DieselGeek/Scott Clark in the hot seat....

[Gateclyve Photographic]

I just find it interesting how he has become a "Man Of Mystery" surrounding anything EFI.

I don't know, but I speculate that he's a bit like the late George Barris. If his laptop ever plugs into a race car for even a millisecond, I guess (but plainly do not know) that he's likely to eventually name-drop about it (unless it blows up, of course).

Well I guess he was celebrated for blowing one up in between "some entertaining trips to the trash can." See link below.



The foregoing is nothing more than rank opinion. It does not in any way claim to be a statement of fact. DG don't sue me . . . (Estate of Barris, please don't sue me either . . . . ) .

[SuperBuickGuy]

I don't know, but I speculate that he's a bit like the late George Barris. If his laptop ever plugs into a race car for even a millisecond, I guess (but plainly do not know) that he's likely to eventually name-drop about it (unless it blows up, of course).

Well I guess he was celebrated for blowing one up in between "some entertaining trips to the trash can." See link below.



The foregoing is nothing more than rank opinion. It does not in any way claim to be a statement of fact. DG don't sue me . . . (Estate of Barris, please don't sue me either . . . . ) .

you certainly have a way with words.

[SuperBuickGuy]

I guess you probably have to spend some time taking to him in real life, to see his good points? He does have many. but also his bad points, which show up much more easily on the internets.

He has taught me quite a bit about how engines work, even though I've never tuned an EFI system, ever.

And I'm pretty sure I've taught him something about how engines work, even though he hasn't really played with carburetors, etc.

Basically, if you've only seen what he's written on the internet, and not talked with him in real life, you can't claim to know very much about him.

despite my well-documented dislike of him - I refer all current readers back to my first comment about him doing some pretty nice things....



I honestly feel bad for him because there is much of the but-for-the-grace-of-God-there-go-I in his situation. With that said, it's a pit of his own making


and can we please get back to employment law? seriously, it's like talking ill of the dead - the guy is in jail over Christmas and likely New Years.....

There is stuff here that most of the non-legal world needs to hear....

[Loren]

I'd be very careful with that -

All makes sense...

What I would ask an employee to not do is, set up a shop next door or wherever specifically going after my same clientele, after learning from me all the specific requirements and tricks needed to have that business. If he wants to try to grab some new customer and will have to crawl up the learning curve with them same as me, have-at-it, that's fair.

My actual familiarity w/ non-competes is from S.I.L.'s business where back when she would be required to sign that she would not offer similar services in the same market for such-and-such period of time, and may now require an employee sign the same type thing. I.E., she worked for a contractor doing trained-animal (yes) shows for the zoo; with the contractor knowing ahead of time that after a few years' experience and having her face/personality become well-known she could easily acquire her own animals and be their competition the next time their contract was up, required her to state that she would not compete with them on any new business they were going after if she were to leave. She happily agreed in order to get on board but wasn't so happy after leaving, particularly after making plenty of contributions to the show such as new scripts etc. and the zoo then being what she was familiar with. In fact, all she had to do was shift her market a bit over to doing events out at non-zoo locations, with that she wasn't getting in the way of what her old employer was doing and was very successful. Really, hiring a new employee is risky enough for all the damage they can do, if you have to worry about a good employee turning and taking your customers as soon as they learn the business from you then the best thing to do is not hire any employees at all, especially not smart ones, and that is in general not good for the economy.

But yeah, whether all this is enforceable in a court is for guys like you. And, the patent thing, ah I can imagine the complexities in actual practice.

------------------

Back when, two days before leaving a company I'd worked 12 years for, someone there did the funniest thing: The had an entire little booklet printed up titled "Customer List" (with the natural assumption it contained purchasing contacts/numbers etc.) and left it prominently out on the shipping desk. Completely out of character for how that place worked. I saw it as some-type bait and, I'm sure much to the disappointment of a particular owner's-family member new to the business and known for tricks and paranoia issues, I never touched it.

[SuperBuickGuy]

All makes sense...

What I would ask an employee to not do is, set up a shop next door or wherever specifically going after my same clientele, after learning from me all the specific requirements and tricks needed to have that business. If he wants to try to grab some new customer and will have to crawl up the learning curve with them same as me, have-at-it, that's fair.

My actual familiarity w/ non-competes is from S.I.L.'s business where back when she would be required to sign that she would not offer similar services in the same market for such-and-such period of time, and may now require an employee sign the same type thing. I.E., she worked for a contractor doing trained-animal (yes) shows for the zoo; with the contractor knowing ahead of time that after a few years' experience and having her face/personality become well-known she could easily acquire her own animals and be their competition the next time their contract was up, required her to state that she would not compete with them on any new business they were going after if she were to leave. She happily agreed in order to get on board but wasn't so happy after leaving, particularly after making plenty of contributions to the show such as new scripts etc. and the zoo then being what she was familiar with. In fact, all she had to do was shift her market a bit over to doing events out at non-zoo locations, with that she wasn't getting in the way of what her old employer was doing and was very successful. Really, hiring a new employee is risky enough for all the damage they can do, if you have to worry about a good employee turning and taking your customers as soon as they learn the business from you then the best thing to do is not hire any employees at all, especially not smart ones, and that is in general not good for the economy.

But yeah, whether all this is enforceable in a court is for guys like you. And, the patent thing, ah I can imagine the complexities in actual practice.

------------------

Back when, two days before leaving a company I'd worked 12 years for, someone there did the funniest thing: The had an entire little booklet printed up titled "Customer List" (with the natural assumption it contained purchasing contacts/numbers etc.) and left it prominently out on the shipping desk. Completely out of character for how that place worked. I saw it as some-type bait and, I'm sure much to the disappointment of a particular owner's-family member new to the business and known for tricks and paranoia issues, I never touched it.

If you have something to protect, that $500-$1000 you spend on an attorney to review your thoughts will save you multiples of that in the future....

In Portland Oregon, all sheet metal shops are owned by people who worked for Atlas .... Atlas is gone, most of the ones that are progeny are gone in the sense that the founder worked at Atlas but has since retired from whatever company that they started. Even more way back, American Standard in LA was the breeder company for Atlas. The market has changed a lot but there's a pretty clear family tree even today. New technology isn't immune from the same stuff, many who started their deal have Tektronics on their resume. Point is usually there's room for all because the "old" company has the resources to do big projects (which is easier money) where the little punk who can weld some 16ga together without much warping only gets the stuff that the 'old' company has no interest in taking.... eventually the new guy learns that if he builds good stuff (and is reliable), the big companies will start using him too... and the 'old' company owner retires.... circle of life.

[RockJustRock]

65 posts, I'm sure wherever Scott is he is pleased so many people here are SO concerned about him. This and practically any other car related forum.

[Loren]

Not just concerned about him but using it as an opportunity to discuss the employment matters.

I did click the YB link and see there are a lot of folks who he apparently really matters to, and apparently have lots of experience with prison life that they wish to share.

Presumably he's only in the county lockup.

[BBR]

He has helped me many times on here with good solid Megasquirt info. I only met him once at Drag Week 2011, but have many mutual friends. Sorry to see he has let it get this far. Sometimes you just gotta take your licks and move on.

[Gateclyve Photographic]

He has helped me many times on here with good solid Megasquirt info.

Which is why you switched to a CARB when you swapped the mondo-stroker BBF into the Mustang . . . /JK Just kidding . . . .

Sometimes you just gotta take your licks and move on.

This would prompt a brutal series of intimate "prison" jokes over on Yellow Bullet . . . .

[SuperBuickGuy]

65 posts, I'm sure wherever Scott is he is pleased so many people here are SO concerned about him. This and practically any other car related forum.

*snicker* no computers in jail.... if you decide to tell the court to 'f***off' remember, you will have no access to computers.

I'm almost surprised they didn't hit him with a witness tampering charge.... who knows, maybe that's next.

Again, the fun and games are over when Court is in session....

[SuperBuickGuy]

Not just concerned about him but using it as an opportunity to discuss the employment matters.

I did click the YB link and see there are a lot of folks who he apparently really matters to, and apparently have lots of experience with prison life that they wish to share.

Presumably he's only in the county lockup.

I've been told that's worse - if you're gonna have to do time, Federal is best. County they lock you up and you might have a TV for some of the day to help make the time go - they usually don't even get exercise time.... just you and your 50 closest criminals.... errr, didn't do nuffins' to a room.

[BBR]

Which is why you switched to a CARB when you swapped the mondo-stroker BBF into the Mustang . . . /JK Just kidding . . . .

A move which he fully supported at the time. Later he offered very helpful input to get the MS-based distrubutorless ignition up and working on the Mustang. Which worked fantastic btw.

[RockJustRock]

Well on one hand if you find a job doing something you love you never have to work another day. On the other hand if your substinance and all your interests get crammed in the same basket things can get really weird really fast and the stakes are really high, like EVERYTHING. Sometimes it is better to have a job you can do and go home. One thing is pretty well proven, anytime Scott is involved with something it runs better and goes faster. Look for improvements in the jail system based on his suggestions.

[SuperBuickGuy]

Well on one hand if you find a job doing something you love you never have to work another day. On the other hand if your substinance and all your interests get crammed in the same basket things can get really weird really fast and the stakes are really high, like EVERYTHING. Sometimes it is better to have a job you can do and go home. One thing is pretty well proven, anytime Scott is involved with something it runs better and goes faster. Look for improvements in the jail system based on his suggestions.

and prisons love input on how to make their accommodations better. lol

[Gateclyve Photographic]

I've been told that's worse -

"60 Days In" . . . they made the Fulton County stir in HOTlanta.look like "Big Brother" with jumpsuits and shanks . . . .

https://www.aetv.com/shows/60-days-in

if you're gonna have to do time, Federal is best. County they lock you up and you might have a TV for some of the day to help make the time go - they usually don't even get exercise time.... just you and your 50 closest criminals.... errr, didn't do nuffins' to a room.

Story time . . . Some old great, great uncle or cousin x-times removed or some such from one of those giant, impoverished Great Depression-era chicken-farming families enjoyed vacationing as a guest of the federal taxpayers. His crime of choice, according to dear old Dad, was interstate grand theft auto, which guaranteed he'd avoid the prison farm of the bug-infested, sweaty Southern state where he lived. and spend his reformative years in Federal custody.

Except for the time he liberated somebody's wheels (I like to imagine it as hot V8 Flathead Ford, but it was probably a cut-down T farm "truck" or a Whippet or some other abysmal heap) . He blasted through a Mason Jar of corn liquor to celebrate . . . and failed to make it across the state line.

Oops . . . Prison farm . . . "It like'd killed him"

After that, he always made sure to rip a ride and make it over the state line, before he turned himself in . . . After all, you don't want to get shot checkin' in . . . .