Ron Lamberty, the American Coalition for Ethanol’s Vice President & Director of Market Development, addressed conference attendees this afternoon in a speech geared toward illustrating the opportunities ahead of the ethanol industry.
After spending the first few years of his life just 15 miles outside of Milwaukee, Lamberty welcomed a return to Wisconsin and frequently cited the insight of football coaching great Vince Lombardi throughout his address. Lombardi once said, “Success demands singleness of purpose.” Comparing the ethanol industry to a football team, Lamberty stated that just like the quarterback, the running back and the linemen need to work together in order to be successful, so does the ethanol industry need to move differences off the table and focus on common ground.
“Nothing tears a team apart more than one team member publically complaining about the others,” Lamberty said. “A running back who talks about himself and complains about his linemen will soon find himself lying on his back in the backfield. That’s certainly bad for the running back, but it is disastrous for the team.”
Lamberty also cited, “While it’s important to have a road map to achieve a stable and growing market for ethanol, it is equally important – maybe more important – that we actually build the roads and bridges that make that road map relevant.”
Throughout its ten years in paving the roads for ethanol by developing the market, Lamberty stated that ACE has helped to pave the way for ethanol by teaching petroleum marketers the math of ethanol, and about ethanol’s value as an octane enhancer. He also cited ACE’s efforts to build bridges, such as working with petroleum retailers and convenience store owners about blender pumps. ACE has also helped to build bridges within the ethanol industry by uniting with the Renewable Fuels Association and key Corn Grower states for the Blend Your Own Ethanol Campaign, which aims to bring 5,000 blender pumps to America in the next 3 years.
Lamberty wrapped up his address by once more invoking Lombardi’s inspirational words: “The real glory is being knocked to your knees and then coming back. That’s real glory. That’s the essence of it.” To Lamberty, these words sum up the mission of today’s ethanol industry: to achieve ‘real glory’ in the wake of strife with determination and optimism.