Mike Le

Mike Le should have graduated from Granada High School with the Class of 1989 but he had an incident at a football game where for a brief moment he turned into Bruce Le.

I don't remember all the details but I do know that he got into a fight in an outhouse (a little odd, I know) and, as a result, ended up getting suspended from school. After that incident his parents made him move out of town.

I believe I first met Mike early one morning when we were both paper boys. I can't remember if I threw for the Contra Costa Times or the Tri-valley Herald or both. Anyway, I think we also played on the same little league baseball team one year.

Some of my most memorable times with Mike also involve cars.

When we were both too young to drive he took his parents Volvo for a joyride. I remember speeding down Isabel Lane with him in the rain. I believe he was going nearly 100 mph when we hit a massive puddle that covered the entire road and was about twice the size of the car.

The impact momentarily split the puddle in two and created massive waves on both sides of the car -- and the car died.

We spent a long time panicking and trying to figure out what to do. The car wouldn't start. How was he going to tell his parents that he took their car for a joyride at 14 and ran it through a puddle so hard that it just stalled? What if somebody stopped and offered to help us? What if a police officer drove up? As we were contemplating our fate somehow the car magically started.

As I recall it didn't run real well after that and the windshield wipers no longer worked -- the radio and tape deck might also have stopped working, but I'm not sure about that. I do know that we were able to get the car back to the garage and then I don't know what happened between Mike and his parents.

The other Mike Le car story happened after he was of legal age to drive. He had gotten a job at a grocery store -- Nob Hill, I believe -- as a sacker. While working there he had occasion to speak with another high school student who was a grade or two above him in school. He found out that not only was this girl beautiful and popular but she was charming and treated him nice.

Although none of his other friends knew this girl, he would randomly bring her name up and talk about her beauty and brag that he had conversations with her.

I think it's because of his bragging ways that I remember him telling me that one day he was driving his car and saw this girl driving her car. He turned his head and waved at her and then immediately crashed into the back end of the car in front of him.

I remember him expressing relief that she never even saw him.

One thing about Mike: every time I saw or heard about him making waves while in a car, it never turned out well.

And his car stories go beyond him making waves. I didn't even share the story of when he was shooting bottle rockets from his car one Fourth of July and got chased by a truckload of angry young men, one of whom pointed a shotgun at Mike's car. That chase ended with Mike taking a corner too sharp and skidding across a person's driveway and into their side yard. Mike was lucky enough not to do any major property damage and an unintended consequence was that his car looked like it was parked and those who were chasing him sped into the night right on past him.

As for what he is doing now, I know that he ended up joining the military after he graduated from a high school that wasn't nearly as cool as Granada. Last I heard he was out of the military and living in Sunnyvale.