--Previous Message--
: I'd like to share a story of the kindness and
: generosity of some some riders who came to
: the rescue on Saturday.
:
: My girlfriend and I took the Hayabusa to
: Northern Arkansas for a three day adventure.
: We rode highway 7, which was beautiful, up
: to Harrison on Saturday. Even though my
: tires were on their last legs, I figured
: they might last until we got back home. I
: saw some steel showing through on the rear
: tire, but she wanted to go to see Mystic
: Caverns, which was our original plan, and I
: didn't think it would make that much
: difference to do an extra 14 miles. It made
: a huge difference!
:
: We had a great time at Mystic Caverns, and
: we were the last ones to leave at the end of
: the day. The girl who worked there asked if
: we were there for the big motorcycle event
: at The Hub. I said no. Then I asked where
: The Hub is located. She said it was just
: down the road, turn left, then go up to the
: top of the hill. I thought, why not? I'm the
: kind of guy who says yes to life.
:
: As we crested the hill, on our right was a
: big circular building called The Hub. In the
: parking lot was a big, nice white race
: trailer with about eight trick sportbikes
: around it and in a truck. Included were a
: Ducati 1198S, an Aprilia and a Honda RC51. I
: rode over there and asked them what's up
: with The Hub.
:
: We talked for a little while, and the
: subject of my wasted rear tire came up. A
: couple of the guys looked at it and said
: things like, "That tire is wasted! You
: can't ride on that thing, it's
: dangerous!" Another guy went to the
: front of the bike and said, "The front
: tire is worse than the rear!" I said
: that I was hoping to make it back home so I
: could get some new ones.
:
: They decided that I was not going to ride
: one more mile on those tires. One of them
: said he had a Diablo, and another guy said
: he had a good front tire. These were race
: tires, and they rode on these tires for two
: days and then changed to new tires. I asked
: them what I owed them for these tires. They
: said nothing. I was floored. Then I told
: them I didn't have the tools to change them.
: They said they had a tire changer and that
: they would do it. I was floored again.
:
: Then this group of super-cool guys, these
: angels from heaven, these friendly,
: generous, kind and caring people swarmed my
: Hayabusa, stuck two bike stands under it,
: pulled both wheels, set up the tire changer
: and pulled my old tires off. Wow, the front
: tire was showing cords in four places on one
: section of the tire. They put the other
: tires on, slapped the wheels back on the
: bike, I did a little test ride and
: everything was good to go.
:
: The rear tire was slightly narrower than the
: old tire, and I knew from my motocross days
: that a slightly narrower rear tire makes the
: bike turn like a dream. We thanked them and
: rode away as the sun was about to set.
:
: The bike handled like a dream, and it lays
: over really nice in the turns, with
: excellent traction. When I order a set of
: rubber, it will be in these sizes.
:
: The main man who was behind this whole
: tire-changing effort, and the man who
: actually changed the tires, is a guy named
: Dave Frick, who is the President of Frick's
: (Quality Meats Since 1896,) Frick's Quality
: Meats , and owner of Dynamic Pet Products.
: He is a class act, and he helps all of the
: riders who were with him. I hope that if you
: go to a store and see Frick's meat products,
: you'll buy them. I also hope that if you go
: to a pet store and see Dynamic Pet Products,
: you'll buy them. Guys like Dave Frick and
: his friends are the kind of people who give
: riding and racing a good name.
:
: I wish I could remember all of their names.
:
: They didn't do this act of kindness because
: of who I am. They didn't know I was a jumper
: until after they changed those tires. They
: did this act of kindness because of who they
: are - because of what they're made of.
: Because they cared about a stranger's
: safety. I hope that good things come their
: way a hundredfold.
:
: JA
:
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