Welcome to Old Hippie’s Garage. Ironically enough, to quote “Uneasy Rider”: “I ain’t even GOT a garage; you can call home and ask my wife!”

So, what are we about here? Old tractors. Old trucks. Hybrid cars. Motorcycles. Electric vehicles. The odd speculation on Life, The Universe, and Everything. This is a place to talk about what I’m doing, what you’re doing, and post some interesting and useful stuff that I run across from time to time.

Who’s the “Old Hippie?” The Old Hippie is Dr. Charles A. Hays in the TRU Department of Journalism. After a stimulating and adventure-filled career as a broadcast journalist I went for some real challenges and started teaching the next generation of hard-hitting reporters.

The Old Hippie is from “Old Hippie Tractor Repair (Peace, Love and Old Tractors)” — the business cards that my neighbours have next to their phone, so they can ring me up when the old Ford dies baling hay on a hot July day. I don’t know everything there is to know, but I generally manage to figure some stuff out.

What’s in the Old Hippie’s garage? A 1993 Ford truck we call the “Valdez” because it’s hit a few rocks and it leaks oil. A 2003 Honda Civic Hybrid of my wife’s — you can’t argue with 75 miles per Imperial gallon. A chopped Harley. A stock Suzuki AM 650 (the only one in Kamloops). An electric bike project that’s basically ready to roll once the ice is gone. And, of course, “Eminence Grease” — a 1950 Ferguson TEA-20 tractor that is slowly coming back to life.

I’ll have some pictures up soon of Eminence Grease. It appeared in my front yard after the guy who owned it said, “Something went bang.” Preliminary indications are that the head gasket is blown or maybe there’s a crack in the head over #1 cylinder. Oil in the coolant, water in the cylinder. This is not optimal.

So: Any other old tractor types out there? Anybody building an electric vehicle? Let’s put down the wrenches for a little while and talk about what’s up, what’s on, and what’s next.