THE HOKIE HOOPTY

Ohio Tailgating

2007-10-24T19:01:00.000-05:00

Another Saturday, another tailgate, but this time I'm an idiot, a moron, a buffoon..... I'm a baboon..... with a friend who's a racoon sitting on a spittoon under the moon in the middle of a monsoon playing a tune with the help of a spoon .... That's kind of fun in a 3rd grade kind of way. Anywho, I'm a buffoon because I forgot the camera, but luckily Cathy brought hers.

Maybe I should complete this entire post in juvenile poetry, hmmmmmmm.......

The tailgate was set
and the brats were a grilling

Chip was fondling a football,
drinking a beer and just chilling.
The oldest Hoopty Crew kids had on their game gear.
They were looking real tough and showing no fear.
It was only nine in the morning, barely past dawn,
but Cathy and J-Rock were getting their drank on.
Matt and Rhonda Miller were our new Hoopty guests.
They were sporting maroon,
but Navy and Hoo roots they were forced to confess.Matt, Rob, and Chip just drank beer and sat
while Linda and MJ were having a chat.Jay-man showed us his taekwondo-high-red-belt look
and we got a visit from these two who work on the yearbook. (Matt and Karen?)
Sheryl had a drink to cure all her ills
Bob and (I can't remember your name) were checking out my woodworking skills.
Brandon brought Donna, the kids loved her soccer moves and soccer twirls.
Hey man, I thought zimas were only for wahoos and girls.
Midshipmen and wahoos came to love our dear team.
Tell everyone we're first and give them a scream.
It was obvious to all
this was a key play.
So the key shaking started
by Sophie and Jay.
Now Jay, here's a few words of advice for your life
She's ignoring you and your screaming
It's good training for when you have your own wife.
So Sheryl begins to ponder as the game draws nigh,
How can you not love a man like Jeff with a mouthful of thigh?
Another great gameday and tailgate are done
as usual it was filled with friends having fun.

[silly poetry ends here]

ECU Tailgating

2007-09-05T19:18:00.000-05:00

It's official! The 2007 tailgating season has started! Oh yeah, there is some football going on as well. The ECU game was scheduled for noon so that meant a 6:30 start from Lynchburg. A traffic jam on 81 is the nemesis of any professional tailgater so our early departure helped us avoid any vehicular drama.
Colette and "sour stomach" Rob are original Hoopty Crew members but we had two guests this trip. Rob and MJ Pearson were yucking it up on the way to Blacksburg. Let's get everything out on the table here and now - MJ is a Wahoo but we like her anyway. Note the Tech shirt she's sporting.Steve and Sm'Ellen looking very happy despite the early hour.So the tailgating begins. The first thing you should notice is that this is not Lot 8. I know Lot 8 and this, sir, is not Lot 8. Lot 14 is the new Hoopty home (for now). It's a good lot with lots of green space and very few people. While the action isn't the same, Lot 14 does afford a much more relaxed tailgating experience, and let's not forget that the two blue rooms see much less "activity" than the Lot 8 blue rooms. Here the setup is almost complete.The breakfast tailgate included ham biscuits (although not enough - thanks a lot Chip), cheese grits, hash browns, sausage, fruit, bloody marys, and breakfast beers.Football discussion started early and the orange peeling competition was a big hit. Janet and Colette were amazed with Ellen's very nimble, prize winning, orange peeling fingers.Bob and Steve look like members of an over the hill boy band posing for the paparazzi. Something like Menudo if they never kicked anyone out. Steve, I'm pretty sure boy band members don't pick their butts while a picture is being taken. What exactly is Bret staring at.....am I gonna be forced to defend my wifes honor? Oh wait, he's staring at Cathy. Oh Laaaaaaance.....The Charlotte gang (Travis, Brandon, and Lance) were violently debating the value of wearing Dale Earnhardt shoes with Chip and Creech (or is it Creetch, or Creatch).Awwww, they still hold hands after all these years. Either that or Ellen is trying to hold Rob in his seat so he won't do the hey-look-I-have-raw-brat-hanging-out-my-zipper dance. Bret and Jeanell presented Cathy with her very own tuxedo t-shirt because she wants to be formal but she likes to party too.Obviously it was a day filled with classy clothes. Colette was kind enough to get these sexy shirts for Cathy and Jeanell. Hot, hot, hot.Jilian and Todd dropped by for a little pre-game tailgating. It's a bit embarrassing but they had to show off the box seats they stole off the little old lady they beat up. Sad.We could hear the cops coming so they had to make a quick exit on their high-end getaway vehicles. Everyone loves The Hokie Hoopty. Just being near it is exhilarating. It's famous and I feel like I'm driving a rock star....... wait, that didn't sound right.Even the walk to the stadium is fun for the Hoopty Crew.This is what the field looks like from great seats - 45 yard line, QQ. Jeanell and I lucked out this time. Thanks Stuart, Freda, and Jack! Best seats we've ever had. Jeanell and I posing for the obligatory self-portrait although we were lonely being separated from the rest of our people.This is the Hokie Nation. Hokie Pride.
.....we will prevail.
All eyes on the jumbo-tron for the very moving tribute.Before the game was over Jeanell and I had to slip over to our normal spot to be with our peeps.Rob is trying to be "that guy".
The post-game tailgate involves much more sitting than the pre-game tailgate. Could have something to do with excessive amounts of Wild Turkey. Note that we even have Hokie potato chips.
Mom (Linda) caught up with us for a little frivolity. It was really funny when she put Bret's fingers in that warm water while he napped.The Pearsons seemed happy to be hanging with The Hoopty Crew (despite their UVa connections). We were glad to have them along for the ride.

So, there it is.... the first tailgate of 2007. I'll do my best to post throughout the entire season, but I ain't promising jack. If any of you want to feel the Hoopty Love, come by Lot 14 and see if the we're there. If the bus is rocking, don't stop knocking. We'll eventually swing open the passenger door.

Blog Maintenance

2007-08-19T20:58:00.000-05:00

Obviously things look different around here. Because of changes that Blogger made, it makes it easier (and nicer looking) if I make some wholesale changes with the Hoopty blog. The format is different but all of the old posts are still here.

In addition to the format change there have been a few small content changes:

A Hokie Hoopty Hall of Fame page has been added. This is where we will brag about all of the famous people the Hoopty Crew meet.

A Hokie Hoopty Tailgating link has been added but the page isn't there yet. It will be a simple index to those previous posts specific to tailgating events much like our Hoopty construction page.

I've added a couple new college buses to our list - Iowa State, Purdue, Florida, Texas Hoopty, and Ohio State. The NFL list of vehicle links is not back yet, but it will be when I get around to it.

Enjoy!

Southern Miss Tailgating

2006-10-30T20:43:00.000-05:00

Let's start with the obvious, this blog has been in hibernation during the offseason. Actually, it was already hitting the snooze button during the second half of the 2006 season. The good news is that I have some pictures left over from last season that we can use to get the juices flowing in preparation for the '07 season. Here's a brief recap of the Southern Mississippi game. Time is short so the commentary will be limited. Sorry.

Southern Miss was our annual "Group" game where we attempt to get everyone together for an entire weekend of football fun. Of course Lance couldn't make - just another schedule conflict. Something about saving someone's vein. I'm not sure if it was the main vein or some lesser vein, but either way it kept him away from the fun.

Since we were there for the entire weekend we were able to make it to the on-campus pep rally. Here's a shot of the big man explaining how we're going to beat the crapola out of Southern M-i-crooked-letter-crooked-letter-i-crooked-letter-crooked-letter-i-hump-
back-hump-back-i (I had to do that once).

The cheerleaders were there doing their thing.
No caption necessary.
The Hokie Bird was there getting his picture with some famous people.
Game Day. Here's our standard tailgating setup.
The newest Hoopty addition was a custom built ramp to roll our serious equipment out of the back. The ramp folds in half and stores on the floor between the table cart and the grill cart. The two coolers fit perfectly within the rails of the ramp on the non-slip surface.Here's the obligatory group photo (minus Lance, of course). Please note the strategically placed VT sweatshirt to cover Janet's lack of spirit.Alice is wondering why Steve is geeking out with his laptop. Wifi? Whofi? Whatfi? Must....have...google....must.....locate....network.....
Ah, the pumpkins. Ellen diligently works on her pumpkin artwork.
Alice and Bobby hamming it up for the camera. Please note the ever-present Wild Turkey bottle in the window. Gobble, Gobble.Martha and Craig were kind enough to pay us a visit. Why were they standing on boxes?
Cathy shows her perfect sit-in-a-chair-with-a-beer-in-the-arm-tailgating-football-
toss.
Someone brought some old pictures from the dorm days. That's a very nice before and after shot of Steve. No, really, he always looked like that. I'm sure he was just tired from all of that late night studying.
Chip and Bobby are about to enjoy a new Hoopty tailgating tradition - the pre-game tequila shot. Probably not very prudent considering all of the drinking that occurs during the tailgate and our propensity to "lose" Bobby.Colette kicking up her happy (maroon and orange) heels on the way to the game.
Bret and Tanya are just happy to be here, although Bret's smile looks a tad bit forced.
Rob being, well.... Rob.Colette, Jeanell, and Cathy may have had a few dranks. Regardless, they are excited to see you.
Awwww, now that's a cute couple.
That's my friend Mark. He's drunk. Can you tell? I can almost make out his uvula (I still think that's a funny word).The fireworks capped off a great weekend and what would be the beginning of a great run of games. Go Hokies!

Ga Tech Tailgating

2006-10-17T19:53:00.000-05:00

Yeah, I'm a little late with a post. Actually, I'm two losses.....er....two games behind. A man's gotta take a break once in a while. It has been said before, but I'll say it again, I'm not a college football pundit, not one of those talking heads, and this isn't the place to go over the details of why the unspeakable has happened (twice). This site is about tailgating and having a great time regardless of what happens on the field. So here are some shots from the Ga Tech tailgate. Yes, we had fun.

The tailgate setup is underway.
The overkill tailgating table with matching chairs in action and the newest addition, the overkill super grill cart is poised and ready to perform.Here's a better shot of the super grill cart and support table. We don't grill on no sheet metal hibachi. That's a three burner Weber Genesis Silver B power-house. I'll dedicate a post later to the details of the grill. ....and here is why you need a support table. Brats and pork tenderloin coming off the grill.Everyone just trying to be in the moment.The Gustafsons showed up and became honorary Hoopty Crew members.Steve joined us and Cathy made everyone uncomfortable with pictures of me cheesing it up 17 years ago with this wife. Great. I need that kind of pressure.
Janet is back to her old ways - blue, blue, blue by you (or bayou). Janet, you can wear anything you want as long as you keep bringing good stuff like those crab stuffed deviled eggs.Cathy's bro Jeff and wife Cheryl made the trip to party with us. Cheryl made herself scarce and I couldn't find a single picture with her in it. Sorry.Here's Bret and Bobby (next picture down), official Hoopty Crew members attending their first tailgate with the Hoopty.
Mom Frazier (Linda) showing off her Hokie Bling.Bret's friend from work, DJ and his wife Teresa added to the merriment although in this particular picture it appears that DJ is sneezing "buuullllshhhniiit" to some story Bret is babbling about. Probably something about how he rained endless three pointers over Bimbo Coles in the day. Right.Jilian made another appearance with her Jackie-O, -O, -Ooooh glasses. Todd came this time and showed his ability to toss the long ball (sorry no pictures). The Hoopty Charity table for the Hospice organization was up again and did much better this time around. It ain't much but 60 bucks is 60 bucks.Finally, no Hokie tailgate would be complete without the drink of choice for all fighting gobblers! Next tailgate is Southern Mississippi. It's a 7 o'clock game so as long as the weather is good we should be tailgating all day. Gotta pace ourselves for that.

Cincinnati Tailgating

2006-09-28T18:36:00.000-05:00

The very first real tailgate with the Hokie Hoopty (last year's miami game was with the pre-pimped Hoopty) took place this past weekend for the Cincinnati game. There was some last minute work to be completed Friday night. Here Colette gets the back window ready for its Virginia Tech sticker.

Nine of us made the early morning trip from Lynchburg to Blacksburg Saturday morning. Sophie secured the only bench seat with a seat belt.She somehow convinced her Aunt Cathy to pass the time with some cards. I think they work better if you look at the side with the numbers.Jeanell, Steve, and Colette mug for the camera while Brandon concentrates on a photo album of previous tailgates and general debauchery.Ellen and Rob seem suprisingly happy despite Robs sour stomach or some other mysterious illness that, as usual, results in strange abdominal noises and the constant threat of explosion.Happy driver at 65mph - I guess I should concentrate on the road.
Let the tailgating begin. Note that most of the pictures are from the post-game tailgate. We were too excited and forgot to take pictures from the early tailgate.The matching chairs certainly looked nice and the table/chair cart performed flawlessly. Those stainless coolers kept food and beverages nice and frosty.The photo album gets passed around.Lance, Cathy, Steve, and Colette enjoying some those chips and dip. Oh yeah, and a beer too.Cathy was quite animated in this particular discussion. Either that or she was about to smack me.Brandon, a friend that works with Jeanell at the restaurant, was enthralled with Cathy's soliloquy. Let it be known that Brandon is one chatty guy. We couldn't get him to shut up the whole day. He must have dropped at least 10 or 12 words.Janet is also listening intently but it seems like she isn't really believing whatever Cathy is saying.
I think Cathy has Colette and Steve either confused or just plain scared.
Why does she look annoyed?
Standard Ellen and Rob pose.Grillmaster Chip wielding his tool of choice.
Dude, are those burgers done or are you trying to make us sick? Our second grill failed miserably but Chip's ol' faithful bailed us out. One grill is definitely not big enough for 12 or 14 people. I'm still working on the super-grill. Hopefully it will be ready to cook for the Ga Tech game.
Family friend (that seems the simplest way to explain a girlfriend- in- law- twice- removed- by- marriage) Jilian dropped by with her friend Jill and they took part in our post-game tailgate. Sorry I don't have a better picture - the only other one I have shows Jilian shoving some seven layer dip in her face and I figured I should keep that out of public view.The Hokie Hoopty tailgate isn't all just hedonistic fun. Here's our charity table for Hospice. I hope to add a seperate page to explain what this is all about so keep your eyes open.Sophie had to be indoctrinated in the details of proper tailgating and tossing football is a key activity. She's a leader so she opted to direct the offense.
Look at that arm! Look at that form! That's a Mike Vick-like frozen rope.Aaaaah, but alas, throwing football isn't the only tailgating activity. Here Sophie takes part in the age old tradition of waiting on a blue room to open up. Nobody likes "ocupado" when nature is calling.
So, the first Hoopty tailgate was a definite success! A good time was had by all and the win over Cincy ensures that there is no bad Hoopty juju. The loss to Miami last year was not, in any way, tied to the presence of the Hoopty. Whew, now everyone can go back to believing their lucky hat, lucky shirt, lucky drawers, lucky stuffed hand-glove-thing (brandon), or lucky socks are directly tied to the abililty of the Hokies to win.
post-script: Please note the matching shirts! With lots of help from High Peak Sportwear in Lynchburg we have official Hokie Hoopty t-shirts. They're a very nice touch for our olympic synchronized tailgating team. Heck, we even got Janet to wear Hokie colors for about the first time ever. I'll get better pictures of the shirts at the Ga Tech game. A big thanks to Ralph and High Peak for making us look much better than we actually are.

Getting Game-Ready

2006-09-24T16:16:00.000-05:00

The clock was ticking a lot faster than normal. Saturday was approaching and the Hoopty had to be ready for its inaugural run. Thursday and Friday was a mad, mad, mad flurry of activity starting with the final dress-up of the exterior.

Exterior
Let's talk about the most obvious change first - the mirrors. Alright, maybe not the most obvious but they do make a difference. New stainless mirrors on the doors help me see who I'm passing while the refurbished white mirrors let me ensure I'm actually taking up only one lane at a time.

Ooooh, now the lettering. Roberta at Bruce Signs was great to work with and very helpful with getting the final, but most important touch on the Hoopty. Vinyl lettering now adorns the front, sides, and rear of the bus. Man, that lettering really makes the Hoopty stand out. Thanks to the Diehls for footing the bill on this one.

The steps were finally installed and a little cherry cover plate for the non-functional step light.

Driver's Throne
With all of the interior work mostly finished, Jeanell thought the driver's seat should get some of the same love that has been showered on the rest of the Hoopty. After several attempts (which I unknowingly botched) she was able to put together the greatest of surprises. While I was at work she ran the Hoopty down to Fears Upholstery in downtown Lynchburg and those guys worked some abbreviated-schedule magic. In a half a day they turned the ugly brown driver's seat into something amazing and beautiful. Jeanell you're the best - thanks. Check it out.....
That orange really sets off the dark, cherry, black, and maroon interior.

Trimwork
The last bit of trimwork was installed on the ends of the benches...
....and around the rear door opening. Also note those groovy orange accent pillows courtesy of Colette Walker. Definitely a nice touch. No, the rear curtain did not arrive in time, but we have to leave something for future blog updates. You can also see the chair cart neatly tucked into the cargo area.

Entertainment
The electronics/entertainment panel above the passenger door was installed (credit to Colette again for making the anti-head-banging cushions and credit to Steve for installing them). Our nice sony radio/cd player and the sirius satellite radio are both mounted on the panel. To the right of the satellite receiver is a general storage box that is sized just big enough to hold cd cases. Two accessory outlets were installed in the back of the box and will be used to charge cell phones and power mp3 players, etc. The two toggle switches at the bottom of the panel are for the 12v power supply. In the down position, the left switch powers the radio and satellite receiver from the bus battery while we're driving. With the switch in the up position the radio equipment is run off a spare deep cycle battery stored in the back of the bus so while we're tailgating we won't drain down the starting battery. The right switch does the same thing for the three accessory plugs. Three plugs?.....Yes, the third plug was located around the corner on the wall facing the bench seat (top left of the VT). The hope is we can have an ipod dock plugged in there and the passengers can easily pick the music they want.

So there it is. The Hoopty 85% complete and ready for its first tailgate. Strangely enough, the first tailgate has already gone down, but you'll have to wait a couple days before I get that posting up. Thanks again to Colette, Steve, Ellen, Rob, Cathy, Lance, Jeanell, and Sophie for various contributions over these last two days getting the Hoopty ready. We're ready to roll and here's our new view of Hokie happiness....

PAINT.....enough said.

2006-09-17T18:37:00.000-05:00

Whew, I'm tired. That was a long four days, but oh what a difference four days can make! I'm too exhausted for lots of words, so we'll let the pictures do the talking.

Dubs. Let's start with some dubs. Ok, not exactly 20" rims, but they're our wheels and they used to look like crapola with layers of flaky black paint. Jeanell picked up where Rob left off scrubbing.
After lots of toxic paint stripper, wirewheels, and hand scrubbing, just about all of the paint was removed.Taped up and primed.
Now we're rolling in style.The back bumper also looked like poopy-doop so that was stripped down. In hindsight I should've stripped the front one as well.
Those white wheels look badass, but we've gotta do something about that yellow.And so it begins. Tape, tape, and more tape. Let's not forget about the tape.I am now the doctor of mixology. Not the bartending kind, although I can throw together a margarita when the need arises. Four parts primer, one part reducer, one part hardener. Time to say goodbye to the scout troop 99 transport vehicle. The Hoopty is about to be reborn.Pimped and primed.The first of about a million coats of color are starting to get sprayed. Before we move on with this, allow me to rant a tad. The paint is not nearly maroon enough. More like a dark red. It turns out picking car paint is the same as picking house paint only more expensive. In order to choose a color to cover about 60,000 square feet of bus, I have to look at a paint sample that is the size of a hummingbird booger. But hey, this one looks just right through the microscope but let's check the name because paints usually have cryptic names like "angry ocean amnesia". Turns out this paint has a reasonable name - "MAROON". Yes, maroon. That's what I'm looking for. Strangely though, the name was indeed cryptic. By "maroon", they really meant "dark red that hopes to grow up to be a real maroon one day". It looks better in low light so we can only go to night games and 3:30 games......well maybe.After two days of painting, the Hoopty is ready for its unveiling, or at least an untaping.The Hoopty is taking shape with all the tape and paper removed (except that little piece above the windshield). So I really should do a final buffing/wet-sand to remove all of the orange peel, fish-eyes, and bugs stuck in the paint, but I just don't have it in me so it will have to do, as is. So here she is in all her glory. Trust me, the pictures are better than the real thing, but it sure is better than the yellow and what do you expect for a $650 short bus.
The rear bumper has some maroon overspray, but we'll just pretend I meant it to be that way, and I got a tad overanxious and taped up the bumpers too early so the tape pulled some of the gloss off of both bumpers - still looks going down the road.
So we're getting much closer to being ready for Cincy next weekend. Hopefully we can get some signage on, and I still need to install the mirrors. I'm not sure if there will be another posting prior to next week's game, but there will definitely be one showing the fun of the tailgate. See you there.

Regarding football - two words - "Western Michigan".

Call me Bond-o....James Bondo

2006-09-10T19:41:00.000-05:00

Bondo. Lots of bondo. With paint coming just around the corner it was high time to get the body in shape... or at least in better shape (the bus, not me). Those illegal blinking lights up top were just taking up valuable space that could be used for Hokie propaganda. There were also some fold up/down "school bus" signs that had to go. First step was to remove the lights and the hinges that held the signs in place.
A little sheet metal, epoxy, and pop-rivets to close the big ugly holes.
Gotta love that grinder for bondo prepping.
After days and days and days of the bondo-sanding-bondo tango and everything looks reasonably better. This case is just the opposite of the interior - the pictures look better than the real thing. A career in body work is not in my future.
No, those aren't maroon rims. Just primer. Rims will be white.The passenger rocker panel was rusted completely through in several places (sorry I forgot the "before" picture) so I bought a replacement panel and used some high-tech installation technique. Like the blinking light covers, epoxy, rivets, and bondo gets the job done.A little primer and it's as good as new (sorta).

Rob Lends a Hand
Rob came down for a day of Hoopty work. He jumped right in and took over some of the most unglamorous jobs. The wheel rims needed to be cleaned up so they can be painted. With a large selection of sharp paint-scraping implements, Rob went after it with a seriousness that only he can muster.
The bench seat backs were looking pretty ugly with all those staples and loose vinyl edges. Roberto cut some plywood, painted it and installed it like a pro. The backs also needed to be installed in a way that would allow them to be easily removed. Thanks to big Pitera we now have a block installed with dowels that insert into the bench seat frames. Nice.Rob had plenty of help and it seemed that the two of them were communicating well and working like partners. Thanks for all your help Rob! It really did help me stay on schedule. I would also like to thank you for all of the bits of wisdom you passed on to my daughter. It seems she can't stop helping everyone understand that you should "keep the drama for your mama".

Jeanell has added some nice interior decorating touches. The Kirk Herbstreit picture is on the other side. VT ladies football clinic - $75. Pictures with all the coaches and "Herbie" and other experiences that the guys can only dream of having - priceless.
Now we're down to the short rows. If the rains stay away, I hope there will be paint spraying next weekend. I hope. Prep work has begun. The first wash job. A scuff sanding to follow this week. Sorry for the blubby soft-porn. Certainly not the safest, but clearly the most efficient method of roof washing.Go Hokies.

It Just Keeps Getting Better and Better

2006-08-27T19:26:00.000-05:00

I don't usually reach back to my AP English days in order to wax eloquent about a subject. HOWEVER, allow me to discuss the Hoopty progress in terms that dear Mrs. Coleman would appreciate ....... the Hoopty is turning into one bad mutha sucka!

Sure, sure, sure, it won't be done by the first game of the season, but we don't have tickets for a game until the Cincy game. Therefore, heretowith, henceforth, let it be known that the intended inaugural run of the Hokie Hoopty will be September 23rd (barring any unforeseen disasters or general laziness on my part).

Let There Be Sound
Walker kindly showed up on Thursday with a sony radio and two Xplod speakers in tow. Although Crutchfield was unable to deliver an installation package specifically for a Chevy G30 van/bus/Hoopty we opted to move forward with this daunting task. Despite all the work that lay ahead, Steve felt compelled to play jump rope with the speaker wires.

After several failed attempts to get actual sound Xploding from the speakers, the decision was made to use one of his lifelines and call someone who actually knew what they were doing.
Ultimately the speakers were successfully installed and Xploded nicely. Let it be known that the very first song played on the system was Nirvana's smells like teen spirit. Thanks Walkers for the donation of components and hard work.Clearly I have not held up my end of the deal - the final radio installation is forthcoming.

The Dent That Went
Here are a series of photos that stretch across a few weeks. The big ugly dent repair is almost complete. The before picture shows what damage a renegade canoe trailer can inflict.
Some holes were drilled and I did my best to pull it out (some).

A little paint grinding makes it look kinda terminator-like (or was it the other dude the terminator was trying to whack).

Some nasty-funky-stinky fiberglass bondo was applied. Hopefully this will adhere better.

Some regular bondo on top of that and sand, sand, sand. More bondo. More sanding. More bondo. More sanding. ad infinitum.........and here is the almost finished dent repair. A few areas being touched up with bondo glazing and we're in business. Hopefully the whole blob won't pop out and flop on the interstate while we're cruising along at 65mph.

Vinyl Tap
The biggest changes this weekend came from the installation of seat cushions. Those bench bones had been sitting around naked for long enough. It was time to set up a backyard upholstery shop. Vinyl, foam, plywood, staples and we're in action (despite having no idea what I was doing). Thanks to my upholstery assistant, Sophie, for taking the picture.
Not many interim pictures, so KaPlow - here they are! Oooh, is that bad ass or what? Not exactly perfect, but good enough for being called bad ass (or what). Note the flat black paint with cherry trim to match the rest of the interior. Yes, there is still some more trim to add, but it's looking niiiiice.

All seats lift up for access to some storage space. The maroon vinyl will be especially nice with the orange accent pillows we've got planned.It was a real family affair with Jeanell and Sophie making runs to the store for supplies, filling nail holes, putting poly on the trim, cleaning up Steve's overspray on the windows, and cleaning up many of my messes. Some families go to church on Sundays, we just work on our bus. Religion is where you find it.

Here's another shot from the back door. The pictures don't really do justice to the lounge area.
That back door shot (oooh, that sounds weird) gives a view of the back wall. The cargo area is plain white...... .... while the lounge side of the wall boasts some pretty nice cherry plywood that just happened to be curly cherry - bonus. The look of the black and cherry contrast has lead me to leave the black strips on the ceiling and above the windows as is. Saves me some work and keeps the theme going.

I still plan on adding some cherry door-jamb-like trim to the edges of the walls. We have a cool fabric on order to serve as the curtain between first class and herded cattle.
One additonal purchase. I won a very important eBay auction for this:

No idea where it will go or how we will use it, but we can't call ourselves Hokies without having a lunch pail.

So, there was a lot of progress over the last four days. This update has been a tad lengthy to show it all, but you will have to nibble on this one for a while because there won't be any progress next weekend. The Smiths are heading to Jeanell's high school reunion (I like to consider it a potential Hoopty donation drive). I won't give away the specific year, but let's just say that during the early portion of our high school years, kajagoogoo wasn't just baby talk.

Superior Interior

2006-08-10T20:35:00.000-05:00

I figured I should post a small update now because there will be precisely zero progress on the Hoopty next week. We're going to the beach biiatch! Sure, it may push the unveiling out another week, but what can I say - sand, surf, and mixed drinks are calling and I'm answering.

We're up to $8.60 on our google ads off of about 18 clicks. Things picked up a bit after the last blog post. Everyone should feel free to clickety-clackety-click on those ads. It gets us one step closer to the plasma.

Sorry to all you Internet Explorer users. I didn't realize I had accidentally inserted a large number of dramatic pauses in the previous post. They didn't show up on Firefox so I didn't know about them until Steve bitched about it.

Cherry paneling has been going up nicely. This is going to be one classy bus. The area where the bench seats are still has more work to be done. The black strip in the middle of the ceiling will eventually be hidden by a piece of cherry trim, as will the area just above the windows, and the strip at the outer edges of the ceiling panels. The black around the two pieces at the very front of the driver's area will stay but some more trim will be added to frame out the left and right walls where the VT magnet is.
Obviously the wall between party and cargo was started in the picture above. I had originally planned on a half wall, but we clearly have a lack of wall space to hang any framed flair we may have. So the decision was made to build a full floor to ceiling wall with a pretty big opening to keep us from feeling claustrophobic. Maybe we'll add a curtain in the doorway to separate first class from the cattle.
Here's the almost finished look. The front and back wall skins haven't been permanently installed yet. I still need to paint the backside of the wall and figure out how to pretty-up the front wall panels.
In the background you can see the mock-up of the bench seats. The backs won't be that high, but this does give some sense of how the final seats will look. By the way, 15 yards of maroon vinyl was delivered today so the bench seat construction should start after the beach extravaganza is over. A view from the front looking back:
And for you beige-dashboard haters (you know who you are), I made the effort to Hokie-fy our Hoopty dash. Although the paint isn't a perfect Chicago Maroon, it is as close as I could find in a vinyl spray paint. A good bit of paper, tape, aluminum foil, and lungs filled with maroon paint gives the results we're looking for. One unrelated note - my t-shirt was large and hanging out. That isn't a bratwurst and beer filled gut pushing the dainty seams of the shirt to their breaking point. It was 108 degrees in the bus - fat wouldn't last more than 20 minutes in that sauna.
The final look is pretty good. Some orange and wood accents are certainly needed, but they have been pushed back in the already tight schedule.
Also note the trim around the door openings has also been painted to match the dash. It's all about the details when you pimp your ride.

Hopefully that wets everyone's whistle for a while. The completion of the walls, construction of the bench seats/cushions, and the PAINT are the main focus for the short amount of time left. The first Hoopty tailgate is yet to be determined. Work will continue for the entire season and probably for many, many seasons to come, but the first tailgate won't happen until we have seats to sit on and a maroon exterior. Time will tell.

We're off to the beach tomorrow. Leave me alone.

Small Steps

2006-07-30T20:41:00.000-05:00

For all of my poetry fans at work as well as those art lovers in the blogosphere, I would like to open this post with a nod to my ethnic background. I present you a Hoopty Haiku.

Yes, kickoff comes soon
I am busting my arse here
Get off my damn back

In essence, I'm giving it my all. I am very aware that the remaining work days are starting to dwindle, but never fear, progress is being made. A lot of small steps will hopefully add up to one wicked tailgating bus.

Since sitting on the floor doesn't make for fun or safe transportation, new seats are a must. The seats are nowhere near completion but the bench bones are in place. Note the comfy angled bench backs.

The back edge of the benches will define where the sub-wall will be installed. The sub-wall will seperate the party zone from the equipment zone. Something akin to a reverse mullet (business up front and party in the back).

Cushions, seat platforms, and the front board of the benches still need to be added. Speaking of cushions. Here are the two UPS packages that have the 5" thick seat cushion and 4" back cushion.

Vinyl samples for the benches are in hand. The colors don't really show very well in this picture. The upper left sample was the clear winner. The order for 15 yards is complete and the vinyl should be in a DHL truck and on its way to Lynchburg.

The horn/pa system is complete and operational. An mp3 player feeds the 20 watt amp which in turn feeds the great big 'ol honking horn type thingy. I'm not sure where that speaker is going to be mounted but I'm almost certain it will decrease our mileage down below the Hummer-like range.

Thanks to a donor who wishes to remain somewhat anonymous, we have two incredibly nice 54qt Coleman stainless steel coolers. One for food and one for beverages. Phase II of the Hoopty development may include cooler racks on the back of the bus, but for now these beauties will travel inside. (Sorry Kelly. I didn't try out the old naked- man- taking- pictures- of- a- reflective- object- for- ebay technique. Maybe next time.)

The Gaskins family was kind enough to send a Hoopty care package that included a real kick-ass 8 foot Hokie banner, a chef's set, license plate frame, Hokie license plate, a backup set of mirror dice, and a cool vehicle emblem that will probably take the place of the somewhat boring "Chevy Van 30" emblem currently on the Hoopty.

Now for a couple sneak peeks. The paneling in the party compartment is just getting started. The only things installed are the covers for the dividers between the windows. Some nice solid cherry. That flat black with cherry accent is niiiiiiiiiiice. Additional cherry plywood has been purchased (big shout-out to Roanoke Plywood & Plastics - how about a Hoopty discount next time) and will eventually make it onto the ceiling as well as some other strategic locations.

Nothing says "class" quite like a tailgating short bus with cherry trim. I know I should have consulted with Dr. Frazier on the choice of adhesives, but run of the mill loc-tite construction adhesive will have to do until he can supply us with the latest sub-molecular, laser-cured, microbonding adhesives.

The final sneak peek is just a taste of the top-secret grill cart. More to come, when the transformation is complete.

Well that's it for now. A few more bits of progress have been made, but I'm holding onto them for the next post. Gotta spread this out to keep the interest alive. Thanks to the three people who clicked on the sponsor ads at the top of the page. We're up to 16 cents in our account. That plasma tv is just around the corner.

Overkill Part I - The Chair Cart

2006-06-11T19:37:00.000-05:00

Finally, finally, finally the first component of the Hoopty equipment is complete. First let me clarify that the Hokie Hoopty is not just a means of transporting people from point A to point B. Rather, it is a complete tailgating system. As strange as it may seem, the Hoopty is meant to simplify our tailgating experience. I'm sure you are wondering how a fat yellow bus and all its accessories are actually a simplification. Let me explain.

Our tailgating events have been getting more complicated and more laborious - pick up all folding chairs, folding tables, grill, cooler, ez-up, etc and squeeze them along with some people, into a vehicle to hump it over to Lot 8. Unload. Set up. Drink. Laugh. Eat. Pack back up. Watch football. Unpack. Drink. Laugh. Eat. Pack. Hump it back to our storage facilty (Chip and Janet's garage) and unpack/unload. Whew. That's a lot. Sure wish we could leave all of our gear in one place without all the packing and loading. Let's see....maybe a trailer....no, wait.....how about a bus? And hence the simplification.

There is a delicate balance that must be maintained to keep Chip happy. The tailgate can't be too complicated. We can't spend more time setting up than the time we spend sharing our hopes, dreams, and deep emotions with one another prior to the game. It must be efficient. Over the top, luxurious, and fast at the same time. Impossible? Au contraire (french for fuggedaboudit). I'm an engineer. I'm a woodworker. I'm an idea guy. I can make the impossible, possible.

So here it is. The first step into formal overkill. The Hokie Hoopty chair cart. What does it do? Hold our twelve matching Hokie chairs, hold miscellaneous supplies associated with the primary food table, and serve as the table itself, that's all.

Here it is in traveling and storage mode.
This is the offical "front" defined by one drawer and one door. (The dark mark in the middle of the door is intentional. It's the type of wood I used, called ambrosia maple. The mark is a stain left from where an ambrosia beetle bore into the tree. A fungus on the beetle reacts with the wood and leaves the bluish-black stain, and that concludes todays unnecessary woodworking lesson and general showing-off).

The drawer will likely hold things that will be used on the table as the primary food location. Things like a table cloth, utensils, napkins, and pretty southern living sorta doo-dads to make the ladies happy .
The main reason for the cart is to hold chairs. The door on the front of the cart supplies the chair storage access. All twelve chairs will fit (yes, I know, only ten chairs are in there - two are currently MIA).

The back of the cart only has a drawer, identical to the front drawer. Just a way to maximize all available storage space.

Now the transformer aspect of the cart. The two wings fold up to create a pretty large table.

The legs lock in the open position as well as the closed position.
Heavy duty hinges allow the legs to neatly and easily fold and lock (which is different than lock and load, and definitely different than pop and lock - we miss you nsync) for storage.

Yeah, that's damn cool. I like it (mostly because I built it). I did make one design error. The table top doesn't overhang the front and back enough. The drawer and door pulls stick out farther than the top so when a table cloth is put on, it won't hang neatly down. Minor issue, but I should've caught it. So sue me. The only other issue is that, as expected, this thing has a little weight to it. Definitely a two person job rolling it up the ramp (which isn't built yet and I have no real idea of where it will store, but I'll get to it at some point - promise) and into the back of the Hoopty.

So there it is. A successful first step towards the development of our tailgating system. I think the bench seats are next and then some sort of grilling apparatus. These seats may take a while so be patient, an update will arrive.....eventually....I promise.

The Triumphant Return - More Floor Work

2006-05-07T19:48:00.000-05:00

The Hokie Hoopty returns! It didn't actually go anywhere, but you get the point. Work has once again gotten in the way of my life. The cubefarm stole my attention for the last few months. It was difficult and dangerous but I persevered. Don't laugh, those were scary times. You think fishing for opelio crabs in the Bering Sea is dangerous? How about dealing with an endless review and comment cycle on a 200+ page engineering document with a somewhat uncooperative customer? Cold water and crabs – give me a break. That was a daily possibility in the shower for all of us who spent our formative college years in Pritchard Hall. This was truly dangerous. I stood at the edge of the precipice but I didn't fall. The good news, no, the great news is that I have returned to my semi-retirement status (eat your heart out Walker) and now have a couple more days a week to dedicate to my many endeavors. More time for our 75 year old house, the sawmill, my woodworking, and of course, the Hoopty.

Even though the Hoopty hasn't been touched in a couple weeks (or more), there is progress to report. Sure the new laminate flooring looked great but the front floor was in rough shape. Some shoddy rubber mat was hiding very bad things.

Pulling up the old mat revealed some rust and lots of crudola.

A fair bit of elbow grease and an equal amount of Simple Green and the floor board was starting to shape up nicely.

The exterior step into the Hoopty was toast. The paint on the diamond plate steel had failed and the plate was completely rusted through in some spots. Not very safe, but more importantly it was just dang ugly. Can't have no ugly step into tailgating utopia.

Some of the rough areas were smoothed out with some very high-tech metal sealing compound (i.e. bondo) since there would be no rubber mat or carpet to cover up the pointy edges. A near eternity laying on my back with my trusty angle grinder blazing and nasty hot metal bits bouncing off my safety glasses resulted in the extraction of the rusty step.

The captain's quarters were then treated to a good coating of that gooey black truck bed liner paint on the floor. This should definitely improve the durability of the step area and driver's area.
With the help of a friend at work (props to David Smith) and a well spent $75, we had a set of replacement stainless steel diamond plate steps built. No more rust worries with the stainless steel and they look damn nice against that black paint. Now that's an entrance to be proud of (as long as you excuse the gaping rust wound in the rocker panel - we'll work on that later).

Chairs
The seat acquisition phase is now COMPLETE! Thanks to the kind birthday gifts from Megan and Larry Bowen as well as Lisa, Pat, and Macie Morgan we now have the complete set of 12 Hokie chairs. I'm currently trying to build the cart that will neatly hold all of the chairs and serve as our primary table. It's turning out a tad bit larger than I anticipated, but we'll find a way to make it work. The next update will probably revolve around the chair cart.

Benches
I've also started to mock-up a bench seat prototype to figure out the proper dimensions. The benches will be an ongoing project that will be complete later down the road.

AREVA Fans
For all of you Hoopty fans that work at AREVA I'm sorry to say that thehokiehoopty.com (or more accurately the blogspot domain) has fallen to the banhammer of Big Brother and his IT department. Your Hoopty updates will have to take place on your home computer much like your porn surfing.

In Closing
I apologize for the delay in posting and I will do my best to update more frequently, but I don't think anyone should hold their breath.

The Walkers Pay a Visit - Interior Work Gets Done (1/27/06)

2006-01-30T21:55:00.000-05:00

Saturday - Let the fun begin

The Walker family (Colette, Steve, Sydney, and Evan) made the trip down to Lynchburg this past weekend. Jeanell and Colette took control of childcare and food preparation so Steve and I could have a bit of good, clean, Hoopty fun. There was plenty on the agenda and the work began bright and early Saturday morning. The first order of business was to take the old trusty green seats to their final resting place. Though they served the youth of America well for many years, it was time to let them rust in peace with the rest of their brethren in the big short bus in the sky. Apparently the first step in reaching bus-seat nirvana is a brief layover in the Lynchburg landfill. Who knew?

With the interior of the bus free of clutter, we started attacking the task at hand. Wall cleaning and some scuff sanding prepared the Hoopty for a little makeover of her own. A quick trip to Lowes so we could grossly underestimate the amount of spray paint we needed and the beautification process had begun.

All window trim was taped and all interior walls from the front of the lounge area, back to the back door were primed. Despite wearing the masks specifically rated for paint, I feel we developed a new perspective of all those lost souls who feel compelled to huff paint fumes. What a bizarre addiction. A couple days later and I'm still digging out nicely primed and painted boogers. This pictures clearly shows the intensity of our concentration - "....beer? Did someone say beer?"

The lounge area primer was then followed up with a coat or two of flat black while the equipment storage area received a coat or two or three of tougher, white appliance paint. Strange how my side came out rather nicely while Steve's side suffered from multiple runs, drips, and mysteriously faulty spray can nozzles. Hmmmmm.

Yes, I know, the transition from black to white looks very rough and un-crisp (is that a word?), but never fear, there is a master plan in place. The flat black is nothing more than an accent color. Most will be covered by the benches. The remaining black wall areas and the unpainted ceiling is going to get a special treatment at a later date (think wood.....huh-huh he said "wood")

Sunday - to' up from the flo' up

Sunday's weather left a lot to be desired. Soggy, rainy, and generally yuckified, but slavemaster Steve wouldn't let the weather get in our way. Out came the trusty tailgating ez-up and the work day began.

The time had come to start installing the underlayment and the lowes-clearance-rack-american-cherry-that-I-don't-think-looks-very-much
-like-real-cherry-laminate-snap-together-flooring. I would do the fancy, difficult, and very skilled cutting operations while Steve tryed to figure out that roundish thing with the thin yellow pull-out strip with lots of numbers on it.

I don't know why Colette kept calling me Mickey Mouse? Better safe than deaf as a doornail.. no... deaf as a bat... no.... deaf as..... Pete Townshend....no.... deaf as something that can't hear very well. By the way, I always try my hardest to blink at the very moment a picture is taken. It's a personal goal of mine to have every picture in my life look like I'm blind as a.....uh, well.....look like someone who squints a lot.
Here's Smooth working some of his floor magic. Notice the soft touch, the look of concentration, and the perfect board alignment. He could accurately measure and perfectly place the smallest piece of flooring. Man, this dude is a pro working with short wood.....

Talk about "Team United". Here we're finishing the last couple rows of Hoopty flooring.

The final product is a thing of beauty. Yes we have a short bus with cherry (laminate) flooring. It seems silly, but oh so sweet at the same time.

A floor like that in a bus like the Hoopty often causes a spontaneous Hokie cheer.....
.....especially among those who aspire to one day reach the pinnacle of all things holy and good - driving the Hokie Hoopty.

And so ended a very fun and extremely productive weekend. Nothing could be better than spending quality time with the friends you love while working on an incredibly bizarre project that has little redeeming value in a society that demands you constantly buy, sell, produce, and strive to make it to the top (whatever the top may be). The fact is, our bus is a great excuse to create what matters most - time spent together.
Chairs
We're now up to seven! Only five more to go.

Page Additions
Even more buses! I've added the Texas A&M Gigem Bus (looks a lot like ours will), the Pitt/Penn State Bus, and the University of Georgia Bus. For the NFL two new Patriots buses were added as well as a Giants bus. Enjoy.

HTML Help
Smooth Walker came through for us and got rid of all our extra U1's, and it is very, very important that you don't have too many U1's. Our links line up.

For all of his hard work this weekend and for solving the goofy html link problem, I hereby declare Steve Walker The Hokie Hoopty Crew Member of the Month for January. Enjoy it before February gets here. Thanks.

Paint Scheming

2006-01-09T20:28:00.000-05:00

Paint
This weekend I busted some skin off of my knuckles while trying to tear up some of the floor covering in the driver's compartment (ie, front of the bus). I was unhappy about the loss of epidermal tissue. However, it did give me a chance to use one of the bandaids in the fabulously stocked first aid kit that was generously included in our low-low-low Hoopty purchase price. I just thought you would want to know.

The minor mangling of my digits left me somewhat disenchanted with hard labor and so I turned to more rewarding pursuits. Spray paint. It was time to test out part of the paint scheme to see how it looks. So I grabbed a couple cans of spray paint, some painters tape, and the side of a bus.
I like the combination of colors. It looks old school. I may try it out again with slightly smaller white stripes. All input is welcome. Send your comments to:
yourvaluableinput@randuisgoingtodoithiswayanyway.com

Here you can see there are three sets of the metal reinforcements and so there will be three sets of horizontal stripes. I think the bumpers will be orange and the wheels and grill will be white. We'll need to come up with something for the front end to dress up the maroon since there are no metal reinforcements there. I think our rear end is fine but we may have too much junk in our..... nah, that's just too easy.

Yes, I know, the colors I used aren't exactly Chicago Maroon (PMS 208) or Burnt Orange (PMS 158) but they worked just fine for this particular test.

Chairs
Jeanell found the exact same chairs that Santa brought me at Bed Bath & Beyond. She bought one there, so we're up to six.

Page additions
Note that I have added links to a couple new buses (Ga Tech Bus 2, U of FL Bus 2, Orangeforce one builder site, Colts Fanbulance, and DaBears Bus). I have also added a whole new section related to the best of the best tailgaiting products, services, etc. Wow, with all of the people looking at this site, this is practically free publicity for these guys. Hmmmm.........

Big Google News!
Go ahead. Do it. Type "hokie hoopty" into google and see what you get. Yeah Dawg, we made the big time. Looks like our site has been indexed or whatever the computer terminology is for making it onto google. Either way, this has to make us more famouser. Note that we have a couple Hokies with links to us. Thanks for the Hokie love.

HTML Help
Calling all geeks. That includes you Bret and Steve. Can anyone tell me why the links categories on this page stair step their way to the right if you're using crappy ol Internet Explorer, but they line up very nicely if you're using firefox? What magical elvish (which is similiar to Elvis spoken by someone with a lisp) lyrics must I sing into bloggers ear to get IE to understand? Send answers to:
thehokiehoopty@go-hokies.com....... please.

Removing Seats and a Hoopty Christmas

2005-12-29T14:12:00.000-05:00

Seats Be-gone!
Well, I had an afternoon during the Christmas holiday season to see what it would take to get those goofy green seats out of the Hoopty. Turns out, it was quite easy. Nineteen bolts/screws held each seat down. A few minutes with a ratchet and the handy Dewalt drill/driver and all of the screws were removed and the seat yanked out of the bus.

Here's a view from the back door with all of the seats removed.

A shot of the right side.....

and a shot of the left side. That's a lot of empty space to work with.

Sophie had fun playing in the seat graveyard.

Just for kicks, I decided to stick some of the seats back in along the walls to get a feel for how the future seating will be spaced. A dark shot from the back door with two sets of seats on each wall.
This actually brought the seating down to almost where I anticipate the new seats will end. The new seats will come all the way back to the pillar between the third and fourth windows. The area under the fourth window to the back door will hold all of the tailgating gear.
Merry Christmahanukwanzika!
As for the Hoopty Christmas..... I requested a few items to be used as part of the Hoopty. The first item requested and received is a car jack for my portable sirius satellite radio unit. I'll hard-wire this bad boy in (the Hoopty has no cigarette lighter) and we'll be able to cruise with extraterrestrial audio choices.
Obviously Hokie chairs were on my list to Santa. These all come from Sam's club online and are very reasonably priced. The goal is to get a total of 12 identical chairs that will be dedicated to Hoopty tailgating. Five down, seven to go and I have a birthday coming up in March!

That's it for now. The next update will probably involve the removal of the rubber flooring. There is much is to do and we're just getting started.

The First Tailgate!

2005-11-08T20:46:00.000-05:00

NOTICE: We now own a new domain name - www.thehokiehoopty.com. So, this blog can be reached by using the original blogspot address or the simpler new domain name. The new name makes it easier for us to tell people how to find us.

DISCLAIMER: The intent of this blog is to track the conception, birth, and life of The Hokie Hoopty. It is not meant to document the specific reasons that the Hoopty is deployed and as such, I am currently unable and unwilling to discuss the series of unfortunate events that were collectively know as the Miami game. I need to move on to happy thoughts......

Although the Hoopty was still in its pre-conversion condition and despite the fact that it didn't pass inspection in time, it was important for the Hoopty to make its inaugural trip from Lynchburg to Blacksburg. A large percentage of the entire Hokie Hoopty Crew was gathering for a couple days of relaxation and tailgating bliss and we wanted.....no...we needed the Hoopty with us. Additionally, there was an opportunity for a surprise visit that would mark the beginning of the Hoopty legend.

First things first. I needed to get a little identification on the bus to let people know that we weren't just a bunch of weirdos driving around for no reason in an old school bus. A $3 stencil kit and some maroon paint and the world could clearly see that we're a bunch of weirdos driving around in an old school bus with a very specific reason. "The Hokie Hoopty" was born.

A couple standard Tech magnets and we were road-ready.

Prior to the tailgate, Hoopty Crew members J-Rock (Jeanell) and Smellin' Ellen did a little creative pumpkin carving.......

....while Bretter got in some "exercise".

Loading all of the supplies was still a bit of a challenge even with all of the storage room in the back of the Hoopty. I guess eight pumpkins, three coolers, two totes, two ez-ups, ten or twelve chairs, one astro-turf rug, three folding tables, two grills, one radio, and several bags of food and miscellany tend to take up quite a bit of space.

Once on campus we had the opportunity to enjoy the festivities associated with ESPN Gameday.

Momma (Cathy) gets up close and personal with the love of her life (or at least the love of that particular moment).

Smellin' Ellen, Chicken Janet, and J-Rock soak up the Gameday glory.

Rob (or is it Brat Danglefar?) shows off his new doo.
But let's face it. The real fun comes when the tailgating begins.

SmoothWalker (Steve) and Colette (you really need to do something bizarre so we can land a good nickname for you) contemplate the many mysteries of life and modern brewing technology while relaxing on the "turf"

Dr. Shi-Teatows (Lance) and Brother Brandon (not that kind of Brother - note the whiskey on the rocks) also enjoy some turf time while trying to determine the easiest and quickest way to locate counterfeit tickets to buy (and subsequently cause the expulsion of two crew members from the game - thanks, you counterfeiting -lowlife -out -of -town -piece -of-crap-standing-at-the-corner-of-washington- and -kent -with -a -hat -and -dreads -poking -out -scalping -bastard).

Travis you must be camera shy - no pictures of your ugly mug.

...and now for something completely different (the big news you've all been waiting for).....

One of the main reasons for bringing the pre-conversion Hoopty out into the public was the fact that through a somewhat strange turn of events that included emails with the legendary Bill Roth, we were asked to be a part of an episode of next year's Roth Report. It all started with a request by Professor Frazier to Bill Roth asking him to be our horn. Or more precisely, to ask if we could use his world renowned call "TOUCHDOWN TECH! as part of the Hoopty's PA/horn system. Now, if you don't know who Bill Roth is, shame on you. Bill Roth is The Voice of The Hokies and you can find out more about him here. The result of all this horn-requesting is that WSLS (the local Roanoke tv station) wants to film the Hoopty three times - before, during, and after the conversion. Fame has found us, now about that fortune thing......

Here is the venerable Prof. Frazier (or Dr. or just plain Chip) espousing the virtues of cold -fusion -based -nano -fibrous -wood -adhesion techniques and their particular applications associated with Hoopty conversions. Scott and the rest of the WSLS crew try to look interested when they're really thinking about going back for seconds on the shrimp and filet mignon.

Ultimately several of the Hoopty Crew were interviewed about our hopes and dreams for this humble bus. Some were also interviewed regarding the game itself and they showed up on the Sunday Roth Report with their incredibly wrong predictions.

Colette, Jeanell, and Cathy gave a whoop and holler and made their way onto the show. Scott, where are the royalty checks?

Let's not forget about our favorite tailgater - Mom (not to be confused with Momma) looking happy with the Frazier clan. Mom you have to lay off of those jello shooters.

The marching band was so moved by the presence of the Hoopty, they felt compelled to serenade it.

And so ends another tailgate. It wasn't perfect - highs and lows, but it was a pretty good break from our so-called real life. You roll with the punches, grab the fame when you can, laugh as much as possible, spend time with the people you love, and when it's all said and done - shave off the remnants of the party and try to act serious until the next tailgate.

Tanya, Alice, and Bob we missed you guys.

Plates are in!

2005-11-01T20:45:00.000-05:00

Not much to update everyone on. I spent a couple hours scrubbing the interior of the Hoopty. A green scrubbie and a bottle or two of simple green and 20 years of crayons and dirty handprints came off. The inside actually smells somewhat normal and when you take a ride and get out, you don't feel like you need a shower.

The license plates arrived and are now proudly displayed. All of the obvious choices were already taken so we had to be tad creative.

Currently the Hoopty is at the shop trying to pass inspection. The first go 'round resulted in a big fat failure. The goofy fold up theatre seat is loose, the driver side view mirror is too flimsy with one of its mounts pulling out of the door, and in the state of VA you can't just paint over those groovy warning lights up top. You have to have them completely removed and blanked off. I'll get the estimate tomorrow. We may need to make a few temporary repairs just to get us past the inspection. I really need to find some replacement mirror assemblies (both the door mirrors and the fender mount blind spot mirrors).

Everything has to be ready by Thursday of this week (11/3/05) because the Hokie Hoopty will be making its inaugural tailgating appearance. The big VT - Miami game will be a night game on saturday and we plan on tailgating all day long with the Hoopty. So any of you Hokies out there, come to Lot 8, check out the Hoopty, and leave us a donation.

The next update will come after the Miami game and will include tailgating pictures as well as some potentially big and exciting news about the possibility of the Hoopty becoming a celebrity - hopefully more on this later.

The Long Journey Home

2005-10-17T21:09:00.000-05:00

Well, it's all said and done. The Hokie Hoopty is now home at last. After many years serving duty as a school bus and as a bus for the scouts, Double H (as Sophie likes to call it) has reached its final destination, its true calling, its home.

Friday afternoon Jeanell, Sophie, and I started the journey to bring the Hoopty home. That morning Sophie's first words as she woke up were "It's Double H Day!!!". Excitement was in the air. Five and half hours later we arrived in the parking lot of the church that serves as a base for Troop 99. One quick phone call and Matt & Karen Allen, the current owners, were on the way with Double H. It was on the edge of darkness so it was an impressive sight to see her roll up the road with all her extra lights gleaming. A few quick paperwork exchanges and the deed was done.

The first great surprise was that despite having a standard van passenger door, it does indeed, have a bus door mechanism. Makes me feel so very special opening that door and inviting wary travelers into the safe and cozy atmosphere of the Hoopty.

The second great surprise was the spaciousness of the interior. The passenger area behind the driver and navigator seats measures approximately 12' - 3" long and 7' - 3" wide. That's plenty of room for us to work some tailgating magic. The navigator seat is a theater seat that someone screwed into place. It works quite well - the seats folds up and out of the way to make for more room at the entry.

After securing our new tailgating fantasy, we headed off to search for some late dinner and a hotel room. The dinner was easy to find, the room was not. Turns out, lots of people like to visit the amish and the chocolate factory and whatever other points of interest exist in the area because the first two hotels we stopped at were completely booked. However, they did point us to the only hotel they knew of with vacancies. A short drive later and 150 ducks lighter and we were able to rest our weary heads. It should be noted that during the drive to the hotel "something" flew out from under the Hoopty and almost hit Jeanell following in her van. When we reached the hotel she asked if I had lost anything. Everything seemed to drive fine so it was probably just something we ran over....probably.

The next morning we checked out and started our pre-journey preparations. Oil looked good, transmission fluid looked good, needed a bit of antifreeze, and we were hurting for some petrol. The gas station parking lot served as the starting point for the return trip - gassing up, loading up, and posing for pictures.

Here are the proud new parents (all three of us). All of the appropriate Hokie gear is on and Hokie magnets applied.

As usual, Sophie felt compelled to strike a pose that clearly indicated how much she loves her parents and how happy she is to be an integral part of our happy family unit. Somehow she always finds ways to make us proud.

She was ready for the long journey home. A milk crate filled with toys strapped into the seat next to her.

The ride home was surprisingly uneventful. No mechanical malfunctions, no emotional breakdowns. The Hoopty cruised happily along at 60 to 65 mph although the speedometer reads about 6 mph slow.

A man, his machine, and the open road. If only Kerouac could see me now.

We did stop over in the land of the enemy to meet with the boys of the Walker clan. A little Hoopty walk-through and some lunch was enough time spent in pre-game charlottesville.

The trip from the evil place down to Lynchburg yielded one statistically impossible event. We were passed by our friends, the Miller family, on the way home from Rhonda's college reunion. With Matt driving and baby Anna hanging out in the back, Rhonda was able to click off a few action photos of the Hokie Hoopty performing some of its magic at 55 mph.

Finally, at home we thought we could relax a bit, but alas it wasn't meant to be. Children gathered, parents gathered and we were off again, taking a group of neighbors for a quick trip around a few blocks in the world renowned Hokie Hoopty. Sophie and her friend Audrey enjoyed the bus so much, they decided to give it an abbreviated wash. But in the end, all that mattered was that the Hoopty was home.

I have a dream

2005-10-09T08:44:00.000-05:00

....and so it began with nothing more than a dream. A dream (in color - maroon and orange of course) of taking our tailgating experiences to a new, elevated level. The Big Dance of tailgating is an invitation-only event, and the only way to secure an invitation is to create the sort of tailgating experience that is looked upon with awe and disbelief.

Sure, we had the EZ-up, folding chairs, folding tables, two portable grills, coolers, and totes filled with the miscellaneous tools of the tailgating trade, but these are nothing more than the bare essentials. Our ability to expand beyond the necessities was severely limited by our undeveloped processes and structures related to storing, transporting, setting up, and tearing down our tiny tailgating town. Stepping up to the next level requires everything to be bigger and better and the only way to make those sort of advances without increasing the difficulty of setup/teardown can only mean one thing.............

It was time for a dedicated tailgating vehicle. One vehicle that can store all of our tailgating components in an organized and easily accessible manner. One vehicle that will carry all of the equipment and most of the people to and from our vacation home space in Lot 8. The time has come for a BUS. Yes, there, I said it. A bus. The dream had begun, the ideas developed, the designs conceptualized. The only problem was finding a suitable vehicular starting point.

It's four games into the 2005 season and one day before our homecoming game with Marshall, and a miracle has occurred. A website, an auction, a bus, a bid, a VICTORY! Our Hokie gang is now the proud owner of a 1988 Chevy, 14 passenger short bus with 97,000 miles currently being used by a boy scout troop in Lancaster Pennsylvania. College football bliss for only $651.

Allow me to introduce you to The Hokie Hoopty. Ok, it's not terribly pretty (yet), but the potential is there. Not sure what that white stuff is on the side - paint, bondo, who knows. It doesn't have the typical bus doors. It has the standard van door, but the passenger seat is gone so it's easy to walk through to the back. Lots of rust on the step leading into the passenger door, but there doesn't appear to be much more in other areas.

Oooh, big dent. Apparently there was an unfortunate canoe-trailer jack-knife event with the boy scout troop. Note the rear entrance door (i.e. tailgating equipment hatch) and the tinted windows.

Hopefully the cool blinking lights are operational. If not, we will make them operational. That space between the blinking lights is just begging for the Hokie Hoopty title.

There are three sets of seats still installed. The last row was removed by the scout troop to allow for more storage room in the very back. We may find it beneficial to take out one more row of seats to give us sufficient space to put all of our gear.

As you can see, there is some room behind the last row of seats, but I don't think it will be enough.

Now is the time to let your creative juices flow. The ideas have already started: plenty of maroon and orange paint, a horn that plays "enter sandman" and/or the Hokie gobble, an RV style awning off one side, a ramp out the back for getting gear in and out, a large platform on the roof for upper level tailgating, the obligatory satellite and tv, stereo and speakers, a tap and mini-keg capability, and a stripper pole (ok, maybe not).

The next step and next installment on this site will cover the momentous journey that Jeanell and I will undertake to Pennsylvania so that we can see the Hoopty face to grill and attempt to drive her home. Stay tuned.