My dad died when I was 4 but my mom was good at encouraging my mechanical skills. She bought me a old vacuum cleaner when I about 3 because I kept taking the hose and pipes apart on ours. Then through childhood most of my toys were something that could be taken apart. Legos played a big roll in my childhood. Lots of models were built and painted.
Motorcycles and cars were an early fascination too. At about 5, my mom took to me to a motorcycle shop and asked if they could give me a ride on a motorcycle. One of guys put on the tank of a motorcycle and gave me a ride around the parking lot.
Once I started riding a bicycle, I started working on bicycles. My first bike shop job was at 13 working at a Schwinn shop. Then on to motorcycles in college and eventually Porsches
