CALGARY, (Jan. 13, 2005) — J. R. (Bud) McCaig, chairman of Calgary-based bulk trucking giant Trimac Corp. and part owner of the Calgary Flames, died at his vacation home in Barbados Tuesday. He was 75.

Bud McCaig, who was battling colon cancer, is survived by wife Ann, and children Jeffrey, JoAnne and Melanie, and his grandchildren.

His loss is being felt immensely both at Trimac and in the Calgary community.

“Bud was a trucker from Moose Jaw who started off with a couple of trucks, built the premier North American bulk business with 3,000 trucks, but never forgot his values and roots as a trucker,”
Trimac President Terry Owen told Today’s Trucking this afternoon. “With Bud, it didn’t matter who you were or what your job was. He treated everybody the same-with respect and kindness, and a humbleness in his approach, which is sort of remarkable for a man who has accomplished everything he has.”

Trimac was founded in 1945 when Bud’s father Jack McCaig and his partner Al Cameron establish Macccam Transport in Moose Jaw, Sask. In 1954, a new holding company, Trimac Limited, was formed and named after Jack’s three McCaig sons: Bud, Roger, and Maurice.

In 1961, Trimac purchased Calgary-based H.M. Trimble & Sons, an established trucking company with operations in Alberta and British Columbia. Bud then became president of Trimble and moves to Calgary to manage the expanded trucking operations.

Later Bud became the top executive at Trimac, turning the company into one of the largest bulk transporters and energy field service companies in the country. It presently has over 2,500 trucks, 6,000 trailers, 141 North American terminals, 6,000 employees, and achieves over $700 million a year in total revenues.

During Bud’s reign, Trimac become a big player in the exploration and development of oil and gas. In the late 70s and 80s, energy services expand into the U.S. with Trimac’s acquisitions of the Cactus group of drilling companies and Quality Service Tank Lines of San Antonio, Texas.

Trimac continued to grow in various transportation sectors — becoming at the time the largest bulk carrier in North America when it acquired CP Bulk Transport in 1990. It also dabbled in the truck renting and leasing game by acquiring Rentway, which it later sold to Penske Truck Leasing in 2000.

In 1994 Bud handed the company to son Jeff, who has been CEO ever since. But despite stepping back, Bud still showed up every single day, says Owen.

Bud has been honoured by countless business, social and charity organizations over the years. In 1998 he received the Distinguished Business Leader Award from the University of Calgary and was the recipient of an honorary doctor of laws degree.

In 1991, he was inducted into the Saskatchewan Oil and Gas Industry Hall of Fame and in 1994 he was honoured as Canadian Master Entrepreneur of the Year and Mount Royal College recognized him as distinguished citizen. He was also awarded the Order of Canada in 1999.

Most recently, Bud was inducted into the Calgary Business Hall of Fame and he founded the Alberta Bone and Joint Health Institute with the goal of improving treatment of arthritis and bone joint injury and replacement for all Albertans.

“Bud and Anne collectively — because they really were a team — touched every single cornerstone of the community in one way or another over the last 20 years,” says Owen.

Bud’s interests extended far beyond trucks and boardrooms. An avid hockey fan, Bud fulfilled a boyhood dream in 1994 when he became co-owner of the Calgary Flames hockey team.

Held without a playoff series win throughout his entire NHL tenure, the team made Bud proud last summer when the underdog Flames put together an incredible run toward the Stanley Cup finals — their first appearance in the championship series since 1989.

“It was very special for him,” says Owen. “Unfortunately, because of his (illness) he was unable to participate directly in that. But it was a very significant event for both he and the other owners who endured some very tough times. They are all the pillars of this community.”