guns, mexico and freedom

[MWeaver@niku.com]

halfway home from the ridge runner 500, i had the awful thought that perhaps i hadn't actually oiled the air filter that i put in saturday night. it appeared somewhat oiled because i stored it in the bag i oil them in. when i got home, my worst fears were realized. tho the filter stopped an awful lot of dirt, some got through, visible clinging to the oiled filter frame, and a fine dust of dirt on the edges of the screen. argh! at this point, i believe that my best course of action would be to pull the airbox and carb off, and clean them up as best i can to remove any dirt that got thru the filter, but not yet into the engine. then my plan will be to change the oil, and keep my fingers crossed. i believe not much dirt got in there, but obviously it was a non-zero quantity. anything else i should do, besides maybe cry? have others had such experiences without disaster? in other news, it looks like my bent radiator was salvageable by me. mostly i had to yank and crank on the lower mount for the shroud, and on the lower left mount for the fan. these had combined (getting bent opposite directions) to push the fan outward against the shroud. looks like it should go together fine now. the radiator is cosmetically dinged, but appears still functional. think i'll order a radiator guard from tim. the horse may be out, but i can still shut the barn door before the chickens, pig, dog and lemurs get out. mw

[JIM JAMES]

Carrying a gun in bear country is probably about the same concept as carrying a Halon fire extiguisher in my airplane. A friend or mine saw it and informed me that it would suffocate me if I used it in the cockpit. Yep. Exactly. If I see a bad one coming, I'm gonna huff that sucker. It ain't for fires. james

> Also, even if a bear attacked you while you were riding you would probably end up shooting yourself.