Alumni Sandstorm ~ 04/04/05
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4 Bombers sent stuff: 
Dick McCoy ('45), Betty Hiser ('49)
Bill Berlin ('56), Dennis McGrath ('63WB)
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BOMBER BIRTHDAY Today: Jan Nelson ('60)
BOMBER BIRTHDAY Today: Nancy Erlandson ('67)

BOMBER CALENDAR: Richland Bombers Calendar
    Click the event you want to know more about.
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>>From: Dick McCoy ('45)

Re: POW
To: Burt Pierard ('59)
    Prisoners that spoke Italian and German? I agree with you that 
they were conscientious objectors, nearly the whole Italian army was. 
Do you also believe that the powers that were would not cover up the 
POW situation?

-Dick McCoy, the milkman of the Class of 1945
        Broncs, Beavers, Bombers and Bull
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>>From: Betty Hiser Gulley ('49)

Millie Finch Gregg ('54): My sister, Marjorie "Midge" Hiser Baldwin 
graduated with your class. I will send her Carol's address.

Larry Mattingly ('60): At first I went to the Lutheran Church located in 
a building on Gillespie and Goethals (later changed to Jadwin) - where 
the Southside United Protestant Church is now. Then they started a 
Baptist (Southern) at Lewis and Clark (L&C) for several years before 
they build their church on Richmond and Raleigh. There must have been 
other churches going to L&C - I used to hear them singing in other 
rooms.

Weren't all the Richland schools under AEC? There should not have been
any rent in the very early days. I worked for the Richland School
District in 1950-1951 and when AEC wanted to use the Conference Room in
the School District Building (on Snow) they just called up the school
district and said we will be (not may we?) using the conference room at
such and such a time. The school district had no choice but to let AEC
have the room. The secretary for the Richland School District used to
swear under her breath because the guys from AEC would smoke and she
would open all the windows in the building when the AEC meeting was
over. Talk about memories - that brought back a few!!!

I used to talk to people from all over and no one had ever heard of a
United Protestant church anywhere. They would ask me what the purpose
was - I wasn't sure - I just told them they needed to start up churches
and there were not enough Methodists, Baptists, etc. to have a separate
church. Good movement I thought.

My first job was with the school district as a memograph and ditto
operator. I just put in paper in my printer when I remembered as a
memograph operator I had to put in an entire ream (500 sheets) of paper.
It is so frustrating just to put in a few sheets at a time.

Although I am not Catholic I wish to express my sorry of the death of
the Pope. I thought he did many good things for the church.

Hope you all remembered to spring forward. Lots of people will be late
for church or Sunday School.

-Betty Hiser Gulley '49er - south/government Richland - sprinkled a few 
               drops last night - sun is trying to shine - coolish.
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>>From: Bill Berlin ('56)

To: Mike Brady ('61)
    Boy, that brings back memories. I coached Junior Football and Junior
High girls basketball at the Magnolia Rec Centre in Seattle a bunch of
years ago. We would always have a "game day" for the little kids'
basketball teams too, with 8 foot hoops, and it was something to behold.
I would have even paid admission it was such a good show... and you are
correct, the place was packed with proud parents. By the time these kids
got to Junior High they were pretty accomplished players and the proud
parents became Coach killers. We had four Rec Centre teams and I would
take all the kids that were "cut" plus a single player of my choice from
the other three teams and make up the forth team. We were not great but
in one case we beat the "big shots" in the last game of the season and
kept them out of the city championships. I did get a couple of death
threat calls at home and nobody at the Rec Centre would talk to me for a
few months but that was what our team of "losers" lived for. I loved it.
    Ah yes, I can remember the Prosser Mustangs in my Bomber days (1954-
1956) and we had a saying for them... "if it were not for Prosser, the
rest of the league would have to take turns losing." They have gotten a
lot better over the years.

-Bill Berlin ('56) ~ in Anacortes, WA where the tulips have survived two
      BIG wind storms lately. I was afraid after the second one that 
      the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival had been moved over the mountains 
      to Wenatchee... but they survived. In addition to all that colour, 
      we still have around 20,000 Show Geese in the Valley. Very cool.
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>>From: Dennis McGrath ('63WB)

To: Stu Osborn ('71)
Re: Hodaka/Pabatco
Stu, glad to see somebody else that appreciates vintage Japanese
motorcycles. Most people don't realize that Hodaka was a joint
American/Japanese enterprise. The tank badges pretty much told the
story. Hodaka/Pabatco: "Pacific basin, Trading, Company" was a family
owned business located in Athena, Oregon. Talk about the proverbial
"American Dream." It started as a relatively small business and soon
escalated into a multimillion dollar concern.

To attest to the reliability of Hodaka motorcycles, I raced a 100cc
Super Rat in the Barstow to Vegas motorcycle race in 1971 and placed 
top ten percent of class out of 3800 motorcycles. 187 miles of the most
unforgiving real estate known to mankind!

Hodaka was at the top of their game in the early '70s. They were known
as "trail bikes" and in Race District 37 (CA Desert) competed in the
"Trail Class" (100cc or less). The Super Rat, Combat Wombat, and Super
Combat were not trail bikes, they were all out race bikes with a minimum
of modification. Very good motorcycles.

Both of my sons still race motorcycles and both were taught how to ride
on Hodakas. Started them out on a Steens/Hodaka and then onto the Ace
100, and then to the Super Rat.

I restored a 1974 "red tank" Super Rat and it now resides in the AMA
museum. A fitting place for such a neat bike. Hodaka was very creative
with the names of their bikes. Such as: Road Toad, Wombat, Super Rat,
Combat Wombat, etc. If I remember correctly, didn't they call the one
and only 250cc bike they manufactured a Thunder Dog?

If you need help in locating replacement parts for your "Hodies" let me
know, I have several sources.

-Dennis McGrath ('63WB)
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That's it for today. Please send more.
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