I never took auto shop in high school, nor did any of my own maintenance
other than oil changes. But yet I hung out after school with the gear heads,
those who had the hot cars, and did. Guys who had grease under their
fingernails, did their own work, some because they had to just to keep the car
running, but mostly because they had a love of cars. We were blessed with a
long parking lot with a circle at the end, almost a 1/4 mile long, which made
for some serious fun. On certain days one of them would bring a gallon of
bleach, and drag racer style it would be poured on the circle and burn outs were
done, big, smoky ones, with the smell of burning Firestone Wide Ovals along with
the bleach stink. It smelled wonderful, looked cool, and the sound was outta
sight! We were big time in heart, small time in cars, but the fun factor
pegged the meter.
Some of the cars were a 1969 Chevelle SS396, 1972 Trans Am, 1972 Comet GT,
1971 AMX, 1965 Mustang, 1964 Dodge Dart, and others. I was the oddball in my
BMW 1600, circa 1969, but burn out it did. It was those cars of the class of
1972 that were looked down at then by the masses, that today are sought after
and collectible, back then it was just fun and and a way to have fun. Speed was
fun, fast cars were the ticket, until two wheels came into my life....we really
never raced each other in high school, many challenges were made, few accepted,
but that was all to change, as I found out when I moved out on my own.
BH and I got our first apartment in Piscataway, and a guy named Bouke had
his garage next to us. He was the local fast guy, had a custom 240Z, a TVR
Tuscan, think Boss 302 motor in a 1500 pound race body-FAST! A 1970 Opel GT, a
poor man’s Corvette, and many Triumphs he raced. But next to his all black 1973
El Camino sat his Z-1, a 1973 with engine mods. So fast it ripped the Bell
helmet off my head one day at 102 mph. So fast no one wanted to mess with it,
or Bouke. As I found out one night when cruising the local McDonald’s where all
the fast cars hung out. Friday nights brought them all out to show off and
accept the challenges, think of it as a cruise night on nitrous, but this night
it closed up early and went home. All it took was Bouke riding in on the Z1,
and they all pulled out and left. They had made the mistake of racing him one
night, and even the fastest car never had a chance, and maybe out of fear, out
of damaged pride, and maybe even out of respect, they all started up, and idled
out of the driveway en mass. All we wanted was a Big Mac, not a show down. A
lot had changed in my two years since graduating, a new fastest gun was in town,
and it ran on only two wheels. What was the class of 1972 was old and slow in
1974....and speed would never be the same. We all joked about fast girls and
cars, but now it was fast girls and faster motorcycles, one night at the local
McDonald’s had signaled the change that was coming. Bikes got faster, cars
slower and heavier, and as for the girls, there were those you hung with on
Friday nights and those you took home to dinner. They got old and heavier
too...of course we never did....the things we did for fun.
Funny that after almost 45 years I can still remember the cars, bikes, and
the fun we had all without writing it down or no cell phone pictures. Some
things stay imbedded in our hearts forever, but the best things need to be
written down. Too many new memories are a screen shot, a text message, and soon
forgotten. Going onto the next spontaneous shot, no matter how planned it
looks. But God keeps a record of history in the Bible, written down so we can
learn it, and apply it, confirming when it was written, to whom, and proving its
veracity. God’s record of history is unique to Christianity, as many so called
religious writings are based on opinions, feelings, philosophies, and musings of
men at the time. The spirit who inspired the scriptures is truth, no opinions,
and come from a reliable origin-God himself. No dubious origins, no fables
handed down, no bench racing where each year we get faster, but truth, the
truth. There is no legend, myths, or fables in the Bible, it is fact filled,
and made up of provable historical facts. Unlike those that rewrite history
today, God was there when it was written, and still here today. It is still as
contemporary as it was 2000 years ago, and will be in another 2000 yeas, as
Jesus, the word of God, never changes. I wish my recollection of some events
could be as vivid, but then again, maybe not.
We can be encouraged when reading the Bible to see how God used ordinary
men and women, how we see Jesus as a person, the savior, not just a teacher or
prophet. We see history unfold as God intervenes in hopeless situations, and
how he uses all of them for his glory. It should encourage us like no other
book to see how through the ages God helped people through stressful, times of
temptation, and despair. And no matter how bad we were, we can all be forgiven
and saved if we choose. David, that King David was an adulterer, and a
murderer, but scripture reveals he had a heart after God, and he took advantage
of God’s offer of forgiveness. He offers the same to us today. That is truth
that sets us free....
It is hard for me to believe anyone, especially fast cars leaving when a
motorcycle shows up, but I was there, it really happened. But God has given us
his word, to read, to meditate on, and to be revealed via his spirit. Written
on our hearts so he is always with us, and in print to read over and over
again. I’m sure in the annals of McDonald’s that one night will never show up,
those muscle cars of the day are now collectible and driven rarely. Those after
school burnouts now part of a rebellious history, as street racing now is in the
headlines. Bleach is outlawed in many places, and no one races Priuses.
Strange how today both the bikes and cars are much faster than back then, maybe
it was the thrill of the promise of speed, youthful expression of breaking the
law, or maybe we just wanted to have fun. Yup, that was it, we had fun. And
today, I still have fun. You see, what good is fun if you don’t enjoy it? And
who should have more fun than Christians with the promise of heaven? Yes, still
outlaws too, as siding with Jesus brands you as a rebel. Fast cars, faster
bikes, and yes, I did marry the girl I took home for dinner. With Jesus making
it all possible. Having fun yet? That next sound you hear may be me on the
2018 Street Triple RS speeding by....seems I am having a Big Mac attack and
well....you know the rest of the story.
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com