
In the spring of 2005, Manual Tavarez decided that he would do all that he could to promote and honor all of the linemen across the world. He is a very self driven second generation Lineman who is dedicating a lot of his time and effort towards recognizing and honoring the Extraordinary Linemen Illuminating The Earth or also known as the E.L.I.T.E.
Directly after graduating from High School in 1990 he decided that he wanted to be a Lineman just like his dad. He didn’t just want to be a Lineman; he wanted to be a Lineman in every aspect of the trade. He wanted to build line like no other Lineman had and put his mark on the power line world. If it was to be built, it was to be built right. If it was found broken, it would be repaired. No matter what the job was, he wanted it done with perfection, as if a Line God was going to inspect his work. In his mind, he was never going to build line just to make a living, he wanted everyone to know “He was living… to build line”.
He could remember listening to his dad, Manuel Tavarez Sr. talking about the younger generation of Linemen and how they were taking less pride in their work with every coming day. They were drifting from being the skilled linemen of his time and becoming the “Hydraulic Linemen” of our times. He also overheard his dad talking to his crew members about those linemen who didn’t respect electricity and overlooked safety. This started the guide lines which later would set the foundation in which Manny Jr. would learn as an apprentice and teach later on as a foreman. He remembered his dad’s line crew being called the “A" Team and the pride in which they took in representing that name. That is what he wanted, to be as good as his dad and have the recognition that his dad and his line crew had earned. Though they have all gone in their own directions since the early 90's, they are all still a great group of linemen who were also known as “The Woodwalkers” of Odessa Texas.
From that point on Manual Tavarez knew he had a lot to learn and some huge Wesco’s Highliners to fill. Nineteen years have gone by and he currently continues working hard to uphold the reputation of a great lineman, which his father kicked off in Wild West Texas in the early 1970’s. He also dubbed his line crew the “A" Team when he became a foreman, but to him that wasn’t original. He wanted to brand his own signature and create his own reputation, thus he dubbed his crew "The Fatlinecrew" and he is known as, “The Fatlineman”.
Though this name would later cause some controversy, he felt that this was truly the way he and his line crew felt about themselves and their work. They stood their grounds and walked the walk. They kicked off everyday with their own little slogan, “It's just another day in Paradise” and then they would proudly go about their day. The Fatlineman has put great effort into creating a very unique Lineman’s Pro Shop, just as incredible and important as every individual lineman in the world today. Linemen are proud of who they are and what they do. The Fatlineman sincerely believes there are thousands of fellow Linemen who share the same drive and desire to be the absolute best they can be, as he does. Yesterday, they built it good. Today they will build it great. Tomorrow... they will build it even greater!
The Fatlineman believes that there is always room for improvement and a lineman should never stop learning about electricity. Fatlineman.Com would like to express its thanks, gratitude and appreciation to all of its customers, supporters and fellow Fatlinemen.
- The "A" Team
I Manual Tavarez would like to personally thank all of my fellow Fatlinemen for everything they do on a daily basis. Remember, “The F#(K!%G “A” TEAM is for Life" and Safety is our #1 Priority!
- The Fatlineman