Two Iowa State students have shoveled more than their fair share of snow throughout the past three weeks.

Ryan Kinart, senior in business, and Chris Sprong, senior in liberal studies, own and operate a business called R&C Yard Services, Inc., 116 Beedle Drive.

Long-time friends Kinart and Sprong “came together” their freshman year at Ames High School and started mowing “what we thought was a lot,” which totaled about 12 lawns, Sprong said.

“Then that’s really when we got into snow,” he said.

Both said snow removal and yardwork were part-time jobs for them throughout high school. It wasn’t until their freshman year at ISU that things “really took off,” Kinart said.

“We bought out another company our freshman year of college. Then another big competitor went out last year, and a lot of his accounts fell into our laps,” he said.

After a three-year break from doing snow removal, R&C Yard Services, Inc. reinstated their services this winter, employing three other ISU students.

Kinart, Sprong and their crew worked the entire weekend after the major snowfall on Jan. 1 and 2, shoveling 20-25 commercial areas and six residential properties.

Kinart said he and the crew put in about 50 hours during the weekend.

“We got up at 2 a.m. on Saturday morning and worked until … midnight because we had breakdowns.”

Sprong said breakdowns are “something you have to account for.”

“Everything’s so cold, it’s hard on equipment,” Kinart said. “We broke a belt on a truck at 5:30 a.m. … on Welch Avenue.”

On average, it takes R&C Yard Services, Inc. nine to 11 hours to shovel its 20-25 properties. Kinart said the biggest problem with snow removal is that “everybody wants to be first.

“Somebody’s always going to complain,” he said. “It’s basically our call what order we shovel in, but we try to do restaurants first.”

R&C Yard Services, Inc.’s clients include restaurants, such as O’Malley & McGees Mexican Cafe, 716 S. Duff Ave., and Aunt Maude’s, 547 Main St. Other clients include Excel Medical, 1416 Buckeye Ave., a fraternity on Welch Avenue and apartment complexes in Campustown.

“We try to stay on a personal level with our clients, almost like a friendship,” Kinart said.

Pat Breen, owner of Aunt Maude’s, said he is satisfied with the company’s performance.

“They’re great guys. They’re here when I need ’em,” he said. “It’s pretty remarkable that they can go to school and do their snow removal and landscaping business.”

Ev Cochrane of Ev Cochrane and Associates, 207 Stanton Ave., said he would “give them a hardy recommendation.”

“They’re very hard workers, very prompt, and do what they say they’re going to do — which is a rarity in this business,” Cochrane said.

There are several construction and landscaping corporations who compete with R&C Yard Services, Inc. in the summer, but only a dozen operate during the winter.

Kinart and Sprong are both full-time students, besides being businessmen. This semester, Kinart is taking 12 credits and Sprong is enrolled for 14.

“I try to make most of [my classes],” Kinart said. “But if I see the opportunity to make a lot of money a particular day … I probably wouldn’t go to class.”

Kinart and Sprong said they view their business as just another way to learn.

“This is basically another school for us, because we’re always learning something new,” Sprong said.

And the duo said they are in R&C Yard Services, Inc. for the long haul.

“We both seem to enjoy it enough, and it’s treating us well,” Kinart said. “What else can you ask for? You’re making money and you’re happy, isn’t that sort of the goal in life?”