AzBones

Tim Buche, owner/operator of the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF), has a new blog. This guy makes untold amounts of cash from this operation - and has sued many state organizations over their motorcycle rider training curriculum claiming copyright infringement. The results of that litigation have been mixed, but to claim that "turn the throttle" is a copyrighted phrase is a stretch... just sayin'. A controversial guy in a controversial position. Make your own decisions. http://timbuche.com/

As a little kid back in the 1960s, one of my favorite cartoons was The Jetsons. They had all the coolest robotic stuff to make their lives easier… Rosie the maid, the conveyor belt dog walker and especially the flying automated cars. As an adult, I see that same cartoon as a dark harbinger of our future. It should come to no one’s surprise that Congress believes that we cannot think for ourselves. In their eyes, we cannot be trusted with our own safety. In their minds, we are the unwashed masses that need constant direction and ever-present supervision. They say that it is for our own good, and we have seen it coming all along. It’s name is Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) and it wants your motorcycle off the road. Former Senator Bob Letourneau had this to say when I forwarded a link to an article about Google & ITS to the MRF Reps mailing list: “We certainly talked about that at a MRF Board meeting over ten years ago when ITS was first introduced, Wayne Curtin warned the Feds that they would have to take motorcycles under consideration during development. MRF was one of the first organizations to step up and speak to this issue. I guess we are now a lot closer to reality...” What Bob was commenting on is this recent headline - Google Unveils Driverless Car Tech. A company that started out making the results of your web searches more relevant is upping the ante, and they’re holding all the cards. Instead of finding results for your search on “spark plug gap on 2002 Harley Evo engine”, they are geek-deep in self-driving car technology. In fact, a full ten percent of the folks employed by the search engine giant are dedicated to the building of autonomous vehicles. These driverless cars, completely controlled by computers, are said to be for the betterment of highway safety and traffic decongestion. The car operates with a $75,000 laser spinning around on its roof that generates a 360º, three dimensional model of the space around the vehicle and compares that information to known maps. It can then use that data in a manner that gives it omnipotence of every road and traffic light, but it also recognizes the position of every other car on the road as well as pedestrians. This all happens regardless of weather or time of day. The Google robot car recently completed a one thousand mile trek through complex city traffic and highway conditions. Nevada’s legislature recently passed legislation requiring their state Department of Motor Vehicles to create the rules that will govern these robot cars. Google has high hopes that the federal government and even other countries will follow Nevada’a lead and do the same. This scenario begs the question… what if you have outstanding parking tickets and the cops detect that you have entered one of these driverless cars? Will you then be locked in and chauffeured downtown to address your grievous crimes? Didn’t these geniuses ever see 2001: A SpaceOdyssey? I seem to remember that the primary focus of that flick was about an all-controlling computer gone rogue. Or, even better yet… don’t they remember George Jetson flying around the electric dog walker?

I want to preface this with a disclaimer... I'm not anti-helmet, I am pro-freedom. The government really should stay out of our private lives... nearly every state in the US has an ABATE. Please consider joining them. From ABATE of Arizona's Masterlink newsletter: ====================== Editor’s Note: Well folks, you had to know that it was gonna happen. The safety nanny bureaucrats are once again leaning toward a national helmet mandate and this is just the beginning. First they tried to do it through the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), but we pointed out that they were basing their findings on studies on a mere SIX motorcycle accidents. They are, without a doubt, the experts when it comes to most air and ground transportation - but their ignorance was showing when it came to motorcycles. Since that end-around run failed, the CDC picked up the ball and has been running full speed toward the end zone. But, like nearly government agency that you could name, they stepped on their shoestrings while performing an early celebration before crossing the line. GW Peterson with ABATE of Virginia was searching for a breakdown of which part of the body was injured during motorcycle fatalities (percentage of head trauma vs. chest trauma vs. abdomen etc.) He could not find anything so he contacted our friends at the CDC. Below is the response from the Director of the Office of Statistics and Programming. I do not have to point out to this esteemed body the obvious question for which the response calls. Please read the response below: Hi Mr. Peterson, Thanks for your inquiry. We do not have Motorcyclist injury deaths tabulated by body region/part. With deaths, there are usually multiple injuries and the primary body part affected is often difficult to determine. You might search the literature to see if anything is published by body region for motorcyclist deaths. I did a search using http://www.safetylit.org/ but did not see any articles surface on motorcyclist deaths by body part affected. There are public use multiple-cause-of-death files that are available upon request if you wanted to analyze those data. If you are interested in requesting those files, let me know and I will put you in contact with one of my colleagues at the National Center for Health Statistics. I am also checking one other resource to see if she knows of any published articles on this topic. I will let you know what I find out. Sorry that I couldn't be of more help. J. Lee Annest, Ph.D., M.S. Director, Office of Statistics and Programming National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, CDC 4770 Buford Hwy NE, MS - F64 Atlanta, GA 30341 Editor’s Note: So, while the CDC is now the federal government’s self-appointed expert, they can not answer the simplest of questions, on which their studies should have been based. We have seen this before and will continue to see it in the future. They are banking on an old adage that - if you tell a lie enough times, the public will soon begin to believe it as truth. As you well know, the CDC is not the first government agency to pull such a dirty trick. We have seen that from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for years. The quote from the NHTSA statistician, Umesh Shankar, was "yes, the numbers are inaccurate, but they are consistently inaccurate", or something very close to that. They admit that their data is flawed but they continue to preach it as gospel. Believe it folks, there is a big push for a federal helmet mandate coming our way as sure as the monsoon rains in Arizona. Membership in ABATE of Arizona is soon going to be a necessity if we are to have half of a chance in defeating such a mandate in Arizona. I urge all of our members to make the effort to recruit as many new members as possible in the coming months - like your freedom depended on it - BECAUSE IT DOES.

That's it exactly... always have an exit plan when coming to a red light. Don't take your hand off the throttle or take it out of gear until you're certain that the cage behind you (or two) has come to a stop.

If you choose that route, go with glass marbles. Once they shatter, they are nearly indistinguishable from windshield glass.

Just ordered my Hagon... they're supposed to be shipping between tomorrow and Friday! WOOHOO! The dealership wanted me to wait until mid-September for theirs. Losers. :cool10: Edit: Shipping today. Cristina in San Diego is great to work with. Hagon Shocks (760) 308-8124 http://www.hagonshocksusa.com/

Actually, I picked up that bike... and we settled at $4300. So far, had to pull apart the fairing and re-grease the connections and most recently, my rear shock went out. Not bad considering I've already put over 5000 miles on it since January.

Very nice... I wanted one of those, but couldn't scrape together enuf $$$. I've come to the realization that if I can't pay cash for something, I probably don't need it.

In AZ, seems like mine was $48 for a 1999 RSV... then, of course, here in Phoenix (the only county in the US I will remind you) all motorcycles have to go through emissions testing. We've been able to get it repealed down in Tucson (a different county) but the EPA is jacking us around. The Governor signed the repeal into law something like five years ago... EPA is just dragging their feet - imagine that. Also, because of insurance liabilities (too many people dropped their bikes), the motorcycle emissions test is not a true test - so the engine is never put under a load on the dyno. So, basically they just hook a tube up to our tailpipe and you sit there and idle for three minutes and pay them the $20. I mentioned that little detail to the guy running the test, and he looked at me like "Who told you?" and refused to answer my question yes or no.

I've been designing web sites for 14 years now. In those many years, I've always been looking for that one "great web site idea". Don had that idea and he deserves any and all profits that he may or may not make. It goes far beyond the expenses. A good idea - like this site - is worth what the market will bear, and Don has been gracious enough to keep it affordable. Bravo. I hope to eventually have such a good idea that will be picked up and valued by so many helpful folks. :cool10::cool10::cool10::cool10::cool10::cool10: Seriously.

Rode home from Vegas this morning. Usually not a long ride (about 5 hrs - we stop a lot for water), but Vegas to Phoenix today was well over 105... the thermometer out on the back porch read 112 when we got home.

I would say yes, but I've seen it... steering with elbows.

I've seen bikers drop a lot of bikes during the summer in AZ... mostly kids on crotch rockets, full face helmets, shorts and tennis shoes. I've been close enough to a few of them to help them up with the bike, but I'd wager to say that they will be wearing boots and jeans in the future. Broken toes and rocks in the knee caps are not usually something that is forgotten easily.

I'm actually on the Board of the MRF... and have been using the MRF roadside assistance for many years. You can get more info here: http://www.mrf.org/roadside.php Many insurance companies claim to offer comprehensive roadside assistance, but if you ever end up needing to be towed, you may be outta luck. Not so with the MRF plan though. AAA will not tow a bike unless you have their recreational policy in addition to a regular policy. The most expensive MRF policy ($46.95/yr) will also cover your 4 wheeled vehicles for no extra charge. About 6 years ago, I had a short in the main wiring harness on my Vulcan. The thing caught fire at the light at a freeway underpass. Fortunately, the guy behind me had a fire extinguisher and put it out, but it was toast. The MRF roadside assistance towed the bike home for nothing. Would have cost me about $175 normally.

I'm the editor for a national motorcycling publication and this article was written by one of my friends up in Wyoming... thought it was a good read and thought some of you might like it too. Any Sane Man... By Graydon Wheeler "C'mon boss, we're gonna be late for the game!" "Just a sec, I gotta tighten my mirror up". Jimmy, held the mirror in place with one hand as he tightened the adjusting nut with the other. Satisfied with his quick work, he put the wrench back in his tool-bag and climbed aboard. "I tell ya boss", said Trevor, "That bike of yours got a gremlin. Every time you go somewhere something needs fixing. You oughtta get one of these lucky gremlin bells like I got". He pointed to the small metal object dangling near the bottom of his motorcycle's frame. "I ain't putting no silly bell on my bike", Jimmy replied, "The bike vibrates and stuff comes loose, that's all there is to it. Having a bell for luck makes as much sense as expecting luck from a rabbit's foot, or four-leaf clover, or that damned shirt you haven't washed in two years". "Hey, I hit a grand-slam wearing this shirt!" countered Trevor. "Yeah, two years ago. You haven't hit one out of the park since." "So I'm in a slump". "Whatever, let's go. You keep downwind". They rode down to the city park for their weekly softball game; the team sponsored by Jimmy's company. "Summer and ballgames...and motorcycles. Life doesn't get much better than this", Jimmy thought to himself.. They arrived at the ball field and while Jimmy pulled his gear out of his saddlebags, Trevor ran across the street to a small store. "Wanted to get a lottery ticket for tonight", he said when he returned. Jimmy shook his head. "You really think you're going to be lucky enough to beat the hundred and ninety-five million to one odds to win?" "Someone's gotta win", he said, rubbing the ticket on his "lucky" shirt as they walked toward the team's bench. "And many more gotta lose". "See that's your problem Jimmy. You got no sense of adventure, no belief in things that are unseen. If it ain't right in front of you, it don't exist". "In other words, I trust reality, not irrational beliefs in inanimate objects affecting the outcome of the laws of chance, or small invisible creatures that have nothing better to do than tinker with a man's machine". "All I know is my bike seemed to run better when I added the gremlin bell". "It's called 'confirmation bias'. You expected results, and you found them, not taking into account the the bike ran just the same as..." Jimmy's comments were interrupted by the crack of a bat and a chorus of, "Heads up!". Jimmy turned to look and had enough time to say, "Wha...?" Normally, the human mind works at an incredible speed, and on any given day would have assessed what Jimmy saw with the thought, "There is a spherical object approaching at a rapid velocity and an immediate evasive maneuver, I suggest ducking, is required. Release the adrenalin". Normally that's what Jimmy's mind would have thought. This time all it did was think. "Wha...?" before being knocked out. Jimmy awoke to find himself in a bed with tubes running out of different areas of his body. He made an effort to get up, and was rewarded with a dull throb in his forehead. He was fumbling around when he heard a voice say, "Oh, you're awake! That's wonderful!". A nurse was setting a tray on a table near the door. "I'll let the doctor know you're conscious. He''ll want to make sure you're doing okay". "Hell with that!" Jimmy struggled to get out of bed. "I'm getting outta here. Where's my clothes? Where's my bike?" "Now now, James. We can't have you running out of here like that. We need to make sure there's been no permanent damage. You received a terrible blow to the head". "Well you can talk to the doctor about it all you want.I'm leaving". "No you're not. You're getting back in that bed and waiting for the doctor". ""And who's gonna stop me?" The nurse pulled a needle of the tray. "I am". "What' ya gonna do? Knock me out?", Jimmy sneered. "No", she replied, "This will chemically castrate you". "You're joking". "Open the door and find out". Jimmy crawled back in bed and pulled the covers up to his chin. "That's better. Now sit tight, the doctor will be in in a bit". Jimmy still had to spend one more night, "for observation". Next morning he was on the phone telling Trevor to drop whatever he was doing and come and rescue him. He climbed in the cab of Trevor's truck. "Where's my bike?" "At home in my garage. I made sure it was okay, boss". "All, right. Thanks". He rubbed his head. "What day is it? Monday or Tuesday?" "Friday". "What? I've been out nearly a week?" "Yeah, but don't worry. The shop runs fine without you". "Your not helping". "Sorry". "Just take me to to my ride". They pulled in Trevor's driveway, Trevor parking the truck partly on the lawn so they'd be able to get the motorcycle out of the garage easier. "I threw a cover over to keep the dust off",Trevor said as he pulled off a bed sheet.. "You got rats?" Jimmy asked walking toward his bike. "Looked like something jumped toward the motor". "I don't see nothing", Trevor said as he gave it the once over. "Probably just a shadow. Key?". Trevor went inside the house and returned with Jimmy's key ring. "You say the shops doing okay?" "Yeah, everybody 's keeping busy, no problems". "Well, I suppose since the weeks almost over, we may as well go for a ride". One benefit to having an employer who was also a friend: now and then he would set work aside for the finer things in life. Trevor (and his coworkers) never abused the privilege Jimmy's friendship offered, Jimmy in return never abused his role as company owner. Jimmy turned the key, pushed the starter button, and was rewarded with a "tick-tick-tick-tick-tick" sound. "Sounds like the battery's dead", Trevor offered. "Or loose wire", said Jimmy. "Hand me a screwdriver". Trevor passed the tool ever. "You know, I'll bet if you put one of those...".He stopped as Jimmy pointed the screwdriver and shot him a dirty look. "I swear, if you say bell I'll stab you and blame the hospital meds". Jimmy turned and crouched down to the battery cover. Behind him Trevor mouthed the word "bell" and stuck out his tongue. . "Whoa!" Jimmy flinched when he pulled off the cover. "There is a rat or something!" "Where?" Trevor leaned forward. "Right there! See it?" Trevor crouched closer. "I don't see anything. Is it in the frame?" Jimmy held the screwdriver toward the creature. It wasn't a rat or mouse. For one thing, rats ears aren't pointed. For another thing, rats don 't wear clothes. Whatever it was, it stared back at Jimmy wide eyed and frightened. "You...you don't see anything?" Trevor moved his head side to side, peering at the innards of the bike. "No. Did it go under the seat or something?" Jimmy kept his eye on the critter. Maybe be it was the meds. "Nah, it must have been my imagination". He tightened the battery cable. The creature stayed put. He turned to Trevor. "Probably a little light-headed from bending over like this" He turned back. The whatever was gone. Imagination indeed. "You sure you're okay to ride?' Maybe you should wait a day or two". "I'm fine", He put an arm around Trevor. "Just, if there's any more work needing doing, I'm making you do it". Rest of the day was spent riding, visiting friends, and more riding. Night arrived and Jimmy returned to his own house. He parked the bike in the garage, set his gloves on the seat. Out the corner of his eye as he was closing the door, he thought he saw the gloves fall from the bike. He walked back over only to see they were still on the seat where he'd left them. "Tired", he thought to himself. "Still seeing things". He went inside and put his keys the contents of his pockets on the counter where he always did, hung up his jacket, and decided to pop a pain pill from the hospital before bed. He thought he left them on the counter with the other stuff, but no, he must have left them in his jacket. He fumbled around each pocket but no pills. He patted the pockets of his pants, vest, shirt...nothing. He retraced his steps to the garage and back. They were nowhere to be found. "Eh, don't need 'em anyway", he muttered as he shut off the lights and went to bed. Next morning he lay on his side and opened one eye toward the alarm clock on the stand next to the bed. Doesn't matter if you’re the boss of your own company and can make your own hours, there's just something special about laying in bed on a Saturday morning knowing you don't need to be anywhere. He sighed and rolled on his back. And uttered his first word of the day, which was something that sounded like, "GAAAH!" The creature or whatever it was he thought he saw on his bike yesterday was sitting at the foot of his bed, pointing at him, saying, "There! I told you he could see me!" Jimmy's next word was something like, "WAAAH!" There was another similar creature replying to the first. "Impossible Rangi, they’re not supposed be able to see us". Jimmy's third word for the day was, "YAAAH!" A third creature sitting on the window sill was answering the second. "I don't know Dexter. He seems like he's responding to something he sees". Jimmy looked around the room. There were dozens. Watching him. He found real words at last. "Who are you? What are you? What do you want?" The first creature gave a wave. "Hi! I'm Rangi and this is Dexter and that is..." Dexter stopped him. "Shush!". He turned to Jimmy. "We're nothing. Just a bad dream. Go back to sleep". "But I'm awake...ain't I?". "No this is all a bad dream. Go back to sleep". Jimmy was shaking his head with his eyes closed. "Gotta be the meds...gotta be the meds". "That's it", said Dexter, "It's the drugs you take". Jimmy opened his eyes. "But I haven't taken any. I lost my pills". Dexter looked at Rangi who shrugged his shoulders. "I hid the bottle on him. It was fun". Dexter turned back to Jimmy. "Okay, back to 'It's a dream'. You're dreaming". He yelled to someone or something on the floor. "Teejay! No! We promised, no fun until we get this matter figured out". Jimmy saw a sad looking creature near the electric outlet where his clock was plugged. "What's he trying to do?" "Rangi answered, "Have fun! We like to pull the cord and put it back to make the lights blink. It's fun!" "Shush Rangi!", Dexter spoke to Jimmy, "It's what we do". Jimmy was puzzled. "But why do you do it?" Dexter rolled his eyes. "I told you, it's what we do". He turned again to Rangi. "His kind isn't supposed to see us, let alone talk to us. Only ones that ever have were the crazy ones. And nobody'd believe 'em anyway". Rangi looked thoughtful. "Well...he did get hit in the head. Knock him good it did. You think...?" "That's it!" Dexter spun toward Jimmy and pointed. 'You must have knocked something loose in there. Okay, you're not dreaming, you're crazy...Teejay!" The one called Teejay jumped back from the socket where he was trying to get at the plug unnoticed. He sat down with his head in his hands. Jimmy kinda felt sorry for him. "Listen", Jimmy said, "If it means that much to him, it's okay. I'll just fix the clock later". He looked over at Teejay, "Go ahead, give it a yank". Teejay's eyes lit up and a grin spread across his face. He grabbed hold of the cord with both hands, braced his feet, and gave it a tug. The clock went dark. A second later, Teejay placed the prongs back in the socket holes. The clock flashed 12:00...12:00...12:00. Teejay clapped his hands with a squeal. "Fun!" He hopped up to the window sill giggling. All the other creatures giggled with him. Even Dexter, who quickly replaced his smile with a stern look. He said to Rangi, "Okay, he's your problem". He hopped up to the sill. "Remember", he said to Jimmy before he left, "You're crazy". He then leaped out of sight followed by the others. Jimmy closed his eyes. He opened them to find the one named Rangi still there, watching him with a grin. "This is not how I planned to start my day", he thought to himself. He got up to go make coffee. Jimmy sat at the table, coffee cup in hand. Rangi sat atop the table at the opposite end, watching, grinning. "Must you stare like that?" Rangi nodded. "I've never had the chance to talk to one of you before. I'm excited". Jimmy sighed and sipped his coffee. Maybe later his head would clear and the hallucinations would stop. But for now, the hallucination was sitting there, staring. "Listen, would you like some coffee?" Rangi shook his head. "No thank you. I tried it. Didn't like it". Jimmy looked at his cup, imaging Rangi slurping out of his cup when Jimmy wasn't looking. He shuddered. "How about tea? I can fix you a cup". "No thank you". Jimmy had another sip of his coffee, trying not to be unnerved by the constant stare. "You didn't ask if I wanted hot cocoa", Rangi suggested. "Would you like a cup of hot cocoa?", Jimmy offered. "No thank you", Rangi giggled. Jimmy shook his head and sighed again. "Is there anything you would like?" "I dunno, maybe". Jimmy got up and opened the door to the refrigerator. "See anything you want?" "Ooooh, that!" Rangi was pointing a finger at a can of orange pop. Jimmy opened the can and gave it to the little critter who eagerly drank. Jimmy sat back down with a refill of his coffee. He asked, "What are you...your kind...what do you call..." He was interrupted with a loud "BRRRRAAAAP!" Rangi looked pleased with his belch. He giggled. "Bubbles". It was Jimmy's turn to stare. "When I hallucinate", he thought, "I don't mess around". "You were saying", Rangi set the empty pop can down. "What? Oh yeah, does your kind have a name? I mean, what are you exactly?" "Oh that". Rangi rubbed his chin. "We are what we are. But I think your kind call us Gremlin. I don't know why. We don't". "You mean like the thing with the bells?" Rangi put his hands to his ears, shocked. "Bells hurt!" "Okay, okay. It's okay...no bells". Jimmy wasn't sure why the bells would hurt them, but he'd let the matter drop. Jimmy finished his coffee and rinsed out the cup. Next, he dressed in his riding clothes. Walking out to the garage, Rangi bounded along next to him like a small terrier excited for his master. "Where are we going?'", he asked, "Are we going for some place fun?" Jimmy zipped his jacket. "We?" "Of course!", Rangi explained, "We always go for rides together". "I don't know, just going riding for a while; meet up with friend later, I guess". "Oooh, fun!" Rangi hurried to the motorcycle. "Hey, wait a minute", Jimmy called. Rangi stopped, with a questioning look on his face. "Do you think", Jimmy went on as he put the key in the ignition, "Do you think that just for today you could leave the bike alone? Not mess with the wires or anything?" Rangi seemed a little deflated. "No fun?', he asked. "Just this once, at least. Just for today" "Okay", Rangi said without enthusiasm. "No fun". Jimmy fired up the bike without problem. Rangi sat just ahead of him on the front of the tank, gripping the handlebars. "Want to ride back here on the seat?' Jimmy patted the pad being him. Rangi shook his head no. "I like riding here. My favorite place". They rode like that for a few hours, wandering along different routes with no particular place to be. Jimmy caught a glimpse on occasion of Rangi's reflection in the chrome of his headlight cover. No mistaking that look. It was one of bliss and joy. Jimmy could relate. Only difference between the two with the way they rode, was the bugs that would fly into them now and then. Jimmy would duck, Rangi would open his mouth and score a tasty treat. Come afternoon, they pulled into the parking lot of Jimmy's favorite sports bar. A cold beer and a game on TV sounded good right about now. He parked next to a few other bikes, noticing Trevor and a few others he knew were already inside. He went in, Rangi trotting along beside. Trevor was near the back, playing pool. He looked up, gave Jimmy a wave, then leaned forward to line up his next shot. Jimmy walked to the bar and pulled up a seat in front of one of the many televisions in the room showing a game; Mets versus Giants. He ordered a beer as Rangi sat on the bar near a half empty bowl of popcorn, helping himself to a few kernels. Jimmy took an interest in the game before him, and nearly choked on the first good swallow of the beer. "What the...?" The bartender looked over. "What?" Jimmy kept his eye on the TV. "Ahh...nothing. Just watching the game". The bartender gave a shrug and moved down the bar to take care of other customers. But Jimmy saw, or thought he saw...no wait! There it is, plain as day. There was a gremlin wandering around the infield. He whispered to Rangi, " Hey is that really..." "BRRRRAAAAP!" Rangi set Jimmy's beer back on the bar. "Bubbles", he giggled as he wiped his mouth. Jimmy wondered how many times the two have shared drinks. He decided it best to let the thought go. "Rangi", he whispered, hoping no one would see him talking to...to his hallucination. If he was hallucinating. He wasn't as sure any more. "Rangi, am I seeing things? I mean even more than before?" He pointed to the television. "Is there a gremlin at that game?" Rangi watched the TV for a moment, squinting. "Oh yes!", he said excitedly. "What's he doing?" "Fun". Jimmy watched while the announcer called the play. "Garcia waiting on the oh and two pitch...the throw...and its an easy grounder to short Hansen steps in front to make the stop, he fumbles the ball! Garcia hustles to base and Hansen's throw...not in time. That'll be a base on Hansen's error. Here's the replay showing the ball taking a bad hop at the last moment, Hansen couldn't adjust in time. Too bad. He'll get charged charged for the error..." Jimmy watched the replay, but he knew the ball didn't take a bad hop. He watched in slow motion the ball bouncing toward the unfortunate shortstop, and as the ball was almost in the glove, the gremlin on the field jumped and gave it a swat, causing the ball to catch the edge of the fielder's glove and drop to the ground beside him. "Huh!", He turned to Rangi, who was not there. Down the end of the bar he saw the gremlin wait as the bartender was about to pour a shot. Jimmy was about to warn him, but it was to late. As the drink came out the bottle, Rangi gave the glass a slight nudge. The bartender spilled a good bit on the bar. Jeez, Joe!", Laughed the bar patron, "That's a waste of good tequila!" "I know, dammit!", The bartender replied, "I hate when that happens". Rangi scurried back to Jimmy. He giggled. "Fun!" "Is that all you ever do, 'Fun'? The pulled wires, the spilled drinks...", He looked back to the television, "The pranks?" "Why, yes. It's what we're supposed to do. We say, 'A day without fun, is like a day without fun'" "You're repeating yourself". Rangi nodded vigorously. "Something that important should be repeated". Jimmy was about to ask Rangi another question, when he was interrupted by a voice behind him. "Good thing you're not a gambling man, Jimmy, your Tigers would cost you a fortune." Jimmy turned to find a local bookie named Parker, wiping his hands on a paper towel as he returned from the men's room. "What do you mean?' Parker pointed to a large screen television across the room broadcasting the game with Jimmy's beloved Tigers. "Yup", Parker went on, "they're on their way to losing...again". He chuckled as he started to walk away. Jimmy didn't care for the bookie; any other town the cops would have shut him down, but with half the force places their bets with him, they tend to look the other way. "Well that's what being a true fan is all about", Jimmy yelled after him, "You stay with them even when times ain't good". "Well, 'time's ain't good' with them all too often", Parker laughed. A few others snickered at Parker's wit. Jimmy knew he shouldn't, but he was letting Parker get to him. "They could still win!" "No way", Parker pointed to the game, "Score's four to three, bottom of the ninth, two out, and Murphy's next at bat. Even if he doesn't strike out, he can't hit out of the park and he's their slowest runner. This game's over, dude" he sneered. Jimmy was about to make a comment when he thought he saw it. He watched as the cameras swept the crowd, the dugout, back to the field...there! In the outfield. A gremlin stood watching the players and scratching himself like he as a pro-baller himself. Jimmy had a hunch. "They've got two runners on base. There' still a chance they could win it". Parker took the bait. "Yeah, like a hundred to one chance", he sneered again. "I'll take it!" Jimmy pulled out his wallet. All he had inside was his last twenty, but he had that hunch. "Twenty says they win". Parker shook his head. "Much as I'd like to, Jimmy, I don't want to take your money. It wouldn't be fair to you". Jimmy held the twenty up, waving it back and forth."You offered, and now you don't want to bet?" Several of the bar's customers were taking notice of the discussion. Parker noticed that they noticed. "It's not that Jimmy. You don't ever make bets. I'd rather you had a chance". The room was getting quieter. The play-by-play announcer's voice played in the background. "Murphy getting settled in the batter's box...he watches...the pitch...in there for a strike!" Jimmy pushed. "You gave me a chance. Hundred to one chance". The room was very quiet now, with everyone watching the drama unfold at Parker's table. "Yeah. But come on Jimmy, the games almost over. You really want to waste your money like this" "The pitch...high and outside...one and one" "Well if you didn't want me to waste my money, why'd you make the offer?" People were watching. This was not good for business. "Look, Jimmy when I said a hundred to one..." There was the crack of a bat. "Murphy connects...but it's drifting to the stands...foul ball. Count now one and two..." Jimmy gave one last push. He set the twenty on the table. "Parker, put up or shut up". Dead quiet in the bar. Parker looked at the stats on TV. One and two. "It's a bet". All eyes were on the game. Many not realizing they were holding their breath. "The pitch...and it's an easy pop-up to center field...looks like this game is over as Sims backs to get under...he tripped!. Sims falls on his back as the ball lands safely for a base hit! Cooper' crosses the plate to tie the score as Rodriguez touches third! Sims scrambles to make the throw to home...but it is not in time! Tigers win five four in an unbelievable finish...let's watch the replay as the ball was hit..." The announcer's voice was drowned out by the whoops, whistles, and cheers in the bar. Jimmy didn't need to see the replay. He saw what tripped Sims. He could almost imagine the giggle it made as it ran from the field. "No way!" Parker yelled, furious. He pointed his finger at Jimmy. "You have got to be..." He paused as he saw that everyone was watching him. If he didn't pay off, his business was finished. He quickly pasted on a phony salesman-type smile he had practiced for years. "You have got to be the luckiest S.O.B. I've ever met". He counted out two thousand and placed it in Jimmy's hands. A day's profit gone, just like that. "And hey", he shouted to the crowd, "Just to prove I can be gracious in my defeat, I'm buying a round for everybody!" More cheers and whistles. Parker wrote it off as a business expense There were more games on today, and Parker knew that nothing lubricated a man's wallet like alcohol. He may recoup some of his loss before the night was over. Meanwhile, Jimmy had left the bar and once more was counting his winnings as he strode to where the bikes waited. On one side Rangi hopped along, excited. On his other side, equally excited, and hopping as well, was Trevor. "Oh man boss! That was the most...I mean the way you... you...I mean the...the...the...Wow!". Jimmy smiled at his friend. "Okay, maybe now I understand a little the thrill of the wager. It was...fun". He stashed the money in his wallet and tucked it into his pocket. "I'm in the mood for celebrating with a steak dinner. Wanna come? My treat". "You bet!!" said Trevor, and realizing the pun he just made, he giggled. Jimmy rolled his eyes. Rangi hopped up on the motorcycle, but suddenly remembered he promised not to tamper with it. He looked back at Jimmy. Jimmy smiled and gave a slight nod while he made a little "go ahead" motion with his hand. Rangi grinned and disappeared into the inner workings of the machine. "What the heck?':, thought Jimmy, "For two grand I guess I can put up with a little annoyance". "Oh man! The look on Parker's face when that guy tripped and lost the ball", Trevor carried on as they started the bikes, "That was priceless...hey boss, one of your highway lights is flickering". he pointed to the offending device. Jimmy placed his hand in front of the beam and watched the reflection flash of and on in time with the vibration of the motor "Hmmm! So it is". "I'm keep telling you boss, that machine of yours has a gremlin. You know, if you'd only get one of these good luck bells...". Jimmy held up his hand to stop him. "For the last time Trevor, it's probably a wire that vibrated loose. I am not ever putting a bell on this motorcycle". Rangi climbed onto his favorite riding position, looked over his shoulder with a smile at Jimmy, and gave a thumbs up. "Besides", Jimmy continued, "As any sane man will tell you, there ain't no such thing as a gremlin".