From humble beginnings in a small service station, to developing into one of the most trusted well known, innovative, and respected towing companies in Northern California, R. Lance & Sons' growth has been driven by the owner's determination, hard work and commitment to his community.  Robert Lance Ruckteschler began his career in the tow truck business in Pleasanton as owner of Pleasanton Shell Service Station in the early 70's.

As a way of expanding, and providing better service to his customers, Lance purchased his first tow truck for $7,500. After six years of successfully servicing the city he was awarded the AAA contract to service Pleasanton and Dublin. Along with his wife, Kathy, and longtime friend, Frank Welch, he acquired six more trucks and employees. Observing the business growing rapidly, Lance sold the service station and reopened as a tow yard in 1981. Now in a larger facility on Santa Rita Rd, he called the business Rucks Service Garage, with the focus being on auto repair and towing. Later he changed this name to R. Lance & Sons.

While under contract to AAA, Lance expanded his association with a variety of other auto clubs, increasing his contracts and connections, until becoming a Preferred Service Provider for AAA in the 90’s. In 1989, the business added the Livermore AAA contract, opening up the Tri-Valley area. The company took off quickly.

Other contracts included the Pleasanton Police Department, Dublin Police Department, Alameda County Sheriff’s Department, Bart Police Department, Camp Parks Police Department, East Bay Regional Parks Police Department, and the California Highway Patrol. R. Lance & Sons also became the exclusive towing company for the Livermore Police Department from 1994-2008. During that time, Lance became an active participant in the “Every 15 Minutes” drunk driving education course working with LPD providing vehicles for the scenarios, and setting up and removing the accident scenes. In 1996, the business added two new pieces of equipment: a heavy wrecker to tow larger trucks and tractor trailers, and a lowboy to haul heavy equipment.

The company was proud to receive the The California Governor’s Committee for Employment of Disabled Persons “Excellence in Universal Design and Technology Award” in 2000 for the design and building of a wheelchair truck for disabled customers. A 50-ton rotator heavy duty wrecker was added in 2003, one of the first in the San Francisco Bay Area. It has been an incredible asset for the company to work with the other heavy duty, and a valuable tool to assist with quick clearance of accidents. The rotator has been made available to local fire departments to assist with heavy rescue. Also as a rotator, the truck has crane like features, allowing the operators to think outside the box and open up more services for customers. 2003 also brought 2 heavy haul lowboys to the company, allowing transportation of larger construction equipment.

In 2005, the business moved to a three-acre facility in Livermore, where it is still thriving.  Lance's early vision took him from a small station and only one truck to currently being one of the giants of the towing industry, having acquired a fleet of 50 pieces of equipment and a continuously expanding client base.  R. Lance & Sons looks forward to many more years of serving its communities with customary reliability and loyalty.