april 08, 2009 12:03am
July 2, 2008 The Brakes!
July 2,2008.
This day started with arranging a mechanic to look at the Blue Bombers brakes. Kevin and I went to a local shop that he knew about and the mechanic made a good effort to solve our problem but I think that this job was a little over his head.
I had an appointment with the organizer of the Ottawa Blues Fest by the name of Mark Monahan. He is an interesting show promoter that always has a Cuban cigar in his hand. When Harry and I were doing our thing in front of the War Museum on Canada Day I had a chance to ask Mark if we could set up a booth at his blues fest. He was not sure if he could accommodate us but he said he would sleep on it. So… after I did all my running around to get tools and advice on how to fix the Blue Bomber, I headed into Ottawa to track down Mr. Monahan. I got to the blues fest site and asked a passing worker if he had seen Mark and as usual he had to be everywhere at once, so I hung around the front gate and sure enough Mark came wheeling in on his golf cart. I explained that the fund raising, on a compete level was not going well for some unknown reason. I asked Mark if he had a chance to consider donating a spot at his Blues Fest and I explained that we needed to generate some donations to repair the Blue Bomber’s brakes. Without batting an eyelash he told me to jump into his golf cart, so I did. He took me over to a spot just behind the main stage infield and said that he had a cancellation and would I like to take this spot, he showed me a 10x10 and I jumped at the opportunity. This spot will give us a chance to bring awareness to the “Online Veterans Video Library” in Ottawa while later on in the day I took the Blue Bomber back to the mechanic in Dunrobin to have a look. First he thought he needed a 2 inch socket to take wheels off to get at the brakes, so I went to the supply store and got him a 2 inch socket. For those who don’t know, on a 1974 Dodge Fargo motor home, the Blue Bomber, there are caps that cover the actual lug nuts that hold the dually’s and that nut cover is the nut this mechanic(?) measured at 2 inches. That should have thrown up a red flag, but I’m always looking to save a buck for the F.O.V. So…then he figured out that the nut cover comes off, then measured the lug nut and needed a socket for that. So… I drove the 15km’s back to the supply store to pick up the socket, then drove the 15km’s back to his shop and the socket does not fit. It turns out that when you measure a socket you should measure it from point to point not on the flat sides of the nut you are trying to size. By that time the supply store is closed, So.. I must wait till morning to drive the 15km’s back to the supply store to buy the proper socket. I spent the night in the parking lot of the garage after a 2 hour ride around the Ottawa country side.
I got up in the morning and drove the 15km’s to pick up the proper socket but, on the way I decided that I needed a more qualified mechanic to look at the Blue Bomber. We don’t want to take any chances when it comes to stopping the bus.
