There is some debate as to who the John is in J & J Asphalt Paving Inc. It could be for John Sr. or for John Jr., both of whom were around when the Overland Park, Kan., firm was founded in 1978. One thing is for certain, the other J is for Jim, one of the three Gochenours who was part of J & J Asphalt Paving at its inception.

"Dad said it's for me and Jim, but since his name is also John, we don't know for sure," said John Jr., who currently runs J & J Asphalt Paving with his brother, Jim. "Dad started the business after splitting off from another that he and his brother, Raymond, had. In the end, it really doesn't matter whether it stands for Dad or me. What does is that the three of us were together at the outset and built J & J Asphalt Paving together."

At the beginning, John Sr., John Jr. and Jim were the only employees. Occasionally, they would augment the size to four by hiring a part-time worker as needed. The early days were focused on residential driveways and small patching jobs. By the time John Sr. retired in 2000, J & J Asphalt Paving had built up to about 10 employees and was performing a lot of new construction. During the past 25 years, the emphasis has shifted again.

"Now, we're doing a lot of parking lot rehabs," explained John Jr. "We like to go in and do the concrete curbs, sidewalks, fix the drainage and lay the asphalt. Projects range in size from $20,000 to about $500,000, and we typically complete about 100 per year. Our concentration is mainly in about a 40-mile radius of Johnson County, Kansas."

Third Generation Involvement

A third generation is heavily involved with J & J Asphalt Paving as John Jr.'s son, Nick, is now a full-time staff member as well as John Jr.'s sons-in-law, Joe Rhynerson and Dylon Needham. Nick's sister Paige is the head secretary of J & J Asphalt Paving.

"They have already figured out how to divide duties up and run the business going forward," said John Jr. "I think it will be helpful to have three heads working together."

Each brings a good deal of experience into their leadership roles. Nick grew up helping out when he could and developed a love for the business, which he joined full time about seven years ago.

"I aways looked up at what he was doing, and when I started being able to work, I knew this is what I wanted to do," said Nick. "The upside of being able to work alongside family is you're already close with your coworkers. You know everyone is going to put in their best effort to make it a success."

Dylon has been with J & J Asphalt Paving for about 15 years.

"I started here with the idea in mind that this would be a summer job when I was in high school," said Dylon, who was dating John Jr.'s daughter, Paige, at the time; the couple married not long after and now have three children. "I was planning to go to college, so I thought I could make some good money to help with that. Instead, this turned into a full-time career. It gets into your blood."

Dylon added, "You wear a lot of hats doing this. I've gone from raking and shoveling to running a screed to operating the paver. When it comes down to it, we all do whatever is necessary to get the job done."

Joe joined J & J Asphalt Paving about five years ago after working for a utility company, and he and his wife, Lorin, have two children. He operates several pieces of equipment for the company to lay asphalt, do concrete work and more.

"This is a little more labor intensive than where I was before and a lot more weather-dependent when it comes to being able to work, but it's great, and I'm looking forward to us working together to keep J & J Asphalt Paving humming along," said Joe. "I don't know exactly how we'll play our roles out, but I know it's going to work out fine because we share common goals."

Paving With LeeBoy

John Jr. said J & J Asphalt Paving began working with Kirby-Smith Machinery Inc. (KSM) about 11 years ago when J & J Asphalt Paving purchased the 85-hp LeeBoy 8510C asphalt paver it uses for larger paving jobs such as parking lot overlays. It will pave up to 15 ft.

"Kirby-Smith had just taken over the LeeBoy dealership at the time and was establishing its presence in the Kansas City area," John Jr. recalled. "We have always had LeeBoy pavers because they are easy to operate, have great maneuverability and are sound machines. I'm a loyalist. LeeBoy has always done what we needed it to, so I stay with the one that I brought to the dance."

John Jr., added, "With LeeBoy, we've never had significant downtime. Regular maintenance is about it. If we have needed something, Kirby-Smith has been right there. Our relationship with them and our sales rep Joel Thomason has been great."

With Thomason's help, J & J Asphalt Paving recently acquired the new 49-hp LeeBoy 1000G that paves up to 13 ft. Its compact size allows for paving in tighter areas compared to the larger 8510C, making patching and smaller jobs easier.

"We can run it with two guys instead of three, so it's convenient," said Nick. "The tilting hopper and easy-to-run screen are great features. It has electronics for the automatic augers, so you don't have to click them on and off. When you feed, it starts and stops and will keep feeding the asphalt. We use it for parking lots and driveways."

"Joel has been great to work with. He's knowledgeable about the paving industry and the equipment that's going to be most productive," said Dylon. "If we ever do need something, Kirby-Smith is right there to take care of us."

Continuing On Same Path

During the past few years, J & J Asphalt Paving has added concrete paving to its resume. That's become an increasingly bigger share of its work, but the largest percentage remains laying asphalt. As Nick, Dylon and Joe transition into fully running the company during the next four to five years, they're planning for that to continue to be the norm.

"We want to keep on doing what we have been, which is mostly commercial work," said Nick. "A lot of our work is for repeat customers who we have developed good relationships with, so we're focused on continuing to provide them with outstanding, quality work. We have a contract with a school district, and that's a big part of our business, so we want to continue providing them good service too."

(*The opinions expressed here are based on the customer's specific experience. Results may vary.This article is reprinted with permission of Kirby-Smith Machinery.)