Running alongside my property is a walkpath.  It is clearly marked with signage saying "No Motorized Vehicles".  It runs up a fairly steep hill (about 30 degrees), with a 90-degree corner at the top and much of it is hidden amongst thick pine trees.  Even at noon, the trees make it a dark tunnel at the corner area.  At the bottom, two driveways (my neighbor's and mine) converge with the outlet of the path onto a cul-de-sac.  The neighbor's drive is long and curving and comes down the hill with more trees screening the path.  We have long feared a collision between downhill traffic and cars - or worse yet, pedestrians (after all, it IS a WALK path).  At the top of the path - where it runs into a path from a neighboring development - we have installed a yellow metal pole in the middle, to discourage people riding 4-wheelers and riding mowers on the path (there is a gas station and mini-mart further down our road, and since the cul-de-sac is the dead end to the road, the people living further up the hill would have to drive an extra mile or more "around" to access the facilities).  This, I hope, sets the stage.    Yesterday, I spotted two youngsters riding a motorbike down the path.  Figuring they were going to the station, I got a camera and positioned myself on the path.  Minutes later, they came back up - heading into the neighboring subdivision, the one on the back of the bike toting a bag from the C-store.  I stepped out and they stopped.  Here's what I saw:  two boys, in the very early teens; driver with bare feet (illegal), passenger with flip-flops; both wearing shorts, one with no shirt; no helmets (in Idaho, anyone under 18 must wear one); although I have no radar gun, they were clearly exceeding the 25 mph on our road; then, obviously riding on a walking path (I took a picture of them riding right past the "No Motorized Vehicles" sign alongside the path).    I asked them if they were having trouble understanding the sign.  They said they didn't see it. (It's 18" x 24", bright red on white, double sided, and, mounted on one of my fence posts, it sticks out at least 10" into the 4-foot-wide path.  It and it's predecessors have hung there for 15 years.  I asked the driver if he had a license.  "A Learner's Permit" (in Idaho, you must have a licensed driver with you if you just have a permit, and that's just to drive a car - to ride a motorcycle, you must have a specialty license, showing you've passed a rider's test).    I pointed out the blind corner with the yellow post.  They said, "We always go very slow through there"... Meaning they've done this before, and yes, you HAVE to go very slow through there, because there is a post in the middle of the path and a 90-degree corner, so duh - but I had already observed them hitting the throttle once clear of those, and shooting down off the end of the path without slowing or looking.  So their declarations of being careful didn't go very far with me.    So I asked them, "Do your parents know what you are doing?"  The answer: "They sent us down to the station to pick this stuff up."  So the parents not only KNOW that these boys are breaking multiple laws plus being very unsafe, but those parents INSTRUCTED them to do it!!!  In Idaho, we also have laws against bad parenting and endangering children, but I'm only going on the statement of two boys who've already lied to me, so I'm kinda stymied there.    So I took a picture of the plate.  Told them to push the bike up the hill, and if I ever spotted them again in this area, I'd call the sheriff to give them a ticket (or 2 or more).    So here's my question to you readers - do I send the pictures and story to the local law enforcement or hope the boys learned something and won't be back?  I was a teen once (or maybe more than once).  I've done TONS of stupid, dangerous, and even occasionally illegal stuff in my life.  So I get it.  I'm not just trying to be a "hey you, get off my lawn!" kinda guy.  But neighbors all over my 'hood have kids, dogs, baby carriages, elderly joggers - all kinds of potential 'targets' that use that path.    I'm no saint, but I've often paid a price for my bad decisions.  I'm trying to decide if these boys (and potentially their parents, whom I assume own the bike and allegedly sent them on this mission) need to pay one by getting a visit from someone in a blue uniform.  What would YOU do?   At LEAST 5 laws broken and plenty of dumb decisions made... ... View more

   If you've got kids, they may have already beat to the punch of wishing you a Happy Dad's Day - possibly even by bringing you breakfast in bed.  And that's as it should be.  You may not have any "children" in the traditional sense, though.  Maybe you've got a dog or other pet, though, and those can sometimes love you even more than the human kind of "kids".  But even if you are pet-less, I figure that if you're a member of this forum, you've got a "baby" in your life.  Maybe it's a classic, or an antique, or a daily driver, truck, motorcycle, or one of too many genres of vehicles to list here - but suffice it to say, if you're insuring it with Hagerty, you must love it (and not to get to gushy here, but it might actually love you too).    You might not always think it cares for you - like when it quits on you out on a country road at dusk, or when the wipers stop mid-sweep just as the storm hits, or when that right rear is flat just when you need to get somewhere on time.  But much like a "people-kid", it'll respond when you give it a bit of attention and show it some kindness and understanding.    Now, I'm not trying to suggest that a motorized vehicle is a great substitute for a real child to wish you Happy Father's Day, but I am saying that my wish that you enjoy this day is justified whether you have kids or not...  Now go out in the garage and pat your little one on the head like the proud papa that you are! ... View more

   So when I was a younger, more impetuous lad, I often spent my weekend nights going round and round a rectangular path downtown - about 10 blocks long by 1 block wide, with an occasional detour up or down a side street, and punctuated by either parking in a vacant lot to shoot the bull or maybe a stoplight-to-stoplight race.  In those days, we called it Draggin' Main.    The other day, an acquaintance sent out a note that he thought a bunch of us should take our cars downtown last evening (a Friday).  Meet up at a drive-in for supper, then head on out.  I thought, "Hey, that might be fun - remind me of the old days".  Of course, it works better after sundown, and this time of year, sundown is 8:30 or later.    We also got reminded "no racing, no revving, no burnouts".  One guy in a Chevelle chirped the tires just a teeny bit and got chewed out.  So I quickly discovered several things: Although I seldom went home before 2 a.m. in 1967, there is no way I was going to last that long at my age - or they'd find me asleep at the wheel at a stop light somewhere It's no longer "Draggin' Main" - it's truly "Cruisin' Main" nowadays - and with the extra traffic down there, "Cruisin'" is even a stretch...should be "Creepin' Main", maybe The crowd in downtown is WAY different than it was 50+ years ago!  And with the exception of our small number, the cars are way different, too... Some of the youngsters now drive crazier than even I did at that age! Almost the only thing I could concentrate on was my temp gauge - with a few quick glances at the fuel gauge...did I even care about that stuff when I was a teen? I was mostly wrong: it's wasn't really very fun and it didn't really remind me of the good old days I started out at about 8:30.  I live about 30 minutes from the old downtown loop.  I did three laps and was home before 10:00 It's true what they say - you can never go back!   😐 ... View more