By the fall of 1982 the Hazzard County Knytes grew from a mere 20 members between Idaho and Utah, to over 50,000 members world wide. Seemed as though from some national press ink, and some influence from Dukes-of-Hazzard cast members word spread of the Knytes to just about every place that the Dukes were seen, we gained a chapter of the club.
In 1983 , my Mom passed away from COPD, and I was alone, but comforted by those local members of the club, as well as the entire cast of the TV show from which part of the club was formed on. While still grieving from Mom’s passing , still life needed to go on. The club put up , albeit pirate or outlaw, but put up a small radio station that was anything but tame or conformist. In fact one of the principles of the club, is to be anti-establishment , anti conformist. Just because the Government said you could not do something, did not mean ya’ll shouldn’t. By mid 1984, my waiver from the USMC , came and my orders to report for training (boot-camp) Arrived in the mail. So in June 1984, I loaded up my stuff, and to the Boise Airport after a stop at the Boise AFEES or Armed Forces Entrance Examination Station. Next morning I woke up at Paris Island, and so it went, until 1993 when by whatever reason I returned to Idaho. I got married and tried to cut out a living, but Idaho at the time was limited in opportunities. So in 1994 moved to Utah, and remained there until 1996.
After a serious divorce and much sorrow, found that my old home-stead could be reclaimed, so did so. However what I found was as I did in 1993, the Idaho I had left , was not the Idaho I returned to, except for one thing, the tenacity and brotherhood of the Hazzard County Knytes remained. With chapters growing, two new siblings grew out of the Hazzard County Knytes one for those into old John Deere farm equipment, co founded by Jerry Sloan former coach of the famed Utah Jazz, and one other sibling for those into custom Harley’s , called the Hazzard County Choppers Klub. At that point we as a group , thought our siblings or extensions were done. Not so.
In 1998 after the Trustee of the Montgomery Trust(my inheritance) decided that the old homestead in Hagerman was too far gone to be rehabilitated. So I moved to Jerome.
It was one of those times of divine inspiration. I had been watching BlackSheep Squadron on TV, one morning, and as if there was the intense urge to go outside, as I left the house, two F-4-U-1 Corsairs flew over the house. Of course my own service was in the VMA214 which is the revised official title of the VMF214 BlackSheep 3rd MEU or mew. I soon learned where those old Corsairs went, and shortly after and from talking to the owner of Airpower Unlimited there at the Jerome Airport, figured out that wrenching on cars was pale in comparison, to restoring old war birds, in the area of just dollars and sense, its the difference in a few hundred thousand bucks for a hot rod, to several million bucks for a restored warbird.
Found through research that Greg(Pappy ) Boyington, not exactly a poster model of the Marines was born in Idaho. Not only that, but my Dad had served with Pappy in the original squadron. So a call to the Hazzard County Knytes was made, and the formation of what would be called at first the BlackSheep Flying Club was formed. However the USMC was not entirely thrilled with that idea. In 2002 moved to Utah to work with a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series team, and being there with all those military aviators , the club grew.
By mid 2003 I spent the last of the liquid assets of the Montgomery Trust, bought a hangar at the Bountiful SkyPark, and in the fall of 2004 AyreWolf Aviation was born. Where we restored military warbirds. The club provided the client base and AyreWolf Aviation supplied the ability. It was and is a grand marriage. That has lasted until today.
With that in mind , the club in 2008 , decided to rename itself from the Hazzard County Knytes , into the Knytes-of-Anarchy, inspired by the hit TV show on the FX Cable network, Sons of Anarchy. However the constant over the years since 2004 to today has been AyreWolf Aviation and the club, that became the AyreWolvez Military Aviation Association. Which is establishing a charter here in the mini Cassia area.
What the AyreWolvez are all about, next time here in HazzardAyre, where Hazzard County, meets AyreWolf.
L8R Aviators
Quote of the day:
A myth is a religion in which no one any longer believes. - James Feibleman
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