Name’s Dave. I’m a retired Army officer with about 22 years on active duty. My family and I have lived all over. The Army moved us down to Huntsville, AL, in 2004 so I could work on Army missile programs. I became a civilian again in Fall of 2009. Now I’m a slimy contractor supporting the Army and other DoD entities.

I’m a certified motorhead, both 4-wheel and 2-wheel. I like to do my own maintenance as much as possible, though I probably have more enthusiasm than skill. I generally learn by doing and have learned a lot over the years, much from folks in forums like the MCF. I love watching car / motorcycle racing, though I’ve never competed in either.

I love old cars, a fascination that seems to have passed to my kids. My daughter in college drives a ’73 Mercedes 220 - Bedelia. Bedelia was an old car lovers’ dream - a single owner car that was very well maintained its entire life. Didn’t have to do a thing to it except keep up routine maintenance. My daughter thinks it’s the greatest car in the world. My son in high school drives an ’86 Jag XJ6 – Gizmo – that we fixed up over the past two years. (Note: Old Jags are generally quite cheap. Most people seem to be afraid of them, thinking that they are a maintenance nightmare. Not true if you take care of them and can do some of the work yourself.) The XJ6 looked great but was a mess electrically / mechanically when we bought it. Took a lot of tender loving care to convert it into a good daily driver. My kids quickly nicknamed it ‘Gizmo’ due to all the gremlins hidden inside. Gizmo is a great car now; still has issues, but nothing we can’t fix over time. My daily driver (well, when I’m not on the motorcycle) is a ’90 Jag XJS – Alice. I have the 5.3L V-12 instead of the newer 4.0L 6 cylinder. The engine bay is butt-ugly – looks like someone barked up engine parts. But mechanically it’s actually fairly simple. If I keep it much longer, I’ll work on some improvements to clean up the engine bay. Alice was another great find for an old car lover; a single owner car that was religiously maintained. The former owner, another retired Army guy, had three XJS’ and knew how to take care of them. All our old cars are daily drivers; no garage queens here.

My wife gets to drive our ’02 Monte Carlo SS daily. I get to drive it on weekends. Someday the Monte will be mine, all mine… I ride a motorcycle daily - currently an ’04 Yamaha FJR1300 – generally only driving Alice when the weather is too nasty to ride the bike.

My wife and I love traveling. The FJR1300, a full sized sport touring bike, was a recent purchase to replace a smaller sport touring bike. Now that our youngest kid is driving, our schedules are no longer tied to his, so we can start traveling a little more. We bought the bigger bike to allow us to start taking day trips in more comfort. Maybe we’ll get up to TN some weekend to pay Augi a visit.

Outside of my motorhead pursuits, I enjoy gaming (first person shooters – luckily I was quicker in real life than online), hiking, playing sports of all kinds, and reading.

 

Ya true but it is nice to see it all in one spot here beside we like to yak a lot here

 

Hey gang, and thanks for starting this thread, Bama,


A little about meself: My real name’s Michael, but I go by either Mike or Bruce. I’m 36 and single (although that door is always open). I currently live in the Twin Cities, but I’ve also lived in Wisconsin and Iowa.


I have a BS in earth science and an MA in Higher Education Counseling. I worked for a local college for several years, but got laid off earlier this year.


I’ve been a fan of the Monte Carlo for as long as I can remember, but especially since seeing Darrell Waltrip win the 1989 Daytona 500.


Mechanically, I know just enough to survive (and some would say, enough to be dangerous). While my dad and older brother are full-on gearheads, my own skills are limited to basic oil changes, brake jobs, and easy-to-replace components. I’m fortunate and blessed to have family members who are knowledgeable in this area, as it’s saved me a lot of time and money over the years.


I consider myself more of an artistic enthusiast. I do my own painting, detailing, and touch-ups whenever possible. In fact, I designed the color and paint pattern on my brother’s classic Ford street rod. I’m all about a car that has “eye appeal”. If it happens to be a good performer, that’s icing on the cake.


I bought my first Monte last November. Prior to that, I’d been primarily a Mopar guy (I still am, to an extent), but the Monte Carlo has always held a certain mystique, and when this one was available, I knew it would be mine (oh yes, it would be mine).


Anyway, great thread, and I’m looking forward to reading everyone’s stories!

 

my name is Keith and I am 36
I have been married for 18 years this year to my little wife Dawn
my daughter just graduated high school a year early


I am from Nebraska originally but I have lived in Kansas ,Texas, Iowa ,South Dakota, Montana and I currently live in Oregon but that will change in the next year or 2

I am a certified car nut and I have been competing in car shows and car stereo shows since 1994. I am a certified IASCA judge


I love working on cars and I am a total gadget guy.

I am proud to live in America I fly a flag every day at my house and at every car show or event I go to. I am a Catholic ,Republican and I live by the golden rule .
and most of all GO Huskers !!

 

I work at a college as a janitor even tho I'm smarter than most of the people that go there. Sometimes I'll see an equation written on the blackboard, like half an equation and I'll just figure it out...........sorry I couldnt resist. bonus points what movie is this Quote from no googleing


here's mine

i'm Lou, I live in Bay City,MI and have a Wife and 4 kids ages range from 10 to 18. We also have 2 dogs lily a beagle and Olivia a Shih tzu. I work as a wedding DJ and professional MC for festivals and other events. In my spare time I work on cars mostly out of necessity because I am too cheap to pay someone to do something I can do myself. I also like to watch Uof M, Lions and Steelers Football, do some home renovations and anything else to make my wife happy.

 

are you talking about redstone arsenal?

 

congrats on your daughter graduating early. i didnt graduate early but i was 17 when i did lol. class of 2010 =D

 

Hello my name is Carlos I'll be 36 Oct 15th born in Brooklyn raised in Killeen/Ft. Hood texas father was in the Army for 23 yrs. Was a Correctional Officer in the Lone Star State from 94-07 now I've been Hospital Security Supervisor since 08. Father of two Celena 9 & Carlos III 6. I drive a 02 SS with almost 150,000 bought it back in Nov. I First fell in love with Monte's when my pops bought a new 1979 Monte Carlo off the Chevrolet lot in Newburgh New York.

I've Lived in !

Brooklyn
Fulda Germany
West Point
Stuttgart Germany
Ft.Hood/Killeen

 

Yep, got stationed at Redstone Arsenal in 2004. The family liked the Huntsville area enough to want to stay here when I retired from the Army.

 

Matt Damon, Good Will Hunting. Great Movie