It’s only fitting that the urn carrying Len Kane Sr.’s ashes will be part of a semi truck convoy in his memory.
Len Sr., who succumbed to cancer on July 16 at age 84, was a lifelong trucker. He transported goods on both two and four wheels since the mid-1950s.
As a rolling homage to Len Sr.’s life, a heavy truck funeral convoy with his ashes will take place Saturday, July 29, starting at 3 p.m.
Departing Ranger Yard, at 9470 192 St. in Port Kells, the convoy of between 20 and 30 semis will travel through Port Kells and Walnut Grove, and will be followed by a Celebration of Life at the Sandman Signature Hotel 8828 201 St., starting at 5 p.m.
This tribute is appropriate, notes son Len Kane Jr., who says truckers are a tight-knit community.
“The industry is filled with really great people, grassroots, hard-working… a really great group of people,” Len Jr. said.
Len Jr. said his dad “had a strong work ethic and really gravitated towards the industry.”
“Trucking doesn’t always get a good reputation in the public eye, but it is a trade,” Len Jr. added.
“We haul equipment but we have to take it to another level.”
The convoy will travel this route.
To be part of the convoy, RSVP to Len Jr. by calling 604-290-6743 or emailing len@lenstg.com by July 28.
Decades of dedication
Len Sr. started his trucking career in the mid-1950s with a 74 Series Harley-Davidson and a commercial sidecar, delivering parts and packages for Atom Delivery Ltd. to Vancouver’s industrial district.
It wasn’t long until he upgraded to a half-ton pickup that offered increased capacity and payload to his carrier.
In his spare time, Len Sr. was a self-taught autobody specialist, known for his work building trailers and truck decks.
In June 1964, Len Sr. was approached by a friend to build a small lift truck hauling trailer for the superintendent of BC Conveying. The design had to be something completely new, low to the ground, and able to haul lift trucks behind a two-and-a-half tonne truck. Before the end of 1964, he built his own version of the small lift truck hauling trailer that was much wider and could tilt to the ground.
Once Len Sr. and his new truck and trailer combination were in service, Lift Truck Delivery (later known as Len’s Lift Truck Delivery) was born.
Soon equipment dealers from all across Metro Vancouver were asking for their high-mast lift trucks to be hauled.
“What started small grew into one of BC’s most inventive heavy equipment transportation services,” Len Jr. recalled.
As profits increased, Len Sr. was able to anticipate the company’s needs and made staffing and equipment changes to accommodate for the boom in business. In 1978, he saw the opportunity to expand into heavy haul and purchased Ranger Transport Ltd. Len’s and Ranger extended its services to cross-border travel and began specializing in a variety of other transportation services.
In 2008 the economic recession hit and Len Jr. became the director of the Len’s Transportation Group.
In early 2017, Len’s Transportation became COR (Certificate of Recognition) certified, meaning the company has been recognized as an employer who maintains some of the strictest safety guidelines.
Today, Len’s Transportation Group owns and manages all trucking operations that come under the Len’s or Ranger Transport name.
Len’s Transportation Group added heavy haul transportation, lowbed transportation, high mast forklift transportation, and over-dimensional transportation. On average, Len’s and Ranger accumulate over a million and a half kilometres (over 9,000 trips) a year.
The Kane family also has a history of charitable giving, helping local youth sports associations, The Learning Disability Association, North Shore Neighbourhood House, InspireHealth, National Sports Trust Fund, and United Way.
