Civil Unrest

There is another virus in America and other countries as well. If a Democracy was started while slavery was part of that beginning, racism is still a part of that culture. Many countries under Spanish and British rule, had a dark past. Slavery was invented 500 years ago. It has led to where we are today.

Here is a story about an ACDC hybrid class I taught in the Deep South at a repair shop. A class I will never forget. I will not mention the city or the man (we will call Ray) that owned the shop.

Two night, eight hour class, year 2010, $200 bucks. Books extra. Bad pizza. I drove the ACDC 2004 Prius for many 2 night classes or an all-day Saturday back then. First night no problem. Well attended, great questions and sold a few books. Next night just before class starts, Ray, the shop owner runs outside and starts yelling at a Black man walking by the shop and using the “N” word. The class can hear everything. As you may expect, half the class were of African descent and possibly had a Grandfather or Grandmother who was a slave. Ray walks back into the class area (a few bays in the back). I ask Ray to step outside. I talk quietly and told him he cannot use that language in my class. It did not go well. I finished the class, keeping a professional face on and packed up the Prius and off to the local hotel. I knew his wife, so the next day I called and talked to her. She is and was wonderful. Her statement “That’s just the way he is”.

I have learned in the last 10 years, as an older white male, that that that answer is one big reason why we are having civil unrest today. No it is NOT “just the way he is”. He was not born like that, he was taught that. Time to go back to school. Listen to people that don’t look like you. Look into their eyes.  If you have a racist outlook, take another look at your brothers and sisters. Think again. Is this your best self?

I was born and raised in Ogden, Utah in 1950 by a racist white Father and an open minded Mother that grew up in Worcester, Massachusetts. I lived in a white supremacist town and a racist house. I knew no other way of being. I didn’t know it was wrong.  The ONLY people I had ever met or had ever seen were white, period, except in magazines and TV. As I grew older, age 8, I wanted to see the Harlem Globetrotters. I loved them. I asked my Father, Raymond van Batenburg, to take me to see them at the local college on a Saturday night. His answer “I wouldn’t pay 50 cents to see a “N****er” bounce a ball”.  I learned what racism was that day. My parents divorced when I was 10 and a couple years later, Shirley and her six children move to her home town. I have been here ever since.

I am lucky that I did not accept Raymond’s fears about black men. I don’t know why he and so many other white men and women from their generation felt that way. My father died when I was 20, so we never talked about his deep rooted racist views. Was it WWII and Korea? He served in the Navy in both wars. His Father, Oker van Batenburg, an immigrant from Holland? Their church views at the time? I will never know why but I did know it was wrong at age 8. If you grew up in a racist family, just forgive them and love on with your life. Our Church, brought in the local “Black Lives Matter” chapter years ago, when they started to educate white people who would listen to them, after our Sunday service. Reverend Aaron Payson, leads our church, The Unitarian Universalist of Worcester, and he a big white man and is helping our community. He works closely with the Police, our black friends, homelessness and food insecurity and many other inner city issues. I live is a mixed race city neighborhood by choice. When I dropped my Chevy Bolt off at the local dealership a few days ago, a young Black salesman I had never met, took care of me. As I was leaving I asked him, what can I do to help stop racism in America? His answer “Listen to us”. It is always the way to start solving any issue. Just listen, as it may change your heart.

The above picture from 2016 is DJ (our intern) getting the “ACDC Intern of the Year award”

I was a motorcycle mechanic before I was paid to fix cars. In 1972 Honda came out with the Civic and once I was trained by Honda on this little marvel, I was hooked on smart designs. But motorcycles have always been a part of my life and still are. My father road a Harley after WWII with me hanging on for dear life. I was 3 years old.

In August 2012 I blogged on the ACDC website about Mr. Honda and a man named Joe Bolger. Joe was bigger than life. On April 21, 2020 Joe passed away at 90 years old. He lived a long time and this is a tribute to him and what he stood for.

I met Joe in the summer of 1967 after I bought a used Honda 305 Scrambler and needed some parts. He was a co-owner of Sportsman Cycle Sales in a town next to Worcester, Massachusetts were l lived then and still do. Joe was in his late 30’s and hired me because I couldn’t pay the repair bill after he fixed the engine I blew up. Being a young crazy kid (weren’t we all) Joe had me work the summer of ‘68 to pay off the bill. After that summer job, I was back for my senior year at Burncoat High school, but what I really looked forward to was working with Joe Bolger in the afternoons when school got out. After graduation it was a full-time job that ultimately lead me to a Honda Insight and rest is history.

Joe was from Prince Edward Island and as tough as nails. He was a motorcycle racer. He was physically strong and mentally tough. It may have been his years in US Army (he was a Canadian at that time) fighting in the Korean War or his time in PEI. Working under his direction influenced my character, mental outlook, discipline and honesty. As a business owner I never saw him cheat anyone. He made his own tools, when the factory tools were not good enough. He was smart, a genius some say, but I saw him as a role model, a mentor. After my own Father died when I was 20 in a tragic car accident, Joe was given the role of “Father” too. Over the years we grew apart and I started my own repair shop working on Honda two and four wheeled products. We saw each other many times but working together was gone.

My last visit with Joe, and his wife Sandy, was Labor Day, September 3, 2018. I was riding an old Honda 250 VTR, with my granddaughter on the back, near Joe’s house and we stopped by. Sandy loved the visit as she had never met Savanna, age 11. Joe sat quietly and looked on. It was a great ending to a relationship of 50 years. May we all be as blessed as I was to have a competent and helpful boss at a young age. It can set the direction for a lifetime. It did for me.

As a former shop owner turned hybrid / electric car trainer, this pandemic is the most disruptive event I have lived through. I have lived close to seven decades on this planet, five of which I have been working, four of them employing some great people. Here are my thoughts and some ideas as well.

First, all of us at ACDC, including the four part-time technician/ shop owners (or sons of shop owners) that teach at the ACDC training center with me are feeling well as are their families. Our staff consists of Deb and myself; along with David “Oz”, a veteran from Iraq and Afghanistan wars; Kena, a student at Worcester Polytechnical Institute studying electrical engineering; Oscar, a student at Worcester Technical High School studying automotive technology; Aiden, a college student Middlesex Community College taking mechanical engineering.
As you may imagine all of our live hands-on classes are postponed, but everyone is still working and no one was laid off.

Our company is continuing to develop more unique classes and we have more time for the completion of a three-year project, ACDC’s “Hybrid, Electric and Fuel Cell Vehicle” college level book and support materials.

We have launched a completely new series on-line broadcast live twice a day. 8am and  2pm (EST) so everyone, no matter where you live can continue to learn and prepare for your future in EMVs (vehicles with orange cables).

Lastly, if you are wondering “why did this happen?”, maybe that is the wrong question. This time is horrendous for many. Can you help someone in need is a better question? Can you offer support? Can you use this time wisely? ACDC wishes you all well and we are here to help you as we all get through this together.

Craig van Batenburg

LIVC

Contrary to what you may have seen or heard, a real “Atkinson Cycle” engine is not used in any motor vehicle sold today. LIVC stands for ‘Late Intake Valve Closing.’ It is the valve train and induction system that mimics, to some degree, what the Atkinson system was doing. LIVC is used in many, but not all, hybrid and plug-in hybrid models. LIVC is also used in conventional cars and trucks as well. We will use “LIVC” and not “Atkinson Cycle” when referring to these gasoline engines.

When Toyota was creating the Prius in the early 1990s, they had one big advantage that allows them to develop a new concept based on the old “Atkinson Cycle” engine.  They designed a powerful electric motor inside the transmission that allowed the use of a low torque ICE with a high torque electric motor both powering the wheels. This was the first modern hybrid built for mass production.

Bigger Gasoline Engine gets better Fuel Economy 

When the Prius was redesigned for the M/Y 2010 (known as “Gen III” is the USA), the internal combustion engine was completely new. It has grown from 1.5 liters to 1.8 liters, but used less fuel on the highway. How is this possible, one might ask? When Toyota increased the displacement, the torque curve had more low-end power. Using their eCVT, the road speed was matched with a lower rpm but the same amount of torque. Less fuel is needed at lower rpms so a larger engine improved the highway mileage.  

December 2019. End of a year, end of a decade. It was just about ten years ago when electric cars, that were affordable, were close to production. The Tesla roadster was out, but at 100,000 dollars each. Not your average car owners price range. This year, Americans spent 37,000 on a new car and that will buy you a pure electric car with over 200 miles of range. What a decade!

Up Your Voltage 56

Many people ask why I got into the hybrid repair and training business 20 years ago. Yes, it was that long. It was combination of factors. My personal commitment to sensible private motor vehicle transportation. Living in a city near Boston, Massachusetts and using public buses, light rail, a small scooter (now electric), a bicycle and walking to get around. That will shape who you are. Add to that the climate crisis we are now in, and you have an idea why ACDC feels strongly about what we do.

2019 was ACDC’s best year ever, if the financial report is your only indicator. Everyone got a raise, except me and Deb. Three of our employees, DJ, Aiden and Carlos, are in college for engineering. All three will still work for ACDC but a lot less and further away. They were hired out of High School and I believe we (maybe Deb) inspired them to do great things with their lives. The advertising budget for 2019 was zero and almost every class was sold out. Jeff, a trainer from the “Up Your Voltage” classes a few years back is with us again, adding his decades of experience to what we do. Matt, a tech nearby, also started at ACDC on 2019 and teaches at our 7-day class. We hosted interns, again for all over the world. We bought our first European HEV, a VW Jetta Hybrid. I could go on.

Deb and I are grateful for what we have. We celebrated 30 years of marriage. Our two sons’ lives are stable (they don’t sleep on my couch) and the grandkids (five now) are a joy.  Deb and I also had birthdays in December.

In many ways, you have added to our year as well by training and learning from us. May your holidays be blessed with love, health and good cheer.

Craig van Batenburg

As the year winds down, ACDC hopes that it was a year worth living. The classes we hold are small so Deb van Batenburg and I get to know many of you very well. Especially those you that are what we call “open”.  I met a man this year at a 5 day class, only ten students (the ACDC norm) and asked on the third day “are you married? any kids?”. His answer “I don’t talk about my personal life.” On the other end, a student volunteered during the meet and great evening event before our 7 day class “I haven’t talked to my father in 8 years”.  Deb and I are aware that this time of year (the “holidays” in America) can be a time of great joy and also deep sadness. We have a lot to be grateful for, our family and friends, our church and our city and the success of ACDC. With an advertising budget of zero for the last 15 years and most classes sold out months ahead, what is driving our double digit growth? I often call Deb our “secret weapon”. If you have ever called ACDC and talked to Deb you know why. Once in the classroom, hotel, a shop or on-line I take over and the class begins, but Deb is there making sure you have the little things that matter.  There are few married couples that have been around decades in this industry. Deb and I are  both recognized often as one. NACAT (North American Council of Automotive Teachers) gave ACDC a great award a couple years ago but failed to put Deb’s name on it next to mine. Once we were on stage to accept it (it was a complete surprise), many in the audience became loud in the oversight of NACAT. “What about Deb” was shouted by the crowd. That will not happen again. There are many others behind the scenes at ACDC that keep studying the present day technology so your future is ready when you are. Thanks for your support of ACDC and my thanks to everyone at ACDC, especially Deb.