A Humorous Reminder

[RSteve]

That's a 1956 Cushman Highlander. When I wasn't quite 14-years-old, two friends and I bought one from the friend of a friend. It was red and really beat-up. There were no serial numbers, as it had apparently been assembled mostly from junkyard parts. It was not a licensed motor vehicle. Speed probably topped out at 25-35 mph until we blew the engine. Of course, none of us had a driver's license. After we blew the engine, we weren't sure what to do; try to fix it or just dump it somewhere.
Ultimately, one the trios older brothers found a Cushman Super Eagle engine at a local junkyard. It was $30.00 and we had to extricate it from the mangled mess of the Super Eagle, which had been in a fatal accident.
With considerable assistance and a few more dollars, a kid who worked at a local garage, shoehorned the larger engine into the Highlander. As beaten up as it had looked earlier, with the new engine, it looked worse, as the sides of the engine covering/base of the seat had to be pounded wider. But the speed was easily doubled. My older brother followed behind me in his car as I opened the Cushman up...55 mph and it felt like I was about to take off into space. Not that the Cushman could ever do a wheelie, but we fabricated a wheelie bar to attach to the rear frame. That was only because we lengthened the seat to the rear so that the three of us could ride on it at the same time.
For license plates, we used facsimile plates that you used to get in boxes of Quaker Puffed Oats.

So, why this tale, today?

This morning, I thought I heard my garage door open. It's a tuck under garage and sure enough, something or someone tripped the switch that opened the garage door. I checked to see if anything was taken. Nothing gone, no footprints on the driveway.

It reminded me of the Cushman and Jimmy, one of the trio. He was a weird kind of kid, who as an adult, was extremely successful. He'd built a dialable frequency garage door opener just for shitz and grinz. He'd walk through the neighborhood, twisting the dial and opening garage doors just for the fun of it.

One day, all three of us are on the scooter. I'm driving in the city, speed limit 30 mph, and I've got the Cushman going flat out, weaving between cars. Several cars behind us, a siren comes on, the cops. They are in pursuit in traffic. I take a hard left, cut in front of an oncoming car and duck between businesses into a residential area. Now there are multiple sirens.

Jimmy, thank goodness, has the dialer with him. We're praying that somebody along the way has an electric garage door opener. We get lucky and a double garage door opens, no cars inside. We zip in and close the door. I get off the scooter and knock on the door from inside the garage to the house. Nobody home. I suppose we hung out for about an hour, then back on the scooter and home.

Occasionally, if there's power bump, my garage door will activate and I'm guessing that's what happened. The clock on my stove called for a reset.

 

[D.L.Ruth]

Great story. Sometimes it's funny the things that can trigger memories

 

[RSteve]

A company in California is making them again. I wonder if they'd build me the Highlander with the Eagle motor?

 

[WTHall]

Great story. Sometimes it's funny the things that can trigger memories

Amen. Really enjoyed the read. Amazes me sometime that I made it to adulthood. We did some bat-crazy stuff as a yut!

 

[Ranger107]

Brings back memories. My older neighbor had a cushman eagle. He would let me ride it around the neighborhood now and then. One day I took it up to the main hiway. Just as I pulled up to the stop sign a county mountie drove by. I was 8 at the time. Saw him do a uey and I did the same. Went a block turned into a street that dead ended into a school yard but there was a people gate so kids could get through. It was just wide enough for the scooter. Drove like heck for the main gate on the other side before the cop could get there. Hauled a** back to my neighbors house parked the cushman and ran home. Don't know if the patrol car ever found the scooter. Yep crazy stuff when we were kids. Don't think kids today have as much fun.

 

[kxg]

Great story! In my small town, when I was a kid, there were some older guys who were Cushman nuts. One of them retained his love of Cushmans his entire life. In a twist of fate, I officiated his funeral a couple of years ago. The Cushman stories made for great remembrances.

 

[RSteve]

The Cushman stories made for great remembrances.

And another one. One of my neighbors, now deceased, bought one of those Cushman utility vehicles, you often see at a golf course.

He bought it at auction at the municipal golf course not far from my house. It had been in storage for many years. All the mechanicals and rubber were beyond use; junk. He scoured the local scrapyards for mechanicals to replace the original Cushman parts, without success. He reached out to Cushman, but the cost of a new motor, transmission, etc. was prohibitive. Ultimately, he secured a fairly new engine and running gear from a crashed snowmobile. My understanding was he got everything for pennies on the dollar for hauling away the wreck. Once completely assembled, he said it was a suicide mobile. It could reach speeds far in excess of what the utility vehicle was supposed to reach. It was unlicensed, but he drove it around the neighborhood anyway. Occasionally, I'd see it parked in the lot of a local supermarket. I often asked if he'd let me take it for a spin, but he always declined, "Too dangerous." After he passed away, the following summer (2009), I asked his widow if the vehicle was for sale. She'd given it to a relative soon after he died.

 

[peanubutter]

It kind of looks Unsafe at Any Speed.

 

[RSteve]

Found one at auction with a 250 cc motorcycle engine.

 

[Ranger107]

Had a buddy who acquired 57 HD Servicar. Don't remember what engine he shoehorned into it but would do close to 100 mph. No way I would take it over 60.

 

[RSteve]

Had a buddy who acquired 57 HD Servicar. Don't remember what engine he shoehorned into it but would do close to 100 mph. No way I would take it over 60.

I had a friend who raced go-karts. He built one that could do 100 mph. I drove it several times and at anything over 60 mph, I had to slow down. There is no way I'd even approach 60 in a Servicar. A few years ago, I accompanied a great-nephew to a local rental go-kart track where all the karts were electric. I think they all maxed out at about 45 mph and I thought I'd soil myself.

 

[Ranger107]

Have riding buddies with HD trikes who routinely do 80+ on the hiway but the servicar was a different beast. Top heavy and ungainly. A tight turn at 50 would put you upside down.

 

[RSteve]

I was in a large funeral procession that required two or three cops on HD trikes to control traffic. It was late fall and the roads were a little slippery in spots. Apparently one of the cops didn't slow down sufficiently at a turn and he and the trike toppled over. Lately, I've seen a few of these:

link

 

[Ranger107]

I was in a large funeral procession that required two or three cops on HD trikes to control traffic. It was late fall and the roads were a little slippery in spots. Apparently one of the cops didn't slow down sufficiently at a turn and he and the trike toppled over. Lately, I've seen a few of these:

link

Wow, haven't seen one of those yet.

 

[Brewdude]

I was in a large funeral procession that required two or three cops on HD trikes to control traffic. It was late fall and the roads were a little slippery in spots. Apparently one of the cops didn't slow down sufficiently at a turn and he and the trike toppled over. Lately, I've seen a few of these:

link

That is one impressive ride right there and no mistake! I've seen a few Harley trikes around here but the wheel position is reversed. First time I've seen one with 2 in the front.




Cheers,

RR

 

[RSteve]

Greencastle, Indiana, $649.00 just for parts, no mechanicals Ebay link

 

[RSteve]

Greencastle, Indiana, $649.00 just for parts, no mechanicals Ebay link

Price dropped to $600. I wish I had the mechanical knowledge to "restomod" this servicar. If it didn't kill me, my daughters would.

 

[WTHall]

If you roam around Ebay enough, you'll be wonderfully amused by the prices asked for the most mundane items. Someone was selling a nasty Dunhill, super caked, and cracked in about 4 places on the bowl for, if memory serves $60+. (If you, gentle reader, are the individual who was trying to sell this pipe, sorry.)