Baxter Black - Dean's Driving School

Dean was in his eighties and still drove his pickup. This concerned his best friend Jack, who questioned the wisdom of riding with him. Dean based his self-confidence on the fact that he lived in western Kansas where you could drive from Hugoton to Bird City and never see a person wearing a suit and a tie!  

Dean was a cattle feeder and planned a trip to Sublett. He invited Jack to go with him. Against his better judgment, Jack agreed. Dean insisted on driving. To the credit of Kansas, the speed limit is high. Twenty miles from home, the truck started shaking. They pulled off on the shoulder and made an inspection. One of the rear tires was low.
 
On close examination they found a nail in the tread. These two wise sages pondered whether to try and fix it, which would entail crawling underneath the truck, letting the spare tire down, dragging it out from under the bed, jacking up the vehicle, spinning off the lugs, muscling the LT 265/70R 17 tire, etc., etc., etc.  

Dean made an executive decision; don’t pull the nail out, turn around and race back home before the air escapes out of the tire completely. Brilliant! Then have the tire fixed in town. Jack, who was a little younger, took over the driving, with Dean’s approval.  

They were flying (80 mph) down the long, bare, two-lane road, the tire thumping and shaking the steering wheel as Dean egged Jack on! As you would guess, they attracted the attention of a lonely Kansas State Trooper who turned on his flashing lights and pulled them over.

READ ENTIRE COLUMN