In the early to mid 1980s racer Dean Mizdahl lived in a house in California with Ski, Al Ludington, Pete Carroll and Doug Toland.

Mizdahl said that in that crowd you really had to be cautious when invited for a street ride in the canyons because these were riders who could win or finish top ten in a Supersport national race. For some it was a badge of honor just keeping them in sight when they rode on the street.

"Ski was like a comet," Mizdahl said. "You wanted to make sure that you don't get too close because you might be set on fire yourself."

He said that hanging out with Dave Sadowski for 24 hours could provide enough stories for an entire off-season of bench racing. Racing in the canyons, fixing crashed bikes while eating lunch followed by the inevitable Ski bar fight, followed by more racing on the street on the way home. Nice way to spend a weekend.

"Weekend?!" Mizdahl exclaims, "That was one Saturday afternoon! They were all like that. Every day!"