Hey All,

Just wanted to let everyone know that Art(cvvmax) has gone to his home in Tokyo.

He had some family issues that need his attention(in person) and I'm sure some other important business dealings he has been wanting to work on !

As far as I know he plans on returning in September !

He already is apologizing for missing DragFest !---Which he really wanted to attend this year !

He also want me to pass on his THANKS to everyone who purchased something at his Fire Sale !

I think it helped pay for his plane ticket !

As far as me---Sorry I haven't been on the site as much---I've been focusing on my RE-HAB !

I really do miss you guys---Maybe in Sept. --When I'm able to ride my Max's again---My attitude will change and I'll have more to talk about ?

Anyway--THANKS to EVERYONE WHO GAVE ME the SUPPORT I NEEDED !

You gave me a New Lease on Life !

Mark

UPDATE !

Just got an e-mail from Art--He arrived safely and is relaxing at his home in Tokyo !

Got it about 4:30PM PST.

He said he'll be posting up in the next couple days--After he gets settled !

Looks like we have one of our most valuable assets in Japan---Right where we need him !

Sparky and Alter will be utilizing him as much as possible---Make Sure You Do The Same ! He! He!

Mark

Marks9222 wrote:
Where are those two knuckleheads?

Mark, hang tight bro & stick with Re-Hab. Sept. is right around that bend in the road.

Don't forget what we say here.....You can checkout any time you like,
But you can never leave! Randy

Hi Mark and Crew , Re hab I am sure is a pain but glad you are focused and doing what you need to do to get back in form
know it's frustrating going in the Garage and seeing the Maxes just sitting waiting for their Master to fire em up and air em out
But it will go by quickly and you will be riding in Sept with great weather.

Keep the Faith Mark

Mark, we're in the same boat: Max ready to tear the place up but physically unable to ride the beast!

Hang in there buddy, do your PT etc and we'll be riding again in no time!

Glad Art is safely back in Tokyo, thanks for the update.

I will be riding for you guys who can't ride.
Saturday I will be at Fontana, CA running the 1/4 mile from 2pm till 10 pm....should find the fastest times around 7 pm.
Hoping to beat my best time there.
10.1 at 136 was last time, hoping for sub 10 seconds and 140+

hammer wrote:
Kirk,

Last I heard they were headed your way ?

They miss the banter with you !

You'll know when they arrive---As I'm starting to miss them too !

Mark

Hey everyone...I finally got over the jet lag and back to my normal self of getting up at 03:00 and going to bed at 21:00...

Anyway, will start going around to meet people in the next few days and see what the GEN2 owners over here are up to...I have already made contact with three of them and have plans to meet over the next few weeks...

One thing that I have experienced since getting back are the frequency of the weird earthquakes that occur each and every day since the disaster in March...

I have been through numerous earthquakes in my life but these earthquakes are NOT your normal ones...like two days ago at about 02:30 we had one that was about a level 3 on the richter scale, which is fairly small but this thing started out as a side ways movement from left to right, in relation to the way that I was sleeping and it just kept going in that direction...it never came back the other way or did it, jump up and down or shake or pop or anything that a normal earthquake would do...

Strange stuff...it's almost as if Honshu Island (main island in Japan) is slipping off the shelf...maybe it is...

As far as the logistics here in Japan...it is fairly normal around this Tokyo/Yokohama area and locations South but up North going towards the devastation areas, things are still not good...the main problem are the politicians, not unlike any politicians world wide...they have absolutely NO idea of what they are doing or maybe they do and it's all for their party and their deep pockets...

So as many of you have experienced, parts for our GEN2s are often out-of-stock and take forever to get...it is the same in country here...it is not so much that manufacturers were located in the devastation area, as very few were...it has to do with the overall transportation logistics throughout the country which has been thrown into total chaos...

On another note, here's a couple of stories I heard amongst numerous ones...

1) After the earthquake hit and the tsunami was coming in within 5 minutes, an elementary school with hundreds of kids was warned of the tsunami so the teachers there lined the kids up in their normal roll call lines out in the playground and they did not immediately take the kids out of harm's way to higher ground because a couple of kids were still talking in line and the teachers told the kids that until everyone was quiet, they weren't going anyway...95% of the kids and teachers vanished...

2) Amongst all the foreign aid that poured into Japan after the tsunami, but only after the politicians could make the "order" that it was ok for the planes to land, which took 1-2 weeks, they turned away most of that aid because the politicians said that the quantities of each line item was less than the number of displaced residents and it was unacceptable for any residents to be deprived of aid items when others were getting that item...so until the foreign aid agencies could "properly" provide the correct quantities, Japan would not accept any of those aid packages...WHAT?!?!?!?!?!...does this sound familiar???...New Orleans, Haiti, Sudan, etc, etc...those sort of politicians should have been shot on the spot...a few more deaths would not have made any difference and the countries would have been better off with them gone...

It's just amazing how stupid the human race is...

I am still planning to ride up North to the devastation areas to see first hand how the people are coping and in some small way, do some community service, because I do not trust the mass media who have not totally forgotten about this...since no one is dying anymore and therefore is not news worthy...

Anyway...hope everyone is fine and enjoying the riding season, except for the folks that I know have been devastated by the flooding all along the Mississippi River...I hope they can get their lives back together soon...

Ride safe...

Art

Art, thanks for the update. Horrible Japanese people should still have so much uncertainty in their lives. Maybe they're used to that, but it must be a shock every time a tremor occurs?

As to nr. 2: It's like saying to the 'Extreme Home MakeOver' team: "Unless you provide a nice home for everyone in the country no more free buildings!!!" Ridiculous. Apparently it was too much bother to distribute items according to the most needy...