Missed it by that much!

Hello friends,
This last weekend our boat, the 1959 Lone Star Eldorado, that you may have read about on Lost Rider Hwy, took to the water for the first time since 1980. The weekend started with a tenuous Saturday shakedown on the choppy brown waters of Lake Ray Roberts. We were delayed a few hours by rain. Yes, rain in Texas in August. It was if God had Christened the craft him/herself. Following the successful voyage we scheduled a recreational trip for the very next day. Three souls aboard for about a three hour tour, three hour tour. Lacking the decision power of a professor, a couple of millionaires and a diva... only a skipper, first mate and a Maryanne were aboard and were not able to arrange for a long shipwreck.

The only island we set foot on was Culp Island on the lake's Southwest end. With the exception of the presence of party trash and fire ants it was quite enjoyable. I was left with only one question as we shoved off to the marina. Who the fuck drinks Jumex nectar and leaves dirty diapers and crudely opened "mexicorn" cans all over the beach? I guess that is mother natures problem.

By now you may be asking yourself what is up with the title of this entry??? Well the late great Don Adams playing the immortal Maxwell Smart used to say "He missed it by that much" when one of the KAOS henchmen fell off a building and missed the truckload of pillows below or some other equally absurd accident occurred. He would say this while holding his thumb and forefinger between his face and the camera with only a miniscule amount of space between them.

On our way to the marina, with yours truly at the helm, we were cruising slowly into the no-wake zone of the marina about 120 feet from shore when we heard and felt the clatter of metal and rocks. The friction stopped us in our wake. As fast as I could I killed the motor but it was too late. You see, I piloted the boat into about 3 feet of water sitting calmly over a bed of scattered rock.

Now there were no buoys or warnings about the outcrop so I am only at fault for not knowing the lake that well as I should or not springing the $100 for the depth sounder that would have warned us that we were in 36 inches of water.

No more than 100 feet to our left there was a channel that led into the marina. And, I missed it by that much.

To ride or not to ride...

I have recently spent or maybe wasted a great deal of my personal and professional time preoccupied by a single train of thought. How safe am I on my motorcycle? Is my commute putting me in additional danger? Do recreational riders have more accidents because they are not on their bikes every day? Am I using enough caution? Are my riding habits dangerous? Are the Interstate highways safer than the back roads to work? Maybe it is the other way around? Did you know the motorcycle fatality rate per accident in Denmark is 1in50?

These and an endless train of similar thoughts have spent a great deal of time in my melon. Most of this has been brought on by the recent attention paid to a certain AFC QB, who shall remain brainless, who put his face through the wind shied of an approaching vehicle. Never mind it was not his fault. More recent & local, a motorcyclist inexplicably and abruptly exited I-35 at 70mph from the left lane on to the median hitting a light pole. He had a helmet on. He lived. He lost both arms; one at the scene and the other in the OR. Also my own experience with the flat has me a little rattled. Not the flat but the breaking in of the replacement tire. It is a little slick and not quite squared off yet. The bike is a little loose on the highway because the tire is still so new.

All of this has me wondering if I should spend more time in my car than in the saddle. My wife seems all too knowledgeable about recent motorcycle incidents and is quite eager to tell me about them. Most recently a story about a man who’s penis was sliced off during the course of the accident. Initial responders swore if the cycle would not have been there that they would have assumed it was a homicide before even considering it an accident because of the condition of the body. He lived. Maybe she wants me off the bike before the baby arrives?

The only reason I am concerned about this is because if I am thinking of a no face, no arms, missing penis motorcycle rider on a loose bike while I am riding than I am not thinking about my own safety. Much less about what is going on in my immediate environment. Maybe this will purge these thoughts. Sorry, a little long for a blog entry. As always please send feedback to mn_northstar@hotmail.com.

For sale 1964 Ford Falcon Futura $6000.00 OBO

Up for sale is a 1964 Ford Falcon. I am not advertising this car as #’s matching because I have never checked. However, the car is an original V-8 car with correct 2 speed ford cruise-o-matic and retaining a 260 ci engine. This car would be a great restoration candidate or a really interesting daily driver. This car is 100% complete and everything works. I have taken great care in maintaining this vehicle since I have owned it. This car has been garaged for at least the last 12 years by myself and the previous owner.
I have a kid on the way and promised myself I would try and sell this car. I am pretty firm on the price and would be willing to deliver within about 200 miles of Dallas, TX. If you want to know more e-mail me at glennsfalcon@gmail.com. I have many more pictures and a more complete description of the car in a PDF I can send to any interested buyers.

First Blow Out

Wow, it has been a slow week. The only motorcycle or travel event to report on is my first blowout. At first I thought it was my first flat. What is the difference? I am not sure, you may weigh in on this if you like. I have always defined a flat as something that happened while you were in the beer store and a blow out happens while you are actually moving. When leaving for work in the morning I noticed the tire was flat when I rolled the mule off of the center stand...a flat. After removing the panniers and taking the rear wheel off I was able to see the significant wear and some damage on the sidewalls of the tire. I rode it flat...a blowout. Upon further inspection I found a 2 inch piece of steel imbedded into the center to the tread. Oh well, a week’s wait for a tire and $35 mounting fee and I will be back on the road. Moral? Keep a couple of tires on hand if you can afford it, especially if you have an oddball size or brand on your bike.