I am
increasingly aware of a pronounced difference between most men,
especially the career military, of my generation and those of the
'(mis)information age'. We are not the ogres folks like The Young
Turks like to make us out. We just have significantly different
foundational experiences and frames of reference. Gaming computers
and hacks were not our thing.
For my
$.02, growing up in the 60's and 70's was a blessing. As kids and
teens we played hard, outside, and out of sight of the old folks.
Once we got a license we found twice owned muscle cars were
affordable, repairable, and parts in ready supply.
It left
its mark. Some guys of our period still sometimes speak of, and
remember, others by what they drove or rode. We'd see someone and
ask – 'hey, wasn't he the Chevell with the ladder bars'? Or, 'oh
yeah, you're the green Evo bagger with the straight pipes'.
So
here's a recollection of some of the vehicles that got me here.
stock photoThe Beginning – 1965 GTO ('family'
car) <> Introduction to driving. Also introduction to illicit
racing and traffic court. Did learn to drive fairly well – but
lost license 2x.
Co-pilot on one such encounter was
later a career cop and detective. Once, after a colorful high speed
chase and successful arrest he remarked to a partner the experience
'wasn't as bad as riding with Greg'.
stock photo
Mustang Mach I <> First real
vehicle owned outright . Mechanical nightmare when driven as I had
come to expect from the GTO. Push rod penetrated valve cover on a
missed shift. Shifter subsequently had the temerity to attempt to
depart the vehicle (in motion) from the bottom. 'Muscle car' my
ass. Super model looks, peewee Herman stamina.
Thanks to road adventures which I'll
not bore you with, by late teens my official record was somewhat
spotty. Thereby I recall sitting in a room with dozens of other
young men at a joint processing station and filling out my first
government form, sort of a request for background check before
consideration for military service (think 'Alice's Restaurant').
When I reached the little box under the header 'have you ever been
arrested or fined - provide details below' I broke into a sweat …
and asked for more paper (!). When done I gave the form to one of
the officers supervising the process and asked - with a little
tremble in my voice - 'will this hurt my chances'. He (a Naval
Aviator come to think of it) looked at the remarks briefly and said,
'hell, this will help!'
God bless him. I knew then I was
headed generally in the right direction.
VW 1600 'Super Beetle' <> Old
reliable. Driven countless miles, and through many adventures as an
Ensign out to see the world. Rebuilt in a BOQ parking lot with
minimal tools and a Hawaiian Punch can. I remember driving my boss,
the Admiral, shortly after the rebuild. Proud moment. Unfortunately
it was before rebolting the passenger seat to the floor. Ooops.
Event came to mind listening to Paula
Poundstone reflecting on the significance of a seat back in
her Mustang. (5:05 to 6:52
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zk0coCISibA
)
Dodge Power Wagon <> 'Miss
Piggy' Brutal ride. During the 'fuel crisis' demonstrated MPG like
a F-4 Phantom … with loaded triple bomb racks ... in burner ... at
100' AGL.
Triumph Spitfire <> Sigh.
Should have learned from an earlier GT6 project. Socialist quality
construction with peanut brittle wire harness and amusing bits of
ingenuity like the 'laycock de normanville' electrically actuated
(did I mention the Lucas wiring?) overdrive. To the good, a rag top
- so happily easy to push start and hop in over the door as it
chugged away from you.
Pontiac Grand Am <> Hoped to
relive good old GTO days. Would have restored. Rot got ahead of
available idle time.
Jeep Wrangler <> First jeep.
Solid as a rock. Rough as a lady Bos'n. Bought without niceties …
like a roof or doors. Aftermarket rag roof was crude, blew off in a
rain storm while wearing dress blues. Aftermarket hard top/doors
made it a solid year round ride.
VW Fox <> Right size. Right
configuration. Uninspired and uninspiring.
Jeep Wrangler <> Second jeep.
First months were disappointing. Was communicating with factory rep
while documenting 'lemon law' claim. Finally Jeep Corp resolved the
problem. Mexicans were sloppy with wire terminations. Had several
other similar jeeps self immolate like a Buddhist monks due to
overlapping wire strands left out of the crimps on termination plugs.
After that, really great car. Boys did
not like 'bogging' the swamp though.
Buick Le Sabre <> Thought it was
a good idea for a post active duty career as salesman. Neither the
car nor the job fit.
Nissan Frontier <> Mighty good
vehicle. Nearly 10 years ~100K miles.
VW GTI <> Best car ever. Sporty
(vice fast) and a sun roof. Sold to obtain a newer clone with less
miles as was on I-35 a lot while geo-bacheing.
VW GTI <> Almost best car.
Including the wife's Jetta, our 5th VW. May be our last
as VW no longer cares to offer a 2 door or sun roof however. Why
can't we here in 'merica not get an 'R' spec Sirocco? In blue, with
sunroof? https://www.oto.com/en/mobil-baru/volkswagen/scirocco/r
Still, GTIs have been great cars.
One gripe with this last one, which
brings us back to the opening comments, this car came equipped with
really intrusive electronics. Constant GPS tracking, 'black box'
recording driver activity, and VW's idea of 'on star'. Small print
in contract explored after purchase indicated conversations may be
monitored remotely. Cost to have dealer hard wire disable ~ $500.
Cost for toggle switch for microphone ~$6 and some solder. Guess
which way I went. Paranoid? Two days after I put the switch in VW
called me at work and wanted to know if anything was 'wrong' with my
car. I guess the folks at the monitor station missed my witty
commentary on other drivers. Recently noticed there's now a soft
switch option for turning off telemetry which wasn't there before the
last dealer service visit. Thanks, but I'll also keep the mike off
when I don't need it. (I've a faraday bag for the cell phone under
the seat)
Musings.
Maybe 1 car to go before checking
out.
2 Wheelers
Can't
afford a military jet or a supercar? A bike is just as dangerous at
a fraction of the cost
About the time I
found myself doing less and less air wing flying I began looking for
a, mostly, legal alternative to the excitement.
CB-750F <> Purchased ~ '88
(bought used) Wonderful old 'super bike' of the 70s by then
considered sedate and 'dated'. Great first bike. 2 'oopses'
learning to ride. Both in Daytona a year apart. Only 1 was
particularly scary (truck bumper stopped just over the noggin).
CBR-600 <> ~ 90 A Jack Russell on
2 wheels. Inadvertent wheelies and always moments from an intensive
care unit. Did catch 'air time' thanks to crossing an armadillo at
warp speed. Fell in with some nice regular touring riders and, on
occasion, some crazy ones.
Triumph Trident 900 <> ~ 93 A
bull. Stable, strong and comfortable for hours. At will easily able
to embarrass the Harley riders in the group.
VFR-750 ~ 97 to 2015 <>
Vehicular Apogee. Most comfortable and fastest (150 mph
readily on tap) ride I've owned. Easily, even unconsciously, spanned
the state more than once. Hated to sell but, in retrospect, the
right move. 1 mid-speed low side on sandy twisty, 1 embarrassing
topple (jeans cuff snagged foot peg) at a busy, biker infested donut
shop no less. Sigh.
TaoTao 150 <> ~ '16-20 Zero
adrenaline but wanted to stay acclimated, cheaply, to 2 wheeling.
Filled that niche well enough for ~ $800. 9 ½ horse, 52 mph. The
scooter came semi assembled in a crate. I was happy it went together
so nicely and subsequently posted a picture of riding it. Quick
response from one classmate, a MARSOC O-6, was 'nice – do they make
one for men?'
Sigh.
Denouement?
Yamaha SR400 <> ~ current.
Unapologetically modest. Roughly ¼ the HP and ½ the speed of the
Viffer. Max is 80 mph with wind at back. But still copious fun for
mind clearing, relatively short rides. Light and uncomplicated, does
local rural Texan unpaved roads easily.
And in all honesty, with the forecast for diminishing SA
(situational awareness), vision, and balance ... probably my last
bike.
They've all been great fun, zero
regrets. And there's no app for that.
