Vehicles

	1975: My 1st car. 1966 Mustang 2+2 Fastback. 289 3-speed. It was rusty, but I didn't care. It was a cool car. I bought it for $175 and later sold it back to the same body shop guy for $125. It sat in his boneyard for probably 15 years. In 2003 I tried to find out where it went to buy it back, but no luck.
	73 Harley Sportster. I was only 15 when I chopped this bike. It's hard to be a bad biker dude when you only have a learner's permit and have to have your dad on the back seat. :>/
	At the time, our family owned a Kawasaki motorcycle shop in Genoa. The guy in the background is sitting on my '73 G5 100CC bike. I started motocross racing with this bike (yes, I got my butt kicked).
	1976: 1970 Nova SS350. Hugger Orange with black stripes. Black interior, Bucket seats, console, PS, PDB, AC. It just kills me to think what this car would be worth today. Sold for $850. I don't have any pictures of it, but I found this one that was close. This picture looks a lot like what mine did after the repaint, in which my dad convinced me to leave the stripes off since that would increase the resale value. Boy have things changed since then!
	1977: 1957 Chevy 2-door hardtop. This was a California car, since it had the 1-piece bumpers. 327 4-speed. I never did much to it, and it was always breaking down. Sold for around $900 a year later.
	My 2nd chopper was a 1975 Kawasaki KZ900 named Galaxy. I spent a huge amount of time building this bike. Check out the details on the frame.
	The finished product. My first chopper was a hardtail, so having rear shocks on this one was a luxury.
	I painted everything myself, including airbrushing this mural. On the sides of the tank, you can see prism tape (new stuff at the time), with a little shading put in.
	While it's not a very good shot of the bike, what's significant is the proof that I really did own the 70 SS Nova featured above, as you can partly see behind the Econoline pickup in the background. Yes, that's a 63 Vette beside the bike, and no, it wasn't mine. While my dad owned dozens of Vettes, I never did because I didn't fit in them very well, being 6'2".
	1964 Chevy. 327 auto. This was a fast car. The pictures make it look black, but it was a midnight metallic blue.
	The '64 had TrueSpoke wheels on it, which really looked great. I later sold the car for around $1200.
	1978: 1976 Dodge van. Since this van had a bed in the back, and all the velour/bunny fur, my senior class prophecy was that I was going to be a pimp in NY. Never happened, but I had a great time with this van. :>)
	My 3rd chopper was a 76 KZ900. This one was called The Magician. Check out the paint on the tank. This was a beautiful bike and would have easily won trophies had I ever entered it in shows.
	1979: 1977 Datsun 280Z. Another fun car. The best thing is that there wasn't another like it in the area, so I had a pretty unique car. I brought this one out to Seattle when I moved there in '80. A bunch of speeding tickets forced me to sell it, as the insurance was more than the car was worth.
	1980~1981 Hardly worth mentioning the '72 Pinto and '75 Rabbit (both green) I owned. I was so broke during those years I couldn't afford anything else. :>( I did a few custom painting jobs for motorcycles, and this is one of the tanks I painted. I was helping the customer install this tank in Seattle when Mt. St. Helens blew. We could see the ash plume slowly envelope everything around us.
	1981. My first couple of jobs in Seattle were both in Suzuki shops, so I bought this 78 GS750E.
	1982. I ran across this 1964 Chevy convertible and bought it for $1400. Recognize the wheels? I drove it back to Nebraska and ran into my friend who bought my other '64 Chevy. He still had the wheels, so I bought them back and put them on this one. A year later the 327 gave out. I replaced it and sold the car for around $1600.
	Since the 64 Chevy had a trailer hitch, it only seemed fair to pull a boat behind it. :>)
	1981: Parasailing looked neat, and I already had a boat, so I bought one for $750. This was a LOT of fun.
	1983: I found a good deal on a 69 Firebird for $500. While it looks good in the picture, it was painted Rustoleum Red with a paintbrush. The guy was doing body work on the street in front of his house, and when he was done, he'd brush it over. The interior was very nice, though.
	Since I was getting into Firebirds, I found another one. This time a convertible with a 6-cylinder. It was really rough, and I never did take it very far. Both sold for under $1000. I had a 3rd 69 Firebird for a parts car, too. Stripped the deluxe interior out of it, and sold it back to the junkyard for what I paid for it.
	1984: A friend of mine was really into 4-wheeling, so I bought this 73 Blazer and put a lift kit with 35" Monster Mudder tires on it. Total height was over 7 feet.
	This truck could go practically anywhere. I had the greatest adventures 4-wheeling in Washington state.
	1983. This '78 Ford Courier was converted to a minivan (way ahead of their time) by removing the rear cabin wall to open up the whole interior.
	The interior was very plush, and included an icebox and sink.
	1984. As my emission tune-up business got better, I wanted something flashy, and this 83 Trans Am fit the bill.
	This is your real Little Old Lady Who Only Drove It To Church On Sunday car, since this 66 Mustang was owned by a preacher's wife. It had 252K miles on it, with only the heads being off at 180K miles. Besides being painted once, it had never been touched and looked like it just rolled out the showroom. They also had records of every dime they spent on it, including gas all the way down to 17 cents a gallon.
	1986. My first brand-new car. A Lincoln Mark VII LSC. Already starting with a Hot Rod Lincoln, I lowered the car put a ground-effects package on it, and blacked out everything but the front grille. My license plate read 1RADMK7.
	I had grown up flying because of my dad's obsession with it, but never cared much for it because of all the regulations. When ultralights came out, I found the type of flying I love. It's like flying a motorcycle. My Robertson B1-RD had a top speed of 43mph and a stall speed of 17. With a decent wind, I could actually fly backwards.
	1987: With a successful chain of auto tune-up shops, and the muscle car craze going on, I went back to Nebraska to look for something to drive back. I found this 1970 Chevelle SS454 for $3000.
	I didn't get more than 10 miles away from Omaha when the camshaft burnt up, so I brought it back to the guy who sold it to me. He offered to put in another one for $200. Having no other real choice, I accepted. A couple days later it was done. While driving it back to Norfolk, I made it about 50 miles, when it burnt up again. I cut my losses and towed it back to Norfolk.
	This car had all the SS equipment, including a functional cowl flap, although I don't think it was a true SS454. It might have been a 396 car.
	I ended up towing the car back to Spokane with the Chevelle in the next picture. After I got them both home, I had my mechanics rebuild the 454 engine. When it was done, this car had more brute strength than anything I've owned before or since. I sold it for $5000, actually making a profit on it. Thinking what it's worth today makes me regret that sale.
	1969 Chevelle convertible. 350 powerglide, with AC. Kinda rusty, but I needed a car to tow the other Chevelle back to Spokane. Ironically, this car also burnt up a cam before I left, but a local mechanic fixed it up right.
	This is what it looked like after I painted it. That previous green sure was ugly. Surprisingly I had a real hard time selling this car, even driving it to the SF bay area and putting it in the paper for a week. I sold it back in Spokane for $3500.
	During this time of Chevelles, I also had a 1969 RS Camaro convertible being restored. It had a 307 4-speed, with a power top and power steering. This was the car I was going to keep. I bought it for $6500, and put another $2500 into it.
	I owned this car for over a decade, and a divorce forced me to sell it in '99. I had promised it to my daughter when she turned 16, but the ex wouldn't hear of it. The really sad thing was that the new owner couldn't have been more than 20 miles away, when the ex called up and changed her mind! Too late. :>(
	1988: One afternoon a kid stopped by my shop wanting to sell his car. He was desperate for money, so I ended up with this 1970 Chevelle Malibu for $1200. I sold it a few weeks later at an auction and made a profit.
	I found a 66 Mustang fastback at an auction in Seattle, which promised an original engine. When I got it back to Spokane, I found a 302 in it. I drove it back to Seattle, and, needing someway to get back to Spokane, picked this 66 Mustang up for $1800 and selling it a week later for $2800. Needing a car to get back to Spokane happened another time when I hopped on a plane to buy a 70 Chevelle SS. By the time my plane landed and I showed up at the guy's house, the car was gone. I scoured the ads and bought a 65 Mustang to get home, and sold it a few weeks later for a profit.
	Since Seattle and Spokane had so much water, it was time for another boat. This time it was a Freedom 225, made in Spokane. It featured a 454 Magnum, radar arch, custom stereo, full galley and sleeping quarters. We lived on this boat most weekends during the summer.
	1989: Missing my old Blazer, I picked up another one, and built it similar to the 1st one. This one was a 78. I ended up rolling this one twice on a twisty gravel road while 4-wheeling.
	1990: I got another Blazer, this time an 82. While it looked fairly nice, the engine burnt all kinds of oil. I moved back to Nebraska with it, and it went through a quart every 100 miles during the trip..
	1990: With no prospects for a decent job, I started my own limousine service. I traded the Blazer in for this 86 54" stretch town car.
	I later traded the silver car for a white one, and it wasn't more than a few months later when I bought out my competitor, now owning 2 cars.

	1995: I dress up kinda nice, when you can get me into a penguin suit. The is a 91 120" stretch. At the height of Park Avenue Limousine's existence, I had 9 limousines and a mini bus, mostly going to Indian Casinos which opened up in the early 90s. I sold the business in '96.
	Being tired of driving limos for our only cars, I splurged and spent $900 for this 77 Lincoln Mark IV. The 460 engine really sucked the gas, however, so I sold it after a few months.
	1997 I had another Lincoln MkVII LSC (a silver 84) for a short while and traded it for this 96 Dodge Intrepid. I ended up giving it to the soon-to-be-ex-wife, and I ended up with the 90 Chrysler Town and Country minivan in the background. As soon as possible, I traded it off.
	An intro ride in a Challenger ultralight made me miss flying way too much, so after an 8-year hiatus, I bought and refurbished this '88 Challenger II. The plane flew so well, that I became a dealer and a flight instructor. See www.ultrafunairsports.com for more info.
	1998: A year later I built a new Challenger II. I've flown this plane to Oshkosh and all over the place.
	1998. This fits my style a little better. 92 Cadillac STS. This was a hot-rod Caddy.
	2000: My current car is a red 98 Dodge Avenger ES. I spent a long time looking for a decent Stealth, but never could find what I was looking for. The Avenger is Dodge's anemic replacement for the Stealth, and shares a lot of the same lines. It's a nice car, and I've owned it longer than practically any other car. Maybe I'm finally slowing down.
	2003: After the 2nd trip to Oshkosh and a 25mph headwind on the way back, I decided I wanted something a little faster than the Challenger. After months of searching, I decided on the Titan. It cruises around 110mph, and the performance is awesome. I also became a dealer for Titan. I built this in 5.5 months, cramming more than 100 hrs/mo into the construction.
	2003: This 72 Chevelle had been sitting in the trees for over 7 years. I originally was going to restore it, but after getting about a hundred hours into it and having it all disassembled, I figured it would be much easier to buy one that was already done. Sold on 2/17/04.
	2004. This is what I found for my Chevelle fix. 72 SS 350, with a 402 in it. Lady-owned for the last 19 years, and she was the 2nd owner. Code 65 Flame Orange paint, PS, PDB, tilt, AC, buckets, console and 2 build sheets. Clicking on the picture will take you to its own page.
	2004. When the original Titan became too small, I sold it and collaborated with the factory to build a new model. The Tornado SS was the result. First flight was Thanksgiving day, and I didn't come down for 2.4 hours. An interesting side note is that I painted the plane at the same place I bought and sold my 1st car 30 years earlier (see top of page).
	2005. I found a 72 Mach 1 project about 7 miles from where I found my Chevelle in Denver. It's got a matching #s 351 CJ and a C-6 tranny. It's a little rough, but the only rust is in the rear quarters and under the hood. The floors and trunk are in great shape. Had to sell it in June for financial reasons (daughter's car, college, etc.)
	2005. My first new car in 19 years. 2005 Hyundai Tucson LX. I got the loaded version with heated leather seats and sunroof. It'll tow my trailer when I need, and it hauls around all my stuff. Gets good gas mileage, too.
	2005. Another eBay car. I always liked the Cuda/Challenger cars, and when this 1972 Challenger came up in my favorite color, I got it. It comes with a 440 big block, auto trans with slapstick, and a 3.23:1 traction-lok rear end. It needs a lot of work yet, but I have a good base to start with. Clicking on the picture will take you to its own page. 6/06 Update: After finding too much body filler and rust in the car, I felt it was better to let the car go and look for a better platform. Sold it to a local guy, so I have a good chance at seeing it once in a while.
	6/06. Now we've got the complete land, sea and air package. :>) Clicking on the picture will take you to its own page.
	7/06. Debbie's been wanting an old truck for a toy, so when I ran across this sitting with a For Sale sign on it, I knew it'd be the right project. Click on the picture to get to the build site. UPDATE: Never could get the title, so this was returned to the previous owner.
	8/28/06. By chance I ran across a 'Cuda on eBay that was close (St. Edward, NE). Turned out to be a one-owner car that deserves a full restoration. Click on the picture to get to the build site.
	4/07. With gas skyrocketing, it was a good time to get another motorcycle. This is a '94 XR650L that has only 5200 miles on it. With its tall highway gears, it can go down the highway at 65 with no problem. It also gets 40mpg. The best thing is that it's electric start. My last bike was a Yamaha XT600, and one could break their ankle by not kicking it correctly.
	10/08. Formula 22 SR-1. Click on the picture to take you to its own page.
	2/10. In December '09 I "inadvertently" bought this '70 Nova SS on eBay. I've been looking for one like my orange Nova when I was a kid (see top of this page) for a long time. Click on the picture to take you to its own page.
	10/21/10. I pick up an 80% completed Sonex project. Click on the picture to take you to its own page.