Chris Jorstad is the manager of the tree division for Lynch Landscape & Tree Service Inc., headquartered in Wayland, Massachusetts. Jorstad says a pick-up truck — specifically a blue 2015 Ford F350 XLT 4×4 Diesel — helps him get around town and complete a variety of duties. On any given day, Jorstad can be found meeting with customers, setting up crews, checking on jobs, working with the crews and — in the winter — plowing driveways. Having worked at Lynch for 25 years, Jorstad oversees several tree crews that handle large tree pruning, removal and stump grinding. The tree division stays busy year round, including snow work, which can be plentiful given their location in the Northeast. In order to keep up with all the tree work, the tree division’s fleet operates three bucket trucks, two log trucks, three chipper trucks, three chippers and three stump grinders. We recently caught up with Jorstad to learn more.
We plow over 400 residential driveways each snow storm. While we have some commercial customers, we primarily focus on residential work. Lynch also offers emergency tree service during storms such as hurricanes, tornadoes or significant wind/snowstorms.
All of our trailers — except mowing — are enclosed with the Lynch logo on them. They act as rolling billboards. Oftentimes people call because they see our truck or trailer. Our logo has been the same for the past 35 years. It’s simple but well known in the area given that we only service seven towns, all just west of Boston.
We have a full-time mechanic who works on all of our trucks. It’s great having someone at the shop and on the road to help fix any problems both big and small. He keeps us going, even when things get busy.
My truck is a 4×4 diesel, as are the majority in our fleet. We need the extra power for towing trailers and 4×4 is a must-have during the winter. In addition to our pick-up trucks, we have Internationals and Isuzus, but we tend to mostly purchase Ford 350s since we plow residential driveways that are narrow with pillars, trees, lamp posts, and just about any other hazard you can imagine.
Tree work is dangerous. My truck is blue but inside my bed is mostly orange. I always carry a hard hat and safety cones. I also keep ear and eye protection in the truck. Tree work is inherently risky, but we put a lot of effort into minimizing that risk.
The Essentials
- PPE — Personal protection equipment is a must in tree work. We have bi-weekly, company-wide safety meetings to ensure all employees know safety is paramount.
- iPhone and charger — I’m always on the road, and being in touch with our customers and crews is critical to our success.
- Poland Springs water — It’s very important to stay hydrated, especially when I’m working with crews.
- Dunkin’ Donuts Coffee — Of course, it’s New England!
- YETI Rambler 30 — I never leave home without it. One of our managers has a brother-in-law that started YETI, so I have a Rambler YETI 50 cooler and lots of YETI gear in general.
- Skoal — Maybe not an essential, but a preference.
