superconductor Posted August 15, 2006 Share Posted August 15, 2006 By all accounts, Ben had an idyllic childhood. Living in the country with room to roam, he and his elder brother Carl weren't the best in school, but both were very mechanically inclined. One lazy afternoon they decided it would be a good idea to build a go-kart. They started making a wooden frame, but decided that wood was too heavy. So, with help from their father, they fashioned a tubular metal chassis. On went a lawnmower engine, a chain and a gear, a set of wheels, a throttle, a rudimentary brake and a joystick they used for steering. It made a terrible racket. The old two-stroke engine blapped and farted out great clouds of blue smoke, and didn't generate enough power. So they disassembled the engine, fixed it up, put on a different gear and tried it in the driveway. Finally, after about a month of working on the go-kart, they figured it was ready for a road test. Carl suggested that Ben take it out on his birthday, which was last week. They started it up, Ben sat in the shuddering contraption, and gently applied the throttle. The engine revved, the kart crept forward. Ben turned it around before he got to the end of the driveway to make sure the steering and brake worked properly. Then he perched the kart by the garage, holding the brake and revving the engine. In a burst of smoke and noise, he released the brake and slammed the throttle.The drive wheels skidded a bit on the sandy driveway, then he was off. Down the driveway he hurtled, aiming for the apex of the turn where the driveway met the road. A short twitch to the left on the steering wheel... Police say that there was no way he could have known that a truck was barrelling down the road at the same time. Ben's crushed body was removed from the wreckage by the paramedics. He never had a chance. Funeral is later today. Closed casket. Ben was 12 years old. Link to post Share on other sites
a4a Posted August 15, 2006 Share Posted August 15, 2006 Should I post the true story of the teen snowmobiler that was decapitated by a electric fence wire that he did not see? Link to post Share on other sites
littlekitty Posted August 15, 2006 Share Posted August 15, 2006 Should I post the true story of the teen snowmobiler that was decapitated by a electric fence wire that he did not see? Please do....! Link to post Share on other sites
Adunaphel Posted August 15, 2006 Share Posted August 15, 2006 I am glad I am not a parent when reading stories like this one. Link to post Share on other sites
a4a Posted August 15, 2006 Share Posted August 15, 2006 Please do....! Well that was the story happened when I was 10ish to a high school kid about 1/2 mile from our home. The teens parents attempted to sue the property owner for not having all the wire marked..... this is the thin electric wire used to contain livestock..... the teen was trespassing in the pasture with the snowmobile. The passenger (gf) lived and was not hurt. end o' story......... Link to post Share on other sites
littlekitty Posted August 15, 2006 Share Posted August 15, 2006 Well that was the story happened when I was 10ish to a high school kid about 1/2 mile from our home. The teens parents attempted to sue the property owner for not having all the wire marked..... this is the thin electric wire used to contain livestock..... the teen was trespassing in the pasture with the snowmobile. The passenger (gf) lived and was not hurt. end o' story......... Nasty...! I guess the lesson there is don't trespass! Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts