Meet Our Staff
Justin Cole - Primary Investor, President, and Sales Manager
Justin has loved cars since he was very young. His favorite toys as a boy were always model cars. He remembers attending car shows with his dad when he was a toddler. By the time Justin turned four he was going through piles of his father's car magazines enjoying the pictures and reading what he could. By the time he was six he was obsessed with go karts and being able to identify any car that a friend or family member pointed on the road.
By the age of eight Justin had developed an extensive knowledge base on Corvettes, Porsches, and many other cars. By age ten Justin was writing and placing ads in the Dallas Morning News for his dad in order to assist him in the selling of his Porsches. Justin's first business, JJC’s Landscape by Design was a product of the news his dad informed him of right after his twelfth birthday. That news was that Justin was going to have to pay for his first car.
Justin started JJC’s Landscape by Design by mowing both his parent's lawn and neighbor's lawns. The business grew very quickly and by the time Justin was 14 he had made enough money to buy his first car. The car he bought was a 1968 Ford Mustang fastback that needed a body off restoration. Justin's parents allowed him to go ahead and buy the car even though he was too young to drive so he could restore it and have it ready to drive by the time he turned 16. Justin did all of the restoration work himself except for the engine machining and the paint. After completing the restoration on the 1968 Mustang Justin was ready to look for another car to restore.
He sold that car for a profit and purchased a 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle Super Sport 396 which was in comparable condition to that of the mustang when he had bought it. Justin went through the same restoration process with this car and made money when he sold it. Since selling the Chevelle, Justin has done extensive restoration/customization work on other cars he has owned which have included a 1965 Ford Mustang Coupe, a fully customized 1968 Chevrolet pickup, a customized 1996 Ford Mustang Cobra, and others.
While in junior high and high school Justin found enough time to start on school sports teams, restore some of the cars previously mentioned, and grow JJC Landscape by Design to a very successful landscaping and property maintenance management company in north Dallas, Texas. Justin has worked professionally in auto sales since 2003. Justin is also a graduate of the University Of Wisconsin School Of Business.
Dan Atkins - VP of Operations
After a 30 year carrier with Cuna here in Madison, I retired in 2001. I recently came back into the workforce when I was given the opportunity to work in a field I've grown up with from mechanical to show and shines.
I became car crazy about the age of 10 as I was building every 1:24 scale model car I could get my hands on while building/racing slot cars. Do you remember those? At 16 years old, i bought my first car, a 1967 Mercury Cougar XR7 Dan Gurney Special. I've gone on to own a number of very desirable collector cars over the years, wishing I had them all back now. Happily, I still have 2 cars in my collection. I've got lots of great stories to tell about the "good old days," so stop by Benchmark Classics and tell me yours!
Tim Marotz - Head Mechanic
Tim is a Master Mechanic, specializing in drive trains and electrical work. Tim began work as a mechanic right out of school in 1977, but he started tinkering with motors much earlier. Before his 15th birthday, Tim had already built his first motor by reading how-to books. Though it didn't run perfectly the first time, he knew where he went wrong; he forgot to clean the ring grooves. At his first mechanics job at Zimbrick Buick, he was mentored by Cal Wilhelm. More recently, Tim worked as a service manager for a large car dealership, where he was the head of service, parts, and detail. Tim has worked at numerous other shops in WI as a lead mechanic.
Rich Schulenberg - Body Specialist
Rich Schulenberg is our Body Specialist in our Restoration Services division. Rich began his restoration career in his father’s garage working on MOPARs in the 1960s. His favorite car back then was his uncle’s 1968 Coronet 500 Convertible. He also raced a 1971 Satellite at Columbus 151 Speedway and Capital Super Speedway. In addition to his years of restoration experience, he has worked in the computer industry, built early versions of arcade games in the 80’s, and was actively involved in Wisconsin Rottweiler Rescue. In his personal time, Rich enjoys the company of his 2 Rotties, King and Brom.
Erich Rusch - VP of Technology and Web Marketing
Erich Rusch is the VP of Technology and Web Marketing at Benchmark Classics. He currently holds degrees in Mathematics and Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Erich directs and oversees all of Benchmark Classics major software and technology systems. In addition to Benchmark Classics, he has worked at BigMachines Inc. located in Chicago, IL as a Marketing and Web Analyst and has independently consulted for a number of firms in Madison and Southeastern Wisconsin on a number of technology related issues through Rusch Technologies.Adam Reihl - Restoration Technician
Adam learned the art of body work at the age of 15, working on his very first car with his father ; a 1977 Cutlass 442. Little did he know this car was just the first of the many Oldsmobiles He would own. Adam bought his father’s 1972 Cutlass Supreme last year, at age 20. He hopes to restore the car and share the joy of classics with his father again, like he used to “back in the day.” Adam is currently a student at MATC in the auto body field and is looking to finish his 2 year degree next spring. Adam is energetic, outgoing, and brings a good atmosphere to the Benchmark Team.Don “Doc” Schulz – Restoration Specialist
Don has always been intrigued with mechanical objects and started repairing his friend’s bikes, motorcycles and their parents lawn mowers. Even as a child he would take things apart to see how they worked. When he was in high school they wouldn’t let him take Auto Shop 3 without completing Auto Shop 1 & 2. However, those were the “ this is a screwdriver” type of classes. One wise teacher knew his potential and offered to have him come early to class to help restore his ’55 Chevy Nomad for a grade in Auto Shop 1. He then went on to own his first shop in his twenties, named Auto Medics. Hence, the nickname “Doc” stands to this day. In fact in the auto world if you ask for Don Schulz most people respond….”who?”. But if you say “Doc” they know who you are talking about, especially in the Vintage Racing Circuit. Doc spent 12 years building and restoring vintage and historic Porsche race cars. Anything from 356’s to 962’s.
He spent his early years in several dealerships in Milwaukee and then went to restoration primarily for his own vehicles. The first love was a 1968 Ford Mustang. He then did a couple of Jaguars and in the more recent past has specialized in American muscle cars, with several cars going thru the Barrett-Jackson, Scottsdale auction. Most notably he completed a restoration of the Dick Harrell COPO Camaro featured in the Feb 2009 issue of Popular Hot Rodding, while contracting with several restoration shops.
Doc came to Benchmark Classics from Bennett Coachworks and with many years of experience. He looks forward to being part of the future of Benchmark Classics.
Ryan Genin - Automotive, Fabricator & Restoration Technician
Ryan developed his passion for cars while never missing a show of HOME IMPOVEMENTS – Tool Time with TIM THE TOOLMAN TAYLOR (Tim Allen) and AL BORLAND (Richard Kam). Then it was on to OVERHAULIN’, THE SPEED CHANNEL, THE BOYD COTTINGTON SHOW and OCC (Orange County Choppers). It was during this time that Ryan set his goal to attend Wyotech, an Automotive Specialty College, in Laramie, Wyoming.
Ryan purchased his first restoration project at age 16, a 72 Chevy SS, on Ebay and drove out to the east coast to trailer it back to Wisconsin. It is still a work in progress along with an 85 Chevy K1500 pickup and a 67 Chevy Malibu.
Ryan studied Automotive Technician Programs at Madison Memorial, McFarland High School, and Madison Area Technical College. He participated in Dane County Automotive Apprenticeship Program and was a participant in the 2005 FORD /AAA Auto Skills Competition.
Ryan went on to study and receive five diplomas from WYOTECH in Laramie, Wyoming. He completed the Automotive Technician Program, Street Rods & Custom Fabrication, High Performance Power Trains, Chassis Fabrication, and Trim & Upholstery. As well as completed a Chip Foose Custom Air Brush Course.
Ryan also studied and received a Degree in Applied Automotive Service Management.
Ryan has also worked the last seven years as a service technician, earning 7 ASE – Automotive Service Excellence certifications. ASE is a voluntary national automotive professional testing program. Ryan is certified in – Engine Repair, Automatic Transmissions, Manual Drive Trans & Axles, Suspension & Steering, Brakes, Electrical / Electronics Systems and Engine Performance.
“One thing more important to me than old cars is my black Labrador – CADILLAC.”
Ian Mullarney
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Security Staff
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