Update!


Note: Hi Chris :
This is Dave Bortolotti(aka : builtfordfast).
I know it isn't much but maybe it will help in some small way.
Glad to see that the F150online Lightning community has banded together to help you out and seeing this, makes me feel privileged to be part of this community.
Here's hoping that it all comes together for you Chris.
Keep those informative posts coming as I have enjoyed reading them and learning from them.

Regards
Dave Bortolotti(aka:builtfordfast)

 

well chris it seemes that everyone here likes what you have done and you have really helped out a lot of us
i am sorry i cant help out in sending any money (things are a bit tight on this end too) but my offer still stands on helping youi do some wrenching. not that you need the help you can seemingly do it on your own but right now its all i can offer
good luck on the new build up
take lots of pics
and if you end up on LI for some more tuning ill be sure to make the trip to Sals to meet up with you

 

Welp, I guess we all know where our priorities are at....

http://www.nloc.net/forum/showthread...threadid=75018

 

Hey LightningGuy, what's the problem?

reading through 92 posts so far on this thread, argueably only 2 of them are negative, and guess what, both of them are from you.

do you have an issue with me, or with the other guys here helping me out?

everybody here knows that we are just talking about a truck. Lightnings are what we enjoy, and what brought all of us together here in the first place.

we are not ending world hunger by fixing my truck, everybody is fully aware of that.

I have been around this board for over 3 years, I know for a fact that I've had my moments where I was a jerk. after all the kindness i've been shown in the past few days, I regret every negative post I ever made. So while I'm aware that I'm no angel, you just signed up this month and don't know me or anybody else well enough to be passing judgement.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion....

I just don't see why you feel you must rain on the parade.

the people here care enough to help a buddy out, and you want to make them feel guilty for doing it, and bring me down for accepting their help?

I feel for Gregg, I have purchased two valve bodies and a tranny cooler from him in the past, he is a stand up guy with great products and great customer service. this community appreciates everything that he has done for it over the years as well.

Understand that I am in no way making light of Gregg's loss, or comparing it to my situation at all.

One more thing, it appears as though the NLOC post letting folks know about Gregg's Mom's Memorial was just put up last night, and alot of people probably werent' even aware that it existed yet. the only good thing I can say about your post is that you brought some attention to a worthy cause.

I personally have lost all four grandparents, THREE of them were taken by CANCER, and TWO of them passed away THIS YEAR!

I know a little bit of what gregg is going through.

Like I said, you are entitled to your opinion, but just be aware that in this case, it's not wanted or appreciated.

thanks,
chris

P.S. I'm sorry if I'm reading too much into LightningGuy's comments, but I really didn't appreciate the Cancer Society fund raiser being thrown in everybody's face, because like I said, my life has recently been affected by it as well.

 

The whole thing reminds me of "Queen for a Day". (If your old enuff to remember that show) The post is headed for drama. Im surprised the admin allowed it.

 

Chris, out of respect for you and the others I have deleted what I initially posted in this post. I also got the check in the mail and hope everything goes well with the rebuild...

 

I'd hate to see the thread be closed regardless of my interest in the donations related to it. they can stop right now as far as I'm concerned if that is the appropriate thing to do.

I just think that this thread has been extremely positive up until now, and there is absolutely no need for it to get ugly because of one person trying to stir the pot.

I don't know how this thread looks from someone elses viewpoint, but I've gotten several very heart felt e-mails from people letting me know how great they feel to be apart of the lightning community and how great it is to see people come together for a common goal, and how happy there were to be able to help out.

I don't want that to feeling to be lost for no good reason.

 

I wouldn’t worry about the feeling going away, at least not for me. As I had mentioned in my email to you, you and the others in the post and others have made me feel like I have an awesome family of brothers and a few sisters and it was great I was able to help even though it was a little…

 

Chris,

I personally have nothing against you. I have gone through some of your old posts and realize that you add a lot of valued input to this and other Lightning forums.

I also understand that a lot of Lightning owners feel they have more than just the ownership of a truck in common. You guys are a community and I respect that.

I'm just a little confused as to what differentiates you as an honored recipient of charity from your brethren and not many of the other owners I've seen eject a rod or spit a plug. While most have sworn that their donations are simply payments for your advice and help over the years here, I have to wonder whether your cause is worth supporting. From what I understand, you admitted fault to not breaking in your truck correctly. I also understand that you boasted one of the top trucks here, having spent quite a few thousand on a motor build-up. And as a fellow vehicle enthusiast who has taken his toy to the next level, I'm sure you were well aware of the risks associated with building an engine, seeking higher levels of power, and ultimately pushing the limits. Bottom line: you play, you pay.

And as unfortunate as your dilemma is, I have to disagree with how the Lightning community is choosing to help you. I think we need to all step back and realize that this is nothing more than a hobby. Albeit you used your truck as a primary mode of transportation, you should have known the consequences of pushing the limits.

Let me put it to you this way:
Had you needed a spare part, I would've gladly sent it. Had you or a loved one been injured, I would've contributed to the hospital bill. That is what being a friend and a fellow enthusiast would've been all about. That's just my prerogative.

When I was a kid, I got into some financial troubles in college. Credit card debt, bills fell behind, etc. I went to my dad and asked if he could loan me the money. I swore I would pay him back. He refused me. He told me that, unless I dug myself out of the hole, I would be quick to repeat my mistakes. Although I didn't understand why he wouldn't just cut me a check and help out his son at the time, I now greatly appreciate being able to help myself. Lesson learned.

Or maybe I'm just stingy.....

 

What a riot.

No one is taking away from Gregg, and what he has done for any of us. You wanna talk about assets to the lightning community, Gregg Evan's name is right there. Doesn't Gregg help out with the March of Dimes donation over on NLOC every year that MANY of us donate to???? Leave it to a guy who just registered to the board to stir the pot****and if you've been around a while and just changed your name or were a lurker, you should know better****

They deleted my post about helping chris out over there and i didn't say boo about it. I respect their rules and their wishes. Just because there is no replies, doesn't mean people aren't donating. Good job man

We try to help a fellow lightning owner out and their is gotta be jealousy and hatred from someone. If you don't like it.........don't involve yourself but don't harsh the people who have befriended chris over the years, whether in person or online. Yeah, it's only a truck, and it may seem stupid that we are giving money to someone to fix a vehicle that they indirectly broke. Too bad it's not as black and white as that.

I would do the same for almost anyone on this board. That's just me. Spend hours of MY time helping other local lightning owners out. Just a return for all the hours that guys like Don's Bolt have helped me with. All the advice from Jim, Sal, Greg..........Chris, Vinnie, Rob, Gator, Tim and all the other members and vendors on this and other boards.

To be honest, I would have threw him some more cash if i wasn't leaving to go on a cruise next week. Not that i have extra money to throw around, because I don't. But I can appreciate and respect what Chris did with his truck and spent the time to make sure everything was right, only to find out he had made a mistake, or was given incorrect info.

Make no mistake about it..........this is still going to cost him BIG and what we have donated is just a small portion. Luckily he has the tools , facility and knoweldge to be able to do the labor himself. Just don't blow the next one up because your on your own!!!!! Hehe.......j/k.

 

I am going to add on to what tallimeca posted. To begin with a little back ground on me and I’ll keep it short. I moved to New Hampshire about 11 years ago from California where I was raised and all my friends were from. I was married and in the Navy and just got out. New Hampshire is where my wife was from. About 6 years ago I got a divorce and I now have custody of my 15 year old daughter.

I am 40 years old, now a single dad with a teenage daughter that is my world. Needless to say I feel a responsibility to my daughter and thus I don’t really go out to clubs or places where one might meet people. Since joining F150 I have gained many friends. I actually met Raoul last year and had an excellent time, really great guy.

I bought my Lightning last February and what an awesome feeling that was but nothing compared to my first time to New England Dragway when I got to meet up with Don’s Bolt, tallimeca and a few other guys who’s screen names I can’t recall.

That was the first time, other then meeting up with Raoul that I went out to meet up with some people. Though it may have been an ordinary day for them it was one of the best days I have had in many years, actually meeting up with a bunch of guys who I have never met before and actually feeling like I belonged and had been hanging out with these guys for years. The point is I felt like I was among old friends and that just felt unbelievable after being gone from California for so long. I finally feel like I belong here in New Hampshire and it is because some guys who owned Lightning’s made me feel that way.

I don’t know Chris and have never met him, never spoke to him on the phone, email or online chat. I only know him from his post yet he feels like a brother and thus I never had any problems donating some money. I couldn’t donate much like some of these other guys, but nonetheless I gave what I could because I FELT LIKE IT.

I can tell you I can NOT wait until FFW in Epping so I can hopefully meet more people like Fast Gator, Rob, Vinnie and many others that may show up. I don’t know any of them personally but I can tell now it is going to be an absolutely awesome weekend, I guess for me it is going to be like Christmas and there is no amount of money that could buy that feeling…

I can respect your feeling on this situation but I would ask that you respect ours as well. This is something we wanted to do for a family member, nobody made us do it, nobody gave us false information, we all know the circumstances and decided to give what we gave because it is what each of us wanted to do…

 

Shame on you, LightningGuy, for crapping on this thread.



Giving to a cancer memorial fund and helping out Chris are apples and oranges. Is Chris a starving Haitian or a cancer-striken child? No. But I already give to the Haitians, the cancer research clinics, and all of the other people who are getting a piece of the over half of my paycheck that the *$&^# federal, state, and local governments steal from me every two weeks.

Helping out Chris is not an act of charity; it is an act of friendship. It is, as the comparison has already been made, more like a barn raising -- or buying a friend a beer. It is the Lightning community showing solidarity for a friend who has added value to our lives.

And I am damn proud of that showing of solidarity.

Go pee in someone else's pool.

 

Well Said.............



One more thing that may help ya out......many of us contributing here, race at tracks around the country with each other at different times. I suppose if we help each other out at the track with needed money or parts...you have issues with that too. Geeze fellow.....think about your post....


Rocks

 

I appreciate the kinda words, not to run off topic but we are gonna watch Al (Probie) run his truck with the NOS for the first time next saturday if you wanna come hang out......or race the sweet blue L

 

Thank you for the brotherhood feeling and hell yeah I will try and make that...