ROBERTSDALE, Ala. — Long before there were any of us around, there were wheels. Wheels for wagons and other vehicles that carried goods and people from one end of the earth to another.

But they were hard, and made of wood or metal or some combination of the two. To say the ride was bone-jarring is no understatement.

In 1844 Charles Goodyear invented vulcanization, the process used to produce cured rubber tires. That was a softer ride, but the solid wheel still meant that you felt every bump.

Then, in 1888, John Dunlop, said to be tired of watching his young son struggle with the solid rubber wheels of his trike, patented a “pneumatic” type tire. The tire, which like today’s tires allows the vehicle to ride on a cushion of air, gave a softer ride, and a proud pappa watched his son have an easier time scooting around.

And the race was on. While Dunlop’s patent was later invalidated because Robert William Thomson invented and patented a similar product beforehand, people saw the advantage of the newfangled wheel, and began to clamor for it. Many companies sprang up to meet this need, and new innovations in tire technology came along.

On Nov. 1, 1963, Sweat Tire was opened in Robertsdale. The company celebrated 45 years in business last weekend with food and drink and a number of activities. While three generations of the Sweat family have run the business, the iconic store on Highway 59 is now owned and operated by Dewane and Carmen Hayes.

“We offer alignments, brake work, minor mechanical work, oil changes and of course, tires,” said Dewane Hayes. “We are a one-stop shop.”

If the job is too big for Sweat, Hayes says the customer is referred to one of the shop’s “partners in business.”

“This shop has been giving 45 years of great service,” said Hayes. “People are not going to shop anywhere else. We have built up a lot of loyalty and trust.”

To build that trust, Hayes has added five vehicles capable of handling emergency calls.

“We are here to serve the customer’s needs,” said Hayes. “If it was easy, everybody would be doing it. When I took over the business, I asked around to people, asked what was missing, and they all said “service.”

The trucks, Hayes added see a lot of calls from RV drivers either from the area or who are vacationing around here. They also help out area farmers. Hayes related that one truck was dispatched to a nearby farm early in the morning to help with a broken piece of farm equipment. during the peanut harvest

“We’re the small guys, we have to be good,” said Hayes.

Hayes has a lot of experience with what can happen on the road. He worked for a local trucking company for a number of years.

“I just became infatuated with the trucking industry,” said Hayes.

He learned about the chance to purchase the Robertsdale business by accident.

“I sent a friend here to give a resume to the Sweat boys. I later learned the business was for sale.”

It didn’t take long for Hayes to decide to buy the business.

“It’s a good honest business. You are serving the customer’s needs,” said Hayes.

Being better than the competition comes easy to Hollis Byrd, who was with the company for 42 years as the general manager. He has since retired. Byrd makes his home in Gulf Shores.

“We went from recaps to new tires,” recalled Byrd in a phone interview as he was on his way to a Sweat Tire anniversary celebration. “It was just a fun job. Every day was a different challenge.”

It was also the customers that kept Byrd’s enthusiasm.

“I just enjoyed them (the customers). I had the same ones all the time.”

Of course things changed in the four-plus decades Byrd was with the company.

“Years ago, when you put a pair of tires on, you thought you did something to get 12,000 miles,” said Byrd “Then they told me the radials would get 50 to 60 thousand miles. I said “No,” but they did.”

Keeping long-term employees like Byrd around is important or Hayes.

“My employees are the most important part of my business,” he said.