990] - Big Rich Klein

Okay, awesome.

[00:43:05.050] - Brent Goegebuer

So same deal. I'm taking care of my mother, who's 85 next week.

[00:43:11.670] - Big Rich Klein

I know that feeling. Yep, I'm doing the same thing with my 87-year-old mom. Yep.

[00:43:17.280] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah. And then I have the home, home here in, in Southern California, which, uh, I don't know how much longer I'll keep it, to be honest. It's a big home and I'm by myself with the kids moving out and growing up, so it's time for change.

[00:43:30.870] - Big Rich Klein

So that's a big age difference between you and your mom. Were you one of the younger kids, or did they just get started late in life?

[00:43:38.870] - Brent Goegebuer

I'm the youngest. Yeah, there's a 30-year difference almost exactly. And, uh, I am a twin.

[00:43:45.520] - Big Rich Klein

Oh wow.

[00:43:46.500] - Brent Goegebuer

So I have a fraternal twin and lives in Las Vegas. And, uh, we're— if you've ever seen us or met us, complete opposites. He loves computers, very tech savvy for, you know, actually doing, uh, the programming, all that stuff. And I, I use it for a work tool. I'm good at it, but it's, it's different. I would rather be outside and ski and be off-roading, and he'd rather be inside working, you know, doing computer things. Just two different personalities, right?

[00:44:11.610] - Big Rich Klein

Right. Just because you guys might be mirror images doesn't mean that, uh, that, that the— in the inside, that brain working of the brain is going to be the same.

[00:44:21.310] - Brent Goegebuer

Not at all. He's a— he's just— but yeah, so there's a, there's a gap. My brothers are, are older in their 60s, and, uh, okay, I'm, I'm the youngest, so all is good. And except, you know, Dad passed away, but Mom's still going strong, and she's doing an African, uh, adventure next year. So she still goes, she bowls twice a week, she goes to the gym. You know, I hope to live that same life.

[00:44:43.690] - Big Rich Klein

Wow, that's great. I can't say that my, that, that my mom is in that kind of condition, that's for sure. But she was quite the athlete as a, as a, as a kid and a teenager. And then, you know, worked hard her, her whole life. But doesn't have that. She worked in high-energy radiation treating cancer patients, and I think that, that some of that, uh, had an effect on her.

[00:45:11.390] - Brent Goegebuer

But yeah, I imagine the things you're exposed to definitely do. But yeah, I'm very proud of her, and she's, you know, she's traveling everywhere.

[00:45:19.690] - Big Rich Klein

So that's awesome, going to Africa at that age.

[00:45:23.350] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, she did Belgium last year. She did was up Panama Canal a year before, so she's keeping active.

[00:45:31.240] - Big Rich Klein

That is awesome. That's awesome. I hope to travel like that someday. You know, been to, been to, you know, the, you know, Latin America and North America and Australia and Japan, but that's it. And I, we hope to travel. Our goal is to hit all all the countries that have the name— that have the word land in it.

[00:45:57.890] - Brent Goegebuer

Nice.

[00:45:58.450] - Big Rich Klein

So that's, that's kind of a goal. Hopefully we get there.

[00:46:02.950] - Brent Goegebuer

That's funny. And I, I know in my, my life right now, it's— travel is a big deal. So we went— we just went to Greece. We went to— I just got back from Italy right before Jeep Beach, 2 days before Jeep Beach this year. So went from major time zone shifts, uh, loved Italy, and then, uh, Went to Australia last year too. So same deal. It's just your priorities change.

[00:46:23.400] - Big Rich Klein

How much time did you get to spend in Australia?

[00:46:26.690] - Brent Goegebuer

Uh, 10 days.

[00:46:28.160] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, we went for 18. And I have to say that that's not near enough. We've— the next time we go, we've talked about buying a ute that's set up for overlanding and spending at least 6 months exploring the country.

[00:46:45.240] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, that, that would be amazing. And I, I was lucky we got there. And I know there's a gentleman named Billy owns Double Black Off-Road in Australia. He said we went out in the Outback and got to go wheeling for the first 2 days. And then I, I got to see, uh, Ben Napier.

[00:47:00.750] - Big Rich Klein

Oh good.

[00:47:01.940] - Brent Goegebuer

And hang out with Ben and his family and do some really fun adventures there too. You get to see, uh, got to see Sydney with him. So Uh, it was a great trip and recommend anybody gets over there. Nice to have friends over there that could kind of give you the secrets and take you to the places that you wanted to see. But the Outback was very cool, and Wheeling there was definitely different. I think everything wanted to kill me.

[00:47:23.280] - Big Rich Klein

Yeah, that, that country has a lot of, a lot of things that can do that.

[00:47:28.570] - Brent Goegebuer

Yeah, it was fun, but great big spiders, big lizards, but, uh, great memories too.

[00:47:35.850] - Big Rich Klein

Awesome. Well, Brent, I want to say thank you so much for spending the time and talking about your life and your history and everything that you've done business-wise and are doing. I think it's, uh, I think it's very cool that you've had the opportunities, but, you know, many of us that are in this industry, we create our opportunities. And I think that's one of the things that you have done as well, is that, you know, you, you put yourself out there, but you're willing to work hard for it as well.

[00:48:11.660] - Brent Goegebuer

I think you hit that on the money for most— for successful business right there. I mean, yeah, you got to take a little risk, but yeah, you've got to go out of your comfort zone. And was able to do that quite a bit, and, and, uh, very rewarded. So, and great to see the industry still going.

[00:48:27.680] - Big Rich Klein

Yes, so true. Well, you have a great day, and I'm glad, uh, you know, happy birthday on 55, and that you got to see one of your, your sons yesterday. And I just hope that, uh, the rest of your life you, you get everything that you want and, and you hope for.

[00:48:46.100] - Brent Goegebuer

Well, thank you very much. I wish you the same. Thanks, Rich.

[00:48:48.590] - Big Rich Klein

All right, you take care, and, uh, please remember to send me a photo.

[00:48:52.840] - Brent Goegebuer

You got it.

[00:48:53.560] - Big Rich Klein

All right. Have a great day.

[00:48:55.650] - Brent Goegebuer

You too. Thank you.

[00:48:56.220] - Big Rich Klein

Okay. Bye-bye.

[00:48:57.750] - Brent Goegebuer

Bye.

[00:48:58.860] - Big Rich Klein

Well, that's another episode of Conversations with Big Rich. I'd like to thank you all for listening. If you could do us a favor and leave us a review on any podcast service that you happen to be listening on, or send us an email or a text message or a Facebook message and let me know any ideas that you have, or if there's anybody that you have that you think would be a great guest. Please forward the contact information to me so that we can try to get them on. And always remember, live life to the fullest. Enjoying life is a must. Follow your dreams and live life with all the gusto you can. Thank you.