Tire Buyer Beware, says Chris Coulter of Curry’s Auto Service

 Sterling, VA, December 8, 2009 - Chris Coulter, co-owner of Curry’s Auto, was interviewed on Washington’s Fox 5 News on December 8, 2009.  Reporter Melanie Alnwick contacted Coulter to shed some light on how to get the most value for tire purchases.

Alnwick’s segment was a follow-up to a Wall Street Journal report on recent increases in tire prices – as much as a 25% from 2005 to 2009. According to Jonathan Welsh’s article in the Journal, “One reason for the price surge is tire makers’ push to equip new cars with higher-profit specialty tires that can run at higher speeds and feature such high-performance traits as short, stiff sidewalls, which provide firmer handling. As a result, more vehicles like the commuter sedan and family minivan are arriving from the factory with tires once seen primarily on sports cars like the Porsche Carrera or Chevrolet Corvette.”

Coulter, a 20-year veteran of the auto industry, pointed out that tires have become larger and safer in recent years.  In the1980s, when Coulter first started as a tire installer, a 13-inch wheel was standard. Today some cars have 20-inch wheels.

“The larger the diameter of the wheel, the smaller the profile or aspect ratio of the tire which allows more precise handling because less shock is absorbed through the tire,” says Coulter. “The downside would be this lack of absorption, which makes the tire and wheel more fragile with imperfections in the road. “

For Alnwick’s interview, Coulter was able to find a tire for a Chrysler mini-van from the mid-1980s, which is small and relatively thin. This tire costs about $60. The tire for a 2009 Chrysler mini-van is “much beefier,” Coulter said. “As a result, it handles a whole lot better; it will turn better and brake better.” It costs around $150.

Coulter advises consumers to be more aware of the type of tires they are buying and to match the tire with their driving patterns and local driving conditions. He recommends all-season tires for drivers in the Mid-Atlantic region. ”It really doesn’t snow that much around here,” he says. “Sure, snow tires are better in snow and ice, but how often does that really happen?  Is it worth an extra set of wheels and tires for the three times a year it snows?”

Coulter also suggests some other questions consumers need to consider in buying tires:

1. How long are you going to keep the car? If you plan to keep your car for several years, you might want to spend more money for a tire with longer tread-wear. It may be more expensive up front but a better buy in terms of price-per mile.

2. Do you drive in rain, sleet and snow? Again, a good all season tire should suffice

3. If you are driving a high-performance car, such as a Porsche, Corvette, Viper, BMW, Mercedes or Ferrari, you’ll need tires that give you the best traction.

There are many consumer groups both on line or in print such as Consumer Reports to do initial investigation, but nothing beats the opinion from an automotive center that you trust.  Those individuals should know your car and what works best for different situations.  Let them know your concerns such as price, longevity, performance and aesthetics.

About Curry’s Auto Service

Curry’s Auto Service is one of the largest independent auto service and repair shops in Northern Virginia, with five convenient locations: Chantilly, Great Falls/Reston, Falls Church, Gainesville and Arlington. The technicians at Curry’s Auto do technical repairs and diagnostics for which many of the franchise outlets do not have the expertise. They also perform routine maintenance like oil changes, transmission flushes, tire sales and Virginia State safety and emissions inspections. Curry’s technicians can repair all makes and models, including race prep and performance modifications. Curry’s Auto Service has received the highest AAA ratings in the country for customer satisfaction. 

Tire Review Magazine recently named Curry’s Auto Service one of three finalists for its national Top Shop Awards. Curry’s Auto Service was the only automotive shop in the Washington, D.C, area to receive this designation. Now in its third year, the Top Shop Awards honor the “best of the best” independent tire dealers in the United States and Canada. Curry’s Auto Service was selected as a finalist from nearly 100 entries.

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Falls Church Nutritionist Has Created Raw Thanksgiving Menu for Vegetarian Society of D.C

Falls Church, VA, November 9, 2009 - Nutrition coach Dominique Hoffman of Falls Church has created a 100% vegan raw menu for the raw foodists at the annual Thanksgiving Feast of the Vegetarian Society of D.C. The VSDC Feast will take place on Thursday, November 26, from 12 to 5 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency in Bethesda, Maryland.

Hoffman’s menu will include lentil soup, mashed potatoes, kale salad, stuffed zucchini and mango parfait. About 200 to 250 guests are expected to attend the VSDC feast. This is the first time that a raw food menu will be offered, along with the cooked plant-based foods. Hoffman estimates that there are about 600 raw foodists in Northern Virginia

For the past two years, Hoffman has been showing her clients that a healthy diet, high in fiber and low in fat, can reverse type 2 diabetes, eliminate the painful swelling of gout and reduce the inflammation from rheumatoid arthritis.

Hoffman is self-taught. She grew up on a traditional Mediterranean plant-based diet, cooking with her grand-mother at the age of eight. Over the years she has learned about nutrition and taken courses and seminars about food, nutrition, biology, and the science of food. 

In 2004, Hoffman studied at the Ecole de Boulangerie et Patisserie in Paris because she has always enjoyed cooking for birthday parties and wedding showers and always made everything from scratch – from hors-d’oeuvre to desserts. Ironically, she has disavowed traditional French pastry, which is high in fat and sugar. Now, she prefers to serve a plant-based menu.

In 2007, inspired by the works of Dr. Dan Ornish and Dr. Neal Barnard, Hoffman started to draft the concept for a coaching program that would encompass all aspects of eating and how to achieve permanent results.  In 2008 Zizania (www.zizania.biz) was born. Zizania is the result of Hoffman’s fusion of traditional recipes, modern nutritional advances, Parisian cuisine, and her experiences with designing diets to meet doctors' instructions

Hoffman doesn’t just recommend a diet for her clients: she creates personalized recipes for them and comes to their homes to show them how to cook foods that are high in nutrients and low in fat, naturally.

Diet Can Reverse Diabetes

In 2009, through her Zizania coaching program in food and nutrition, Hoffman has reversed type 2 diabetes for five people.  This means, these people have a glucose level under a 100 and no longer need any medication for as long as they observe a healthy high fiber diet that is low in fat.

According to the American Diabetes Association, 57 million Americans are at risk for type 2 diabetes. Diabetes is when the pancreas stops producing insulin, the agent that carries glucose to the cells in the body. Without insulin, glucose accumulates in the blood stream and cannot be metabolized. Type 2 diabetes occurs when the pancreas is still producing insulin but the cell receptors are not letting it in, causing the glucose to rise high in the blood. Often, patients with diabetes have to take insulin shots for the rest of their lives.

One of Hoffman’s clients, a 46-year-old man, wrote to her, “In case I have not told you before, thanks for changing my life. What you have done for me is nothing short of a miracle – helping me control my diabetes and lose 40 pounds I have carried for more than ten years.”

Hoffman has also worked with people who have arthritis and gout, which she put into remission with only a change in diet. For one client ( a 39-year-old man) with gout, Hoffman removed all animal products from his diet (dairy, meats, eggs), as well as beans, nuts, and tofu, and switched him to a diet of vegetables, fruits, and some seeds and whole grain. After four weeks, his pain went away and the swelling from the gout started to go down.   At this point, she re-introduced beans and tofu to his diet and increased his protein intake but kept it plant-based. After ten weeks, her client was completely pain free.

In addition to her work coaching clients on nutrition and healthy eating, Hoffman gives seminars about nutrition to organizations that wish to retain a healthier workforce. Her recent presentations took place at the Lupus Foundation, the National Education Association, Neustar, and Comcast.  Dominique is also a cooking instructor.  

To learn more about how to change your diet to achieve your health goal, visit the Zizania website www.zizania.biz or contact Hoffman by email at info@zizania.biz or by phone at 703 645 0271.

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Judy Curry of Curry’s Auto Named One of 2009 Women Who Mean Business

Sterling, Virginia, October 22, 2009 - Judy Curry, co-founder and vice president of marketing for Curry’s Auto Service, headquartered in Sterling, Virginia, has been named one of the 2009 Women Who Mean Business by the Washington Business Journal. She is one of 25 women who will be recognized at an awards banquet at The Four Seasons in Washington, D.C., on November 18, 2009.

Curry and her husband Matt incorporated Curry’s Auto Service in 1997 and opened their first facility in Chantilly, Virginia, in March 1998. In 11 years, they have expanded operations to five facilities throughout Northern Virginia. Today, Curry’s is one of the largest and most successful independent automotive service and repair companies in the Washington, DC, area with locations in Arlington, Chantilly, Falls Church, Gainesville and Great Falls/Reston.

“We’ve come a long way,” says Curry, a soccer mom with two kids, a business degree and a dream. “We started with $25,000 in personal savings, a family loan of $35,000 and maxed out 13 credit cards to get our first facility off the ground. Every time we got another credit card offer, it went towards a new piece of equipment. We were young and felt we could take the risk. When we opened, I wore many hats – from managing the back office operations to bookkeeping to marketing. Today, I champion our marketing and community relations, which is work I love to do.”

This year, Curry has taken on a more visible leadership role, spearheading an innovation program to attract more women patrons. With 60% of car maintenance decisions made by women, she recognizes the value in addressing the unique needs of women drivers and providing a higher standard of service.

She was instrumental in Curry’s becoming the first auto service facility in Virginia to receive the AskPatty ‘female friendly facility’ certification. As part of this program, Curry’s customers have access to an online community providing impartial advice to women on auto purchases, repairs and maintenance. Curry has been recruited to serve on the national AskPatty Board of Advisors, where she donates time providing car advice to women across the country. All of the company’s managers completed an AskPatty training program and the Currys revamped their customer waiting areas to make them more ‘family friendly’ with books, toys and PlayStation2 to entertain kids of all ages.

“We are not ones to rest on past accomplishments,” says Curry. “We’ve built a successful model on customer service, employee development and technology that’s scalable as we grow. We plan to open a sixth location in late 2009, three more facilities in 2010 and expect to reach 15-20 locations in the next five years.”

About Curry’s Auto Service

With five convenient locations throughout Northern Virginia, Curry’s is one of the largest independent service and repair shops in the area. Their locations include in Chantilly, Great Falls/Reston, Falls Church, Gainesville and Arlington.

Curry’s Auto Service is certified by the American Automobile Association (AAA), Bosch Authorized and employs American Service Excellence Certified Technicians (ASE). The technicians at Curry’s do technical repairs and diagnostics for which many of the franchise outlets do not have the expertise. They also perform routine maintenance like oil changes, transmission flushes, tire sales and Virginia State safety and emissions inspections. Curry’s technicians can repair all makes and models, including race prep and performance modifications.

Curry’s Auto Service has received the highest AAA ratings in the country for customer satisfaction.  This spring, Jim Matthews, Regional Vice President at American Tire Distributors, nominated Curry’s for one of the prominent awards in their industry: they were selected as one of 20 semi-finalists across the country for Tire Review Magazine’s “2009 Top Shop Award.”  For more information about Curry’s Auto Service, visit http://www.currysauto.com or call 1-(888)-8Currys.

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Brenda Blisk, Financial Planner in McLean, is Featured in Profiles in Diversity Journal

McLean, VA, October 1, 2009 - Brenda Blisk, CFP®, Founder and CEO of The Blisk Financial group, is featured in the 8th Annual Women Worth Watching® issue of Profiles in Diversity Journal. She is one of 87 women executives from across the country profiled in this issue, which features mentoring and leadership essays from each honoree.

According to James Rector, publisher, “Reading these executives’ essays uncovers a wealth of knowledge on how to be successful both professionally and personally, and it’s absolutely thrilling to see that these organizations are setting the precedence for featuring their women leaders.” 

Blisk, who founded The Blisk Financial Group in 1985, serves as a mentor for Women in Technology’s SIG Mentor-Protégée Program for professional women.  This includes: career path advice, work/life balance tips, and the development of networking skills. She recently participated in the University of Maryland Smith’s School of Business Mentor Night for seniors getting ready to enter the business world. 

When Blisk started her career in the financial services industry in 1985, the industry was almost totally male dominated – with less than one percent participation by women in management positions. Even today, the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards reports that only 23% of the nation’s 58,000 Certified Financial Planners® are women.

In 2007, Blisk received a Bravo Women Business Achievement Award sponsored by Washington Smart CEO magazine and TiE-DC, an organization dedicated to supporting the community of entrepreneurs in the Mid-Atlantic region. Criteria for the Bravo Awards include overcoming business obstacles, financially outperforming competitors, displaying leadership and work ethic beyond the workplace and using a business base to benefit community fundraising. In 2008, she was named one of the Washington Business Journal’s Women Who Mean Business. Washington Business Journal Publisher Alex Orfinger describes these awards as representing “leadership, innovation, entrepreneurship, business savvy and just plain hard work.”

Blisk’s other recent honors include being named one of 28 women to receive the first “Influential Women of Virginia” award from Virginia Lawyers Weekly in May 2009 and one of the “Top Financial Advisors” in the U.S. by Barron’s Magazine in February 2009.

This new Barron’s listing follows Blisk’s recognition in 2007 and 2008 as one of Barron’s Top 100 Women Financial Advisors in the U.S. In addition, Blisk has been recognized in both 2007 and 2008 by Virginia Business Magazine as one of the top 50 wealth advisors in Virginia and in 2009 as one of the top 25 wealth advisors in Virginia.

About Brenda Blisk

Serving clients in more than 20 states, Brenda Blisk heads a team of six, which includes two other financial consultants, a client service representative and two research analysts. Her team manages more than $200 million in assets. In 1997 Blisk and her team went independent as an Investment Advisor Representative of Legacy Advisors, LLC, (now Spire Wealth Management, LLC) in McLean, Virginia. Wealth Manager Magazine has ranked the firm as one of its top financial advisory firms five consecutive years from 2004 through 2008.

Blisk provides independent “unbiased” advice, personalized strategies for income planning, wealth accumulation, pre and post divorce planning, special needs and investment management to clients.  For a free consultation call 703-748-5828.

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Nearly 100 People Attend First Virginia Community Bank’s Community Shred

Manassas, VA, September 26, 2009 - Despite the rain, nearly 100 people attended the community shred sponsored by First Virginia Community Bank at their Manassas Regional Office on September 26. With each person bringing up to five boxes of documents, about 8500 pounds of paper was shredded, according to Security On/Off Site Shredding, which partnered with the Bank in this event.

“Part of our mission as a community bank is to be of service to the community in which we live and work” said Chief Executive Officer, David W. Pijor. “Christine Rowe, our Vice President for Business Development for Prince William County, did a fabulous job in organizing the event, assisted by the entire Manassas office.  We were pleased to see the number of people who responded. “

First Virginia Community Bank is a state charted bank, headquartered in Fairfax, Virginia.  The Bank’s corporate offices and main office branch are located at 11325 Random Hills Road in Fairfax, The Bank’s second office, located at 7900 Sudley Road in Manassas, opened in July 2008.

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Reston Resident Kim Lysik DiSanti Becomes Columnist for Womenentrepreneur.com

Reston, VA, September 16, 2009 –Reston resident and Executive Coach Kim Lysik DiSanti has been asked to share her wit and wisdom on a national basis as a regular columnist for www.womenentrepreneur.com.  DiSanti’s columns will appear monthly on the national site, which is a sister site to Entrerpeneur.com and Entrepreneur Magazine.

DiSanti’s column, The Mother Lode, was launched on September 16, 2009, with a column entitled, “Managing Maternity Leave While Self-Employed." This first column is a six-point lesson plan to help women entrepreneurs plan for the arrival of a child without the benefit of a paid maternity leave, manage clients while taking time off and look for reliable child care.

DiSanti launched her executive coaching business, Total Strategy, in 1999, after working 19 years in sales and marketing. In ten years, she has logged nearly 3,000 hours coaching more than 185 clients. She is ranked among the top nine percent in the coaching profession. She serves on Board of the Washington, D.C., Chapter of National Organization of Women Business Owners and as director of programs and events.

At mid-career and with a successful business coaching practice, Kim became a first-time mother in 2005. She was 43.  She learned by doing - juggling roles as a wife, mother, sister, daughter, pet owner, friend, confidante and cheerleader to her clients. Since then, Kim has added a niche to her repertoire: teaching other women how to combine a career and motherhood.

Being her own boss, DiSanti could make the necessary adjustments. She coaches her clients three days a week and uses the other two days for administrative work and play time with her son. She takes nine to 12 weeks off a year because she believes that motherhood is her most important job during her son’s formative years.

Outspoken and pithy, DiSanti has been quoted in articles in Washington Woman Magazine, The Washington Post, Washington Business Journal, Wall Street Journal, and the Times Community Newspapers. Also, she was a nominee for the Fast Company 2005 “Fast 50” Competition.

DiSanti is a contributing author to the book: A Guide to Getting It – Branding and Marketing Mastery: Ideas and Tools from Business Coaches to Help You to Achieve Success.  She has written an article on “Networking: The Insider’s Guide to Finding and Leveraging Your Best Opportunities” as well as numerous articles in the Loudoun County (VA) Chamber of Commerce Newsletters. She publishes a monthly eNewsletter.

A “solopreneur,” maintaining a successful home-based business, DiSanti is the recipient of the Home Based Business of the Year Award from the Loudoun County (VA) Chamber of Commerce. She has been actively involved in her son’s pre-school and has formed a play-date group with other parents and their children. The group is part social, part support and all fun!

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