Chevy has its Carhartt Silverado pickup. Volvo has its “Gold Rush” EC200E excavator.
So why not a special edition asphalt paver?
LeeBoy has done just that, taking the leap to trick out its 8520B heavy-commercial asphalt paver for a Raised On Blacktop special edition. It is designed to pay tribute to family-owned paving companies, as well as help promote the asphalt paving industry.
Raised On Blacktop is a brand of apparel created by 28-year-old Matt Stanley, part of the second generation at family-owned American Pavement Specialists in Danbury, Connecticut, where he serves as a construction foreman. Raised On Blacktop touts itself as “an authentic lifestyle brand created by our industry for our industry.”
Stanley says its goal is to change public perceptions about asphalt paving through social media and its T-shirts, caps, neck gaiters and other apparel carrying the brand’s name. He also hopes to attract young people to the industry by promoting hard work and a sense of pride.
"It's a dirty job, but an honorable one," Stanley says. "It's our mission to elevate hard work and dedication, and we're quickly changing the way the industry is viewed, even by outsiders."
LeeBoy’s 8520B paver, which was updated in 2020, features a 9-ton hopper, front adjustable conveyor chains and a slow-moving wide conveyor system, the company says. It is designed for parking lots, driveways, municipal work, subdivisions, state and county roads. It paves up to 15 feet wide and 6 inches deep. It also has increased fuel capacity from its predecessor and an above-deck generator.
In developing the special edition, LeeBoy engineers, with suggestions from American Pavement Specialists, gave the paver these additional features:
- Gray paint scheme
- Red operators' seats embroidered with the Raised On Blacktop logo
- Stylized Raised On Blacktop decal
- Carbon-fiber embellished wing decal
- Larger American flag decal
- Weatherproof ticket box and phone holder
- Various shovel and rake carrier options
- Engraved serialized badge
- Optional custom lighting package.
"This exclusive machine goes above and beyond what our regular customers would be able to choose from today and will only be available on this machine at this time," says Kristi Harris, director of marketing at LeeBoy. "The American Pavement crew paves day in and day out and suggested that these additions to the paver would help them to be more productive and more comfortable on the job."
The paver is a limited edition. It is also a tribute to LeeBoy, which was started by B.R. Lee in 1964.
"Many customers have made the decades-long journey, and LeeBoy has been the one true constant – and it all started with B.R. Lee," says Charlie Walsh, executive vice president of the Stephenson Equipment Inc. (SEI) dealership based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Walsh and Jim Harkins, LeeBoy sales manager, came up with the concept of a special edition paver to honor customers who own and operate family paving businesses, LeeBoy says. They contacted Raised On Blacktop.
"The Raised On Blacktop guys recognize pride and legacy," Walsh says. "It is exciting to be an organic part of the limited-edition paver and the strong message of family and grit it represents."
The Stanley family members of American Pavement Specialists, from left, Josh Stanley, Bill Stanley Jr., Matt Stanley, Bill Stanley III and Jack Stanley.LeeBoy
