Dave & Teds Most Excellent Adventures 2013

[CyncySpyder]

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We had to stop by the shop today & you could tell Teddy was drugged up, but he wanted to ryde, and ryde he did. Once there, he acted like nothing was wrong & immediately headed for the office to get his doggy treat, walking on all 4 legs Stan stopped by a little bit ago, and I swear, he (Teddy) actually ran on all 4, tho I know its just masked by the pain meds, but it sure is reassuring to see. He's so much stronger than I

[daveinva]

Yeesh Dave, just read the Teddy news... horrible stuff. Glad he's doing better, but you let him take it easy, you hear? Don't push him off the DL too soon!

[Rock'nSTLtd]

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We had to stop by the shop today & you could tell Teddy was drugged up, but he wanted to ryde, and ryde he did. Once there, he acted like nothing was wrong & immediately headed for the office to get his doggy treat, walking on all 4 legs Stan stopped by a little bit ago, and I swear, he (Teddy) actually ran on all 4, tho I know its just masked by the pain meds, but it sure is reassuring to see. He's so much stronger than I

Oh Dave, my heart ached while I read your posts. I am so glad that Teddy is doing better. It is hard when we feel responsible for the pain our loved ones feel. Take care.

[SnoWhite]

Oh Dave I just heard about the accident. I was panicked as I was reading your post. But thank God, Teddy and you are going to be fine. It could have been so much worse. Please try to accept what happen as an accident and this was just a wake up call to be especially careful and not to let your guard down when ryding with Teddy.
Some one else said Teddy has already forgiven you, it is time for you to forgive yourself too. Teddy means the world to you and you to him. Take time to let Teddy and yourself heal.. Give Teddy lots of Hugs and kisses. God and his angels were watching over you two. Please take care and keep us posted on Teddy progress. Prays for a speedy recovery for you both.

[Zenagirl]

Please let me 1st say, this is no one's fault but my own. Accidents happen & most of us try our best to avoid or prepare for the worse & the same has been true when it comes to Teddy, but yesterday I failed him

I've known for a while that group ryding really isn't a good fit for us, as I've written about in previous posts, for different reasons. But one reason I hadn't discussed was the attention that it takes to be part of a group ryde less alone the attention it takes to be a group leader & sadly, that attention has to come from somewhere and yesterday, that was to Teddy's detriment

Long story short, I had the Teddy-Cam set to the 2nd camera to watch for the ryders following behind us, and not on Teddy. The GPS leading our group to Lamonts from Maggie Valley called for us to take a small side road when I noticed the yellow Spyder was no longer behind us as they were, so we had to come to an abrupt stop so they could catch up & not miss the sharp turn. I hadn't realized that Teddy was standing when we came to the abrupt stop & consequently flipped over the side of his carrier. His safety harness did its job & kept him from being thrown from the sled. But then, something unplanned for happened.

His Vet, Dr. Neiman, confirmed he had gained over a pound over this past weekend and in doing so, his 12+ pounds caused the adjustable strap used to tether him to slip to its full-out position, unthinkably allowing him to hang low enough to come into contact with the hot exhaust & even the road with his hind paws

With the camera set for rear view, I didn't see this & my attention was on the group instead of him His safety harness secures around his chest and front paws, so there was no chance he would get choked, thank god but with the adjustable strap let out to its fullest due to his weight, he was hanging there next to the exhaust and with his tippy toes of his hind paws touching the asphalt and I did the unthinkable not knowing this, when I saw a Spyder pulling in behind us, I started going forward again

We had done the Dragon & the Rattler & he had never had an issue with keeping his balance & I guess I was complacent in his safety & allowed my attention to be flowed to other priorities, that of the group instead of where it should always be, on him.

I had just rolled on the throttle when Stan, who was behind us saw what had happened and started honking his horn to alert me Probably saving Teddy's life Not knowing why he was honking, I let off the throttle and quickly checked my mirrors & saw Teddy hanging over the side of the right saddle-bag the frantic look in his little eyes will likely haunt me forever. Sheer Panic, struggling to do what he could to stay away from the intense heat of the exhaust & keep his paws off the asphalt.

I instinctively did as we'd practiced, and immediately reached back and swung him back up into his carrier where he was once again safe. I switched the camera and could see he was ok, stressing and licking his rear paws, but ok for the most part. We kept going following the group the next 5 minutes to Lamonts, and then proceeded to give him a thorough check out once we got stopped at his wifes sewing cabin so we were kind of out of sight so we could do the assessment without immediately getting bombarded by his fans.

He wouldn't walk on his left rear leg & I feared he had broken it, but couldn't feel anything broken, but the pad on his paw was burnt & had signs of road rash with a tinge of blood. My heart sank, cause this was my fault, and I started stressing. Did what I could, put a fresh ice pack under his carrier pad for him, so he at least had a cool pad to sit on & thankfully Bobby & his wife gave me a tube of burn cream that they had & I applied it to his injured rear paws. Stan stayed and talked with me to help calm my nerves & Robin & her husband was kind enough to go get food for both of us, thank you all.

For the most part, I didn't say anything to anyone that stopped to take pics, as it was more drama than I could've dealt with at the time, so if I was short with you, my apologies. Teddy was able to pose for a few pics but he was hot and stressed so as soon as Robin got her new exhaust installed, the 4 of us took our leave, heading back to Cincy.

With me being so stressed, and over heated, I had to stop after a couple of hours cause I was getting dizzy and the beginnings of a migraine& noticed I had problems keeping the sled in a straight line, so I didn't push myself, m fearing a wreck & stopped at the next fuel station. I explained to the others how my body is, and that the only thing that would help me was to take a nap, so I got them to agree to leave us behind & to go on, and that we'd take a nap and then head back out when I felt better.

TBC........... sorry, battery almost dead......... the rest later, just know, Teddy will be ok

I am SO SO sorry to hear about Teddy, and my heart goes out to YOU too for the pain you are going through as well!!! God bless you both and praying for a speedy and complete recovery for both of you!!! You poor sweethearts!! Accidents do happen and you have to stop beating yourself up for it. Teddy knows you love him with all of your heart and you would never do anything to hurt him. He loves you and knows you will always do your best for him. Hugs to you both!!!

[CyncySpyder]

I've lamented on here before about knowing what to post and what not to post, seeing as this IS a PUBLIC forum, some things just aren't smart to post here. The defining determination is WHY DO I DO THIS? Part of the reason is selfish, as my memory sucks, so by documenting this on a daily basis, I can always look up a certain time period or adventure and there it is, it comes right back just like the day Teddy & I lived thru it. But my ultimate reasoning for blogging our adventures always comes back to WILL THIS HELP SOMEONE?

I mean, for the most part, that's why I do this, that's why I blog about Teddy and his Adventures of ryding around the country on his Spyder, more often than not, making someone's day that just happend to see the lil guy ryding around town, on HIS Spyder, donning his Doggles, like he owned the world. He's a loveable pup, kind of unique, somewhat interesting, and most of all, HE MAKES PEOPLE HAPPY, what's not to like about that?

I on the other hand, am not Teddy, I am human, I make mistakes like we all do, but sometimes those mistakes can hurt others without having that intention, and that's not something I take lightly. You see, I was raised to be a care-taker, and that's part of my personality that I can't change, and making people happy is just second nature for me, so I think that's why Teddy & I are such a perfect compliment for each other.

But I'm often reminded of a classic quote by (I think) Abe Lincoln, about YOU CAN'T PLEASE ALL THE PEOPLE ALL THE TIME. And I know this, understand this, and for the most part, accept it. But when I do mess up, and then my character gets slaughterd, well, I guess this is where I wish I had thicker skin. A knife can wound, heck it can kill, but if its not life threatening, the wound will heal. I guess when ones own integrity is questioned, it causes you to reevaluate yourself. For the most part, flaws and all, I am a good person, and I do care about ALL OF YOU, Teddy's Fans that follow along with our adventures, probably more than YOU personally will ever know. ALL of your support, kindness, love, generosity, all of your positive energy is Truly Appreciated. Words seem so lacking, but I know not how to convey feelings any other way in a medium such as this.

Actions do speak louder than words. I admit, I screwed up, but please believe me, it was not intentional, and I do apologize. (this has nothing to do with Teddy's accident, but a situation that happened on a group ryde from MV to Lamonts)
I have to let this go, cause its eating away at me emotionally, so draining, such a vile feeling, I need to develop that thicker skin. End of this, its done, its over, I'm letting it go. I hope........

[SilverCruiser]

We just found out about you and Teddy. I am so glad he is getting better Try not to beat yourself up too bad. An accident is just that, an accident. Wink & Maria

[lookerjdc]

take care of the Tedster - we cant have him limping around - the little guy is way to frisky

and keep writing Dave - you're right, you cant please all the people all the time, but you please a large portion of us with your trials and tribulations

keep writing - your trials and tribulations are great

mistakes and accidents happen

after having you and Teddy as room mates at Spyderfest, I have a much greater appreciation of your situation - watching you getting mobbed by people eager to see Teddfy, after seeing you 'left behind' at the lake, after having a first hand experience of it all makes me much more empathetic of your unique situation(s). you are constantly under pressure to 'perform' with Teddy, and it has to take its toll one you - just rest up

its like I mentioned earlier... I saw you pull in to the parking lot at the owners event and i was like 'ok, cool, there they are' and then saw you get mobbed by a crowd for like 40 minutes - I was eating lunch at the time so I figured I would finish lunch and then go over and say hi to you and Teddy, but by the time I had finished, you were gone - for all I know you could have crawled into your trailer for some rest but I wasnt going to knock...

on a side not........I met someone at the owners event at the Wheels of Time museum who has a shoe leather dog basket on their passenger seat - I'm sorry, but I dont remember her name, but I did take a couple of picturesIMG_3455.jpg

[CyncySpyder]

I know the pain meds are masking much of it, but as of last night, you couldn't hardly tell there was a problem with the pup besides having those glazed over eyes kinda reminds me of look'n at a stoner

Was funny, we ran out to the country where there's a DQ to pick up a Blizzard treat for my brother that just had surgery on his arm, and soon after, I get a text msg from our new Local Spyder Buddies that we met at the Owners Event, Robin & Tim. "We just saw you and Teddy, we were right in front of you, tho in our white car. Heading to dinner, come join us." Wow, small world aint it We had to decline their offer tho, since we were already at my bro's and needed to catch up on how he's progressing with his recent surgery, but was still nice to be asked out. I'm so glad that we met them, and only had to go 300 miles to do it

We also got another text and a call from 2 other locals, inviting us out to Milford's Quaker Steak & Lube for their Bike Night, but decided it best to pass on that, cause Teddy's just not in a condition to be pose'n all the time for pics and what not Just wouldn't be right even tho I know if treats were involved, the lil guy would do just about anything

My brother hadn't seen Teddy in a week or two, and he even commented how 'Husky' the lil porker was looking I was like, "Dude, wrong breed!" We both got a laugh outta that but Teddy he was just drool'n away wanting some ice cream

[NoJive]

My wife and I had the great pleasure of meeting you and Teddy in Maggie Valley, and just wanted to say we have you both in our thoughts. Here is a blurry pic of Ted giving my wife a high 5! Awesome little guy!

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[ARtraveler]

I am so sorry to hear of the accident. Things happen, even when we try to make all kinds of plans to avoid them. Please do not beat yourself up over this. Teddy will recover, and all will be well again.

Thoughts and go with you and Teddy.

[CyncySpyder]

Our Internet at home isn't working correctly, hasn't been for a couple of weeks really, so I gave in and called the router tech support back and agreed to pay for the PREMIUM SUPPORT to get it fixed, cause the router is about 2 yrs old and out of warranty. Well, after an hour and a half of struggling to understand the kind lady that was trying to help us, that I know had to be in India, even tho she said she was only allowed to say "They are globally located" she finally gave in and asked if she could over-take our computer to do what needed to be done herself, which if it fixes our problem, by all means, have at it Well, after another hour and a half, she finally gave in and said, there you go, that's the best I can get it for you. But it was exactly the same reception as when we started the call over 3 hours earlier I wonder if she got in trouble for spending so long on a PREMIUM service call, and not collecting a dime for it. She still tried to get me to agree to pay the almost $200 for their Premium 1 year Full Service Contract, but I insisted she corrected nothing and suggested I buy a new router, so I insisted I wasn't going to pay for a service contract for something I had to go & buy new, which will then come with its own warranty So she then tried to get me to agree to at least pay $40 for the one time service fee, but again, I insisted no, cause even tho she did spend alot of time on the issue, she never corrected the issue & that was the entire purpose of the call which she couldn't correct and she finally relented in agreeing that she wouldn't charge me anything, but all my wasted time and frustration UGH!!!

So our net use right now is kind of limited to work and every now and then, when we have a good signal, I can make a post from home, but that's hit and miss til we get a new router or switch to a new ISP

On an unrelated note, I've been keeping Teddy pretty well drugged up, but while on the phone for so long, and him being bored, he demamded I play fetch with him, and I swear, for a few minutes, he was even running down the hall on all 4 legs like nothing had ever happened Told ya's, this pup is way stronger than I

[eddieshep999]

Dave

Thanks for the updates I have been away on Holiday via car not Spyder this time but was able to log in to see the progress since Teddies accident - Gland to hear he is recovering well

Not sure if you remember this advertising slogan as used by BRP

Discover riding. Reinvented.

Experience the thrill of open-air riding. Times three. With a distinctive three-wheeled stance



They must have known about Teddy all along and perhaps they could adapt it to a three legged stance just for you both

Hope you get the internet problem sorted out and I look forward to the next instalment as always

Best wishes from your UK followers

[CyncySpyder]

He's such a ham, always adding the tongue action when it comes to the ladies Was good to meet ya's as well

[CyncySpyder]

But here goes my brain again, off on something totally different, but thought it worth sharing and possibly getting some feedback.

TBC ..................... work work work

[CyncySpyder]

Creative minds, they aren't all the same ya know Mine, not so creative but it did come up with this for a sun-canopy to protect Teddy from getting sun-burned while summer ryding, and to help provide the lil guy with a more comfortable ryde which for the past year, it worked as hoped, designed & executed

Above is our prototype Version 1.0 tho it had gone thru many different incarnations, coverings, colors, looks and numerous mounting techniques, it worked. My major flaw with it however was drilling my own hole at the front center point to allow a mounting point for our third pole ram-mount/pvc leg support. Whenever you drill something like a shield, you weaken its integrity, and along with all the vibrations and turbulence from the wind, it finally gave way and cracked on our rigid ryde to this years SpyderFest

So now, we're on Version 2.0 and soon to be 2.1 cause I'm not entirely happy with our new set-up, even tho it is performing well, its just not good enough, and then I've really been struggling with being able to add rain protection for our lil star, cause at past events, both Owners, SpyderFest and SITA all three that we try our best to regularly attend, we've always been caught in the rain, sometimes heavy downpours as many of you are all to familiar with yourselves. Well, as with any prototype, when you go on to the next Incarnation, you try to improve and make better your project, correct as many weaknesses as possible, and that's our intent here, with Teddys Sun-Canopy V2.0 as seen in this pic from this years Owners Event (thanks btw to Arrrrrr for the pic)

I'm tell'n ya, this work thing ................... ugh........... pays the bills but doesn't allow enough time for writing .....................
TBC once again .................................................. ...................

TBC............................ work work work

[lookerjdc]

when did Teddy go TRON?

you need some black light piping on his harness

[Daisyjoe]

Glad I got to meet you and Teddy at the OE. He is such a beautiful little dog with a huge personality. I sure hated to read about your accident. But it was just that, an accident. Glad Teddy is feeling better. Kudos to you for being such a kind, loving and caring owner.

[CyncySpyder]

Ok, so as you can see in the 2nd pic, that's Teddy sitting in the shade under his new Sun-Canopy. Whilest not ideal, as our previous Version was a moped wind-shield and much wider providing more shade underneath (& was donated) our new Version is a Yamaha Sport Shield & is much narrower, but was already tinted red and I found it last minute before our trip to Maggie Valley on Craigs List for only $40 & it worked, so it was worth it. I got smart this time, and didn't drill any holes, but used the 2 side pre-drilled holes to use our Ram-Ball Mounts, and then I found a suction-cup mount and used that for the front, and it has held up well, providing a decent amount of shade for the pup, and standing up well, even to almost triple digit winds from high speed expressway rydes


Sadly tho, it does little to nothing for adding rain protection for Teddy, so that got me to thinking, if we're gonna be able to make the SpyderQuest Event in upstate New York, we've gotta figure out a way of being able to add some type of protection system to keep the poor lil guy from get'n soaked like he has the past 3 years of long distance event travel. We have his enclosed carrier, but he really hates being cooped up in it, and I can't blame him, kind of takes away the entire spirit of the ryde. So there went my brain again, the gears a churn'n, a burning smell aloft in the air and WHAM!!!! It hit me.................................

TBC .................... work work work

[ThreeFeet]

OMG SOOOO glad that Teddy OK. maybe not 100% yet but give him a minute!!! You on the other hand WILL BE OK AS SOON AS YOU FORGIVE YOURSELF!!! You do EVERYTHING possible to make his little body safe. You have done all that and more so take it easy on yourself. If you feel really guilty you could always send Teddy over here and he and Skydy can be "friends" again!!! ( can't see THAT ever happening!!!!) Anyway glad i got to say hi to you at the OE. Took a friend and showed her about your fix for Teddy and you explained ALOT of that so I could fill her in and now anybody else that wants to take their pet for a ryde. Keep up the good work.

[OldCowboy]

The thing I most look forward to on Spyderlovers is the updates to "Dave & Teds Most Excellent Adventures 2013" Ted is one incredible companion and Dave is an excellent story teller. I hope to have my own Spyder by Spyderfest 2014 and look forward to meeting the two of you then.

[rabtech]

Dave when you get a few days off and can travel down to Cherokee area or deals gap you need to send me a PM. I will be in robbinsville area from july 1st till the 7th. My wife and I enjoyed having you and teddy as house guest at the owners event. Teddy was a blast. I always get a large cabin when I head up that way so im sure we have room for yall. Just let me know.

Sent from my Galaxy S3. I may have made a spelling error or may have some grammer issues. My fingers are way to big to type on this tiny screen!

[lookerjdc]

so how are you two doing today?

better I hope

My vertigo and Parkinsons kicked in yesterday so its been fun bouncing off the walls and furtniture

dont let things get you down - just take care of yourself and Teddy and the rest of the world will deal with itself.... for better or worse.... lol

[CyncySpyder]

I've started this post at least 6X now, only to just sit here blankly looking at the monitor til the laser or one of the other machines red lights, then I just exit & get on with work. Every time I try to start thinking about picking up our Adventure to SpyderFest 2013 my mind gets into a tizzy with everything I'm trying to jugle right now. We have so much to do and it seems every day, more is added to the pile, til the pile is so large it seems overwhelming. I know the logical thing is take one thing at a time, baby steps and eventually we'll get everything done. But sometimes, trying to figure out the priority to put things into, just in itself can be mind boggling.

Safety comes first and even tho I've made changes to Teddy's set-up, I don't have the confidence in it that I used to. I mean, before, we had tested it many times, always with the same result, he just hung on top of or next to the saddle bag, and never once did his adjustment strap release like it did in his real-world emergency. I thought I had forgiven myself for this, but maybe I haven't, I don't know. I thought it was behind me, but I went & got my hair cut on my lunch break, and I awlays have the same stylist (Great Clips) and she always asks about Teddy and our adventures and to see his latest pics, but when I was retelling it, all I could think of was the look in Teddy's eyes, when I realized what had happened and I looked in the mirror and saw him wide eyed and panicky. Just to think of it makes me nauseous.

I've got his passenger area tore apart right now, awaiting a couple of parts that I had to order on-line to hopefully make his compartment area safer along with adding protention for him when we're caught ryding in the rain.

Baby steps...... I know ...... I'm trying

[Spyder_Cowgirl]

Dave ... yes, baby steps -- one thing at a time and you WILL get there. Sort of know how you feel ... got notice of a "resource action" (fancy word for layoff) and my last day of employment is July 12th. Fortunately, I SORT OF saw this coming and was SOMEWHAT prepared (financially). I also have enough years to retire with full pension, so I'm pretty lucky there. It also gives me more ryde time with spydercowboy .... YAY!

HOWEVER, trying to make decisions about retirement benefits, how to continue medical coverage, if I should look for work, and so on .... all the while working on closing out my job (transfer of responsibilities) has me feeling like I'm "chasing my tail" (sorry for the doggy metaphor)!
It's all a bit stressful, even if I don't really want to admit it ..... lots of "stuff" to do and not much time left to contain it all.

So, like you ... one thing at a time and it will all get done. Maybe I have a bad attitude, but after July12th, what does or doesn't get done at work IS NOT MY PROBLEM!

Best Regards .... Ann