To mark its centenary, Tony Lama Boots -- a unit of Fort Worth-based Justin, which in turn is owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway -- held a contest to find the oldest pair carrying the Lama label.
Of 556 entries, the winning pair was discovered last fall in a secondhand shop by Robert Thompson of Byers, Colo.The company believes that they were handcrafted in the early 1930s, making them about 80 years old.New, they cost about $20, the company said. A comparable pair today would run about $200."You never really see old Tony Lama Boots like this in such great condition," Thompson, who owns of 10 pairs of Tony Lamas, was quoted in a company news release as saying."I am always looking for the next treasure at thrift stores and these were definitely a one-of-a-kind find."The Coloradan gets made-to-measure and monogrammed boots from the Tony Lama Signature series, which retail from $800 to $1,500.And Thompson can wear them on the trip he also won to the 2011 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas, the premier Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association event.Eleven runners-up will receive a pair of $250 Centennial Collection boots and will see their vintage pairs featured in a 2012 calendar and commemorative poster. They also receive a $15 rebate off their next Tony Lama purchase.Tablet test pilotsAmerican Airlines and its pilots union are testing iPads to be used during flight operations.The iPads, which will be used on flights from Los Angeles International to Tokyo and Shanghai, will replace flight bags that contain paper flight manuals, which the Allied Pilots Association says weigh about 35 pounds."By eliminating bulky flight bags filled with paper, [electronic flight bags] mean less weight for pilots to carry, reducing the possibility of injury on duty," said First Officer Hank Putek, a member of the APA safety committee. "In addition, they enable pilots to immediately download updates, rather than waiting for paper versions of required documents to be printed and distributed."American said that the Federal Aviation Administration is allowing the airline to test the tablets during takeoff and landing so pilots can use them to view airport approach charts. The Fort Worth-based carrier added that the lighter tablets will save $1.2 million in fuel annually.Last month, Alaska Airlines said that it was issuing iPads to all its pilots to replace flight manuals and that the process would be complete by June.More apartments plannedAlliance Residential, a Phoenix-based multifamily-housing developer, says it bought 16.3 acres in CentrePort Business Park just south of Dallas/Fort Worth Airport, where it plans a 344-unit apartment community.Alliance already owns the Broadstone CentrePort apartments at 14301 Centre Station Drive and says the new development, expected to open in late 2012, will be across the street. The company said the Metroplex's strong job growth "translates to a favorable environment for multifamily demand and investment throughout the area."In May, Alliance announced that it started work on the Broadstone Valley Parkway apartments in Lewisville, a 363-unit development on 16.4 acres. Completion is slated for December 2012.The company also owns properties in Fort Worth, Keller, Mansfield and Grand Prairie.Books for kidsNonPareil Institute, the Plano nonprofit providing technical training to adults on the autism spectrum, is teaming up with a publisher of children's books to develop "state-of-the-art high-quality" kids books for iPad and iPhone applications."The partnership will create additional employment opportunities for nonPareil's students who have been diagnosed with autism and have the unique ability of designing animation, layout and sound for apps and computer games," says nonPareil, whose students recently launched their first iPad app -- an abacus game called Soroban -- available for sale on iTunes.The book publisher, InteractBooks Llc. of Jefferson and Austin, provides software and assistance to children's authors who want to develop interactive book applications.Many children's authors want to take advantage of the growing market for educational Apple and Android apps but don't have access to expert technical and marketing support, says Ezra Weinstein, InteractBooks CEO.Using InteractBooks' new InteractBuilder free software for Mac and PC "and the technical skills of nonPareil's talented crew, authors now can transform their ideas or already printed books into iPhone, iPad and, soon, Android apps," InteractBooks says.Dan Selec, one of nonPareil's co-founders, says InteractBooks quickly fills a gap."We were going to develop our own software to create children's interactive books," he said.The first book to be created in the partnership: Kivi and the Lizard People, by Gayle McCain, and a story about how parents and their children find the best way to turn temper tantrums into hugs.Sharing tracksThe major railroads are jostling over a regulator's proposal to test giving competitors access to track they own, Bloomberg News reports.CSX CEO Michael Ward and Union Pacific CEO James Young rejected the Surface Transportation Board proposal, Bloomberg said.Dow Chemical Co. and members of the National Grain and Feed Association, among shippers often served by a single railroad, are asking the board to force carriers to provide more ways to move their goods. So-called captive shippers include coal-fired electric utilities, chemical manufacturers and lumber companies.Track sharing would increase competition and drive down rates, shippers say.Lower shipping rates could prevent railroads from earning enough to maintain tracks, Ward said at a Surface Transportation Board hearing in Washington on Wednesday, Bloomberg reported. Up to 38 percent of freight-rail revenue may be attributable to captive shippers, according to the board's estimates."The first question they'll ask me is, 'What about the replacement costs?'" Ward, who runs the third-largest publicly traded U.S. railroad, told Bloomberg of investors' reaction if CSX were to participate in the proposed pilot project.Top executives of Berkshire Hathaway's BNSF Railway and Norfolk Southern Corp. are scheduled to speak today.Sandra Baker, 817-390-7727sabaker@star-telegram.comScott Nishimura, 817-390-7808snishimura@star-telegram.comBarry Shlachter, 817-390-7718barry@star-telegram.comHave more to add? News tip? Tell us
