Peter Lebeck Chapter #1866

SOUND THE HEWGAG!! Pull out your red shirt and join us at the Santa Clarita Elks Lodge for a libation, a Hot Dog and a Clamper Tale or two this Saturday July 6, 2024.

Attached is a flyer from our Hawker Mike "12 Volt." The store will be set up with several new items picked up at Grand Council this past May. There are some great items for sale so bring plenty of CASH or a check. NO CREDIT CARDS !! FYI - There's an ATM in the Lodge Bar.

Also, the new PXL logo shirts came in and we have a both Short and Long Sleeve available. However, there is a limited number of long sleeve shirts. All Red shirts are $25!

Location: Santa Clarita Elks Lodge #2379 located at 17766 Sierra Highway, Canyon Country 91351.

Wishing you all a Happy 4th of July, hope to see you at the Red Shirt Saturday.

Be well and Clamp On!
     Dale "Top" Turner, XNGH/GDR
Clamp Crier

Hello Cloggites! Just a quick intermediate post before the upcoming news about our fall Doin's blots out the sun around my computer.

I had been saying for some time that I would be bringing badly outdated parts of our website out of the stone age, but there is still quite a bit to do, and I can only tackle so much. That said, I wanted to show off the first part of our plaquing page revision, which now displays large icons of each of our erections from 1963 to the present. In time, each icon will be connected to a page dedicated to each plaque with whatever history and background I can muster. I'm also working on a foreword to be linked to our charter Doin's icon.

History-wise that's a tall order. I've been a member of Peter Lebeck for over 30 years, but I was only 7 when the chapter was chartered, so knowledge of our past is at a premium and there aren't too many even second hand sources left to consult.

I've had the benefit of my camera for much of my time as a Lebeckian, and others have passed on photos and other materials in the hopes that I could use them eventually. I've also been able to count on the generosity of XXNGH Al Price and his Widder Jayne, who both volunteered to help with photographing plaques and collecting their histories even before Al started going up the chairs. Even as recently as this month, Brother Rob Burke sent a photo of a 1979 PXL plaque in downtown Bakersfield that was rumored to exist but which none of us could find.

I also heard rumors years ago of still another PXL plaque out there in the wild, but until it turns up, I'm going to say that our list is current and complete. Still, you want to keep your eyes open.

I've also heard talk of putting together a "plaque trek," where we'd take a day to visit every PXL plaque and monument in existence; but going from Taft, to above Kernville, then out to the Mojave Desert, doesn't seem too doable once you begin to map it out in your head. Kern County is a very, very big place. How many of us have made it out to the El Pasos as far as Burro Schmidt's Tunnel?

What I would like to see is for us to form a "plaque vigilance committee," dedicated to sprucing up our monuments. Both birds and vandals love plaques, but not in a good way. Lots of chapters make a point of tending to their plaques, and PXL has enough plaques that we should be actively looking after them at least once a year: Inspect them, evaluate the best and safest way to clean and preserve them, then spiffify! We could even plan day treks, doing a few plaques at a time, but we need Brothers with wheels who can research and coordinate.

That's my thought, anyway. In going through the photos of our erections, I was saddened by how little love some of these plaques have gotten over the years. Just one example is one of my favorite plaques, the monument at Randsburg to Randsburg and the Yellow Aster Mine. This erection has been standing tall for 35 years, and prior to posting its image, I was able to dress it up a bit digitally but Photoshop is not that same as real life.

Click on the unretouched version to the right to examine and compare. The Randsburg plaque's lettering isn't damaged though it could use some cleaning, but the paint is flaking off of the concrete and the monument is possibly suffering some spalling. Investing in some concrete patch, a can of Barkeeper's Friend and a couple of coats of paint would hardly break the budget, but the missing element is the effort of our own Brothers to preserve our past work.

Anyway, those are my thoughts. I'll be back soon with news of our Fall Doin's, "The Humbug's Revenge!"

 

Hello Cloggites, Mikee here, and welcome back to the PXL Clog, back online as promised to bring you up to speed. So here we go!

First off, an important notice and reminder from our ClampCrier, Dale "Top" Turner that this Saturday's June 1st Red Shirt Getaway will NOT be held at the Elk's Lodge in Santa Clarita but in Frazier Park. So don't go over here but come over there. We wanted to make it easier for our Brothers who live in Kern County, who would otherwise have to travel the extra distance, to have an easier opportunity to join us:

A few of you might remember the days, many full moons ago, when PXP Gene "DH" Duncker would complain that as ClampCrier no one gave him much to say, so he never had enough to cry about? Well, I can assure you that that is no longer the case, and as Cyberrecorder, even I'm getting it from multiple fronts. So my apologies ahead of time. I'll try to give credit where credit is due, but I could go on for several pages just with acknowledgements.

The fact of the matter is that our entire crew deserves a shout out for the great job they did putting together and pulling off our most satisfactory Spring Doin's at Willow Springs International Raceway. From scouting, to set up, to tear down, we have a lot to be proud of, and many thanks to all the Brothers who pitched in.

Led by our Humbug, Kelvin "Dr. Klapper" Swanson, not since his invention of the microwavable chicken pot pie has anyone seen such terpsichore in motion.

Pictured at the top of this post are our new brothers who, throughout their ordeal showed the kind of camaraderie and enthusiasm that will continue to strengthen our chapter into the future. Seated on the stage from left to right are Tim Travers, Rodney Robinson, Mike Burke and Tim Stratton. Kneeling are Jonathan Lemus, Brad Coukos, Ed Alvarez, Rick Shepard and Rob Forsberg. Standing behind them are our Grand Imperturbable Hangman Mike Brandriff and his Vigilantes, Robert Sanchez and Glenn Roederer, who all did a great job. You can click on the pic to get a closer look.

I can't recall when any other PXL PCB class has earned its own nickname, but these guys certainly did - - the "Sh*t House 9." I don't think that was intended to be a dig at the late Kurt Vonnegut, but it did have something to do with fire.

The daytime weather over the weekend was nice, though it did turn drizzlish in the evening. The wind also came up on Friday night and into Saturday morning. That wasn't a problem for the Doin's, as the raceway had provided us with a two-story building with a comfortable hall, large enough to easily accommodate us for meals and our Clamper shenanigans.

But that didn't mean we could cook inside, and that posed a significant problem for our new ClampChef, Frank "Guardrail" Webster. At 5 a.m. Saturday morning, our Hangman, Mike "Hollowpoint" Brandriff, his PBC contingent and our entire kitchen set-up, were out in the wind, with no way to get the burners lit without moving everything and everybody. Finally, after much trial and error, including moving everything into a covered breezeway and then behind the building, the entire mish-mosh of cooktops and over a dozen guys ended up scrunched into a foyer just outside the bathrooms, righteously spawning the legend of the glorious and imperturbable PXL "Sh*t House 9."

And so it goes, Pilgrim. Even Kurt would be proud.

Thanks again to the Huth Family (pronounced "youth") for their hospitality and for putting up with the nearly 90 guys who showed up to celebrate and decompress. The plaque is also an especially nice one. It will be mounted inside the main building and is a welcome addition. The main road has a sign pointing to the track complex as a "point of historical interest," but with no corresponding erection. If you'd like to get a better look at the plaque, its picture has been posted on the "PXL's Latest Plaque" page. Seen here are owner, Bill Huth; Top; Bill's son and PXL Brother, Chris Huth; and our Humbug, Dr. Klapper.

I've also posted the photos Max Felser and I took at the Doin's to Peter's Picture Pages. All I can say is, it's a whole lot of ugly, but with so many photos, if you aren't in them, you weren't there.

A contingent from PXL dutifully made it up to Sonora for ECV's annual Grand Council Encampment, held this year from May 16th through the 18th at the Sonora Fairgrounds. For those of you new to Clamping, Grand Council is ECV Incorporated's annual shareholder's meeting where the governing board of proctors reports, hears concerns and rolls over its officers for the year. Every living Graybeard, which includes current Humbugs, is entitled to attend, and each chapter briefly reports to the entire assembly on its past year's activities. There's also some partying that goes on in between.

At the fairgrounds, good spaces are at a premium, and it is not unusual for scouts to set up camp several days ahead to save the best spots. That was something that Brother Dave "Soggy Dough" Bond did for us for many years, being the good friend that he was to PXL, so it was with a heavy heart that we learned of his passing.

Dave Bond's home chapter was YB1, and he lived in San Francisco proper, yet he made a point of driving his little pick-up down to our Doin's as often as he could. He was as solid a member of our chapter as anyone not in the chairs. When you didn't see Dave you'd wonder where he was.

Though he never put on airs, Dave had been YB1 Humbug in 1997. He loved Peter Lebeck, and there was plenty of reasons to love him back. He was kind. He always had a smile on his face and he offered a cheerful word and a cup of coffee to any brother who stopped by for a visit. He gave you the sense that he had seen a lot in his time, and no matter what was troubling you, everything was going to be alright. His reign as 2014 Clamper of the Year was well earned, and the Golden Hills is that much richer for our loss. We wish Dave a safe journey.

 

Top reports that this year's PXL contingent to Grand Council included our Humbug, Kelvin Swanson; Vice, Rick Veiga; Clampatriarch, Al Price; Hawker, Mike Mazzetti; Hawk Tackle, Jim Mann; and Top, as GDR and ClampCrier. As Greybeards, Kelvin, Al and Top are members of the council. While there, the guys made it over to Murphy's and tipped a couple at the old Murphy's Saloon, then visited the ECV Wall of Comparative Ovations.

Our Vice Noble Grand Humbug, Rick "Hard Luck" Veiga went to the mandatory briefing prior to the big meeting. We have high hopes for Rick. Hard Luck has a no sweat kind of confidence. He works hard and is always willing to pitch-in even when some guys would be tempted to say "not my yob, bro'." So who better to take with you into a boring meeting, right, Kelvin?!

So here's a few points from Rick's summary of that meeting:

Rick and Kelvin also took the opportunity to introduce themselves to our proctor-advisor and to the new Sublime Noble Grand Humbug, but apparently who these guys are remains a closely held secret. You'll have to speak to Rick about that (or just ask Mark Hall Patton, he's the new Sublime).

There was also a CARP meeting. For those of you not familiar with what that is, it is the acronym for "Clamper Association of Roisterous Peddlers," and being a member is an essential part of being a chapter Hawker and maintaining a reasonably priced and well stocked store.

CARP members trade with each other "at cost." It also keeps prices down by allowing Hawkers to order in quantity and to share their purchases with other CARP members when they meet and trade with each other. Unique items can then be easily spread around Clamperdom, and the only mark-up is the one that helps your chapter raise money when you buy something through its store.

Our Hawking team, Mike Mazzetti and Jim Mann are CARP members and they sponsored Rick into the association. They then, as Rick tells it, "loaded up on some good stuff" which you are bound to see at our next Doin's.

 

Next to last, Top offered an update on the Board's "no noose is good noose" policy. Ou symbolic display and use of the rope and hangman's noose is still allowed so long as it is confined to the Doin's and remains out of sight of the public. That includes displays affixed to Clamper regalia. And apparently, it's also still OK to shout "Hang the B*stard!" so long as no civilians can hear you. Among us, it's understood to be a joke, but not so to the public at large. Public displays of nooses, on vests and hats are still verboten, and in keeping with our own chapter's recommendations, public displays of any kind should remain in semi-good taste.

Also, just between us, Top says our Humbug is close to finalizing arrangements for our Fall Doin's -- The Humbug's Revenge -- which is tentatively set for Thursday, September 26th, through Sunday, September 29th. We're hoping to have the date and location finalized within the next two weeks so check back here or log into Facebook for confirmation, with details to follow shortly thereafter.

Lastly, on this Memorial Day take some time to ponder the sacrifices of the men and women who have fought over the decades to keep our country free. Pray for them, if it is your way. But in your reflections acknowledge how too often - - in a world that seems to shrink more and more by the day -- we take for granted the safety and prosperity that was purchased so dearly and what it still takes to keep it, and to keep the faith with those who have made that down payment for us. To the veterans who have left us for the Golden Hills, may peace be upon them all, and their memories be a blessing to us forever.

Bear with me. I'm working on an update, including a recap of our Spring Doin's. In the meantime, the photos are posted to Peter's Picture Pages and the Willow Springs plaque has been posted to the "PXL's Latest Plaque" page. Enjoy. -- MGM