Their Walker dealer calls them "hard working folks." For Rick and Joyce Cooke, however, they see themselves a simply getting as much out of life as possible. And how!

I have mentioned before in this column about the importance of having a vision for a company - knowing who you are, how you got there and where you want to go. A business whose leadership has no vision or incorrect vision will not survive in the long term. I believe it has helped our company to succeed by having the vision of being a "specialist." We design and produce specialty products for selected customers. Even within the commercial mower equipment industry we do not offer a machine for everyone.

"My competitors always ask me how we can maintain so many accounts," says Ryan Such, owner of All Terrain Grounds Maintenance in Fargo, North Dakota. "The answer is really our Walker Mowers, but I'll let them figure it out for themselves. In fact, I think the Walkers are the best-kept secret in town."

Mike Kavanagh moved from California to Washington in 1984. His plan? Grow the landscaping business he started back home. He wanted to reach the four - or five crew level and then spend most of his time managing the operation.

It may sound a little far fetched, but it's true, claims Ray Albert, owner of Ray Albert Landscaping in Vancouver, Washington. "I used to walk 40 miles a day mowing before I purchased my Walker." Now, he says he walks a lot less, makes more money and has more time to enjoy what he does best - gardening and melding together all the elements of a landscape.

Some of the biggest and most successful landscaping and lawn management operators in the country today started their businesses on a part-time basis.