Leisure World News

Speed kills. According to the National Highway Safety Transportation Administration (NHSTA), speeding killed 10,111 people in 2016, accounting for 27 percent of all traffic fatalities for the year. This was a four percent increase from 2015. “Know that every time your speed doubles, your stopping distance quadruples,” NHSTA reports. Speeding can have devastating consequences, like vehicle damage, destruction of property or even worse—death. The NHTSA reports it takes most drivers about 0.75 seconds to react to a threat, such as an animal or pedestrian in the road. It takes another 0.75 seconds to act for a total of 1.5 seconds. Reaction time can mean the difference between life and death. When other factors are present, speeding increases the likelihood of an accident. Road conditions can also change without notice. And if you are exceeding the speed limit, you will have little time to act. Unexpected road conditions include fallen branches or trees, other debris and rain. If someone ahead of you slows down, follow their example. Unseen danger may lie ahead, so keep a safe distance from other vehicles and don’t tailgate! Follow the Rules Unfortunately, accidents happen before we realize it. To keep our community safe, Leisure World follows applicable state laws for motor vehicles, bicycles, pedestrians and parking regulations in effect under Arizona Revised Statutes. According to Leisure World Rules and Regulations, “The speed limit is 25 miles per hour throughout LWCA unless otherwise posted (i.e. the RV lot). LWCA Security has the authority to enforce speed limits and/ or prevent driving in an unsafe manner.” “Excessive speed creates unnecessary risks,” explains Leisure World Security Manager Landy Black. “As speed increases, the time to safely react to danger, unexpected obstacles or others is significantly reduced.” “The distance required to stop or change course to avoid collision is greater,” he adds. “The combined negative aspects of reaction time and reaction distance create potentially deadly consequences.” Residents who violate the speed limit will be held accountable and will receive a $30 fine for a first citation, $60 for a second and $90 for a third. Additional Rules There are other important road safety Leisure World Rules and Regulations residents must follow. You must be legally licensed to operate any vehicle when you get behind the wheel—including golf carts (Rule 3-101). Golf carts are motorized vehicles and the speed limit applies while in use. Residents need to also be aware that “all LWCA roads are two lane roads, one lane in each direction. Slower traffic such as walkers, joggers, skaters, golf carts, and scooters should keep to the right (Rule 3-101 B).” Top 5 Driving Distractions Safe driving practices are encouraged both in and outside of Leisure World. Unfortunately, distracted driving is the cause of 25 percent of all motor vehicle fatalities. Distractions also increase the likelihood of an accident. A survey of American motor vehicle deaths conducted by Insurance Journal reveals the major causes of distracted-related driving accidents. Here are the top five driving distractions: 1. Inattention: Generally being distracted or “lost in thought” accounts for 62 percent of distracted driving fatalities. 2. Cell phones: More than 68 percent of Americans own cellphones, now the second leading cause of deaths due to distracted-related car accidents. Don’t forget! The speed limit on all streets in Leisure World is 25 mph. L eisure W orld N ews The Official News Publication of Leisure World Arizona November 2018 www.lwca.com Turkey Trot Page B1 Thanksgiving Tips Page A15 Probate Explained Page A12 The Dangers of Speeding Continues on Page A20 By John Latus Open Leisure World resident Armand DeYoung’s garage door and you will be amazed. And that’s probably an understatement. As you walk into his garage, you will be greeted by a display case along the entire left wall, filled from floor to ceiling, with scale models of every type of construction and agricultural equipment produced by Allis-Chalmers during the last 70 years. We’re talking tractors, front-end loaders, graders, combines, you name it. It’s there—approximately 200 beautiful quality, all-metal models. The Love Affair Begins Armand’s fascination with Allis-Chalmers equipment began naturally. He grew up in a farming community in South Dakota and worked for farmers who had Allis-Chalmers tractors and equipment. Later, during his career as manager of field service engineering with Rockwell Collins in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, he and his wife, Darlene, moved to a large acreage plot with a big shop to continue his woodworking hobby and expand. And expand he did. Armand purchased his first antique Allis-Chalmers tractor in 1993. He then bought and restored eight more tractors which took, on average, a year to complete for each. This led to Armand’s current hobby: collecting scale models of Allis-Chalmers equipment, which he acquired at tractor shows and collector-toy shows. By 2000, he had collected almost all available production- made models. He then decided to build his own scale models. But not the typical static models. Rather, models with functional parts and components. In other words, Armand builds the exterior of each machine and the interior parts and components to make the model as realistic as possible. So, the buckets on his front-end loaders can be raised and lowered, and the blades on his graders can be lowered, raised and rotated just like the real machine. He also builds and installs working gear boxes so the machines can be steered and operated. The Process Once Armand decides on a model, he consults his extensive documentation library. He also sometimes purchases the original sales brochure and parts manual. All his models are built to 1/16th scale. The sales brochure typically gives him the dimensions of the machine, which allows him to build it to scale. The parts manual usually gives him the exploded views to build the working parts. For example, his recent build of a 1936 AC road grader required 13 universal joints—each taking an hour to build and assemble. Depending on the complexity of the model, it may take anywhere from 80 hours or as much as 400-plus hours to complete. He paints them with an airbrush using original Allis-Chalmers paint colors, which can still be purchased. A New Chapter After retiring, Armand and his wife moved to Leisure World in 2009. He sold his acreage, all his tractors and restoration equipment. The nine tractors he restored now reside in private Allis-Chalmers museums. He kept his models and model-building equipment and set up his workshop in his garage to continue this amazing hobby. What’s truly amazing is that Armand has time to do anything else. But he does. He joined the Billiard Club shortly after arriving in Leisure World. He has just finished his three-year term as president where he initiated the idea of remodeling the Billiards room and oversaw the fundraising and modernization of the facility. Armand would like to connect with any Leisure World resident who may have worked for Allis-Chalmers, owned or worked at an AC dealership, farmed with AC equipment or is just interested in model building. You can share this passion by contacting him at 319-329- 9029 or adeyoung1144@gmail.com . He looks forward to hearing from you! -John Latus is a Leisure World resident. Armand DeYoung: A Unique Allis-Chalmers Collector Armand holds a 1936 Speed Patrol grader made up of more than 200 parts, which tookmore than 200 hours to compete. Photo by Allan Linscheid