Not long into the first round, Denise and her friends saw Sarah''s true colors. "She was a Type-A, hyper-competitive, bad-tempered control freak," Denise recalls. Denise and her friends were enjoying the blustery, seaside golf. But Sarah wasn''t hitting the ball very well. One of the women, an 8-handicapper named Mary, was trying to be nice to Sarah, helping her with club selection and a few tips. But Sarah got more and more frustrated with every ball she hit. She began throwing clubs, kicking the turf, and basically having a temper tantrum. When Mary tried to help her again, she replied, "No thanks! I''m tired of your little golf stories and cliches. Get away from me!" (As Mary says now, "The word ''fore'' never left my lips again when she was in front of me.") The next day, after a game of high-low, which she clearly did not win, Sarah demanded to check Mary''s addition. It went downhill from there. By the fourth evening, the other women could barely stand Sarah''s company. Denise and Sarah had dinner themselves that night, and Sarah took the opportunity to unburden herself about the aspects of Denise''s personality that bothered her. Denise got up and left the table, mid-meal, and went to one of their group''s rooms to fume. Unfortunately, Sarah and Denise were sharing a room, so she had to go back to it eventually. "Sarah pretended to be asleep so we didn''t have to talk," Denise says. "Which was fine by me. We made it through the weekend, did not sit together on the flight home, said goodbye at Kennedy and I''ve never spoken to her again."

Mark/B-LOC: For most applications, installation according to the manufacturer''s instructions is all that is needed for a permanent, fully adjustable, and removable backlash-free connection. For keyless locking device connections in extreme operating environments, use packing grease and inexpensive cover plates to keep out dirt, moisture, and other corrosive elements.Andrew/Whittet-Higgins: Continually educate technicians on quality and working efficiency. A balance of quality and quantity will maximize the life expectancy of each assembly and the enterprise as a whole.Blair/Ruland: When servicing equipment, inspect the locking device for any signs of slipping and tighten the clamping screws to the recommended seating torque when necessary.When replacing a locking device, end users should follow the proper bolt-tightening pattern. Tighten the same way you would mount the wheels on a car: Tighten opposing screws, working your way around the locking device. This reduces misalignment and provides the best holding power.

Hamilton recommends keeping above-ground fuel tanks full whenever possible to reduce air intake. Tank filters should be changed at least twice a year, and tanks should be drained three to four times annually. Also, tanks should sit six to eight hours after fuel delivery before equipment is fueled to allow contaminants to settle.Hamilton says that premium diesel fuels have additives that force water to the bottom of the tank. "But tanks must slope to a drain, and the drain must be opened regularly to remove it," he says.

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