NickDG

I never rode a Zed, but about the same time Kawasaki had 900cc (I think that's what is was) 2-stroke street bike that was wicked fast. I slammed the throttle on one going up a freeway on-ramp and at about 5000 RPM it hit the power band and it was all I could do just to hang on. Seriously, I went across all four lanes of the freeway before I got it under control. One car in the wrong place would have ended it for me right then and there. NickD

What's wrong with young guys today? I wouldn't do burnouts with Nina, after all the work I just couldn't treat her that way, but if I did I'd know how. Front wheel up against an unmovable object, pavement under my rear wheel, and plenty of Bleach. Not this way . . . http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N99KW4rnx7A NickD

>>I'm saddled with a long, hard to spell, relatively unique, eastern European ethnic last name...

Bob Blanchard passed away in Florida . . . He had a loft here in So Cal before moving to Florida in 1985. I helped break down his loft and when he found it was going to take two trucks I drove one of them from California to Florida for him. He was a tough to the point sort, even back then, but a really great guy . . . http://www.airtrash.com/ NickD

No worries, you'll always be Gypsy to me . . . NickD

LOL, nice to meet you Eric! And no, I didn't know. I lost track of that Perris naming system after Steve Clark number three . . . ! NickD

I knew that handle, sooner or later, was gonna bite you in ass . . . And why does a guy with a handle need another handle? In all the years I've known and worked alongside you I've never known your real first name. NickD

It was Delizioso . . . NickD

I don't watch TV, you know, I'm better than you . . . But a couple days ago I had a tooth pulled and was home grooving on the Percocet the Dentist prescribed so I decided to turn on the TV. Drugs are the only thing that could possibly make it interesting. I flipped through a few channels and stopped short on Giada De Laurentiis doing her "Everyday Italian" show. I paused because she's so beautiful (and her blouse was deep into the beeps.) But then I actually got interested in what she was cooking. I'm not a recipe cook I just use my experience and wing it in the kitchen but I'm giving this a go tonight. Chicken Scallopine with Sage and Fontina Cheese Except since I missed the beginning of the show I just guessed on some of the ingredients so it's going to be: Chicken Scallopine with Basil and Fontenella Cheese. I know it was one of the "F" cheeses. But I didn't realize she posted her recipes daily online until after I did the marketing. (See I market - you people that watch TV - go shopping.) Here it is if you want to try it . . . >>Ingredients: * 6 (4 1/2 to 5 1/2-ounce) chicken cutlets, pounded thin * Salt and freshly ground black pepper * 6 sage leaves * 3 ounces grated fontina cheese * 3 tablespoons olive oil * 1 garlic clove, halved * 1/2 cup white wine * 1 (28-ounce) can whole San Marzano tomatoes * 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes * 1 teaspoon salt * 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper * Special Equipment: toothpicks Directions: Place the chicken cutlets on a clean work surface, narrow end facing you. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place one sage leaf crosswise on each of the pieces of chicken. Sprinkle each of the pieces of chicken with 1/2 ounce (about 2 tablespoons) of fontina cheese. Roll up the chicken and seal with one or two toothpicks. Warm the olive oil and halved garlic clove in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat until the garlic is fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the chicken. Brown the chicken on all sides, about 3 minutes per side. Remove the chicken from the pan and remove and discard the garlic. Add the wine and simmer for 2 minutes while scraping up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Meanwhile, combine the tomatoes and red pepper flakes in a blender and blend until smooth. Add the tomato mixture to the reduced wine in the pan. Simmer for 5 minutes to let the flavors marry. Return the chicken to the pan. Simmer the chicken in the tomato sauce for 10 minutes. Turn the chicken over and simmer until cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan. Season the tomato sauce with salt and pepper. Spoon the tomato sauce onto serving plates or a serving platter. Slice the chicken into 1-inch rounds. Remove the toothpicks. Place the chicken over the sauce and serve immediately.

Yes, that what it is, copper . . . NickD

I just went looking for a vid I saw of a guy doing a gas tank, but couldn't find it. I think the tank was stainless to begin with. And I think he did use steel wool. But the big point he made was to be careful anywhere there's compound curves. The idea being you are blending the strokes you make with the steel wool so it all matches up. So he masked certain areas, completed a section, then reversed the masking. I just made that sound a lot more complicated than it was, so I guess on the your fender struts keep your strokes going the same way so you don't get any cross hatching. But I'm not sure you should start off with steel wool, you might need something a bit tougher to get through the first layers of chrome and down into the second layer which is tin or nickel or something? I think I remember him saying something about that if doing chrome. Got anything laying around you could experiment on? Meanwhile I'll keep look for the vid . . . NickD

I really like the brushed look a lot better than chrome. But for it to work I think you need to do the rocker boxes, cam cover, trans case, fwd controls, everything that is chrome. I saw one done up that way (flat black & brushed) on another forum and it looked tough as hell. It's a very utilitarian look! If you aren't settled on a paint brand yet look into Hot Rod Flatz. If you don't want any "pop" this is it. I did Nina's front fender and a few smaller pieces and it goes on easy and it's tougher than most other flat paint you can get. http://www.tcpglobal.com/kustomshop/ksflatz.aspx When done it reminded me of that scene in "Spinal Tap" when Nigel says, "Could this be any blacker? No, none blacker." LOL NickD

We're still waiting for the photos! Post 'em when she come home from the painter. I'm going to leave my fender struts chrome too, and for the same reason, they'll look good against the flat black fender. I've got Nina down to the bare frame now. There's rain in the forecast for later in the week but I'm going to gather the stuff for my hillbilly paint booth. You know four sided plastic hanging from the garage rafters! Nina looks so naked! NickD

Very cool project. Have fun with it. You'll have to get one of those jaunty skimmer hats when you're ready to cruise around in it! NickD

You're the tip of the spear . . . Congrats !!! NickD

>>I'm not much of a country fan, but that ole boy's alright.

Life is funny . . . One night in 1976 I was riding my '69 Shovelhead through Cardiff, California when I got pulled over when my wiggly ass taillight wire started shorting out. It was all good until I came back on the radio with 15 failures to appear. In those days I was with Peter Fonda. All I wanted to do was to be free. You know, free to ride my machine - and not be hassled by the Man! On court day, the judge told me, "Mr. DiGiovanni, it appears you have a flagrant disregard for the law." And without much thought I told him to go fuck himself. And he hammered me with 60 days for contempt and no bail. I actually got out in 30 but it put the frigging brakes on me being a freedom fighter. Flash forward to Perris in 1995. The rich yuppie generation of AFF first jump students was being killed by the advent of one jump charlies doing tandems so the bike I had at the time needed to go so I could just eat and pay my Ghetto rent. So, with a buyer on the hook, I took one last ride. And no shit, going down a deserted Ethanac Road on the east side of the DZ, a CHP passed me in the opposite direction while I was going about 90. I hit Case Road and turned left up towards Quail Valley watching my mirrors and waiting for him to turn around and come after me. Just as I got to the first curve going up the hill I saw him hit the intersection behind me. But he just sat there as I went around the hill. I got about another half mile when I saw him pacing me. He wasn't trying to catch me (I was doing the speed limit now) but just hanging back. Then he pulled up and hit me with the lights. I pulled over and got off and removed my helmet and laid it down on the ground. I was 45 years old at this point and the officer I noticed couldn't have been more than 25 or so. "I thought you were going to run," is the first thing he said to me. And it dawned on me that's exactly what he was hoping I'd do. He was actually hanging back enough so I'd think I had a chance. So I told him, "Look, I don't have a son, but if I did, and you pulled that shit on him, you'd be hearing from me!" He got all defensive at that point and said he was going to write me for the full boat, and I told him he was a punk and he could go fuck himself. (Hey, the one thing you learn in life is you never learn!) So court day comes again and I was all ginned up to argue this asshole needs to be something else besides a cop. But he didn't show up and my case was dismissed. I found out the next day he got into an altercation with a gang banger later that day and was shot to death. So I took the last fifty dollars I had in the world and sent flowers to his funeral. Somewhere in there is a lesson, and I only pray I've learned what it is . . . NickD

Man . . . NickD

Brad Paisley, but damn, Marsha Brady's still got it going on !!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UE6iAjEv9dQ NickD

Everybody sitting down? Julia just came home from her second day of riding class, and guess what? She not only passed the course, she received the second highest score out of nine people! Yeah, that's what I said too! After dropping the bike all day yesterday she said two hours into this afternoon's practice it all just clicked into place. The entire class then took their ride test which is set up similar to the test the DMV gives. You start with a zero score and get points added for mistakes. Gather twenty points and you fail, which is what happened to three people in the class. One guy got a perfect zero, Julia got a five, and the rest that passed where between ten and fifteen points. Julia said her Instructor mentioned she had the best cornering form in the class. Everyone else was being too tentative about leaning into the turns. But she just told she did well on that because she went down so many times yesterday she knew exactly where the "edge" was, LOL! I'm dumbstruck and very proud of her . . . NickD

Damn, Gypsy! Now that a righteous man cave . . . NickD

Yup, it's always cool to see those photos, but all Julia had to do on the Rovers was help design and build them and then devise the navigation plan that got them to Mars. Luckily she didn't have to climb up on one and drive! NickD

Julia came home last night from her riding class and apparently it didn't go too well . . . She's having problems starting and stopping and said she dropped the bike three or four times. But she didn't want to go into it and I didn't press her. I did however notice the black and blues on her legs. Anyway, to her credit she went back this morning to give it another go. I wanted to tell her technique and practice will fix everything, but she's too frustrated right now for that kind of advice. Kind of like a skydiving student with a spin problem. But whatever happens today I'll be very proud of her. And then tomorrow I'm going down there to kick some "instructor" ass . . . NickD

>>I checked my box

LOL, I don't know where it is now but I used to have a photo taken outside of USPA HQ when they were having some kind of ceremony. Behind the board members and the podium was a large banner hanging up and it said, "USPA, It's All About the Member!" Pretty sure I posted it here somewhere . . . NickD