EXTRA EXTRA EXTRA Iron Buffalo Hires...

Yes, really, to protect the safety of my grandson who will be the riding in the Mule's inaugural ride, we had to hire a "Crash Test Dummy".
Don't laugh, this is a serious, yes a very serious occupation. Not many can say that they were selected for this acclaimed position.
Iron Buffalo felt that no expense should be spared in hiring the most qualified "CTD" in the state.
The Mule has kicked one, bucked a few, and now today was the final test of the road worthiness of the Mule. 
Seriously, I can not take my grandson on a ride in a vehicle that I do not feel is safe, period.
Enter the CTD (crash test dummy)

"Marg, you want to go for a ride in the Mule"...

And off we go, the rest is history... putting the Mule through the paces with a highly skilled CTD on board.
At first I can see the CTD has a tentative look, but as we proceed a smile starts to arise.
Is the smile because the CTD does not realize what is coming or is it that she has also bonded with the Mule?
About 20 miles into the test ride the Mule starts to make a 
serious screeching, whining sound. At first I feel it is the speedo head complaining, then as I slow and downshift I start to wonder if it is the clutch or second gear, shit, not good! 
My CTD does not register my alarm, GOOD, but I am starting to get my squishy pants again. We are 20 miles from home and I have not figured out what the screeching noise is.
I pull over thinking that maybe I have lost trans or secondary drive oil. No that's not it, no visible leaks. 
I check on my CTD and she is all smiles, so off we go. Then the screeching starts again. I flip up my modular helmet and start to listen, listen and then it appears to be coming from the instrument cluster (this was my initial thought). As any great test driver does I start to smack the speedo and low and behold the screeching stops. I continue on and it starts again. I smack it again. It stops. OK, so now my squishy pants start to go away. We then continue on our test ride and every time it screams I smack the gauges. Then I realize that if I smack the tach, it stops.
I can even feel the screaming from the cluster on the tach side. There is nothing like the feel/sound of a screaming mechanical tach...
Problem diagnosed, tach drive is dry. Nothing like a set of squishy pants and a few hard smacks to figure something out at 60 mph...
My CTD is still all smiles as I tell her we are going to enter I-25 for a couple of exits (NOT!) so instead I get back on the frontage roads and see how the Mule performs.
Then I suggest that we take a few dirt roads to see how the Mule performs on dirt. Low and behold the dirt road I wanted to drive on is gone, the bastards paved it, WTF.
Anyway off we go on a wonderful new asphalt paved road. Eventually we find a "dirt road" to take the Mule on. As I exit I look over my left shoulder and it says, "No motorized vehicles". OOPS! Kind of feel bad, but not really... nobody around but me and my CTD.
50 miles later we arrive home, just me and my CTD. All smiles and no problems other than figuring out how to fix a non serviceable tachometer.
Get the hammer!
Anyway, long story short, I figure out how to get it apart WITHOUT BREAKING ANYTHING, add a little clock oil here and there and boom badda bing, the tach has stopped screeching. The needle moves a little slow, as I figure out clock oil is not the right viscosity for a tach, but who cares? It's not screechin' anymore...

Tomorrow BC & me take the Mule out to spank her! Stay tuned...

W

Monday & the Mule Skinner

Information is the most precious commodity in the world. Those that do not realize this will end up suffering...

I have always pushed the limits, or as some would say pushed the envelope. 
On the other side I have always been smart enough to know my knowledge boundaries. Though not my experimentation boundaries, heck I scraped an exhaust can on "Sally" (another story...).

Before I had even bought the Mule I had contacted my "Skinner" to ask about the Mule. He felt that I was headed in the right direction and that my budget was good. 
The Skinner is probably the most experienced sidecar rider/monkey/mechanic in the state of Colorado and or the Rocky Mt. region. 
Or as I would affectionately state, my sidecar guru.

I have been working on the Mule for over 3 weeks, talking with my Skinner, picking up tidbits of his 70+ years of experience and trying to get the Mule road worthy. All of this effort and self imposed stress came to a head today when I was able to get the Skinner to ride my Mule.
I had not told him anything about what I had done to her, just asked that he take her out and spank her. 
I had to. Harsh to say but I am planning on taking my grandson on the maiden voyage in the Mule in 5 days...
Safety first, if she can't cut the muster, I will scrap her. Hard to say but just the simple facts of life. If an animal has to be put down, so be it, man up and git'r done.

I had parked the Mule out front of the garage as I knew he was coming over. What I did not know was that he had taken time to inspect my Mule before he even let me know he was at the house. Kind of like the "Mule Whisperer" shit going on. He had to get to know the beast without distraction, form a relationship before he mounted and tried to tame my Mule.
Once he announced he was at my home we talked a little, he immediately pointed out a couple of flaws that I had suspected and told me he was ready to go.
I drove lead and took the Skinner on a route that would put the Mule through the paces as he spanked her. As I looked in the review I could see that the Mule was a' bucking, not yet comfortable with this new rider, and then as time wore on I could see that the Skinner had won over the Mule. He was makin' her dance, makin' her fly and just becoming one with the Mule. 
Years of riding experience can not be mimicked. You can only gain this by trial, years of riding and an unexplained bonding with your machine and or any machine you mount. 
Or becoming one, man & machine.
I could clearly see this in the rear view, he was one with the Mule. Hard to explain but such a joy to see uninhibited...
Once we pulled back into the driveway the Skinner had a smile, one that only another rider can understand. 
First thing he says is that; "these handle bars suck"! I was totally relieved and happy, as I hated them from the first ride I had on the Mule. He then told me that the hack shock is toast. 
Both of these problems were things that stuck in my craw from the beginning. 
My instincts told me these two items were problems, I just needed confirmation from the Skinner.
Over all the Skinner had praise for the performance of my Mule. He commented on how well she pulled the load, how she tracked straight and true, and that the set up I had done was good, safe and ready to roll.
He felt that other than the crappy angle of the handle bar, and the blown shock she was ready to rock & roll.
Music to my ears, I took a leap in faith, spent about a year searching for a Mule I could afford and today the blessings showed.
My Mule is now part of the herd...

W

Becoming one... (long story, sorry)

It's hard to explain?

I have owned/driven/played with probably over a 1000 or more "machines" (with wheels, and tracks, can you say Thiokol), yes really. I can send you a list... 

I feel that I got my zen (genetics maybe?) from mom & dad. I was raised around their machines and their love of the machine.

Anyway I have always formed a "relationship" with my machines with wheels, (computers and other tech I loath, I still use a flip phone by choice) and have always named them. My daughter Stacey once pointed this out to me and I had never realized it before. I form a love/hate relationship with my machines. 

Sometimes I am initially scared by them. I then try and learn their style, and usually I can empower them to allow me to smile. 

I can also send their piece of shit ass to the scrap yard. I can only take so much of "the bonding"...

The Mule has entered into my world of machines.

Today was a scheduled day of experimenting/test driving on the Mule for me. I even remembered to take a tool kit with me, yeah send me a thank you note on that one...

AGATT (All Gear All The Time) again cause my baby still scares the shit out of me. She ain't friendly just yet. I am still trying to earn her respect.

I rigged the broken tach cable so it would not do any damage to the tach drive gear (major $$$ to fix as it is inside the engine) by removing the damaged cable and sheath. I then removed the broken cable from the sheath and reinstalled the empty sheath. Thus protecting the tach drive gear inside the engine from the outside elements.

I don't need no stinkin' tach, I know that red line is when shit starts to vacate the engine casings! Right?

I then do a visual of all major mounts (that I touched) check my tire pressure, add BG MOA (great product) to the crankcase in hopes that this will help to protect my Mule under high heat. Say my prayers, gear up and off I go.

Initially as I am driving through my neighborhood I can not really decipher much. Yeah it stops, it accelerates but not enough speed to decide if you are going to die today...

Out I go onto the first 45+ mph side road. I notice that I am having to pull hard, yeah really hard on the left handle bar to get the Mule to track. I keep going as my mind processes the minuscule amount of information I have stored on a sidecar hack and how they are "supposed to handle" I ain't no wussie, I can throw a motorcycle around so on I go. Shit, as I get up to speed or around 60+ mph the Mule wants to gallop off the road to the right. I can form a less abusive straight line as I get everything settled and then she kind of evens out. Then I start to notice that the hack dives severely to the right under steering correction, braking (normal)  or farting...and does not rebound well.

So after about 7 miles I kind of have my Mule figured out, yeah right. I pull over after turning around and shift my 60 lbs ballast bag in the hack to the left and then sit off the seat to the left as I ride and regain a significant amount of control. Not enough to get rid of my squishy pants but enough to ponder what is happening as I head for home.

OK so now I know that the Mule wants to vacate the road @ 60+ mph to the right. Shifting weight to the left makes a noticeable improvement in the ability to steer and get the Mule to track straight.

I get back to the garage and park her, shed my gear and stand back and look at the Mule from behind. 

Yeah I am lookin' a Mule in the ass...

I notice that the bike is leaning to the right into the hack. I would guess between 2-5 degrees at least.

Hum, if a motorcycle leans in either direction it will turn in that direction.

I look at an adjustable rod connecting the bike to the sidecar and say why is that adjustable? 

I call the tech line of the sidecar manufacturer and ask pointed question about my ride.

The tech guy is very nice and has been for the last 6 months with my "tard questions".

He gives a lot of latitude to a motorcycle safety training company, thank God. Anyway I can tell he knows that he has someone that understands about 20% of what he is saying. He is nice and repeatedly says "have you read the download about sidecar installation from our web site". I humbly say no and tell him I will, I promise ( I don't need no stinkin' directions, I am a MAN).

Again I stand looking at the ass of my Mule and it clicks, it is leaning to the right, or into the hack. I then call my sidecar guru who is totally patient with my lack of understanding and he says yes the bike should lean left or at least centered. OK enough info for me. I break loose the lock nut (hammer required, cool! I get to beat my Mule) and adjust the rod and low and behold the bike stands up straight and leans to the left. Eureka! Amazing how shit works if you know what you are doing...

I contemplate how this changed the dynamics of the bike and then think, I have ballast in the hack now, the guy said it should lean to the left without a passenger (or pillion, my grandson Bryce). I leave the 120 lbs ballast in and "eyeball"(scientific verbiage) the Mule from the rear. Sure as shit the Mule is standing upright! I play with it a little, gear up, take my trusted hammer with me and out I go on my next test drive. WOW what a difference a little geometry makes (never took a class, almost failed algerbra but WTF?) the Mule tracked 80-90% better. I pulled over once, smacked the lock nut with the hammer (love the use of a hammer) and tweaked it a little more. Off I went saddled to my Mule, learning all the way.

Other notes;

the hacks shock is blown, leaking and does not operate properly. The tech guy says that you might be able to rebuild it or, spend $500.00 to upgrade the suspension that we figured out 2 years later, was not adequate on your sidecar, great.

Once I hooked up the lights for the sidecar from the bike I noticed the right side turn signals did not work well. They operated fast and what appeared to be hard on the relay. Fast clicks instead of a steady click.

I asked my mechanic what this might mean and he said that the sidecar was drawing to much voltage for the circuit. 

Cool, his thoughts made sense, I ask him; "should I snip a wire on the bike or remove an unneeded bulb", he turns his head as he thinks and says "remove the bulb". As I am driving home I think about all of the light bulbs I have replaced in our home to more energy efficient ones. Somewhere I have heard about LED bulbs for vehicles that will draw less voltage. Yeah this might fix my problem.

I ride the Mule to my local parts store and yes they have LED 1156 & 1157 bulbs that I can buy @  $12.50 each are you F'in serious! Well I can not spare any expense to make the Mule road worthy, period. I am stuck with what little, no wait the serious lack money that I have left has to go to feeding the Mule.

I get the bulbs installed and what 'ya know the problem is solved by using less energy, just more money I don't have. Wish my life always worked like that, problem solved by less energy... NOT!

Tomorrow Bryce (my pillion) and I will "scout" our course for the charity ride on the 27th.

I just hope and pray the Mule can stand, not buck, and deliver.

W 

The Mule lives...

It's alive!

I finished up with the last of the initial repairs on the Mule. The rear brake pads, and the air box to carb hoses installation. The rear brake fluid was clear as the Mississippi river, with no mud! Flushed the fluid until she was runnin' clear, everything worked as it should.

Then as any good test pilot does...

I'm off on a 50 mile ride putting her through the moves, she actually did quite well. Went out onto 76 East so I could get up to speed, cruises fine @ 75-80 mph pulling 5-6000 rpm's. That is until the Mule spits the tach cable out. I pull over on an off ramp, do a once over to make sure she ain't bleedin', and re-attach the cable on a very hot engine with no tools...

Note to self:

If you're going on a test drive take some basic tools, baling wire and duct tape, ya dumb ass...

Start up again, tach is working great, oops no tach again. Well seeing as this problem won't go away, time to return to base. 

Overall the performance was good other than the position of the handle bars. They are made for midgets not gorilla like armed people such as myself! My throttle hand kept going to sleep because of the awkward position. Consider a clock dial, my hands were @ 10 & 2 o'clock (imagine holding a car steering wheel) pointing down at about a 150 degree angle... The position will be perfect for our senior 3 wheel instructor, just great. I am a 3 & 9 type rider, 95-100 degree all day long. Oh well we will see what the future holds for the Mule's bar...

Interesting thing about the bike, or maybe it is my age coming out. 

This bike was considered a top tier bagger/cruiser in it's day. I would not last on a all day trip on this bike by itself.  I have not ridden a bike that was this touchy to wind, road grooves and general stability at speed in a long time. 

I mean like you fart and the mule twitches. With the hack on the Mule, the ride will become much more pleasant, or so I hope. 

The bike is heavy enough just does not even come close to the Super Tanker II in the comfort arena.

"Super Tanker II"

My thought is the wheel base difference. The Mule is a heavy bike, coming in just over 600 lbs, but still compared to the 850 lbs Super Tanker II? Going to measure and see.

When I got back to the garage I let it idle to see what the oil temp would do. On my test ride she was consistently under 200 F (high 80's ambient) with the air flowing, good, but as soon as I would slow or come to a stop BEHIND THE EVER PRESENT LINE OF SEMI's in Colorado at a stop light, she would climb to 250. At idle after a long hard ride the temp was about 260 F. Concern. Will take a serious look at installing an oil cooler.

Moved it into the garage shut her down and went to get the hack (sidecar) out of the shed for the installation process. Everything was going fine right up to the point I can't find the F'n mounting bolts. Heck I can't even remember where I put them, so I spend 1/2 hour grinding the gears of memory, looking everywhere I can think of and finally off to the hardware store I go...

$30 bucks later the Mule is whole again. I then check all mountings again, air up the tire, wire the lights for the hack and off on test ride #2 of the day. Just around the neighborhood, (little tired and sore from test ride #1, no ballast) and the old Mule does very well. I am excited. Today once I have the ballast for the hack, I will try and get the rig out on the highway to see what happens. I talked with my sidecar guru and he his hopefully coming by on Monday to test ride the Mule and sign off on her, at least that is what I hope & pray...

I now feel a lot better about the build and how the restoration of the Mule is going. I still have 8 days to repair the tach, fix some wiring issues, install the hack windscreen and luggage rack (for advertising) and have my mechanic check her over and then ride, ride, ride, my Mule.

W

Always loved a good t-shirt...

OK, so this blog post is not for you mild mannered respectable people (REALLY TURN AWAY NOW!). 
Though this post is "OK" for the rest of you assholes (who will understand)...
I warned you! Ladies turn away now! 

Men belly up to the bar you'll need at least a yard to get through all of them, maybe two yards (real men only, Caitlin not allowed) ...

I have always tried to speak my mind through my t-shirts. It is always worth the wait (this can be upwards of a year wearing the shirt, really, yeah! I wash it sometimes...) to see the light bulbs go off in someones head when they actually take the time to read your shirt...

I found nirvana today. I'm in!
T-shirt offensive heaven. 
Not sure how I found this web site but hey I am still laughing.
If you are really, really, really, YES REALLY bored, tired of the hum drum of work, start looking through this incredible collection of ways to offend most people and make the truly brilliant ones laugh...
Maybe it is the other way around? 
I don't give a F'...

http://www.shotdeadinthehead.com/nsearch?page=1&pushnav=menu&keywords=offensive&refine=y&tags=Offensive

Couple of my fav's;

One of my all time fav's currently in use;

Anytime I helped someone move, I wore the shirt. Any job interview I had, I wore the shirt...

The hat has significance also...

So much to see & so much to buy, so little time & so little money...

At least I can still laugh until I cry!

W

If you are kicked in the ass by a Mule...

are you a "jack ass"?

Well looking back at today I would say I am a jack ass.

I have been working hard to get "The Mule" ready for my 1st DGR charity event.

Today I finished up a huge amount of work on the mule from the past week.

Installed the newly rebuilt front forks, rebuilt the fuel pet cock (that does not leak now!) new rear tire, changing the fluids in the final drive, the secondary trans, and the engine, lubing & adjusting cables, checking brake fluids *, installing the newly resurfaced king/queen seat, and fixing a major pain in the ass. The air box rubber hoses from the carbs are crap. I struggled for at least an hour to get four rubber hoses to almost fit, so they can seal, so I can test ride the mule... All went pretty well no real problems. 
(I have ordered new air box hoses to install next week as I doubt the fit of the current ones).
In the process of doing a large amount of work on a bike, you look at everything and notice things. Various hoses/wiring that needs zip ties, worn boots, things leaking, certain things that need adjustment or replacement and on and on.

On to the jack ass part...
For some reason (God) I decided to open the front brake fluid reservoir and "check" the fluid, well it was pretty low, looked like muddy waters, but hey the front brakes worked, right! If it ain't broke don't fix it crap. 
Don't listen to God though, just push ahead get on and ride, ya dumb ass... 
Note to self, if your brake fluid looks like Mississippi mud, well maybe you have a "PROBLEM". 
Not me, just filled up the reservoir gave the lever a few pumps, and it felt fine. Leave it alone, it works in your garage, who cares about the open road, right.

Remember the mule kicking my ass?
I prep very carefully for my first true road test of the mule. I double check everything I have fixed, all the nuts and bolts, cotter pins, any fluid leaks, will she start and so on. In the back of my mind is the front brake fluid, haunting me...

Then it is time for AGATT, get all of it on, ready to ride. I saddle up, bring the mule off the center stand, roll her out of the garage and off I go on the first true test ride of a 35 year old motorcycle that I know nothing about. 
Riding any motorcycle for the first time is tenuous at the least. Can you say pucker factor! 
With my experience as a test driver and motorcyclist you start out slow, check how she weaves, stops, accelerates and just performs as a motorcycle should, or what you think a 35 year old motorcycle should do. 
So far so good, 7 miles into the first ride and looking good, no wait I smell smoke, not sure what it is, is it oil? is it 90w drive oil, is it plastic, no wait it is a brake smell, well that's no problem it is one of the trucks or cars around me, no wait why is the front of the mule dragging, why do I not have much acceleration, no wait why is my front brake lever HARD AS A ROCK? 
Shit both front calipers have seized and they are cooking the front rotors, damn I was kicked in the ass by the mule. 
At 60+ miles an hour both front rotors seized and pissed brake fluid out of the calipers! 
I have never had that happen before. I once had a front caliper come off at 75 mph, another story...
Anyway I get the mule shut down and off the road and check my shorts, still dry. Can you say "low side @ 60mph"...
Smoke is coming off of the front rim/rotors with fluid showing on the wheel and the tire. Crap!
I get back on the mule put her in neutral and try and move her nothing. The front nose dives as I push forward, seized brakes. Not good for me. 
I start to weigh my options, piss my pants now or, or wait and see what happens when the rotors cool down. 
I know I don't need no stinkin' front brakes to ride a motorcycle, right! How many times have you heard that line...
After about 5 minutes I again mount the mule and try moving her forward, bingo, freedom, the calipers have released and I have movement of the front tire.
OK,  reality check time, I have 7 miles to ride home on a secondary highway with light traffic. 
I DON'T NEED NO STINKIN' FRONT BRAKES... Right???
Off I go, my pants are a little squishy but not bad. Get the mule up to 50mph doing fine, keep telling myself "DON'T TOUCH THE FRONT BRAKE". This is really hard to over come. 
Both brakes all of the time, right! 
Twice I pull over let traffic pass the "mentally challenged biker" go home...
Once back in my garage safely I first tell myself, if your brake fluid looks like mud, well don't be a dumb ass FIX IT. 
I then thank God that I am still alive to live another day.
I love my "Mule", she kicked my ass, taught me something and will forever be a trusted steed in my herd...

One of the reasons I am not a pilot, not as far to fall...

W

The Mule build update...

Well so far so good.
I was able to accomplish more than I expected/wanted today.
The Mule restoration is proceeding ahead of schedule.

On today's list was the fuel pet cock rebuild. For some reason I was dreading this repair. Not sure why other than maybe I had never done a rebuild like this before. 3 rubber gaskets, a little watch back silicon grease, some Yama Lube gasket sealer and I think the cock is sealed. Preliminary test look good. The value even worked after the rebuild, WTF!

Next project on the list was the spark plugs. I had to take the fuel tank off anyway, thus easy access to the plugs, replace them. Glad I did the right bank was fouled, maybe a future problem, not sure will see.

I still have 20+ days to the DGR so I am trying to pace myself and not freak out on what really has to be done to ride the mule.

I had far less important side projects in the works on the mule. Because everything went so good today, I was able to replace the throttle grip, install the rebuilt front forks, install a repaired RKA tank bag (my baby), install the newly recovered custom King/Queen seat and finish the assembly of the Pannier frame being converted to an advertising platform. 

As you work on an older motorcycle like this you notice other flaws and then have to classify the problem, bad, not so bad just cosmetic. I fixed what I could, and ordered the parts needed to make The Mule true blue...

If the build goes as plans, I should be able to go out and spank the mule without the hack, next week. 

Then if it passes the tests I will mount the side car hack and have a very experienced friend MC mechanic come by and test ride The Mule with the hack on. That's the plan for now. Stay tuned!

A Marine beat the crap out of me today...

Figuratively not literally...

Part of being a motorcycle instructor, especially during an experienced rider course is to have the ability to read your students quickly. 

You basically have one riding exercise to determine if the student can actually ride safely to complete the rest of the course. 

They all say they know how to ride...

The experienced rider course is designed for two types of riders. 

One who rides the streets on a regular basis and does not have their endorsement or is not legal. 

The other rider is a seasoned/legal rider who wants to refresh their skills for practice.

Today I was blessed with an armed forces day on the range. I had three students, one retired Army, one active Navy and one retired Marine. 

Additionally a long time friend, Erik E. (a personal mentor of mine and the original owner of Iron Buffalo), stopped by during the class (retired Air Force) to say hi and drop off some supplies he no longer needed. We had all branches covered other than the Coast Guard...

After introductions all of them talked a little smack, traded jabs and showed true respect for each other. Very refreshing for a civilian (me) who appreciates what our service people do for our country.

OK back to the Marine. 

He is young 27 yrs old, and somewhat hyper. I believe he had multiple deployments in Afghanistan from what he would talk about. 

From the very beginning of the class, as we introduced ourselves, I could tell that he basically had no street riding experience. 

Plenty of dirt riding and on quads though. 

First red flag. 

Then he tells me he is very nervous about riding and failing the class.

Second red flag. 

My Marine then tells me that he has driven with his girl friend for 4 hours this morning to get to the class (that started @ 9 am). There are no motorcycle safety classes provided by our state on the western slope.

Third red flag.

So my question is; do I send him away now or do I give him a little juice, get him riding and see what he can actually do?

I decided to give him a shot. 

Both of the other riders were a little skeptical at first but very supportive.

Heck he's a Marine right???

So my Marine gets through the first exercise showing he can ride a bike, not perfect but gets the principle.

He is still very nervous as we start and ride the second exercise. He completes it but I have my doubts about him being able to continue with the class. 

My Marine does not take to my usually coaching efforts/style that works on 95% of students (mild mannered).

By the third exercise I am at the point of stopping him and I tell him so point blank. He then progresses through the exercise and reaches the objective barely. Enough so that he can advance to the next exercise.

During the fourth exercise he basically falls apart. 

OK no more mister nice guy. 

I put the hammer down as I would expect a Marine drill Sargent to do. 

I call him "Marine" instead of his name, I raise my voice as I give him direction, as I look him in the eye. He is tense but is able to complete the exercise and reach the objective. 

I even tell him to be a man point blank. 

Or in wussy words to suck it up...

Boom Batta Bing!

The next exercise he works harder than anyone I have seen in a long time to get the objective of the riding exercise. 

Additionally I changed my training tactics putting him at the end of the group so he can watch/learn from the other riders by example. 

I tell him privately to pay attention to me as I demonstrate/ride the next exercise and point blank ask him, "if someone asks you to promise to do something for them, will you do it". 

His reply is "Yes Sir". 

I then tell him to promise me he will do what I ask of him. Out he goes, and does much better on a very difficult mental exercise.

The other students are wonderful, as they appear to understand a young Marine and the learning curve I am faced with. 

Their patience and acceptance was admirable!

When ever a student of mine is obviously struggling (mentally) I ask them an unexpected question instead of coaching them:

"What makes you happy"? It works every time.

All of them have a dumbfounded look on their face, hesitate and then wow, I never know what to expect.

From my Marine, he first response was: "riding motorcycles", well he does not get that yet very well. So I asked him what else makes him happy, he smiled and said: "being a Marine". 

His response brings tears to my eyes...

I have him now...

Most responses from students have been their family (wife, husband, children etc.), food (always love that answer), a hobby or as one woman replied once, "sex", I was befuddled, did not have a reply to her for that response...

Told her I was not expecting that one and on she went...(true story).

This has proven to get the student to change their thought pattern and think about something other than riding a motorcycle. 

A lot of students over think what they need to do (especially engineers, the worst of the lot). 

By asking them an unexpected question, then developing that answer/thought, most of the time they will snap out of it and ride! 

I then will repeatedly ask them follow up questions as they ride, what is your daughters/sons name, what do they like to do, what is your favorite food and on we go. Or for my Marine... 

What is it like to blow shit up? How does it feel to fire a 50 cal. and so on...

Back to my Marine. I brought up blowing up stuff, firing a 50 cal, and asked him point blank if too many hand grenades had gone off next to his head... He smiled??

He became a different person. Both of the other students see this and comment in a supportive way at his change.

"He's a Marine"... 

My Marine now has confidence in himself to do the task he wanted to do. Ride a motorcycle.

 

The reward I am always searching for is never about the money, or ego, it is about the student plain and simple.

Basically I had to condense two days of class into one to accommodate a vet who did not know where he fit in.Without distracting from the other students learning curve who where in the same class.

 

Tough day...Though very rewarding for me .

The fact that the other students were vets/active military really helped the class a lot. 

They got/mentored the younger generation Marine who is trying to do what they did or have done. My other two students both would smile, comment on how well the Marine was doing and truly cared for him as a person.

This has been the: " A Marine beat the crap out of me today" story.

I was exhausted mentally/physically half way through the class (90 degree air temp on the range to boot..).

At one point I asked the active Navy officer (50 ish and best rider by far) if all Marines were like this, he smiled affectionately and nodded his head.

What a great group, all of them coming out of the class with knowledge, companionship, confidence and fun. 

Safer riders from today on.

Why I do what I do. 

Changing peoples lives one person at a time. 

Today it was my favorite Marine, who kicked my ass...

God Bless you Thomas, you changed my life today without knowing...

"My Marine" is in the middle of the picture, white helmet.

Ride safe.

 

BC with Planes Trains & Automobiles...

It has been some time since Bryce and I have been able to have some quality time engineering...Here are some of our tools today.

Most of what was done today was from his mind, "Poppy can we do this, Poppy how about we try this"...
In the last year I am amazed at how his knowledge base has increased, he understood what he wanted to do and what would not necessarily work.

At one point I asked him to draw what he wanted to build, it took a little encouragement but... We now had a pulley system in place to run his automobiles on the patio working from the deck above in both directions.

We tried various theories/ideas and fine tuned it into reality.
Zip lines for his jet and his tri-plane (adding weight to the jet via a bag of rocks).
Then a way to pull the planes back up to the launch point from the deck.
Into the shed we went looking for our build material. Bryce sees a roll of weed whacker string and asks if this would work for the plane zip line, heck YEAH! Brilliant.
I would not/did not think of this.
(Dental floss sucked after the first try, tree to tree...)
Soap to make the planes slide on the zip line???
Into the house Bryce went and came out with a bottle of dish soap. This worked very well for the plane zip lines, other than everything became slippery as we worked...
We tried string, then no string (drag problems) fishing line, moving limbs on the trees, stop points, lubrication and on and on, a young mind let loose, no boundaries were set.

A pulley system for the automobiles, working both forward and backwards and on we went.
Everything had to work form the deck, period.
Poppy was complaining about how much he had to bend over and that his back hurt...

Trial and error, over and over... For me it was interesting to see how he had already solved a problem before we discussed the problem and then tried fix the problem. All he needed was someone to ask him without ramifications, what he thought would work. Once he opened up and did not feel that he was going to be chastised for what he thought, we would discuss our options, mono a mono.
A whole day devoted to an eleven year old's mind. With someone encouraging them to let go...

How refreshing.

Blast from the past...

Lets see; yes it really has been 30 years since I have walked on a Snap-On truck.

OK so most of you are saying WTF?

Well that is fine, if you have never been a mechanic you will not understand.

The tools with the black handles are mine from 30 years ago, some of my favorites.

30 years ago I was a partner with Duane Griffith (RIP) at Griffith Automotive.

He was by far the best "mechanic" I ever worked/learned from/with. Another mechanic in his category is Ron G.

They were/are people who could fix things, not replace parts as the present day "technicians" do.

If something was broken you had to figure out a way to fix it, period.

Griffith Motors morphed out of Gray Automotive, again in Steamboat.

We specialized in Subaru's and Volvo's as they were so popular and really easy to work on.

Additionally we serviced all of the "Steamboat Taxi" vehicles and vehicles from another Griffith enterprise; a white water rafting company fleet of buses.

Interesting work, buses are "big" and easier to work on in my opinion.

Marg, (before I met her) was the bookkeeper/receptionist for Gray's, Duane was the owner of both companies.

He had a cool Ford F-150 4WD short box with a 429CI that he stuffed into it with cool murals on the side, great truck, he even let me drive it sometimes.

So back to Snap-on.

Every week Bill Smith would pull into our lot and Duane & I would walk into the truck drooling, check books open and buy tools or boxes.

I was looking for a box early on, but could not afford the Snap-On new price.

Cool thing about Snap-On is that they sell used products. Well one day Bill arrived with a "slight used" lower box.

It was out of a body shop and was covered in paint spray, and what eventually Duane & I affectionately called the "Taco Wagon"...

It looked like shit, but I did not care as I did not have the $$$ for a new box. It held all of my tools plus gave me room for expansion.

I bought the taco wagon and was totally happy with it.

I never sold tacos out of it, but hey it rocked as a tool chest.

Wish I still had it, good memories...

Snap-On by far is the best tool for mechanics, excellent quality lifetime warranty and yes some engineer actually figured out how to make the tool work for the mechanic.

If you do not use them you would not understand.

For me it is no different than buying the proper chef's knife.

Yeah it will cost you, but wow baby it feels good and does the job...

Jeez ranting here.

Tonight I stepped on a Snap-On truck again after 30 years!My heart was beating fast and I was salivating, all these tool and no home for them.

I had carefully budgeted for what I really needed to work on our fleet of bikes.

Without the proper tools you waste time, damage what you are working on and generally curse a lot more than is normal, yes really...

Proper tools make the repair much easier, period.

I actually tried to be careful and focus on what I came to buy, but really you are in the "candy store" do you really care about what you need?

Well I spent twice what I had budgeted, but came out of the truck feeling great.

30 years since I spent the time/money to buy the proper tools to repair what I have to fix.

Now all I have to do is find a garage set up to allow me to repair what I have to fix without the struggle of a crappy layout...

I am working on that presently, got a shed in the back that can help me out with the proper thought/expense, another story there.

It was a sad day when I had to sell off most of my Snap-On tools/boxes when we left Steamboat.

I was able to keep some of my favorites though.

I found out today that they changed the handles on some of the tools that I most remember most for the "feel" of from 30 years ago, strange but true.

Wish I still had those tools, oh well...

I am still giddy, nothing like a stroll down memory lane in the midst of a Snap-On tool truck.

Hard to explain, just have to live it...

W

Sledding in America and suing...

WTF? Really? What has our country come to;

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/liability-concerns-prompt-cities-limit-sledding-27988639

I remember (long time ago) crashing into a light pole; head on, on a sled with a friend in Jersey. 
Nice hill I might add! 
Mom & Dad had no sympathy, yeah OK, so I did not have any broken bones showin' or much blood drippin', but do you really think my parents first thoughts were to sue?
NOT! 
Get the F' out of here.
They gave me the usual you dumb ass why don't you think about it FIRST before you do it the next time talking too...

Over the years, up in Breck with Stacey & Kirk, sledding was one of our families greatest joys! They had the ultimate sledding roads in front of their home. We would take the truck to the top, couple of sleds, couple of not so "sue happy / yet to be happy" sled occupants and let 'er rip!
Who ever was driving the truck had to make sure there was no vehicles coming up the road and away we went, yes with children on board and having a blast.
We used the real old school sleds with steel runners, that you had to steer by hand, oh and did I mention FAST! 
The real before litigation labeled vintage units from Marg's childhood.
Yeah just a family enjoying sledding without looking to sue someone, times gone past.

What a waste our current society really is, people just do not get it anymore, bunch of money grubbin' pussies!
By the way, weight has a definite advantage when you are looking for downhill speed, a little slow gettin' going but usually first at the bottom, that is if you don't wreck on the way down!
Of course size 14 boots make for "very" excellent rudders to help steer your rig during the trip down the mountain.

Yeah that's me on the left, winning I might add!

Sledding; making children glow, parents smile/tired, and people just enjoying the finer times of life...

When are we American's going to join together to protect our rights and freedom?

Rights/freedom to have a blast with your family without worries, rules and regs...

W

Pew Poll ~ Iron Buffalo reaches a new landmark...

True story.
Normally we do not toot our own horn, however this story is about a turning point in the history of Iron Buffalo.

Since Iron Buffalo began we have done our own market research. Personally asking each of our students where they had heard of Iron Buffalo. 
We are required by the state to complete a roster for each class. 
So we simply added boxes, pictured below in gray, to be circled (or make notes in) as our instructors checked the students in. 


"Where did you hear about Iron Buffalo?" 
Simple enough and very informative. 
Our instructors have done an excellent job of gathering information for us to use in the marketing of our company. 
In the beginning responses were 90% Google, then slowly friend/relative (word of mouth) became tops, meaning the Ferengi latinum of advertising.

News flash ~ Iron Buffalo reaches milestone!

On December 11, 2014 Iron Buffalo reached the stars! 

This is what our instructor put on the roster...

We made the wall of fame! 

The earth shook, time stood still, the stream flowed smoothly, and all was right in the world...

When our instructor asked how they (our student) had heard about us, this was his response;

"I was in a very nice bar in Denver; in the men's room and there was a competitors flyer on the wall above the urinal."

"Someone had scribbled out the competitors name/phone number and wrote in Iron Buffalo's name and number!"  

When he was finished with his business he Googled Iron Buffalo, then signed up and took a class from us!

We have decided to add a pew poll  to our market information gathering efforts...

Up yours Google and your expensive Adwords! 

Lets see the giant do this kind of advertising for a small business... Free of charge.

So think about this (men you will understand); when you are in there, there's a lot of junk hanging out, you know your mission, eyes straight ahead, get'r done, wash/dry your hands and out you go. 

What you see in front of you as you are doin' your business is all that matters. Low and behold there we were, handwritten (pretty talented dude I might add, a one hander...) was Iron Buffalo's name & number next to a crossed out name/number of one of our competitors. 

Shit, this guy rocks! 

I need to meet him! 

I probably won't shake his hand though; but really, one handed, has a pen with him, writing, and spelling correctly.

I'm in awe. 

WOW!

In the crapper I am one of those stagefright kind of guys... 

Question is; "does he know how to ride as well as he knows how to, well you know, get his business done while writing?" 

No I am not doing anything other than writing at this moment, really...

Initially we were heavy into Google Adwords as our #1, and we paid massively for this blessing from the omnipotent Google to bring us up to the top.
Top of page one is KING! 
How many times do you go to any other page? 
Really? 
Tell the truth now, please...
I dare you; take the time to click on page 5,6, or 7 and see what you find, do you have the guts, or are you into instant gratification via Google?

Truth is that it does work, but it is way too expensive for a small business to maintain. 
Lord help you if you piss off Google (yes you can do this). They will drop your business like Jimmy Hoffa's boots in a heartbeat, right to the bottom of search la la land (can you say "page 10!").

So my question is; "how much validity is there in a pew poll, especially one taken in a crapper?" 

Well, we'll take what we can get... 
Think of your ROI!

Guess we'll just have to start washing those handgrips on the trainers from now on...

W

De Plane, De Plane...

Never underestimate the imagination of a child.

As you were growing up, how did your parents interact with you?
Was it to let your mind go (that of a child) or to direct a path that they felt would be the best for you?
For me, what I remember was encouragement from my parents to do what I wanted, within reason. They always supported my change of direction and tried to support my next endeavor.
As a parent I have been able to figure out that I did not always encourage my children to follow their mind first, instead of mine or my wife's.
The only way to see this difference, the mind of a child, is to really listen, hear, think, think again, yes and maybe again, is this possible?
Why not? 
Do you have the time it takes to let a child's mind wonder? 
Make it a yes! 
To me letting go is one of the greatest times that I can spend. I focus on my grandchild's desire, imagination and ability to have fun, without spending all of the money or risking too much injury...

My latest adventure with Bryce was his request for a plane.
Well, for me trains have been pretty easy, but planes? 
Out of my comfort zone (well not really), they have a motor, wheels, seats and these silly things called wings???

"Poppy can we build a plane"? He asks me, how can I say no.

The first 15 minutes I spend are looking around dad's garage for build parts.
Bryce already had his platform together (kind of) and had an image in his mind of the grand design.
He wanted a propeller, a power plant that produced exhaust and a way to drive/fly his plane.
Simple enough for him, but mind boggling for me.
How can I help him create his plane with our limited resources.
Shit.
As I am wandering around his dads garage looking at all items that are available for us to use, my first thought is, will dad/mom be mad if we scrap/use this? or will they be upset if we alter this piece of wood, tool, scooter, egg crate, tent, car, tool box, tool bench, rake, shelving, or basically anything available in the house...
After our 1/2 hour tour of the garage/house for supplies, I am still unsettled...
Nothing to make a go of it without getting in trouble. 
There is a lot of good stuff in this house to make an airplane, but, but, but, can we do it without getting in serious trouble? 
Doubtful. Blaming Bryce doesn't work anymore, they said; I was supposed to be a responsible adult. 
WTF? 
Responsible? 
Me?

So my dilemma is; that Bryce will say; "dad won't care" if we use this or that, or modify this tool, cut this piece of wood, cut holes in this storage container and so on. 
I know the painful truth, some of the stuff is off limits for our feats of engineering genius. Oh well Wilbur and Orville had it tough also. Not to mention their mechanic, that is credited with saving the Wright brothers endeavours, because he could fabricate, repair, or fix anything they wanted to use or that they screwed up.

Needless to say this pre-build mind session has been the longest I have endured so far. We are talking about airplanes, these things fly in the air, don't you have to have some kind of serious education to make something fly? 
Cause when they hit the ground... 
F' no, you just need a 10 year olds imagination, some zip ties, power tools, a helmet and perseverance.
Here is the unveiling of the prototype (the cheering crowd and TV crews are behind the camera), sorry...

You will see our propeller (aircraft certified), our platform, steering, ground power plant (Bryce) and supplemental power source for possible take off dad's exhaust producing generator. 

What you need to understand is that Bryce had previously envisioned what he wanted to do and started on the project earlier. He had the pivoting decks attached to his turtle with skateboard wheels underneath. He quickly found the propeller (paint mixer), drill (he kept telling me; "dad has one around here somewhere") and the generator...

OK, so you ask; a generator, really? 

Why the F' not, the damn drill is electric, I am not going to run after Bryce trying to keep the extension cord untangled, or try and produce the exhaust he wanted. 

Though I have been known to produce exhaust once and a while.

Bryce had it all figured out in his mind before we even started. Kind of like how Mozart could see/hear the music before he wrote it down. Pure genius!

For me this was a truly unforgettable process. To realize my grandson's mind had envisioned a desire, started to work on it, asked for help, did a lot of the work with guidance, and then was willing to be the test pilot upon completion! 

Seeing his smile on the first of many test flights was payment enough for the stressors involved in ransacking your daughters house for supplies to give a 10 year old enjoyment. 

Maybe I should ask them for an allowance, maybe get some sponsorship, no wait that didn't work with the little red grocery cart idea...

Shit, what if he asks; "poppy can we build a rocket"?

No wait, I know how to set gas on fire! Easy as pie...

W