Cap'n Krusty of West Coast Garage in Santa Maria, Ca, thought he had a line on a Porsche 912E for me, so during a vacation in Death Valley last week, I thought I'd take my rented 78 VW bus and go have a look see. The Porsche was a bust (and I'm still hunting for one, if you know of one). But while in DV, the alternator on the bus blew out and, 24 hrs later, 4 battery charges later, and about 3 dozen big freaking mountains later, in to Krusty's shop did I pull the VW.

While my girlfriend stood around bored, I check out Krusty's stable o' cars -- a couple of 914s, a Volvo P1800, some old Porsches -- and watched as Krusty worked his magic on the bus. He had other work to do, but he made room for me and my gal, got the job done right, and sent me on my way with a wave of his wrench.

Plus, he let me help him *twice*, by holding a screwdriver just so. Woo-woo! Thanks, Krusty!

Anyway, he's a great guy, a lot of fun, and I had a blast.

If you're in the area, you should definitely check out his shop. And him. He didn't seem nearly as, er, ah, krusty in person as I'd feared. Great guy! Thanks again! Wish we had more like him near me in the great NE!

first pic is of me watching the master at work. second one is of the bus and my long-suffering girlfriend.

You do realize you've blown his cover, don't you?

uh oh! i take it all back!

(dont want to get on Capn K's bad side. yeaow!)

Ummmm, I don't know who that was but it wasn't Cap'n Krusty. Krusty wears a hat and is clean shaven. He's also a few pounds heavier than whoever that was in the picture.