From 1923 to 1972, the Utah Parks Company, a subsidiary of Union Pacific Railroad, brought thousands of visitors to southwestern Utah and northern Arizona. Cedar City was the starting point for travelers on the company's tours, including the Grand Circle tour, which took visitors by bus to Zion National Park, the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon National Park, and Cedar Breaks National Monument, with a few stops along the way. The Utah Parks Company Bus and Vehicle Garage was the primary maintenance and repair facility for the company's iconic buses. Its original floor was slanted so water would run to one end as the buses were washed, and ramps on the north side were used for oil changes and other undercarriage work. Because the tours were hard on the buses, good maintenance was essential. The drivers, known as gearjammers, earned their nickname in the early days of driving to the parks by jamming the gears into place on scenic, winding canyon roads. Gearjammer Ike Beem, who drove from 1946 to 1950, recalled one trip down from Cedar Breaks when he lost air for his brakes several miles up the canyon, used the emergency brake to slow the bus, passed the Rock Church in Cedar City without stopping, went through Main Street, and finally stopped three blocks later, later joking with a passenger that he had not had any brakes since leaving Cedar Breaks.