1940's willis jeep ownership: mid to late 1980's purchased for $800, sold for $1000 top speed: 45 mph (on flat road) virtually brake free driver seat mounted directly over gas can new meaning to "unsafe @ any speed"   this was the first vehicle that i ever got to drive. it lived @ horseshoe lake and was primarly used for hunting. the "renegade" stickers are actually boat ID labels. legend has it that this thing actually saw some action back in WWII.
1986 jeep loreado ownership: late 1980's manual 4 speed, 6 cylinder purchased for $5600 multiple roof options 7000 lbs warn winch installed   this was the car i took my driver's test in. it was probably the most fun vehicle i've ever had to drive. the black vinyl seats were an added bonus in the summer. after i had it, my brother-in-law bought it... then he sold it to a friend years later. that friend still has the vehicle, so it's still in the "family".
1970's box bronco ownership: early to mid 1990's purchased for $5000 top speed: never had nerve to find out required 2 parking spaces 42'' tires   not sure what we were thinking when we purhcased this thing. dad saw it @ a fillin' station in alabama (suprise) while driving to destin. was absolutely beautiful inside and out... but was just too big (wouldn't even come close to fittin' in the garage)
1987 mazda RX-7 convertable ownership: late 80's to mid 90's rotary engine, 5 speed CD player, bass cannons, surround sound   while i didn't drive the wheels off this thing (only put 24,000 miles on it in 8 years) it was a nice ride. it had an electric top and a wind damper that allowed you to roll around in 40 degree weather with the top down.
1988 ford F-150 ownership: early to mid 1990's put 78,000 miles on it straight 6, manual 5 speed power windows!   this vehicle got me thru college. was almost totally submerged in a sand field in 1993. took an alabama power utility truck to get me unstuck.
1997 ford F-150 ownership: 1996 - early 97 4.2L Triton V-8   this was the first year of the new model ford. i had waited for it to be released for 2 years once i saw some concept pictures of it. once i got it, the thing ran great... then we started having reverse problems. after having it fixed several times, the dealer got me into a new truck instead. you never know how much you use reverse until you dont have it any more... it's a mighty handy gear.
1998 ford F-150 ownership: late 90's - 2005 5.8L Triton V-8 dog not included   i got this truck right after the 1997 model i had quit backing up. best memory in this ride was my 3 week road trip to seattle in 1998. currently has 100,000+ miles on it. please note the front license plate which has been on all 4 of my Ford trucks and has traveled over 267,000 miles
1957 ford thunderbird ownership: late 1990's 312 V-8 3 speed automatic both tops (porthole) license plate: BLK BRD   the most beautiful ride i've ever had. installed a cd player in the glove box and a bass cannon in the trunk.
1988 honda PC ownership: early to mid 1990's 750cc dad had a matching one   made numerous road trips with dad and brother in law (chewy). chewy and i rode to whitewater arkansas and went trout fishing for 3 days back in '98 on this bike.
2000 cub cadet ownership: 2000 - present 16.5 hp 42'' dual blade cutting deck top speed: 9 mph 18 cubic foot trailer (not pictured)   purchased to tame the .56 acres i used to own in belle meade. if there are no major break downs, then by my math it will have been cheaper to purchase this thing (rather than pay somebody to mow my yard) in another 6 years.
schwinn dirt bike early 80's fiberglass wheels matching clothes not included   this was my first dirt bike, and it had all the options you could ever want! lightweight wheels, pads and a racing number. this was also the first thing i ever remember getting stolen (which will become a recurring theme with my rides: see suzuki 4 wheeler and VAL) i had it parked outside the video arcade that is now wangs @ park place mall.
1985 suzuki quad sport ownership: early to mid 80's 230cc 2 stroke 5 speed with clutch waaaaay to much machine for a 13 yr old   this 4 wheeler replaced the 125 suzuki that i "outgrew" and was the fastest thing around. it was the first time that i ever had to use a clutch, so there was a learning curve (primarly consisting of wheelies) that was frustrating at times. however, once i got it down it was a lot of fun. tragedy struck when it was stolen out of our driveway at 2:00 am back in 1987. a neighbor who watched the theft thought it was my dad just "moving it around" (at 2 am?)
1987 honda fourtrax racer ownership: late 80's to mid 90's 250cc 5 speed with clutch (wheelie machine) independent front suspension it floats!   good sense seemed to evaporate whenever you got on this thing. best memory was riding with my friend drew wilson in some tva drain tunnel and knocking my helmet on some pipe @ 40 mph and nearly falling off the back. a close second was the time we nearly killed adam by doing doughnuts with him clinging on to a snow dish attached with a rope. the rope broke, and adam smashed into a brick mailbox.
VAL ownership: mid 80's to mid 90's 6ft by 4 ft 4hp evinrude   i purchased this boat with my own money (whatever money i raised, dad matched) once we figured out the weight distribution, this thing would really scream. best memory was the time i got pulled around the lake by a rather large catfish. it was like that scene in jaws with the yellow barrels. jan and i participated in numerous 4th of july parades with great success. VAL was stolen from the lift @ horseshoe lake in 1989. to this day, it was the best boat i ever had.
ford tractor ownership: 1 summer day in 1987 1940's model   chris saenger (back) and i plowed up a piece of land @ horseshoe lake and created a track for our atv's. later on, that track became a baseball field. we use some cabled together RxR ties to flaten down the dirt after we tilled it up.