The First Ride on a big Bike

Riding a big Bike.

I has a 2000 Polaris Victory cruiser.

It rocked.

When I was working the bay area , I made the decision that I could no longer drive my 64 Lincoln Continental to Pleasanton California from from Fremont Daily...I Just felt it was not fair to my Lincoln to put it thru all that work.

It enjoyed the taste of gas the way I enjoy sopes and burritos....way too much...after trying to start my Vespa (that is sitting at my mom's to this day) and not being able to.

I made the decision that it was time to get something ....a little bigger.....

I rode a Vespa for many year so figured that it would not be difficult at all.....

I tried to buy a Harley but after being told that I had to be put on a waiting list for a really long time....I was like f.... Harley let's see what else it out there....

My scooter was a 200e so had a big engine so I was able to drive a big bike and did not have to thru the hassles of training or anything else like that.

I went to Arlen Ness Motorcycles in San Leandro California and looked at the bikes....they were awesome...along with some choppers and other stuff that I could never afford was my bike....on sale for like 9k or 10k I can't remember the exact price.

After visiting with Yamaha and Honda and other companies I made the decision that this was the best deal for the money and it had a huge engine and the stance that I liked....looked chopped but was not....

So I talked my Credit union into giving me a loan and there I went with check in hand to get the bike....

My Friend Antonio and Marlon drove me there on one of our Friday Half Days and in I went to buy my bike...after some negotiation the bike was mine....

Silver and Black.....Chrome everywhere.....New had like 2 miles on it.

I got the keys to my bike and as I was getting ready to leave the Sales guy asked me if I had my Helmet? I was so excited that I forgot to bring my helmet from home with me and bought the cheapest helmet that they had.....ugliest helmet ever.

So , The Salesguy asked me if I had ever ridden a bike this big before and I say no....He showed me the controls and wished me luck.

I planned out my route home from Arlen Ness the night before and figured I would be fine ....I had never driven a bike like this before....Vespas have a gear shifter in the Left wrist...for when you put the clutch in....lever on the left...then you twist it to put it into gear....then you use the right wrist for gas and your front brake...the back brake is on a pedal on the floorboard....

This bike I just bought had ....the shifter in the right footboard....gas in the right wrist and brakes in the left and right levers...it had a toe and heel shifter (Right foot board)...

It was a completely different type of machine...I figured I would have not problem the weeks before I bought the bike and not knowing anyone that had a big bike , I had no one to tell me otherwise...

I remember looking up how to drive a big bike online and was not able to get a really good answer..

So there I was , Huge beast of a bike in the middle of San Leandro, with my maps to get to my house...

I put the bike in gear with the clutch on and tested the gas and engage to see how far I could go with the clutch and gas before stalling and off I went....

I was so freaked out , I don't even know how I got to the gas station...but I did.

At the gas station I remember thinking about how stupid I was and how I was going to kill myself and how my girlfriend was going to be so pissed if I told her I did not want the bike anymore because it was so difficult to ride.....

All of this While I was trying to fill up the gas.....gas started pouring on my new bike and all I could think is that it was not a good sign.

I made the decision to just stop there until my nerves were better because I knew that if I drove that way I was going crash into someone or make someone crash into me....

After about 10 minutes of just standing there with the bike on....I decided it was time to go.

I got on my bike and rode home....no more problems...I just remember how more powerfull the bike was than my scooter and how much heavier it was and how there was no way that I could hold it.....but I did.....I remember going into a Honda dealer and having the guy grill me with questions about what I rode before and how I should get a small beginner bike....

And that kept me going....I could not prove that a hole sales guy right....I made it home....

Drove into our parking spot at the apartments we were living in at the time ....took my left foot....pulled out the kickstand..leaned the bike and blam....the bike fell....I tried to hold it up but the weight of it and the sweat from the ride on my hands and my nerves made the bike slip out my hands.

I picked the bike back up and assesed the damage...broke the left floorboard...I was so upset but happy I made it home....

After that I made it a point to get the right gear for my bike and check the kickstand to make sure it was fully extended before I leaned the bike...I guess it was not like my Vespa after all.

I rode it for many years until my back started giving me problems...but don't regret ever buying it....no matter how many times my girlfriend made fun of me when I rode it in the rain....always telling me I should of bought a car instead.

I was not a biker guy, just seemed weird to me....I rode my bike the way I rode my scooter....huevos on....no band aid.....I did not want to be like the many riders I saw on the road.....

EvilChavo Out.

My 1964 Lincoln Continental

My Lincoln Continental is called Rosie.

Not sure why.

Just is a good name.

She is a white 1964 Lincoln Continental with a 430 v8 engine with a 4 barrel carb. and a turbo automatic transmission. She has red leather seats and is all upholstered in red leather with chrome accents.

Rosie has power steering, power brakes, power 6 way front bench seat, power windows (even the vent windows are powered) power antenna . she runs like a dream.

When Rosie first came into my life she ran, but on my second drive after bringing her home (Overheated) got a whole new radiator, ran her again and would not start....rebuilt the carb....

Would not start after a few months ...due to ignition so I put a pertronics electronic ignition in her (Got rid of the points)

Moved to the bay area and you would not believe how much stuff you can cram into a car this big.

Transmission was having problems so it was rebuilt.....brakes messed up...so the whole set up was redone....new drums (Huge drums) lines and master cylinder were replaced....power steering blew out and had a new rebuilt power steering pump installed.

Ran like a dream but once I started daily driving the suspension started to give way, so got new shocks all around ...it's like driving on a cloud.

Drove it from the Bay area to Phoenix.....best roadtrip ever.

She has been good to me.

This is the backstory on my Rosie .

It all started with " El guero Yonkero" My stepdads friend.....He was the local " I can get anything for any price guy"

He would come around selling.....elotes......Sandias....peanuts....eggs.....cars....bicycles...etc....etc.....

Whatever he could get his hands on, When I was a teenager...he came to pick up my dad in a 77 Lincoln Continental......White.....with red Leather......

It was beautiful.

I asked him how much he wanted for it and he said " I could never afford that kind of car"

This guy that was a nobody....was talking down to me....telling me that I could never afford this car.......

He did not know what I had in me...or what I could do.....How dare he tell me that.....I was a teenager and full of anger...I had just lost tons of weight (see previous posts) got my first job and felt that no one could defeat me.

It took me a while, but I got her....actually a much better version of her.....not long after he told me that.....

When I was in the process of restoring her.....he was at one of the shops that I took her to get the radiator rebuilt at....and he asked me how much I wanted for her....

I told him " You can't afford this car"

He looked at me, laughed like he was thinking....can't believe you remember that....and walked away.

I have learned to never talk down to people cause you never know where you will see them again and how they will remember you.

Evilchavo Out.

Side Note on Parts for 1964 Lincoln Continental:

I found parts online for many of the repairs that I made.

Living in East Los Angeles had its benefits.

I could just go the the radiator shop....and they would rebuild the radiator or get me a new one from the back.....most of the times stock parts.

I got the complete original exhaust in el monte....

But since I moved away from East Los Angeles....most of my parts come from :

Lincoln Parts International in Perris California....they always delivered when they said they would and always stood by their products....They had a website that I would order from but it is no longer available.....

Lincoln Parts International 707 East 4th Street, Building G Perris, CA 925701

1-800-382-1656

I have not used Bakers....their info:
Bakers Auto - target="_blank">www.bakersauto.com 196 Providence Pike (Route 44 East)Putnam, CT 06260
(seems like they have good stuff)

There is also Lincoln Land

http://www.lincolnlandinc.com/
Parts/Service: 727-446-2193 Fax: 727-447-6179

(Never used them either)

But if their is one thing I have learned from this Lincoln is that you can't be picky with who you get your parts because they are hard to find and most of the time expensive.

And if you are looking for rims or a system....sorry can't help you there....my Rosie is stock...no need 4 extras......all the system I need is the sound of the 430 V8 with the dual exhaust and 4 barrel carb.......

Hope it helps....EvilChavo Out...Again.

The Golden Ford Granada | My first car

My first car was a 1977 Ford Granada that I bought from my friend for $200 dollars.

I gave my friend a deposit of $25 dollars and drove us around in it all day and night.

It was most likely a stolen car. Plates were expired, no paperwork.

The first day I bought it, I drove it all over Los Angeles.

Ending the day with a trip to Hollywood for a cruise in the golded Ford Granada.

On my Way home at about 3am, I fell asleep at the wheel, about 5 houses from mine.I remember thinking that I could not belive I wrecked the car that I had just bought and that I was going to be in really big trouble due to I did not have a drivers license at the time.

I parked the car down at City Terrace park on Van Pelt and ran down to Kennedy Elementary school to hide out. Slept at the school for about 4 hours and went back home to see what damage I had caused to the car I crashed into.

I was so scared thinking that everyone was going to be outside looking for the person that wrecked the neighborhood car and to my surprise found that no one was out.

Checked over the car that I hit and found not one scratch, I must of just bumped into the car and because of how tired I was ,did not see things for what they were.

Walked down to City Terrace park and picked up my car.Went home and told my mom I bought a car and washed it all day.

I told my friends(2) that I had a car and everyone was excited, we planned a trip to the desert and were getting ready for it ...when we heard a tow truck.....towing my car away because of the plates that were expired.

Did not have any kind of documentation for the car and felt it was better it I just let it go, one the best $25 dollars I ever spent.

Have had many vehicles since, and tomorrow, I will talk about one of my favorite vehicles my Vespa P200.

Which brings me to these questions.

What was your first vehicle? any interesting stories? Name it?