In 2015, Dublin graduate Johnny Ross bought a 1978 Camaro and started fixing it up. He didn’t know at the time that it would change the trajectory of his career.
“When I first got it, it was having some head gasket issues,” he said. “I rebuilt the motor… I pretty much just taught myself. I watched a lot of YouTube videos and talked to my dad and my uncle and their mechanics and my family and they just put me in the right direction on some things I needed help with.”
When Ross finished his rebuild and started the car, it fired up the first time. Ever since then, he’s had a passion for mechanic work, and has had several jobs working on diesel engines in West Texas.
“That’s just my passion,” he said. “They say if you love doing something you will never work a day in your life, and that’s the route I took.”
Ross graduated from Dublin High School in 2005, and began working out in West Texas in the oilfields.
“I worked for West Texas Energy on a drilling rig, and then went from there to another oilfield service company where I got my CDL and operated a backhoe and did a lot of heavy equipment work,” he said.
In 2010 he moved out to Snyder, Texas, and continued taking on various oilfield jobs. After he bought his Camaro and fixed it up, Ross began to think of ways to work on cars for a living.
“I started just doing my own private mechanic style thing,” he said. “I had people calling me on Facebook because I had an ad. So I started there.”
Soon, he found a job at Gravity Oilfield Services as their tire tech and diesel mechanic.
“I was keeping up with a fleet of like 60 trucks,” he said. “I had this app on my phone where I could see all the trucks and the issues that were coming up with them.”
He worked on the trucks’ water pumps, radiators, engines and air systems.
After three years at Gravity, Ross found another job at Caliber Energy, where he continued working on trucks and heavy equipment. There, he started working on pipeline equipment, which led him to his next venture, a pipeline project he’s starting on in a few weeks.
“I’ll be actually going along with some extra equipment, checking all the welds and factions and pressure testing to make sure there’s no leaks and [the pipe] holds pressure for a certain amount of time,” he said.
When he’s not working, Ross enjoys spending time with his 14-year-old son, Benjamin and his parents, Donna and Jeff Terry, who also live in Snyder. He also likes fishing, hunting and of course, working on cars.
Ross’ son has been a constant source of inspiration to Ross. “My son drives me to be a better person each and every day,” he said. “I want to show him that there’s really nothing that you can’t accomplish. And as long as you have tenacity, hard work and determination, you can pretty much do anything you want.”
Ross’ advice to Dublin graduates is to “If you’re stuck in a rut, it’s never too late to change directions and go and do the things that you wanted to do,” he said. “You can always strive to be better than you were the day before. Don’t let negative thoughts or shortcomings hold you back from doing the things that you want to do.”
Editor’s Note: This column chronicles what Dublin graduates have done since high school. If you have any suggestions for other grads, email publisher@dublincitizen.com.