Parts buying trip has side adventures.

[In The Ten Ring]

I drove two hours one-way to meet a member and pay off the remainder on two fenders. While loading those up, a lady pulls into the lot pushing her entire exhaust system. It had broken off at the exhaust manifold.


I couldn't wait, I had to walk over and check on her. It wasn't a girl at all....it was a rather hairy guy but he needed help just the same. I promised to do just that when I was done.

We finished up business, I got the fenders tied down, and over I went. The guy had already jacked up that side and been under his car but he didn't have anything to tie up the pipe. *It had been wired up for some time and apparently wasn't getting any flow. The clotheshangers had given way.

I loaned him a cushion to get on top of and I laid down a sheet and put my jack into use on the other side to give him more room. With my help (and rope) we tied up the pipe as well as it could be tied up. The guy DEMANDED I take payment but I refused. Then he said "at least let me buy you an ice cream." (We were in front of an ice cream shop).

I took him up on that and it turns out the guy is cool as can be. We chatted an hour and he led me to the interstate since the direct way was blocked by a paving crew. I hope to chat with him again as it seems we have a lot in common and in all the years of helping people on the road I have never kept in touch with any of them.

I headed on home and close to my parents' house I see another car stopped with flashers on and a person apparently changing a tire. *It's 10 PM by this time. Turns out this is a bombshell blonde (that apparently really was a female) and I ask if she needs my help.

Now things get interesting. Here I'm thinking "boy I am going to be the hero again and this time to a hot chick" when the jack starts losing pressure and I just can't get those lug nuts off. A police officer pulls up (guy is built like a tank, there goes any hope of me impressing her) and he gets right down to help me. He also blocks off the exit lane and puts his blue lights on, a very smart and welcome move.

Ugh....I have been twisting on some sort of faux hub cap nut covers!

But I redeem myself a bit when I remember dad's breaker bar and deep well set....the two of us get the real lug nuts off after the officer rips that hubcap away. Then it's fail city as my jack lets the hub sit all the way to the gravel....not looking good for Ten Ring here.

Her boyfriend shows up (geeze, why are the pretty ones always taken?) with a jack that isn't leaking fluid. His jack saves the day, after we get mine out of there. What? Her spare is flat? No surprise and no worry, Ten Ring's electric tire pump brings down the curtain of this fail drama.

Turns out the cop knows the boyfriend and we joke about how bald (very bald) her flat tire is. Attempting to make up for this fail he pulls up the girl's shirt to expose her holstered Springfield XD 9mm. No wonder she was so OK with a stranger (me) helping her at night when she had already called her boyfriend to come.

We get her pumped up, changed up, and I load up all my tools. They give me a hearty thanks and it's off to unload the fenders.

Now if I had gone when I had planned to, I wouldn't have been around to help. Plus I wouldn't know the jack needs a new o-ring and dad's tool bag really needs road flares.

*I know a donut does not go up front but she only had about 5 miles to go, I figured she'd be OK. If she had had the time, I would have encouraged her to put the donut onto the rear and the good rear tire onto the front, as that's what I do when that has happened to me.

[mongocanfly]

haha...at least you got icecream...

[special-K]

She might have been going home with you had things been turned around. I mean, if your jack stayed pumped up and his wimped out. Most women have a thing for properly operating jacks.

It's hard for me to pass a person in distress along the road. It's good to see there are others. Had I not stopped to help the old guy one day back in '10 I never would have owner the '85 Jimmy diesel I bought from him by making payments. I really enjoyed that thing for several years, then made money selling it. That thing was solid good karma

[In The Ten Ring]

I wish I had kept a journal of all the times I've stopped. These two were notable instances but my greatest performance was in April 2000 on a drive to Atlanta. At 1 AM I stopped and changed the tire for a woman and her young daughter who had abandoned their car and begun walking (1 AM!) along the very dark road, in the rain. They would have had to walk miles as it was very rural and exits were far inbetween.

After the tire change....her donut was flat and all I could get into it with a hand pump was 30 psi (holds 60 psi) I advised her to drive to the nearest exit with a gas station sign as even closed it should have a coin-operated tire pump. I would follow her and she couldn't exceed 40mph because if her tire came of the rim, we were really in trouble. She didn't want to do this, probably fearing I was luring her off the interstate so I could do unspeakable things. However her 8 year old, who had been holding the umbrella for me (and doing a great job) said "mommy, let's do this!"

I got that tire pumped up, checked pressure and inflated the other tires, and topped off her oil level, as she was a quart low. She demanded to pay me, which I refused (if you take money it is no longer "helping" but "working for"). I got the impression she was fleeing an abusive man as it was 1 AM and the back window of her car was filled to the ceiling with clothes, haphazardly thrown in there. I didn't think to ask as I was much younger then.

I have rules about when to stop as you can easily get into an ambush situation. If I don't stop I always call in the disabled motorist to highway patrol including location. Last night I didn't even think about scanning the ditch or looking inside her car for any surprises....I carry a powerful tac light on my side, I could have done that. Maybe next time I'll remember.

[midniteblues]

I saved two farm girls one day with a chain some wood blocks and my floor jack.
Coming back from helping a friend move some cars around
I saw a farm truck with a loaded cattle trailer stuck to the road.
The rear bolts on their hitch pulled through the rusty frame and the receiver end was dug into the road and the drop foot on the tongue was drug and bent backwards.

Uesing my jack some and some blocks i got everything up off the road and looped my tow chain up around the fifth wheel to hold the receiver up.
It was really sketchy but I followed them the few miles to the farm.
I really thought it all was gonna give out going down the rough driveway but it made it.
One girl quickly hopped out and used a loader too lift the tongue and get the tension off my chain more blocks and it was all good.

Made some cool friends that day. As I see them from time to time but never towing with that same truck anymore.

I'm also pretty well known around the area for pulling out cars that are stuck in the snow.

Here's a pic from last winter.
This will be my most memorable pull.
Once again a young girl and she was scared shatless.
She didnt want to get out because she was afraid the car was gonna roll over.
I said nothing to worry about so she got out and was so shook up she sat rite back down.
She said she thought she was going head on into the tree.

Anyway I hope I don't somehow get her or I in trouble for putting this online.
I only took the pic for my own sake.

Once again a very lonely back road she claimed she was sitting there like that for 20 min.
To afraid to move. When I pulled up next to her she looked at me and then up to the sky and said "thank God"!
She had a white knuckled death grip on the steering wheel.
Remember now she is on the passenger side.
That dang 2wd scubadoo had nothing but a tie rod looking thing to hook the chain to in the rear without getting way up under it.

If you look closely at the pic I tried pulling her forward first.
It went a few feet forward and plowed up snow in the front and i lost traction and made four deep holes in the stone.
The weight of the engine in the car just made it slide down the hill further, so I stopped unooked turned around to pull it from the rear.
Quickly snapped the pic as i hooked it back up, then i drug it all the way back out to the road without a problem.

What you can't see is the ice that she slid on that's rite about where my truck is.

I got a smiling thank you along with a big hug.

This was one of many over the years, but this is the only time I actually got the mail out

Just so happens I was on my way too help a friend again that day...

Yhea, there's been a few changed flat tires too.

[In The Ten Ring]

That's great man! Good job!

Just before I saw the lady by the road I was thinking, "we each have a duty to help others." So I see the car in the gravel and flashers going and I thought "so, do you really believe that or are you just going to drive on by?"

I guess I really believe it.

[68C15]

it's a pleasure to know you Ten Ring