Proud Kiwi takes keys to milestone Mack

Mark ‘Skip’ Golden reached a major milestone in his long career in the transport industry when he first laid eyes on his brand new Mack Super-Liner at the manufacturer’s Brisbane HQ earlier this month.

“When I heard about the 780hp Super-Liner from a conference call, I thought ‘imagine getting the first one off the line for New Zealand?’” said Skip, who is also celebrating 25 years since he bought his first truck.

“I initialled an agreement without even asking the purchase price.”

As a proud Mack owner, the boss of Golden Contracting, based in Silverdale, 30km north of Auckland, said there was never any question about his decision.

“This wasn’t just about the horsepower, it’s the conventional look of the Mack, especially with the commemorative big hood Mack offered to fit on this truck.

“It’s a numbered truck, I want it to be remembered, and Taite who will be pedalling it, is Mack through and through himself.”

But while it might sound like an emotion-based acquisition to the fleet, Skip said there’s some hard business logic behind it as well.

“I rate trucks by their cents-per-kilometre over the life of the vehicle, and the Macks have consistently outperformed other brands when it comes to durability, reliability and fuel efficiency,” he said.

“We had a Trident that we ran for 550,000km before it went for a mid-life, and that cost us a fraction of what we were expecting.”

Skip’s drivers also love the Macks, something he attributes in part to the mDRIVE automated transmission.

“No other transmission gets near it,” Skip said. “Just when you’re thinking you might need to change gear it does it. It’s so intuitive, it knows exactly when to shift and it’s very smooth on the pedal. It’s peace of mind in the gnarly terrain.

“Some people may call me soft for not using a manual, I just say, ‘What are you doing to yourself? Why get fatigued driving when the mDRIVE can just drive you around, and with better fuel efficiency?’”

Skip said the Super-Liner’s 780hp Euro 6 engine is also something he’s looking forward to driving.

“It’s not like we need that much power, but it gives even better fuel efficiency, and you know if you really want to let the Big Dog out to eat then it’s there,” he said.

“We are more than happy to be passed on the flats, but you’d want to be checking your mirrors on the climb!”

Golden Contracting, specialists in cartage and aggregate supply, work their trucks hard, doing double shifts, supporting roading, commercial projects and rural farms around the upper North Island for over 800 customers.

“You need a mixed fleet for the different things we do, and the Macks give us impressive tare weight, good ground clearance, great visibility and a tight turning circle. The Macks fit us like a glove really,” Skip said.

Skip’s association with Mack goes back to the days when he was working as an engineer, and his friend Dale Fenton had a R Model and a 440 Super-Liner in a yard across the road.

“I was into anything with moving parts, and I just formed a bond with these trucks, I was really drawn to them,” Skip said.

“It was 2015 when our first bulldog entered the fleet, a Mack Trident. Word went out I was in the market and salesmen turned up from every brand, but I took that Trident around the block just once and I was sold.”

After 15 years in the game, Skip finally had a Dog out the front.

He also once bought a Trident at such a good price that he kept in the shed for six years until he needed it. He nicknamed it ‘Not Ready’.

Skip also now has a 100-year anniversary Super-Liner with the bonnet badge ‘Third Wife’, as he said “it’s cheaper to marry a Mack”, and another Trident named ‘Born Ready’.

“Even now we’re looking at the next acquisition, and we’ll keep buying them.

“I’ve always been a bit of a bulldog myself, so the Mack is the ideal truck for me, but there’s more to it than that.

“We go into some pretty rough off-road terrain: forestry skid-sites, farm tracks, loose metal, you name it, and the traction and high torque curve on the Macks is ideally suited for this work. If I go into some of the rough country up the top of the North Island in a Mack, I know I’m coming home that night, they’re dependable.”

This dependability is something he’s come to expect not just from his trucks, but from Mack as a company.

“Mack take things seriously,” Skip said. “You’ve heard people talk about being part of the Mack family? Well, it really is like that. It’s a unique community you join when you buy a Mack. It’s a bit like rugby; there’s a lot of camaraderie beyond the business.”

At this month’s handover, Tony O’Connell, Vice President Mack Trucks Australia, said he was thrilled to be able to deliver this example of Mack’s engineering skills to Golden Contracting.

“This is a company that understands the true value Mack offers, not just in terms of our trucks, but the long-term relationships we build,” O’Connell said.

“We couldn’t be prouder to see the NZ Number One 780hp Super-Liner joining the Golden Contracting stable in New Zealand.”

Scott Holt, General Manager of MTD, Mack Trucks New Zealand’s distributor was also pleased to see the very first 780hp Mack for New Zealand going into the Golden fleet, alongside its other Super-Liner.

“This is certainly a reflection of the strong relationship Skip has with our team and the outstanding quality and performance of Mack over the long term.

“The handover of this unit at VGA in Brisbane is a pivotal moment for Mack in New Zealand, heralding the class leading MP11 Super-Liners and Titans as they start hitting the roads here.

“We are proud to have supported Skip and his team with this impressive Super-Liner that is purpose built for the job, and look forward to seeing it take pride of place on Skip’s Silverdale yard”.

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