Flavor: Winter just another season for career ice cream man

THREE RIVERS AREA — Michael Hawthorn of Hot Springs works fast. Rushing from one store to the next in his red company jacket and insulated black gloves, he is at home in the cold weather. Even when winter passes, ice cream salesman Hawthorn has his head in the freezer.

Twenty-three years ago, Hawthorn embarked on a career as a route salesman with Yarnell’s Ice Cream Co. based in Searcy. He was married, with a 1-year-old son.

“I’ve seen a lot of change in the industry,” he said.

Rogers Yarnell, grandson of founder Ray Yarnell, was already at the helm of the business, now 78 years strong. His father Albert, whose first duties included making deliveries around town on his bicycle, had become chairman of the board.

“We’re in our fourth generation of Yarnells now,” Hawthorne said. Great-granddaughter Christina is now chief executive officer.

From the company’s humble beginnings, Yarnell’s now saturates venues throughout the state, as well as portions of all bordering states. A fleet of 50 trucks rumbles down the byways delivering more than 20 varieties of premium ice cream, five flavors of Guilt Free (no sugar) ice cream, fruit sherberts, five flavors of frozen yogurt and ice cream desserts to stores of every size.

“We used to sell a lot of ice milk,” Hawthorn said. “It was unreal how much we sold, but in the late ’80s we stopped because folks were seeking products with less calories and less fat.”

Yarnell’s has always catered to the discerning palates of local consumers.

What was once considered a radical flavor, Ozark Black Walnut still retains popular among native sons and daughters. The Arkansas Razorbacks line, however, is a premium ice cream developed for the contemporary Arkansan.

Reflecting the home-state pride, the five flavors include Woo Pig Chewy, brownie-flavored ice cream with chunks of chewy brownies and swirls of brownie batter; Pig Trail Mix, peanut butter ice cream with chocolate-covered pretzels, peanut butter cups and chocolate-covered peanuts; Hog Wild for Cookie Dough,vanilla ice cream with chocolate-chip cookie dough and swirls of cookie dough batter; Hog Heaven, chocolate ice cream with sandwich cookies, whipped cream and chocolate fudge; and Slap Me Sooie, chocolate ice cream with chocolate truffles and red raspberry sauce.

“Still, our best seller is Homemade Vanilla, followed by Real Vanilla,” Hawthorn said. “A lot of people think vanilla is pretty boring, but there’s a lot you can add to vanilla ice cream. Chocolate is pretty high up there, too.”

Hawthorn, now a presalesman (“I sell and another guy delivers”), ran routes for 2 1/2 years and supervised for 18 years, part of that time managing the entire southern part of the state.

“I covered Benton, Malvern, Hot Springs, Nashville, Arkadelphia, Texarkana, all over, really. It was a large area,” he said.

Working in the field in the earlier days meant salesmen were expected to call the office several times a day for updates.

“But with cell phones, that all stopped,” Hawthorn said. “We are just a phone call away if anyone needs us.”

Another change Hawthorn notes is the near paperless inventorying.

“When I first started for the company, we had to hand write all our tickets.It was pretty scary going to hand-held computers,” he said. “Now, we’re used to using those, and we even carry printers in our vehicles. We’ve grown so accustomed to the computers we hate it when we have to go back to writing by hand, which we have to do from time to time when the computers are acting up.”

Hawthorn, whose route once consisted of more than six routes, believes dedication to the job is vital to success in any business.

“You’ve also got to be willing to work hard,” he said. “Back when, we serviced a store once or twice a week, whereas now, because we handle a lot more products, we try to go back into the store four and five times a week. That’s alot to keep up with.”

Much of what Hawthorn learned was honed by trial and error, but nowadays, according to Dloroah Devore, marketing director for the company, every employee must participate in Ice Cream 101.

“Employees get a chance to tour the entire facility and work in several departments, such as the freezer, storage and loading. Everyone gets a chance to go into manufacturing to see how the products are made. They spend a whole week with research and development, and of course, the delivery employees have to pass the Yarnell’s driving test, even though they already have their commercial license,” Devore said. “They seem to like the marketing tour best, but I don’t know if that’s because of the samples or because there is no test over that section.”

The cold is an issue each person has to work out on his own, Hawthorn said.

“I only wear gloves, usually, sometimes not even that. I’ve been doing this for so long it doesn’t get to me like some people,” he said.

New employees would do well to listen to Hawthorn, the 1989 Salesman of the Year. His father, Doyle Hawthorn, also of Hot Springs, was not surprised by the distinction.

“He sold more half gallons of ice cream in his first two years than anyone in the company’s history,” Doyle said. “Michael worked from 3 a.m. to 9 p.m. every business day, sometimes on Saturdays, too. Mr. Albert Yarnell told me that if they had 50 men like him, Yarnell’s would be a different company altogether.”

“I never heard that,” Hawthorn said. “The company’s been very good to me and my family.”

Terri, his wife of 26 years, and their four children have been married to the company, even though the family lived in Hot Springs. The Hawthorn home was always the place to be.

“Between our kids, their friends and the foreign-exchange students we hosted, we had a pretty steady stream of kids going through our house, and it might have had something to do with the freezer being stocked with Yarnell’s ice cream,” Hawthorn said.

The family has another connection to Yarnell’s now, as eldest Hawthorn son Ryan embarked on his own career as a route salesman.

“He’s been running a route for three months now,” Hawthorn said.

Lots of changes going on as time marches on, but some things remain the same.

“The taste hasn’t really changed over the years,” Hawthorn said.

KEY LIME PIE ICE CREAM CAKE

From the Yarnell’s Web site Ingredients: 1 box butter cake mix 2 tablespoons lemon curd Graham cracker crumbs 1 (48 ounce) carton Yarnell’s Key Lime Pie ice cream

Directions:

Allow ice cream to temper in the refrigerator for one to two hours. Bake cake mix according to the directions on the box, but split the cake batter into two 9-by-13-inch baking dishes. Allow the cake to cool completely. When cool, spread lemon curd on top of cake. Sprinkle with handful of graham cracker crumbs. Spread Key Lime Pie ice cream over the top evenly and refreeze. Garnish with key lime slices, whipped cream or more graham cracker crumbs.

TIRAMISU ICE CREAM PIE Ingredients: 2 squares (1 ounce each) unsweetened chocolate 2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons hot milk 2/3 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar 1 1/2 cups shredded coconut 1 quart Yarnell’s Death by Chocolate ice cream, softened 2 teaspoons instant coffee, dissolved in a teaspoon of water 1/4 cup chopped pecans Whipped topping Pecan halves and shaved chocolate, for garnish

Directions:

Melt chocolate and butter together, stirring to blend. Stir hot milk into the confectioners’ sugar; add to chocolate mixture and stir to mix well. Stir in coconut. Press mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch buttered pie plate.Chill in refrigerator. Stir softened ice cream with coffee and chopped pecans. Spread in chilled pie shell, swirling top. Decorate with dollops of whipped topping, pecan halves and shaved chocolate. Freeze ice cream pie until firm.

Serves six.

TOFFEE BARS Ingredients: 2 cups graham cracker crumbs 1/2 cup melted butter 2 packages (3.4 ounces each) instant vanilla pudding mix2 cups milk 1 quart Yarnell’s Butter Pecan ice cream, softened slightly 1 (8 ounce) carton frozen whipped topping, thawed 2 Heath candy bars (1.4 ounces each), crushed

Directions:

In a bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs and melted butter. Pat graham cracker mixture into the bottom of an ungreased 9-by-13-inch baking pan; chill thoroughly in the freezer. In a large mixing bowl, beat pudding mixes and milk until well blended, about one minute. Fold in the softened ice cream and whipped topping; spoon over chilled crust. Sprinkle with crushed Heath bars. Freeze. Remove from freezer about 20 minutes before cutting and serving.

LAYERED CHOCOLATE CARAMEL BARS Ingredients: 30 cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookies (Oreos), crushed 1/4 cup butter, melted 1/2 gallon Yarnell’s Merry Mint Chip ice cream, softened 1/2 cup chocolate chips (milk or semisweet) 1 can (5 ounces) evaporated milk 1/2 cup sugar 1 1/2 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate 1 tablespoon butter 1 (12 ounce) carton frozen Cool Whip 1 cup chopped pecans Garnish: fresh mint springs (optional)

Directions:

Combine cookies and 1/4 cup butter. Press into lightly greased 9-by-13-inch pan and freeze. Spread ice cream evenly over crust, sprinkle chocolate chips and freeze until firm. Meanwhile, combine evaporated milk and next three ingredients in small, heavy saucepan. Bring to boil over low heat, stirring constantly with whisk.

Cook, stirring constantly, three to four minutes until mixture thickens. Cool to room temperature and spread chocolate mixture over ice cream. Top with whipped topping, sprinkle with pecans and freeze until firm. Allow 10 minutes to thaw before slicing and serving. Garnish with mint springs if desired.

Three Rivers, Pages 53 on 01/14/2010

Print Headline: flavor Winter just another season for career ice cream man