A New Tire and Some Dirt

Last July I crashed the KLR on a washed out road to Horseshoe Lake and last month J dumped it in a sand wash a few miles away called Camp Creek. After installing a vey nice 50/50 on-off road tire, the Maxxis 6006, it was time to revisit the scenes of the crimes.

Rear wheel traction is right up there with fuel when it comes to riding in sand. When J was here I took the KLR into Camp Creek for a little spin and after warning him that there wasn't much tread (none) turned him loose to crash my bike.

Today it was like riding a new motorcycle. It actually responded when given some gas. The front tire didn't dig in because it was busy being shoved right over all that sand. Things were as they should be!

Why Is It Important?

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

I was teaching my history class last week about the Constitution of the United States and our textbook asked a question about where our rights came from. I couldn't believe that they asked.

That is probably the most relevant question that I have seen in the book. Of course, the students didn't know and came up with the usual answers such as the government, the laws, judges, and most commonly, "I don't know". But why is the answer critical to understanding our country?

I believe that the answer refects a person's worldview and certainly defines their politics. If the government is lower in importance than the "Creator" and those "unalienable rights" then any subsequent laws become very important. The question that has to be answered by that citizen is, "To what extent are our political decisions inhibiting our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?" If there is no God then rights are irrelevant, vapor decided upon by the government (even a democratic government), some dictator, or whatever is currently seen as the authority.

What isn't given by men can't be taken away by men. That is what makes our concept of government different than any out there.

Mother's Day

In some ways it's like so many other things, you never miss them till there gone. I visited the cemetery yesterday where my mom and dad's ashes are and looked at the date on the headstones. My dad, Fred Curtis, has been gone almost 4 years, but really longer because his mental faculties gave out before his body. Mom, Helen, left us two years ago the end of this month. It doesn't seem that long.

Moms are a great thing. The way it is supposed to be is that they are on your side no matter what. Well that was almost the case with Mom. The only time she was critical of me was in regards to my wife, Vicki. She ALWAYS took her side. I was always insensive and in need of repentance. She had a mission to straighten us out and she was not afraid to say what she thought. But you always knew that she was on your side. God, I miss her.

It's Not If, It's When

When J and Sheila were visiting the other day we took the bikes out for a ride. As soon as he got on the KLR he asked if I noticed that the handlebars were bent. I told him that actually I had already straightened them. He gave me that look. When you ride off-road it’s not if you’re going to crash, just when and how bad.

He wanted to try out a sand wash and immediately laid the KLR down. Luckily parts are easy to come by and cheap. The blinker (Australian version which is slightly smaller) was $12.87 and the bolts for the foot pegs (not J’s fault, an earlier injury) including the tap and drill bit, $14.00. Ready to ride. Will there be more in the future? Yeh.