The auction block was hot at Ritchie Brothers Auctioneers in Longmont Wednesday as they sold tens of millions of dollars in equipment across the auction ramp.
From front-end loaders to off-road cranes to normal pick-up trucks, just about every piece of equipment was bought by the highest bidder.
“We have customers from all over the world that partake in these sales,” said Noni Garcia, regional sales manager for Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers. “Some of them come in advance to inspect all of the equipment and the assets that we have here, [then they] go back home and bid online if they choose, or partake here on site.”
The second largest auction ever now follows the largest auction ever at this Colorado location, which was just in March.
In March, Ritchie Brothers sold over $46 million worth of equipment in one day.
Most of the equipment will be put to work right away, too.
“We found that buying snow plow trucks here, it’s a good thing, I also came to buy air compressors and trailers,” said Bruce Haase, owner of Lightening Mobile in Denver. “It’s very fun but you’ve got to have your wits about you, have a game plan so you do not bid more than you want to by getting excited.”
Some people come in person from all over the country and bidders buy online from all over the world.
“We come to look and see if we can buy an 18-wheeler and see if we can pick up something kind of decent so we can go back and go back to work,” said Jerry Gomez, who owns an excavation business in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Auctioneers can’t go as far as to say that the high number of buyers and sellers in 2016 has something to do with a down oil economy or booming construction industry, but more that people have found one spot to buy and sell in a competitive environment.
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