HW: Leeds (almost)

[Chuck Rosenberg]

Fwd'd from Hardy of Mr. Quimby's Beard for your amusement... stay chuffed,
Chuck


To all who asked me to tell them how the HW gig went.(+ a few who didn't ask=)

  Below is my account/review of last nights HW gig in Leeds...............
   My car is off the road at the moment because I need 2 new tyres
(costing=20=
about =A350), so I borrowed a friends car to take us to Leeds to see HW
and=20=
hook up again with Jim & Jerry Lascko and who ever they introduced us to. Le=
eds is only 90 miles from Sunderland so even though the car was a 1980 Cheve=
tte I still thought we'd make it easy. We set off at 6 allowing 2 hours
for=20=
the 90 mile journey and we were all impressed at how well the engine sounded=
 for such an old car. 30 miles into the journey the car lost a bit power and=
 the engine was making a slight rattling sound {we considered turning back b=
ut we are stayers}, 50 miles into the journey steam was coming out of the ra=
diator, we found a service station and put some more water in, (the rattle w=
as now louder) {we considered turning back but we are stayers}, 55 miles int=
o our journey we pass a garage which is open, so we pull in and ask the mech=
anic what he thought the rattle was. He said he wasn't sure but "the
damage=20=
appears to be done, so it shouldn't get any worse" {we considered turning ba=
ck but we are stayers}, 65 miles into our journey (the rattle is now more li=
ke a banging) the alternator warning light is flashing {we considered turnin=
g back but we are stayers}. 70 miles into our journey the banging has now be=
come so loud that I decide to pull over onto the "hard shoulder" of the moto=
rway, as I dip my clutch pedal there's a loud bang and the engine stops comp=
letely {we would have considered turning back but the car was now fucked}. L=
uckily I had my mobile phone with me, but unfortunately the battery was very=
 low, and as there is a fixed fee of over =A3100 (I think) to be towed off t=
he motorway if the Police come and you aren't a member of a break down servi=
ce, and especially as I have no insurance to drive my friends car, we had to=
 think fast, sorry I had to think fast as the rest of the lads were by
this=20=
time pissed & stoned and of little use as problem solvers. If I phoned a bre=
ak down organisation and joined at the road side I would be liable for a sur=
charge of =A350 + =A345 to join and all they would do if they couldn't fix t=
he car would be take me to the nearest town with a garage, which would still=
 leave us 70 miles from home, but at least we'd be off the motorway. To
get=20=
there number I had to call the operator (remember my battery is low). They s=
tarted to read me the number and I realised non of us had a pen, so we remem=
bered 3 digits each, nice and easy you'd think......oh no!! not for one of t=
he lads anyway, he couldn't remember his 3 digits, I re-rang the operator...=
...This time we remembered the number and phoned the RAC breakdown services,=
 who informed us that they only accept credit cards, which non of us had, so=
 they suggest I call someone who has one and use there details......So I pho=
ned my mother (my battery is now very low).... she wasn't in.......I left
a=20=
message for her to call my mobile when she got home and hoped it wouldn't be=
 long. We waited 30 mins and she hadn't called back, we new if we didn't get=
 moving soon the Police would come passed and pull us (it was amazing and un=
usual that they hadn't already), so we decided to push the car to the next e=
xit 1.5 miles away (very dangerous and very illegal). about half mile up the=
 road my mother phones and tries to give me a 15 or so digit number when I h=
ave no pen (and my phone battery is very low) so I'm panting onto the inside=
 of the wind screen and writing the number in the steam my breath leaves, ne=
edless to say this didn't work as the windows of the car were all open
from=20=
when we'd been pushing and my phone battery was about to give. Nothing for i=
t we'd now have to push for the remaining mile off the motorway and find a p=
ublic phone . Just then a van pulls over, it was dark by now and the headlig=
hts were in our face, so we all presumed it was the Police, but luckily it w=
as the RAC who were passing and bored and decided to check on us. We told hi=
m our story and he let me use his phone to call my mother so I could join th=
e RAC. He couldn't fix the car as apparently "The big ends gone"????? so
he=20=
towed us to a town (Knaresboro???)15 miles north of Leeds (5 miles further a=
way from home), and give us the number of a supposedly cheap tow firm. Who e=
ventually towed us home for =A3245, making the total cost of the journey (in=
cluding the =A322 petrol I'd put in before we left) =A3352.........And to ma=
ke things worse me & Kidd had spent the whole day designing, printing and cu=
tting flyers to hand out at the gig.....
So I never hooked up with Jim (which will look bad) and I have no contact nu=
mber for him in England, I never got to see HW or Spacehead, I have over 100=
 flyers and no-one to give them to and a broken car to give back to my frien=
d + an awful lot more debt then when I set out, but it could have been worse=
, at least I'm home now, in one piece and I never got a fine for no insuranc=
e.
How was your day :-)
Remember my car would have only cost =A350 to put back on the road.

Apart from all of this though, I'm still buzzing from the great gig at the w=
eekend and Mr Quimby's Beard going to America (and the couple of joints I've=
 smoked while writing this), so apart from not hooking up with Jim I'm still=
 of very high spirits .
         Hardy