Hiller gets a new ride
Trinity Power Motorsports students upgrade K-9 SUV
Hiller, the Trinity Area School District K-9, and his handler, police Officer Ken Ranalli, received an upgrade to their SUV, thanks to the students in Trinity High School’s Power Motorsports classes.
Under the supervision of Power Motorsports instructor Randy Coyle, the students refurbished a 2016 Chevrolet Tahoe police vehicle, outfitting it with a specialized K-9 carrier to keep Hiller, a German shepherd, safe. They also added storage, repaired the motorized windows and doors, and completed other repairs.
And, the class decommissioned the school district’s former K-9 police vehicle – a 2010 Chevrolet Tahoe – and converted it into a courier vehicle that will be used to deliver mail and packages between schools.
“I really appreciate what the kids did. They were fantastic,” said Ranalli. “We were starting to have a lot of problems with the old K-9 SUV, with it overheating, leaking antifreeze, and other issues.”
Trinity Area School District Police Chief Sean Scott connected with Coyle earlier in the school year about doing work on the vehicles as part of a project for the class.
It was a win/win proposition – the students would get hands-on experience in the repair and tune-up of the police vehicles, and the police department would save the expenses of having the work outsourced.
Scott estimated a new K-9 police unit would cost around $75,000 to $80,000.
The price tag for the purchase, repairs and upgrades of the SUV came in at under $20,000.
“These guys did an awesome job,” said Scott. “They know why the department is here and why the dog is here: It’s all about keeping them safe, and I think it gives them a sense of pride about being able to help us help them. We will get a lot of years of use from this vehicle. It’s perfect for our purposes.”
The upgraded K-9 police vehicle – purchased from the Texas Highway Patrol last summer – is now equipped with a Hot-N-Pop safety system that includes a high-heat alarm and door-opening mechanism to protect Hiller from heatstroke.
The SUVs were brought to the Power Motorsports’ 1,600-square-foot garage, which houses two full-sized bays, for the overhaul.
Students spent about four weeks making the repairs and completing the K-9 cage installation.
The Power Motorsports class is a Career and Technical Education (CTE) course that teaches students how to maintain, diagnose, and repair machinery, including ATVs, UTVs, and light trucks. It is one of 1- CTE courses offered at Trinity, and among the most popular, with capacity filled quickly every semester.
The students, said Coyle, were ready for the challenge.
In the former K-9 vehicle, they pulled out lights, sirens, radios, removed the old K-9 cage, and stripped off the decals.
“They made it look like a regular 2010 Tahoe, and it looks great,” said Coyle.
Ranalli and Hiller, an explosives detection dog, have been making their rounds in the new K-9 SUV. Hiller also has assisted other school districts in the county and the Washington County Sheriff Department’s K-9 unit. And, he is a regular at the district’s six school buildings, where he is popular with the students and is happy to receive pats and hugs and, when necessary, acts as a therapy dog.
Coyle said the Power Motorsports class often takes on projects from the community, and was delighted to fix up the new K-9 unit and help decommission the former one.
“I think we’ve been able to do some good,” said Coyle. “We have a good relationship with the administration and the police department, and when I was approached by Chief Scott and (Director of Facilities and Transportation) Aaron Scott, I thought it was an awesome opportunity to take the project from start to finish, and help out the department.”