wringing wet

We went to Dollywood yesterday. I have never been so wet in my whole life! No, I didn't ride any of the water rides, it was just high humidity and hot, Hot HOT. Those shade trees do a good job up to about 90 degrees F, but it was hotter than that.
Howard

Fountain in San Juan

I really liked this fountain in San Juan, Puerto Rico. This was in Old San Juan near the famous fort that guards the entrance to the harbor.

A neat little bike.

Here is a better picture of my Benelli (Ward's Riverside). Don't look too closely, because you might see some faded paint, rust, or pitted chrome. This unrestored bike spent most of it's life parked in a leaky old camper near Sparta, Tennessee. When I bought it, it had never been started, but there were three miles on the speedometer. It seems that the owner put those miles on it pushing it up and down the road trying to start it. Small wonder that it didn't start. There was a piece missing in the carburetor, but when that was replaced, it started fine. It has about 55 miles on it now.

Hurricanes and cruises

I wonder how Hurricane Dennis is going to affect the cruise industry. With two more storms out there following the same track, people are going to start re-thinking their cruise plans. That might leave ships with empty cabins and drive prices down for last-minute cruisers like us. If a ship is about to sail with empty space, the price can drop to well under $100 a day per person, but you have to be ready to jump on it.

Ships sailing from ports such as Tampa, Mobile, and New Orleans will be the most affected because a big hurricane can cover most of the Gulf of Mexico. They can easily block the path in and out of Gulf. On the East Coast of Florida, Jacksonville, Port Canaveral, Ft. Lauderdale and Miami would have a little more room to maneuver, but itineraries would be likely to change.

You can take a little comfort in the fact that a cruise ship can easily outrun a hurricane in the lower latitudes. But sailing in the Caribbean can get a little rough if you share it with a big storm.

With all of this said, if you are any kind of gambler, go ahead and book that cruise. The odds are better than you get in the ship's casino.
Howard

My Allstate got left out of the group picture.

This is my 1953 Allstate DeLuxe, model 811.40. This is generally considered THE classic Allstate. It was built by Cushman in Lincoln, Nebraska and sold by Sears. This one was restored by Joe Summerall and it has won a number of trophies including 1st place at Portland and 1st place in Cochran. Engine is 4hp Husky with single speed.

There I sit in the rocking chair in my scooter shop. It's actually very comfortable for working on scooters. This is the picture that made me famous. It got in the paper and on the internet, and had people saying, "What kind of crackpot sits in a rocking chair working on antique motor scooters all day?"

The Hatteras Light

The lighthouse on Cape Hatteras in North Carolina. Because of beach erosion, this structure was recently moved about a mile to a safer location. Picture made in May 2005.

This is the lighthouse keeper's house with his lighthouse in the background. Picture made in May 2005, on the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

Me and the blue marlin.

Here is a fish that I caught. Would I lie to you?

Light house on the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

This is the Ocracoke Light at the southwest end of Ocracoke Island.

Alaska

In the foreground is floating ice. In the background is Hubbard glacier, and between is a very large cruise ship. The front of the glacer, which is much taller than a 12 deck ship, has house-sized chunks falling off. The ice you see floating came from that glacier. I took the picture from deck seven of a similar ship.

A picture of my scooters.

On the left is my 1953 Cushman Pacemaker, model 62. Unrestored but runs great. 7.3 hp.

Next is my 1963 Super Silver Eagle with two speeds and the OMC engine with 9 hp.

My 1972 Vespa Ralley 180 with four speeds and 8.9 hp.

1963 Cushman Highlander, model 721. It has been restored with yellow and charcoal paint, and a 5 hp Cushman Husky engine from a '57 Pacemaker. It's a fun scooter.

1974 Vespa 90 with three speeds and almost 4 horsepower.

1947 Cushman model 52 restored in 1995. My first scooter.

In the background is a 1966 Benelli with a 4 speed foot shift. Total miles about 55, but it only had three miles on it when I got it.

Not Pictured. 1953 Cushman Allstate DeLuxe model 811.40 with 4 hp (I'll post a picture of this one later.) I also have a couple of Honda Expresses and an engineless 1957 Cushman RoadKing.
Howard

Some of my scooters

That's my 1972 Vespa Rally 180 at left. At right I am standing behind my 1974 Vespa 90. In the background is a 1966 Wards Riverside, which is really a Benelli. The Vespa T-shirt was a father's day gift from Ed.

These are the only Italian bikes that I have. They are all two-cycle, single cylinder engines. No electric starter is needed, because they start easily with the kick starter.

Me on my 1963 Cushman Eagle

That is me in 2003, sitting on my unrestored original 1963 Cushman Super Silver Eagle, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. We were attending the Cushman Club of America annual meet at Lebanon, Indiana, and we all went down to Indy to make one historic lap around the track. OK, so it was the slowest lap ever at Indy. But picture 730 Cushmans, mostly Eagles, circling that historic track at the same time. Memories are made of stuff like that.

I've made a few laps at Lowes(Charlotte) Motor Speedway in North Carolina. My 1947 Cushman model 52 step-thru went around 14 times. I made a couple of laps on the Eagle and the 1953 Allstate Deluxe made 1.5 laps. It would have made more if the chain hadn't broken. I guess I got a DNF at Charlotte.
Howard

scooter pictures

Let me mention some web sites where you can see pictures of motor scooters. Mostly, they are Cushmans or other antique scooters, but you might find some modern stuff, homemade wonders, or even big motorcycles. Some of these pictures may inspire you to restore or customize your own scooter, or if you don't have a scooter, it may inspire you to go looking for one. I saw three Cushmans in today's classifieds.

www.hobbytech.com This is Jim Fredricks site. It has long been the best source of Cushman technology on the web. Jim also likes crystal radios, but unless you are older than your dog, you won't know what that is.

http://cushmanclubofamerica.com
http://southeasterncushmanclub.com If those don't work, add a www, but that usually doesn't make much difference. These sites are both maintained by Gene Martin, and they are a gold mine of pictures and scooter meets. You can even download the registration forms for some of the best scooter meets in the country.

The Cushman Club of America holds one humongerous scooter meet a year. Nobody goes away disappointed. The Southeastern Cushman Club holds two a year, one in the spring and one in the fall. SECC meets are not just a southern thing. You will see people from 20 or 30 different states.

There are links to other sites on the three I have listed here.
Howard

Making a scooter run.

I have always had problems getting my old antique scooters to start and run. Most of them are about 50 years old and they have weak ignition and primative carburetors. My 1947 Cushman has a six volt system with a magneto ignition and the compression ratio is only 6 to 1. But if everything is right, a scooter that old will run just fine.

Not being a mechanic, I am lucky to have one or two running at any given time, but I am learning a few tricks. I had an epidemic of stuck float valves in carburetors. It only takes a grain-of-sand size glop of goop to stick that little valve and then it either floods and drips gas causing it to run rich and foul the plug, or no gas gets in there at all.

So where was the goop coming from? Well, the gas tank, of course. Cushman put a fine screen in the top of the settling bowl to strain out goop, but micro glops pass through, consolidate and gum up the float valve. Old gas left in the tank for a few months makes its own goop.

The solution is inline filters. I use a small plastic filter made for lawn mower engines and as soon as I put one on a scooter, it starts and runs. I won't say the problem is completely solved, but this has been a giant step.

One thing I will have to remember is to remove the inline filter from a scooter that I enter in a show. Non-original parts cost points.

I even put one of those dandy little filters on my 1966 Benelli, which is a lightweight, two-cycle street bike and it goes better than it ever did. I sure wish I could figure out that silly 4-speed foot shift. It's on the left side and I'm right footed.
Howard

I need a cure for the fever.

Usually, I can cure what ailes me by jumping on an antique motor scooter, but there is only one cure for Hawaii Fever. Just writing about it makes it worse. I guess it's time to surf on over to www.altotravel.com .
Howard

Hawaii fever

My wife and I are both suffering from Hawaii Fever. We haven't been there since 2002 and we usually go more often than that. The Fever can be triggered by travel magazines, TV commercials, or just flipping through our old vacation pictures.

What more could you want in a vacation? The beaches are beautiful, the climate is perfect, and the people are friendly. The Big Island has deserts, jungles, grasslands, and even snow on top. In this island state, you can study volcanos, sea creatures, or waterfalls. They have tropical fruit, hula dancers, coral reefs, spectacular road trips, and surfer dudes. Honolulu, on Oahu (sounds like Wahoo)could be the most beautiful city in the world

But every island is different. Most tourists go to Oahu, stay on Waikiki Beach, visit Pearl Harbor and ride "The Bus" through Honolulu or around to the North Shore. That's a good vacation, but if that's all you do, you missed most of Hawaii.

Molokai seems to be stuck in 1920. The roads are paved and you might find an air conditioned room, but most buildings have rusty metal roofs. Much of the island is used for pasture, and the towns are just villages. Sitting on Molokai at night looking at the distant lights of Honolulu is like sitting on the moon and looking at Earth.

The island that has it all is Maui. Some areas are like Waikiki and only a short distance way you would think it was Molokai. Don't miss Hana and the Seven Sacred Pools. Drive to the 10,024 foot summitt of Haleakala. You'll need a jacket or a sweater.

The Big Island, sometimes called Hawaii, is so big it seems like a small continent. It is the top of the tallest, largest, mountain on Earth. Some mountains may be higher, but Hawaii measures from the ocean floor to it's summitt, which is over 13,000 feet above the sea's surface. And it's still growing as constantly erupting volcanoes add to it's mass.

Often mentioned as a favorite, Kauai (sounds like Cow Eye) is the garden island. It has a lot of rainfall, but like most high islands in the Pacific, it has a dry side. Poipu Beach is likely THE best beach in the world. Check it out. Surprisingly, it usually isn't crowded. You can drive all over the island in a day, but why hurry? Look for flowers, monk seals, wild chickens, "barking" sand, wet and dry caves, a canyon that is truly grand, and cliffs you won't believe. There is even a tree tunnel and some blow holes. Don't look for cities or even large towns. And the people are, you guessed it, friendly. This is where the natives go for vacations. You won't want to leave.

There are other islands, but these are the largest. Even the smaller islands have their own surprises. Just writing about Hawaii can bring about an attack of Hawaii Fever.
Howard