Get to Know Daytona Beach Classic Rock Local Legends, “The Wildcard Band”

Music

The Wildcard Band

Written by Justin Gaynor

In last month’s edition of Gentleman’s Purpose eMagazine, we introduced you to “The Wildcard Band”, a local band here in Volusia County. I had an opportunity to catch up with John Chaffin, their guitar player and vocalist, to get to know a little more about the band. It was no easy task during the busy Christmas season, but we did finally connect just in time to bring you this article.

“The Wildcard Band” has been playing classic rock together since 1999, though a lot has changed since the beginning. The band originally formed in Springfield, Virginia. Just a small group of guys that love classic rock and music in general, they decided to do something with their passion.

In those days, the band included John, as well as Bobby Brown (Guitar / Vocals) , Stan Puckett -bluegrass-died of cancer-(Bass), Michael Dishner (Drums), Kenny Smith (Keyboards), Joel Brown (Guitar). Everything was going well in the early days of the bands formation, unil tragedy struck. One of the key founders, Stan Puckett, a bass player with a zeal for bluegrass music, was diagnosed with cancer and passed on soon after. After taking a hit like that, the band somewhat dispersed. Then, some years later, the band reformed thousands of miles from their city of origin right here in Daytona Beach.

Today, “The Wildcard Band” includes John Chaffin (Guitar / Vocals), Rob Manuel (Drums), Carl Shelor (Guitar / vocals), and Roy Altemus (Bass / Vocals). John was thrilled to have Rob join the band with extensive experience touring with bands such as “The Monkeys” and “The Temptations” he adds a great talent to the mix. One of the things that “The Wildcard Band” has become known for around the local circuit is their vocals, particularly the way they harmonize.

As we roll into 2022, you will be able to catch “The Wildcard Band” at venues such as Jerry’s Tiki Bar, Down the Hatch, The Porthole, and

The First Turn. They play all sorts of gigs besides and have even taught some other aspiring musicians a few things along the way. 48

Gear

Motorhead

Written by Justin Gaynor

As many of you know, a few months ago I purchased a 1995 Hunter 23.5 sailing vessel. Since the aquisition, I’ve had a chance to tool around the New Smyrna Beach area on the intracoastal waterway utlizing the 8hp Honda outboard motor. My neighor Josh and I did let out the sails once, but that’s about the extent so far. Though I have been spending quite a lot of time in the cozy cabin. Hunter makes a great boat. This is my first, but likely will not be my last.

Deep in slumber one morning recently I was jolted awake as the boat began to rock violently in it’s slip. Then I heard a load crack! Springing to my feet still half asleep, I quickly went up on deck to see what had happened. One of the marina workers came rushing over saying, “I heard something crack! A big trawler just came hauling ass past the marina!” We looked around and didn’t see anything out of place and the boat wasn’t taking on water. After looking about briefly and the gentleman explaining an issue that they have had with boaters being inconsiderate of the marina since it is just outside of the no wake zone. He explained that regardless, a boat’s captain is still legally responsible for damage caused by their wake and that he should have been aware that he was passing a marina and slowed the trawler.

The next day, I was cleaning up around the outboard motor and to my shock and dismay, the motor was literally hanging on by a thread. Apparently, the wake had thrown the boat so violently that the motor hit the dock. It had done so with such force that it completely snapped the swivel casing, a piece of solid aluminum alloy that connects to the bracket that attaches the motor to the transom of the boat. By the grace of God, the motor had a safety cable connecting it to the hull. Had that cable not been there my motor would have been at the bottom of the ocean!

All that being said, a man owning an outboard motor needs a few things, not only for making significant repairs, but also for regular maintenance.

Lower Unit Gear Oil Pump for Standard Quart Bottles

This is a specialized tool used on pretty much every outboard motor. The gear oil must be added from the bottom up, so this attaches right onto the top of a normal quart of gear oil and can very easily, and quickly replenish the fluid in the lower unit.

Grease Gun

Another specialized tool useful for most outboard motors (as well as trailer, RVs, trucks, etc.) is a quality grease gun. The end is specially design to clamp onto small nipples and inject grease that will keep friction from causing various parts from seizing up.

Very important!

Precision Punch Set

Once you get into the inner mechanics of an outboard motor, you will discover all sorts of connections held together by expansion pins, roll pins, and the like. A good precision punch set will allow you to easily remove the old pins to disassemble, and replace them with new ones when reassembling. This specialized tool set is also what is called for when working on guns and watches that utilize similar pins.

Mechanic’s Tool Set

You should have something like this no matter what, but especially if you own a boat with an internal combustion engine. A quality mechanic’s tool set will allow you to disassemble and reassemble any machine using either standard or metrics parts. There aren’t any pictured in this set, but you will also want a good set of needlenose vice-grips, and perhaps a few other tools.

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Newer to Gentleman’s Purpose eMagazine?

Click here to read more editions...and please share with friends and family!

Travel

Setting a Vision for Adventure in 2022

Written by Justin Gaynor Traveling is one of my passions and never in my life have I travelled more than I did in 2021. My goal is to grow in this area of my life. Learning from my adventures this past year, I hope to make some better choices and be a little more intentional in 2022. In this article, I’d like to explore what it might look like to map out my travel plans for the year, create some sort of a financial plan for it, and do a better job of meeting new people along the way. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely loved re-connecting with family and friends that I had not seen, in some cases…for decades, but I really want to expand my sphere this year. It is a goal also to connect with other travelers and grow together with some likeminded folks.

The first thing to consider are the destinations that I feel led to explore. There is a lot of America that I still haven’t seen, particularly in the West. So, I will be jumping online and looking at a few states that I haven’t visited and looking to see what I find most interesting. I will also be connecting with social media groups related to these destinations to see if I can connect with some locals in a way that will be mutually beneficial. I’ll have to decide if I want to work from the road again with an extended trip, or if I just want to do long weekends here and there through the year. I would really like to have a travel companion and that would be a lot easier if I go with the “long weekend” option, but I honestly feel more growth happens in extended travel.

Next, I will have to look at what kind of costs that I’m anticipating. There are a lot of variables with this. I purchased an Indian Scout 60 motorbike this year, so if I do an extended journey via motorbike, it will be far less expensive than a lot of round-trip plane tickets. It would likely include a lot more freedom and simplicity, which is a big bonus for me as well. Meal planning will be important, the acquisition of a nice cooler back in the spring really ended up saving me a lot of money. I was dining out multiple times a day sometimes and that gets really expensive, real quick.

Finally, I will have to make all the arrangements to make sure all of my familial, professional , and financial obligations will be covered in a way that maintains and, possibly even strengthens, those existing connections here at home. I love being part of a vibrant community at home, but as you have discovered as you’ve journeyed with my here in the GP Travel section, I love the freedom of the open road!