Sailor

I am not old, I am only 75. As I always say " you are only as old as the girls you feel". Haven't felt a girl in many years but I have a good imagination. The doc's told me several years ago I only had 18 months to live, fooled them. Live, love, laugh and you will always be young.

I have two stainless steel knees and a steel plate in my ankle. Hasn't stopped me from enjoying the bike. I like the look on the faces of the security guys at the airport when I go through the scanner. It lights up like a christmas tree.

I was at the scene of an accident. Car upside down and draining the gas tank onto the pavement. I was directing everyone away from the scene when a guy came up behind me and asked what had happened. I turned just in time to grab the cigarette he was about to light out of his mouth and grab his lighter. I pointed out none too quietly that we were both standing in an inch deep puddle of gasoline. I was on the car deck patrol and found a guy just about to light up a joint in the middle of the cars. You would be surprised how many cars have leaks. I told him there was no smoking allowed and to put it out. His reply..." It's ok man, it's not tobacco."

Still here but don't post much. Sold the 02 Venture, I'm 75 now and it was great on the road but a handful in the parking lot. Bought a 2017 Yamaha 1300 Deluxe which I enjoy a lot. Lighter and lower. Still leading the annual Salt Spring Island toy run as Santa.

Mentally and morally deficient sub humans.

I got one just now offering "services"

It seems the driver has been charged with drunk driving at least a couple times previously and the company he works for had several infractions.

I know that in England Morgans ( 3 wheelers ) are classed as motorcycles but you don't need helmets but motorcycles with sidecars do need helmets. B.C. is totally confusing and I agree that they make up the rules as they go and you get totally different answers depending on who you talk to. I know Polaris 3 wheelers are classed as motorcycles so you need a helmet but perhaps slingshots are classed as cars so you don't need a helmet. I wish I could afford a slingshot. I had an Austin Healy and the top was vandalized. ICBC refused my claim as they said it was over 50 percent of the car (?). I went to a different agency and ICBC accepted the claim. My wife was parked when a car backed into her. She made a claim and they told her it was 50% her fault so she had to pay for her own damage WTF. ICBC refused to insure my motorcycle (yamaha) as it was within 50 miles of an established Hells Angles headquarters. I had to get the basics as required by law but for anything more, such as collision, I had to go private

Long ago in England not many people could afford a car so motorcycles were popular. A motorcycle with a sidecar was still a motorcycle and taxed as such. In a museum there I saw a motorcycle and sidecar where the operator sat in the sidecar and and operated the controls in there while the passenger rode on the bike. They began building three wheel cars as a way to avoid the high tax on automobiles. Cars=4 wheels, motorcycle=2 or 3.

Do not despair on humanity. The common person is good. I travel a lot and wherever I go I treat the local people and their customs and language with respect and I get respect in return. In one study I read that in a disaster, be it a traffic accident, fire or whatever, more people run towards it to help than run away. The main problem with the world is greed. Countries greedy for what other countries have or corporate greed destroying everything for bigger profits.

I rented a slingshot in Sedona last year and they offered me a helmet but I didn't wear it. I believe Arizona is a helmet optional state. Here in BC, and I believe, the rest of Canada, they are classed as motorcycles so helmets are necessary.

Two things... 1) I have to laugh about all the bumph about the noble savages caring for nature. In a heavy forest the undergrowth that animals rely on dies out. In order to bring the animals back so they could hunt them for food the natives would set forest fires, choosing a time when the wind direction was in their favour. This brought back the undergrowth and the animals. Here in BC the natives warred with each other. They killed others and took slaves. If winter was harsh they would occasionally kill and eat a slave or two. Noble indeed. 2) I read an experiment where they set controlled fires. They found that the debris on the Forrest floor was the major contributor to Forrest fires and made them more intense. In an area where the debris had been cleared out the fire was considerably reduced. In an area where the debris had been cleared and the trees thinned out the fire stopped.

Avons are made in England and they are good. I have never had a problem with them. Avon was also getting tires made in Brazil and those tires had problems.

My first bike was a Yamaha 400. That was a long time ago. It was perfect for me and where I lived at that time. It could get up to 100 miles per hour, got great mileage, was cheap to insure and was easy to maneuver in the parking lot, it was also easy to pick up if dropped. The down side was semis on the highway would blow it sideways. I rode it for many years. I would not go smaller than a 400. Not sure about having a sport bike for a first bike. The temptation to over ride your skill might be too great.

Reminder for anyone interested. April 29 is the 27th annual ride to Victoria to address the Members of the Legislative Assembly on issues regarding motorcycles. Riders from the mainland take the 0900 ferry from Tsawwassen. You can apply for a fare refund one way ( $ 28.75). Check it out on the BCCOM site. ( B.C. Coalition of Motorcyclists).

Great !!!

All the best to you and Nina. Hope to see you around.

I had cancer, they gave me 18 months to live without hope of survival. That was 7 years ago. Apparently I got written up as an anomaly. I had a mild heart attack. Felt wonky and as a first aid attendant I knew it was off. Wife took me to the hospital and I was in for several hours while they did various tests. Mild heart attack and atrial fibrillation ( wonky heartbeat). That was 3 years ago. I am still vertical, riding, cutting firewood, etc. Not much has changed except I have to take blood thinners for the atrial fibrillation and wear a nitro patch. Keep on biking. If they can't catch you they can't bury you.

Glass is actually a liquid, a very slow moving liquid. If you build a fire and melt it you are not actually breaking it, just speeding it up and then you have a paper weight or door stop.

Just had a big arbutus come down in the front of the house. Lots of good firewood there and opened up the view a bit. Janet is getting nervous and wants to move to Victoria until winter is over. I told her I would prefer Mexico.

OK. Just went outside. Found a tree down. It just missed our carport by about 3 feet and fell short of the Dodge by about five feet. It is just a small one though, about 40-50 feet. I don't have far to go for next years firewood.

If you brush the snow off the trees you will find the cherry blossoms underneath. In the big storm just after Christmas Salt Spring was the hardest hit. There were 124 telephone poles down and 73 transformers blew up. Every road had trees and power lines down across them. We fared ok, as old timers we were prepared. We only lost power for 5 days and water for 3. With the wood stove and propane lanterns and the freezer packed with ice we had no problems. Some people did not get out for two weeks, no power or water. It reminded me of when I first moved here. Every winter if you had to be on the road early you carried a chain saw to cut your way through the downed trees. The second storm bypassed us completely and hit the mainland. BC Hydro had over 200 linemen here working 24/7. All the locals were out cutting up the trees for next years firewood.

We got snow on Salt Spring Island as well. First time in a long time. The weather man said 5 cm ( 2 inches) . We got 30 cm ( 12 inches). They are predicting more for the next two days.

Big corporations do not care about their employees. They will quite happily shaft everyone and everything they can to make an extra buck which will go to management. I once read a report about an analysis of corporation policies and practices. The profile of the management style exactly matched that of a psychopath. There is a large marine operation here that I have been involved in. I think it is typical of many corporations. They were/are badly over managed. They were told to get rid of 50 managers. They fired 50 managers and hired 50 directors. The only change was the title on the door. In 1990 there were 150 managers, by 1992 there were 300, with no change in staff. When I retired in 2002 there were about 700 in management with the same number of employees as in 1990. The operation is subsidized by federal and provincial money. The last figures I saw showed that all the millions of subsidy dollars went to pay management salaries and bonuses. Normal management/employee ratio is considered to be 1-50. In Japan it is 1-75 which is considered under managed. In the US it is 1-25 which is considered over managed. In the corporation I worked for the ratio was 1-4. Over managed to the point of absurdity. Management will never take responsibility for their actions unless forced to.

One cruise we were on drinks were quite expensive and they checked you every time you came back on board to make sure you did not bring your own aboard. After dinner the first day I decided to utilize the ice cream bar. There was booze you could add to the ice cream. The attendant winked and told me the booze was free. After that desert was a scoop of ice cream topped with a plentiful amount of booze.