Before I expand on this, you have to understand how I even got involved.
It was back in 1978, the Dukes-of-Hazzard had just started to air , but understand it had only been a few years before a mid aged young man named Gy Waldron, came to our farm to go hunting quail. My mom being southern raised and all, made a dinner spread, hey anytime there’s company they are going away fed and a very full belly at that.
After dinner, Gy who had already spit out the MoonRunners, decided to take a walk, outside in our big tractor shop was our hot rod, yes you got it, painted John Deere Construction yellow orange, since its what we had and it was cheap, our battle flag and all on a 69 Chevy Caprice, with a big block 427 fat rat, that we took to the drag strip. Its name? General Jackson(sound familiar?) .
Of course Bro and I were always getting chased by every damn cop in three county’s, none of could, but they tried. Our biggest crime was leadfootitis. So a few years after here came the Dukes, Bro and I were kickin it one Friday afternoon, with a couple of the Kings of brews, I said that’s us. I was piss’d, Here some body took our idea on car and life and made a gall darn TV show about it, what about our cut?
But I thought, het can’t beat em join em. Over time relations healed Gy, and a few others of the cast of the Dukes came to Mom’s funeral, and the club continued to bloom as it does now, well sort of.
Between my last two marriages , hey I went to the altar 5 times, give it a break. But I had this idea, build a set town of the set of the Dukes, but make the buildings and all real, make business’ that are functional, etc. Call it Hazzard County CSA(Confederate-States-of-America) and put the thing just a tad bit south and west of the Town of Glenn’s Ferry, and just east of Hagerman where what was called Black Mesa, was. This was in 1987. So I got a bunch of the club together, petitioned the Idaho state Legislature for a new township, County, and Legislative district, with the base called Hazzard.
Then of course the bottom fell out of a bunch of things. Flying J, went bankrupt taking a majority of my family’s money with it, in the area of $150,million, of which we are told, we’ll get back $80,million of, if this current lawsuit with Pilot who bought Flying J, that is under investigation by the FBI amongst others for antitrust and fraud.
Any mile, the Trustee of the Montgomery Foundation retired, and by the time the new one got up to speed things Hazzard County while not dead was crawling as fast as Roscoe’s dog Flash going after a doggie numnum. But the club has kept this Hazzard County torch burning not only during the heat of the series, but even after , when most of the cast, had bagged it. Even Tom Wopat went off doing Broadway , as well as other series. Daisy went to Africa, but The Hazzard County Knytes, kept Hazzard alive. After all we took the Dukes and Hazzard beyond a TV show, we made it real, to where one can still send a letter to zip code 83332, and it arrives in Hazzard.
As for me The VMA214 USMC needed me, again to invade Iraq, and quite honestly, even with it all the way I had been treated by some cast members now that the TV show was kaput except for reruns, that were running , by the highway because in many cases the club was buying that hour so the show could run. But I was content in northern Utah, but I got a case of the missing Hazzard, blues, so for a short time moved to Wyoming, then on the scent of a bar gal that was leading me by her fanny, not telling me she was running from the Wyoming law for selling nose candy, we moved to Cassia County Idaho. After awhile came her kids, talk about the Brady Bunch, shoot, I had a mini Army. Over time I awoke one morning she was gone, radio gear and all but at least I had LexiBelle, my Toew Truck( sounds more like Cooter, don’t it?) In more ways than one I was for all intents Cooter at least of this area. In fact that’s what most people called me. It wasn’t until about a year prior to moving back here, that with my love of flying, and in the interest of really building the grand Lady(AirWolf), the only mach plus helicopter, I outgrew the Cooter nick name, but hey, where else could AyreWolf live better than Hazzard County?
In 2007 I saw this ad from some big so called, talk about a carpetbagger, but saw an ad for helpers and such $30.00 an hour in Hammett Idaho, a small town of 50 or so north of Glenn’s Ferry Idaho. So I took a look, got a place, up rooted and moved to Glenn’s Ferry, I’ll tell you more on that town in another entry. But I’m getting ahead of myself here.
In 2002 I saw where Ben was getting ready to Open Cooter’s Place(remember Hazzard County CSA?) in a rural area outside of Virginia. Okay fine, I thought great, he got money, but shouldn’t some credit be gave to our club at least for the damn idea? So I called Alma, Cooter’s best half someone I think is a very good person, but I said, you no doubt know about me, she said she did. I said rather than myself, and the club, competing with Ben and the new gig of Ben’s, how about us sharing and enjoying it. Two things got brought up, 4 Cooter’s Place stores in Idaho, Utah, Wyoming and to unite them at least every other year a DukesFest West(aka-Hazzard Nationals) out here.
The economy of this nation was in the tank even then. Families just did not have mucho money to load the kids up in the SUV or Mini van and go to Virginia, Nashville or Georgia, but wanted to shake hands with Dukes cast members, get a pic with the General Lee, and groove on the sounds of Cooter’ Garage Band( The Knytes had a band too, go figure). So I pitched the idea to both Ben , Alma and Scott Romaine, all said if you can do it go for it we’ll help where we can.
That was in 2002 and a half. I want to know where that damn help is?
By now many would think, if this was something I was in and had been abused by, I’d have gotten out of it by now. But myself and our founding members can’t, as I have said it many times before, Hazzard is not a place on earth, or a TV show, it’s a place in the heart where anything can happen if your willing to apply some sweat to it. Forget Hazzard? You might as well cut my lungs out.
So I was in Glenn’s Ferry, 2008 July to be exact. After surveying much of the founders the few that were around were more urban than rural, the attitude, had changed, financial and other promises from the Hazzard elite had never came. Many wanted to disband. So we all were tanking at Shorty’s Saloon in Boise, this was September 2008. The decision was made, keep the link to Hazzard County through the Knytes, but look for a way to enhance the club and go more sub-urban rather than so much rural.
So I was kicking it that same weekend, reruns of SOA, came on, the only show that would come in that night, hey can’t ignore the workings of the lord, a call to Kurt Sutter, basic agreement, give us story ideas, we give you rights to SOA, and where we can trickle down funds. Okay. So in February 2009, The Knytes-of-Anarchy was born, half Dukes of Hazzard , half SOA(SAMCROMC) us just being in the script lines the Idaho Nomad Charter. Hey it works. The real difference here, is the Knytes-of-Anarchy is more Over the road long haul trucks than bikes. Both demos are into the same things, fast rides, open highway hot women good food. With a truck rather than a Harley, you have more wheels and sheet metal. That’s about all.
But Damn I’d still like to have some of that Dukes support we were promised, right after Mom passed and all.
More L8R I need sleep have Emmathon on at 10:00 hours(that’s 10:00AM for you none military folks).
Quote of the Day:
All good books are alike in that they are truer than if they had really happened.
--Ernest Hemingway
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