Loose Parts by Dave Blazek for February 10, 2024

Sounds like he has lots of leverage already, without lowering his shoulder. As for the shoes …

There is a guy who does this for marathons: Carl’s running commentary.

I want that job!

Uh, Carl? Remember who’s holding the lug wrench.

“And that tie Definitely does Not go with those slacks!”

This is a sad commentary on an unfortunate event. (But any time you change a tire, it MUST be either raining or snowing)

I ‘tow-tally’ get it.

Mobile Sidewalk Supervisor Serves, LLC.

My friend Jake gets that free from his spouse. She actually is pretty savvy about car maintenance.

Is that a half-caf double latte mocha cappuccino with vegan foam from Starbucks? Looks like it.

Oh, great. I really need this service.

“Oh, and next time get a better car!”

I have two towing policies: one with AAA and the other with USAA.

Triple AAA will cover me no matter what car I am driving, so if I borrow someone’s car and it needs a tow, I am covered. However if someone borrows my car they will not come and get it unless I am there with the car. This did work out to my advantage: my son parked his car on my lawn and it got stuck in the mud. AAA came to tow it out.

USAA will cover my car no matter who is driving it. If someone borrows my car, they will assist. However if I am driving a car NOT on my policy, they won’t assist. I also made out on this. My son borrowed my truck while his was in the shop. He blew a tire and they came to get him.

So know what is covered by your plan.

I was Motorcycle riding one afternoon in Arizona and failed (catastrophically) a tire. I called AAA to get a tow home to New Mexico. So far so good and a very competent driver arrived with a frame to support my motorcycle on the truck during transport. However…the tow company would NOT carry passengers so I was on my own on the edge of civilization. I called the AAA person and she said they would give me a discount on a rental car available in Tucson or Phoenix. Not helpful as these cities were FAR away from my remote location. Called home and got my wife to drive over to pick me up. The passers-by in Arizona were exceptionally kind and many stopped to make sure I was O.K. and had water. By the time my wife arrived I had received enough bottled water to bathe an elephant. Suppose my wife had been driving in a similar situation and couldn’t get ahold of someone (me) at home?

That’s my job. Someone had to tell my wife how to change a tire the correct way.

The lugnuts on my pickup truck are torqued to 140 ft-lbs…. I’ve started carrying my Milwaukee impact gun in the truck as the removal of these nuts with a lug wrench is VERY difficult if not impossible. (Long story about this…but definitely removing the wheel without mechanical help was a problem.)

A highway in Carl’s Bad California?

So he should have planned for the flat tire?

Much more of that kind of talk, and he’ll be a wreck.

a couple months ago, right around tire changing season, a car in motion lost one of its wheels, which duly hit a young girl crossing the road with her mother. knocked unconscious, the girl was hospitalized and we’ve heard almost nothing of her since. we have, however, been updated constantly about the amazing number of vehicles that, oops, manage to lose a tire or two…