What was your first car and describe the first time you got to drive it?
My first car was a 1964 Ford Ranchero. It was my grandfather’s farm truck and I got to drive it in the summer when I worked for him. When I got my driver’s license, he let me drive it home and it eventually became mine. Later I added wheels, ties and HiJackers to make it my first ride.
Do you work on your own car? If yes, what is the hardest thing you have had to do?
For the most part, yes, but I ran into an obstacle when I was working with my LS engine. I invested two weeks trying to get it dialed in and eventually had a professional help me out.
What was the best car you have ever owned and why?
We had a 1999 Chevy Cavalier. It was a bare bones daily driver for my wife, Marty, and she drove it for about 200,000 miles with no problems! It then became the first car for our daughter and she drove it another 35,000 miles before it finally gave up.
Ever done anything illegal? Outside of street racing, no.
What do you find most fun about classic cars and why?
I’ve had the opportunity to travel and I’ve found that car people are very similar all over the world. They love cars and we all speak a similar language with no agendas.
What do you do for a living?
I’m a mechanical engineer for Apple Real Estate and Development Group. We develop data centers.
Are you an Apple expert? Can you fix my iPad?
No, when I have problems with my phone or iPad, I have to go to one of those Genius people, too.
What skills do you have that you think may help others in the club?
I’m a fairly competent shade tree mechanic and I’m happy to help anyone in need. If you attended last year’s Warbirds Car Show, you know that I make killer Bloody Marys!
Car-related, what is your favorite activity to do among all others?
Cruising and car shows! I’ve really enjoyed the informal cruises that have been organized locally.
Tell us about something unique that happened in your life.
In the mid 80s, I took a break and worked for a friend in Southern California. He was a licensed captain who delivered sail boats from Central and Southern America. It’s common for people to sail from the US to foreign ports and then fly back. This captain would make the return trip for them. One trip was over two months long and another took us through the Panama Canal. The photo shows one of the sail boats while we were moored in Mexico to refuel.
We had a scary episode, too. Under maritime laws, a ship captain is responsible for making sure that the crew complies with local and international laws. On one trip, we picked up a crew hand who later got arrested for buying drugs while we were in Cabo San Lucas. The captain and I went into town and gave a “gift” to the police chief. He made it really clear that we should be out of port before federal drug officials arrived the next day. We hit some really rough water on the way out, but there was no way we were turning back!
If you are married, how did you meet your spouse?
I married my high school sweetheart, Marty, but it only took 30 years to do it. I went off to school and we still argue about who dumped who! We’ve been married for 21 years and have six grandkids.