Editor’s Note January/February 2025
At the risk of sounding like an old person (I’m 61), I must ask: How are we to the year 2025 already? For those too young to remember — or not even born — it was kind of a big deal when we stopped putting “19” in front of years and started using “20,” as in 2000, 2001, 2002 … And quite frankly, it doesn’t seem to me all that long ago.
The late American screenwriter Ben Hecht was once quoted as saying, “Time is a circus, always packing up and moving away.” What I have found about aging is, time does move faster the older you become.
When I was a kid, the school year felt like it lasted forever. I couldn’t wait for summer vacation to finally arrive — freeing myself from what seemed like endless days in the classroom and nights doing homework. Christmas and my birthday also seemed to take their sweet time in arriving. The problem is, as one becomes older, the busyness of life speeds time up. That is probably due to daily demands brought about by work, family commitments and trying to meet endless deadlines that are part of adult life.
If anybody were to ask me what advice I would give to a young person, it probably wouldn’t be about saving money or always doing your best — even though those are good virtues. My advice would be simpler: “Enjoy being young — everything about it. Smell the roses as a young person. And never, ever wish you are older. That will come soon enough, and once it does, good luck trying to be 18 again.”
It’s been said by many, “Youth is wasted on the young.” That may be true, but that doesn’t mean youth is a waste of time. Far from it. It’s just that being young often brings the notion that youth will last forever, and that simply is not true. Before you know it, the first 25 years of a “new” century is nearing completion. I guess the best anybody can do is enjoy the ride and look forward to what the future will bring. One’s past is often to be treasured, but the future brings with it a certain level of excitement that is unmatched by previous events.
The cover story for this issue focuses on Transportation Charter Services (TCS). In business since 1984, TCS provides charter bus and group transportation for a wide variety of clients from its headquarters in Orange, CA, and branch divisions based in San Diego, CA, Calgary, AB, and Nashville, TN. Other main service areas for the company include Las Vegas, NV, Phoenix, AZ, and the San Francisco Bay Area.
“Our service region is large — focusing on Southern and Northern California, other areas of the United States and the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Alberta,” TCS President Terry Fischer said, during a recent interview. “We visit a lot of very exciting locations, such as national parks, sports and concert venues and other destinations in high demand.
“One obvious benefit to being headquartered in the LA market is that Los Angeles serves as a gateway for all types of transposition-related business. That includes inbound and outbound air travel and international customers. There is a lot of demand for travel to, and from, Southern California. We do our best to service such a large need.”
Another focus of this issue is the upcoming United Motorcoach Association’s (UMA) 2025 Motorcoach EXPO, scheduled for February 20-23, at the Oklahoma City Convention Center, in Oklahoma City, OK. Included will be a variety of educational sessions, such as those highlighted in this issue’s EXPO preview.
I would like to thank everyone for their continued support of Busline Magazine. Please send news items and story ideas to: harrellk@rdgmedia.net. Stay young!
Harrell Kerkhoff
Editor, Busline Magazine