Wings Clipped

23
04

2006
08:47

Three county conventions presented a tight schedule yesterday. The morning started with Weber County and immediately after my speech, I left for Salt Lake County. I drove my car to Ogden because I was concerned about the time it would take to drive the Blue Eagle. It turned out that I was right to do that. After returning to the office and picking up the motorhome, I barely made it in time for the Salt Lake County convention and to walk on stage.

I stayed about an hour to meet and listen to people, then left for the Davis County convention. As I drove the Blue Eagle down the street, I noticed the automatic transmission wasn’t getting out of second gear. It has been leaking transmission fluid since it came out of retirement, so I pulled it over and brought the levels up to normal. Still no dice, the shifting was still stuck. So I drove it back to the nest and took my car to Davis County.

After conversing with my father, he came to the summary that the engine and transmission must be pulled. This is fine, but my octogenarian father wants to do it himself. The last time this was done was 30 years ago, and I’d rather lose the election than lose him. He believes that he is the only individual qualified to pull this engine because it is a custom job he did himself. A position that may be true, but I have a hard time believing there isn’t a shop or mechanic in town that can take his dictation on how to do it. So here’s another chance to help the campaign. If you know of anyone who is a mechanical wiz that could undertake something of this magnitude, please drop me a line. I am more than willing to pay, the only catch is that they’ll need to work closely with my stubborn father.

Campaign

Comments

Comment from Calvin Hansen @ 2006.04.23 - 15:31

Your father & I must have somewhat the same background. I really fuss about not being able to do things that I once did with no sweat. My wife “badgers” me into hiring someone else to “sweat” the details. The only person I know who might have an inkling about doing a repair turns wrenches at Hansen Motors in Brigham City. I mention him only because he is restoring an old 1942 Chevy Busines coupe. But Brigham is many miles from Salt Lake.

Comment from Rob Miller @ 2006.04.23 - 20:37

Try Paxton’s Garage. Tell them Rob sent ya.

Comment from Sheryl @ 2006.04.23 - 20:47

Grrrr, how frustrating! I’ll ask around and see who or what I can suggest as well. Love you, Pete.
Sheryl

Comment from Jonathon Montgomery @ 2006.04.23 - 21:34

Calvin is absolutely correct, there is one amazing mechanic that works for Hansen Motors in Brigham City (only a couple of miles away from where I am now). Drop me a line and I will give you his name and number. He is very good, willing to work outside the dealership and is actually very reasonable. We consider him a good family friend.

Comment from Lanta Rasmussen @ 2006.04.24 - 06:32

With a 94 year old father who still is unhappy about giving up his car and freedom, I can sympathize. We see them as older. They just don’t feel that way. Hope you can find a good mechanic who won’t mind a few tips from “experience”.

Pingback from Pete Ashdown’s Campaign Journal » What I Drive @ 2006.05.23 - 15:13

[…] The Blue Eagle is back on the road. I took it to Logan last Saturday for a stop at the Rotary district convention banquet. Having a local shop repair the transmission turned out to be the best choice. What would have taken a month and a few more years off my father’s life took some local pros a week. So aside from a few other minor quirks, it has been humming along the Utah freeways just fine. […]

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