May 11, 2026
Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/n2-i0RKCoWs
Craig Broerman left a corporate mechanical engineering career, sold the money meant for his grandparents' farm, and bought a belt trailer in 2019. Six years later, he and his cousin Alan Lennartz are running 7–10 trucks across the Midwest hauling DDGs, soybean meal, cottonseed, and industrial products — and they did it before either of them turned 32.
In this episode, Jared sits down with Craig and Alan on location in Portland, Indiana to talk about the BulkLoads find that changed everything, the phone call in a North Carolina cornfield that made Craig get out of the truck for good, the mistakes they made buying "shiny" equipment, and the insurance and scaling realities nobody warns young carriers about.
If you're an owner-operator, small fleet, or thinking about getting into bulk trucking — this one's a roadmap.
⏱ TIMECODES
00:00 – On location in Portland, Indiana
00:43 – From mechanical engineer to belt trailer owner
02:25 – Finding BulkLoads and the first direct customer
03:25 – Retiring his wife from her corporate job
04:40 – Alan's path: asphalt, COVID, and "buy a truck"
06:00 – The conversation that split the businesses
06:30 – The cornfield phone call that changed everything
09:40 – How they funded the first truck (the farm gamble)
11:00 – Why posted loads = desperation (and opportunity)
13:30 – Reading the cottonseed market before it shifted
15:30 – Playing the long game on rates and relationships
17:15 – Why Craig thinks 5 years ahead, not 5 days
20:30 – What's actually moving in/out of Ohio–Indiana ag country
22:18 – Why they can't run hoppers in this region
24:40 – The real ROI of the BulkLoads Conference
27:30 – Trust, transparency, and family in business
28:00 – Biggest mistakes: overpriced trucks and hiring too soon
31:30 – How they decide when to scale (and when to wait)
36:50 – Spec'ing equipment: powertrains, trailers, and tonnage
39:00 – 48' vs 53' Conestoga — three months of research
42:30 – DDG market shifts and lane risk
44:00 – The insurance ceiling nobody talks about
47:20 – Advice for young people getting into trucking and logistics
51:30 – Why this part of the country looks the way it does
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