Hey Wedge, Take your time we'll wait for you and the left coast to travel to towards the right. See ya Mon at Braxton Springs with the Zonie, okie, pike's peaker and of course the Texicans.
If you're coming on I-40 through Amarillo, stop at Groom TX for a few minutes.
Crucifixion of Christ near Amarillo, Texas
very interesting display. was free.

Safe Journey!!
John P
FTroopChief

 

Looking forward to meeting up with y'all Ftroop. End of day 2 finds us in Flagstaff AZ. SRT SIX and I will be joined by a 3rd XF in the early AM then we'll make our way to Santa Rosa NM.

 

On day one I hooked up with Steve (Wedge) and his son Tyler in Rancho Cucamonga, CA and headed out for day one destination of Flagstaff, AZ.

It was a pretty uneventful trip up the 15 to Victorville. Beautiful lush dirt and sand dotted the landscape (yes, that is sarcasm). Weather is clear with mild temperatures turning to warmer and eventually fry eggs on the hood.

The two Crossfires draw lots of attention and admiring looks as we head out the 15 to Barstow where we will change to I40 for most of the trip. We thought Barstow would be a good place to stop for lunch, but we are making such good time after a short stop we decide to continue on to Needles. Gas in Needles is $3.99 a gallon....ouch!

The drive along I40 is probably about as scenic as a cruise across the surface of the moon. Dirt, sand, followed by more dirt and sand and the occasional desert foliage that would best be described as weedlike (they probably are weeds). Joshua trees (tree?) are arranged haphazardly off to the side of the road. They look a little like something God might have picked up at the “create-a-world” factory outlet.

Every so often a little “burb” appears out of nowhere off the side of the Interstate. Do people really live there or was this a sentence by a judge with no sense of humor?

Cars are moving along nicely except for the occasional driver who “owns” the inside lane. This is the type of driver who finds it impossible to maintain a speed for more than a minute or two. They will not move over, it is as if they feel that lane is their own personal tax dollars at work.

They do know how to accelerate ........right when you try to pass on their right, especially if there is a slow vehicle or truck in that right lane just ahead of you. Even though they are driving a beat up old wreck, somehow they coax a velocity approaching the speed of light just as you pull alongside them to pass. The only thing capable of slowing them down is that lumbering vehicle in the right lane, the one blocking your progress. It feels like air brakes are applied as they pull even with those vehicles and somehow become “superglued” to the other vehicle’s flanks.

At this time the speed limit could be any number you choose and they will bring all the traffic following to a screeching crawl. Because of the vast number of people exhibiting this behavior, I can only assume many of them are taught this convoluted maneuver in driving school.

The only other drivers approaching this level of expertise appears to be some of the gypsy truckers. Those are the trucks following a convoy who suddenly pull around the slower vehicles. Their timing in impeccable, as they dart at a blazing 40 MPH in front of you while you are approaching 70 MPH. Quick reflexes can avoid swapping paint with them. Schizophrenia starts to set in as your personality splits into multiple characters. You start telling your other self what idiots are now allowed to prowl the highways of America. Even worse is when you start agreeing with yourself!!!

Settling back to the drive at hand we head into the high plains area of northern AZ with mind wandering and almost catching a glimpse of Clint Eastwood as the Pale Rider off in the distance. Wow, trees and plants after miles and miles and miles…..and miles of sand and, well more sand. You stare in amazement at the rock formations and catch a glimpse of creation in the strata formed by water and wind erosion. Some of nature’s most impressive artwork.

Suddenly piles of boulders lay haphazardly bunched with tiny trees growing from their rocky surfaces. I can almost see the dust covered Conestoga wagons being pulled by pairs of Oxen. Here we are zooming along at 75MPH cursing those not wanting to play “life in the fast lane” not capable of imagining traveling only a few miles in a whole day.

We climb a little farther and suddenly Pine trees appear. Lush green belts follow the shoulders of the pavement. The occasional pool of water is in stark contrast to the previous endless barren, sandy soil. More trees appear, it is a virtual forest of trees. Is this really Arizona? As we climb higher and higher the temperature starts declining and actually becomes bearable settling in the high 70’s where it seemed only minutes before were well into triple digits. “Well at least it’s a dry heat” I am thinking. I remember one of my first summer visits to Phoenix some years back when the thermometer hovered at 118 degrees F. One of my local hosts used the “but it’s a dry heat” on me. I countered with “the inside of an oven is dry heat as well, but it will still cook you till you’re done!”

Up ahead the sign reads “Flagstaff 6 miles ” “I have seen the promised land”. Surprisingly I have been both mentally and physically alert for this trip, not once did I awake to the “warning strip” symphony. But my back and bladder are both screaming “ARE WE THERE YET?” Anxiously we approach the reception desk to procure our room keys. Ever efficient, the desk clerk assures us that our rooms are ready and the beds are soft.

Just before arrival my daughter called on my cell and made a marvelous suggestion for our dinner. Seems she knew about a quaint little restaurant located in a Flagstaff strip mall that had been the subject of a Diners, Drive-ins and Dives segment. Located not far from the hotel we decided to check it out. Trusty GPS in “hand” (after all it got us right to the front door of the hotel) we proceeded to get fairly lost on the way. A quick roadside confab determined that “…it was back there somewhere”. With a new wagonmaster on point (not me) Steve quickly found our destination, “Brandy’s a Bakery Restaurant”. Located in a prime location within walking distance of a Walgreen’s we entered with anticipation. They will not win awards for their décor. However, the service and absolutely wonderful cuisine makes it a “must” when in Flagstaff. A little “confusion” of spices and cultures blended in an amazing way had us trying to find superlatives to describe the plates placed before us. You just have to try the Thai Style Pork Leg (real dish). Needless to say, we left feeling very satisfied. Gas in Flagstaff is $3.19 a gallon.

Tomorrow arrives a 7AM with another addition, tburris, to our troop on its quest to St Louis.

 

Awesome! Meet you in St Louie. We leave from Denver in about 29 hours!

 

Great story Karl....don't worry about the dry heat, ours is a wet heat that will baste you with your own sweat.

 

We'll be leaving Huntley. Ill on Monday 8AM. Our route is 72 west to 39 south, to 55 south (Hopefully hitting Springfield,Ill about noon)! When on 55 south I'll be monitoring Channel 4 on the 2 way radio (unless people have already chosen a channel in their caravan, let us know). Probably get to Harrahs about 2:30PM! Check in is 4PM, so plenty of time. See you all in St.Louie ...... Drive Safe and defensively ....

 

You'll probably be an hour or two ahead of us. I don't think we'll make Springfield by Noon, but we do appreciate you breaking the trail for us!

 

Blast Chamber ...... Where in Wisc are you coming from ........ are you planing on taking 39 south? If so, when would you be hitting Rockford area?

 

Sending you a PM......

 

Newest plan for travel to CAA (Midwest)

Me and Stlas69 are meeting at Illinois Rte 47 and I-55 (9:00am)
and then continuing on to meet oledoc2u, IBLUBYU and Blast Chamber and a few others in Springfield at around 12:00 - 12:30 for a lunch stop on Monday.
We will be using channel 4 on our two way radios while in route along I-55 south.

 

At some point today the Nor Cal contingency past the halfway point.
SRT SIX, Tburis, and I head on to Oklahoma tomorrow. Big Biker event in town this weekend, hope we can get some sleep tonight.

 

Leaving in about 40 minutes to drive out to indy and then finish up on monday. All alone out here in the east.

 

Leaving Denver within 45 minutes.

 

Karl, great prose! Are you a writer of sorts, if not, you could be. Hope you are filming this as well, I'd love a copy if you do.

 

The Trip Day two

Tom (tburris) and his son Tyler join us in Flagstaff. Now there are five of us in 3 beautiful cars, Crossfires (have any of you seen one? ) Steve and his son Tyler (grey SRT6), Tom and his son Tyler (Blaze Red Limited) and me Karl (black SRT6). Obviously these are the fastest colors as not one single blue Crossfire passes us!

As we leave Flagstaff (gas $3.19 a gallon) the terrain quickly returns to a high plains appearance as the temperature starts climbing toward triple digits again. A good part of this "prime" real estate has been snatched up by Native Americans as mile after mile we are treated to multiple bill boards promoting genuine Native American artifacts "at the next offramp".

All along this stretch the scenery changes from high plains, to desert, to high chapparal to amazing rock formations and mesas. The bare walls exposing the Earth's ancient geological history is breathtaking. I am in awe as I gaze at the horizontal levels of strata weathered by rain, wind and water. I thought I caught a glimpse of a Tyranasaurus Rex sneaking around one hill and quickly out of sight. Suddenly the horizontal strata levels tilt at a 45 degree angle indicating the tremendous pressure of two techtonic plates slamming against each other. Talk about horsepower! Mother nature must have used a tune, dual CAI and a pulley on that one.

At the border between Arizona and New Mexico, we are stopped by armed guards wanting to see our papers.....NAW, not really! Like all of the other state's borders they just kind of happen and suddenly we are in New Mexico. As you may have guessed, the scenery has changed completely....well now it is NM sand instead of AZ sand.

Originally we planned to first stop in Albuquerque, but realized it would have been over 323 miles (bladder control rejected this) and we wound up stopping in Gallup, NM first.

The large Texaco star loomed high by the side of I40 promising to quench our powerful steeds thirst. This large facility also features an outstanding full Mexican buffet. I pull in and insert my Texaco credit card into the pumps receptacle. A message pops up asking if my transaction is credit or debit? Odd as there is a sign on the pump stating they don't accept debit cards. As requested, I promptly press the NO button and the screen goes blank "busy processing" I think. "Your card cannot be processed" the screen alerts me. As I try once again, I am again confronted with rejection.

I go inside and present my card to the clerk behind the counter. "We are no longer affiliated with Texaco" he tells me. I ask "what about the big red Texaco star?" "Oh, that. We are now known as Red Star gasoline, an independent." OK, I hand him one of my standard bank cards and he immediately processes the transaction....

The stop was quite a relief for us all as we kept the "immaculate" toilet facilities busy. What a wonderful experience to walk upright after driving some distance. We pile back in to our cars and now head to Albuquerque where my daughter has called and found yet another gem from Diners, Drive Ins and Dives. The Standard Cafe.

The drive to Albuquerque is uneventful and we soon find the group at the mercy of the lady that lives in my GPS to guide us through the streets of Albuquerque to get us to our culinary destination. She comes through with flying colors and gets us there without incident (much better than in Flagstaff). The Standard cafe is a stand-alone single story building of many architectural styles. Inside the appearance is very pub-like with lots of brick and wood. The menu is very interesting and features bacon wrapped meat loaf. No meat loaf lovers here as none of us wish to try it. Their Monte Christo sandwiches and home-made mac n cheese are of interest. My daughter told me about the Tempura Seared Ahi with Wasabi Guacamole, but I don't see it on the menu. A simple request to the waiter and smiling he replies, "we can do that!" I have to say it was delicious as were everyone elses choices. My daughter is now two for two.

We head back to I40 in the middle of Albuquerque's rush hour and are delayed slightly. Once again back on the road to our day's final destination, Santa Rosa.

All during the drive we experience the same type of "outstanding" drivers as we did before. However, this time there are more big rigs that pull out to pass slower vehicles. Unfortunately the majority of these drivers display the "mine is bigger than yours" attributes. "Oh, were you in that lane when I pulled over?" has to be their theme song. I have great respect for truckers and work with them, but some of these drivers seem to have gotten their commercial licenses from mail order. It is one thing to pull out directly into oncoming traffic that exceeds your current speed by as much as 30 MPH, but it something else altogether when you do this going up hill. Better yet these "high speed" passes are conducted at the blinding speed approximately 1 MPH faster than the vehicle they are passing. These maneuvers seem to take an hour (probably closer to 5-10 minutes). Unfortunately the farther we seem to be from civilization, the more frequent this occurs.

It is only 107 miles to Santa Rosa from Albuqureque, but after a long day, these are LONG miles. The destination is finally reached and we all decide no evening joint meal tonight, just a nice comfy bed to prepare for Day 3.

 

OK Six...since you are coming into my work environment while you are vacation...let me somehow try to explain why these idiot truckers display this lack of respect for you...since I live on both sides of the fence. We pull a load...sometimes grossing close to 80K lbs...with usually only 400-550hp to make this happen...acceleration comes slowly, most of the good ones are on cruise letting the computer do the driving for best fuel mileage. Oh, if all trucks would just pull those loads the same, but no, all loads, and weights aren't the same, so every truck cruises differently, all trucks pull hills differently. Anyway, here's the rub, for instance, I am cruising, slowly approaching other trucks who are moving slower than me, my approach is slow, right when I need to move out to get around the slower trucks, here comes a little XF hauling butt, do I let him cut me off, lose my momentum, and take miles to get back up to speed, or do I exercise my right to get out and pass, my office, my work environment, I'm passing, he can wait...he can accelerate a heck of faster than I can...to regain even 5 mph loaded can take 2-3 miles according to terrain I am on...mountains, hills, all can kick you in the butt if you don't maintain your speed and get a run at it...cars on the other hand can just pick it right back up, especially a high performance car like ours...no cars ever slow down to let us out, they just want to get by us...welcome to our world, a little respect...next time you approach a group of trucks, and you see one gaining on the others, and you slow to let him get out and pass, see if he doesn't thank you for it after he gets out, or gets back over...all the good ones will...have a safe trip my friend, yours is for fun, theirs is their everyday work...not much fun for them...sorry, this isn't personal at all, but I deal with getting cutoff by cars everyday, and it isn't pleasant for us either....

 

SRT SIX - You have a real talent for writing.

Subscribes to thread for developments.

 

Glad you spoke up there Doc. I don't drive profesionaly but have done my share of hauling. Our current company truck is a 24 foot Itnl Box governed at 65 MPH and under powered. Unlike cars, big rigs are not push and go vehicles. Navigating a heavy rig is hard labor on a highway full of hills, turns, and people who think driving is something you do while you concentrate on eating a burger and socializing with friends in the car or on the phone.

It is about managing momentum, plain and simple. Most people have no idea the intense, moment to moment full time job it is to make miles and not hurt the load, the vehicle or the fools on the road with you who haven't a clue.

Thanks Doc, for sayin' it like it is.

Guys, keep it in mind while you are squirting from lane to lane having fun, truckers are working hard for a living, not just watching the scenery go by. I read once that a good professional truck driver is not just someone who keeps his rig out of trouble. A goodprofessional is a driver who works to keep every other driver out there safe. Wouldn't it be nice if every car driver lived up to that concept?

And in all honesty, Truck road and fuel taxes pay the bulk of the cost of our wonderful highway system. Wouldn't hurt to thank them or it. At least by giving them a break once in awhile.


roadster with a stick

 

Well Said Doc ! UPS 32 Yrs !!! Be nice to the truckers , you may need there help one day ,

 

Let's not turn this well intentioned thread into a political type thread

Perhaps we can end it with this, there are bad drivers on the road in and on all kinds of vehicles and it is always a bummer whenever anybody is going slower than you want or is in the lane you want.


Back to the fun!