special thanks
I don’t think Lauro Acevedo liked me when we met, and I don’t think he likes me now.
But I like him, he’s a legend in the Florida HDD Community and I chose to write about him for my first Contractor spotlight of 2024.
I spoke with Lauro for the first time in early Summer of 2023. He got in touch with me via a mutual friend, to talk about a big project he was working on. He wanted to document this project, and I wanted to help him…Lauro, being the matter of fact, no nonsense guy that he is, really didn’t say much when we spoke…he didn’t ask questions, or really ask me anything other than would I come to Florida as soon as I could….and film this for him.
So I flew to Florida, not knowing what to expect…as soon as I stepped off the plane I entered into what would become a several weeks long south Florida fever dream like nothing I had ever experienced. The humidity was unreal….My camera equipment was foggy and difficult to work with…I couldn’t figure out why there were so many boats up in trees…
…Turns out a large Hurricane had devastated the area only months before, leaving Ft Meyers beach completely destroyed
I could not seem to stop pissing off Lauro. I spent three weeks pouring sweat, wiping fog of camera lenses every few minutes and hopping back and forth across a toll bridge to see what was going on at both ends of this 2 Maxi Rig project mega project…It was a lot to take in, at the same time incredibly slow moving and meticulous.
One day in particular I really annoyed Lauro, I was late to meet him for his on camera interview.
He was pissed and told me to get my life together and “quit smoking crack”
Though I did not smoke crack at the time, nor had I smoked crack in my lifetime…Lauro’s advice still resonated with me, and I have not smoked crack even once since that day thanks to him.
…A day or so later, we tried again, and this time I was early, he was ready, and as soon as it was time to tell his story, I saw a totally different side of Lauro.
He had a story to tell, one that may have never otherwise made it out of his mouth. He spoke about his trade, his long time employees, his family, and his brother with such a deep reverence. I knew a few minutes in that this interview meant a lot to him.
We talked about his company, his early days in the citrus fields, the big 7700 foot HDPE project he just finished, his future, and the possibility of him starting a family one day…it was hot as hell in that shop and we were both soaked in sweat by the time we reached the end of the interview.
…Shortly after that I went back home, began the process of digging through the mountain of material I had collected and pulling it together into its final form.
After a few weeks had passed I sent Lauro a link to a video clip, something I meticulously put together and thought certainly he would be impressed with…it was artistic overkill for HDD perhaps anyway you slice it, and he wasted no time…asking
“why does it look so weird, why can’t you make anything look normal, is that so hard?”
…a question I had asked myself for as long as I can remember…and yet only then did I finally truly feel the answer…”No”, “its not hard”. It’s actually quite a bit easier… Lauro taught me that.
Lauro works to make his slice of the world a better place.
A cool dude, natural hands on leader who takes excellent care of his people, and conducts himself with integrity…a solid cat and great example of how to make the most of the opportunity the HDD Industry provides.
I plan to release Lauro’s full interview in the coming weeks, its packed with stories and one of the best interviews I’ve ever conducted..I will no doubt inadvertently make it weird somehow, which will piss him off.
Thank you Lauro, Mario, and Mario Jr.
The Igo Inc.Family Igo Inc.
What Terry Igo has done in Weatherford, Oklahoma can only be described as every blue-collar family mans dream.
Marco Topete - Storm-Tek
Marcos been installing fiber since before the internet and he really, actually started from nothing and built a wonderful life for his family.
Tanner Betts - Total Boring
This man is about his business 25/8-366… I would never, ever fuck with him for any reason.
Clint is one of the coolest guys I know, at just under 7 feet tall and 300lbs, is the undisputed viking lord of HDD in Iowa.
Clint - Modern Drilling Co.