Utah and Nevada

Today was National Don't Bother Turning the Steering Wheel Day. If you missed it, it's probably just as well, because most of you live somewhere where they have curves in the roads Not here. Here, I could have lashed down the wheel, stomped on the the gas pedal, and taken a nap. It's that straight. OK, I did make a left turn at Wendover, but you get the idea. Tomorrow I am traveling on what is supposed to be "The Lonliest Road in America." ot sure how a road can get lonlier than the one between Wendover and Ely, but I guess we'll find out tomorrow.

 Here we are at Bonneville Salt Flats. Yes it's flat, exccept for the curvature of the earth. And, yes, it's salty. I tasted it. Very salty. No, we didn't drive on it. It is a crust of salt, with water under it, so, like ice on a frozen lake, it can give way if you find a thin spot and down you go. Besides, Bergy gets enough salt in his diet with the winters we have in eastern Pennsylvania. Other than a couple of large plaques and a diner/gas pump/postcard rack, there wasn't anything in the way of info about Bonneville or the speed records set there as far back as the 30s. Maybe Wendover has something, but they don't talk about it much if they do.

Tomorrow is all Nevada, 200+ miles of lonely Route 50. We'll see....

Salt Lake, Utah

Today was pretty long, for me, about 350 miles. Bergy still continues to perform beautifully. Cousin Elsie made me some wonderful meatloaf and pepperjack sandwiches which stood me in good stead at a windy rest stop. Having the sandwiches was a nice way to take a little of my visit with me, to ease the transition from peace back to jousting on the highway. I am in Toole, Utah tonight, with a relatively short hop to Ely, Nevada tomorrow. I plan to visit the Bonneville salt flats on my way to Ely. Don't know if there'll be anything going on there tomorrow, but it'll be fun just to see it.

During much of today, I was again struck by the vastness of this country. I was reminded of the Breton Fisherman's Prayer: "Oh God, thy sea is so great, and my boat so small."

I am so fortunate to be able to make this journey. I'm getting closer to the left coast and my destination, but this trip has been all I dreamed it would be.

More From Pavillion

What a perfect antidote for the interstate! I spent two full days visiting with my cousin Elsie Westlake near Pavillion, Wyoming. Somehow I had never experienced the smell of sagebrush before, or at least so intensely. What a wonderful thing! Textures everywhere. She took up knifemaking a few years ago and showed me some beautiful work. Here are a few more pictures.

 

Pavilion, Wyoming

I'm visiting my cousin Elsie who has lived here since her early 20s. I can see why. It is stone quiet and beautiful. The Wind River range is in the distance, past the porch railing, the grass, the horse barn, past the trees and the sagebrush. It's sunny today with a nice breeze. I offered to stack some firewood but stopped far short of completion. There's always tomorrow, which should see me most of the way through the rest of the pile. No rattlers, but I am watching and listening. She says she hasn't seen any for a few years, but, you know....

Her jackrabbit died a while back, so now there are two cottontails, two horses, an aging border collie, and four kittens that will be adopted out when they are old enough.

So far, we've traveled more than 2,000 miles, averaging about 27 mpg of high-test. Bergy's still doing fine, although his cruise control kicks off when going up inclines. Not sure if this is usual. I will check on Miata.net when I get back to WiFi in a couple of days.

Fort Collins Day Off

I spent a quiet day with Lynn and Lucy The Elusive Kitten. Lucy and her human went out for a walk and practiced hiding in grass and bushes and climbing trees. The blonde-tailed squirrels took exception to the goings on and dropped the odd acorn from a safe distance above.

Lots of bicycles in Fort Collins. In all, a very pleasant place to be.We went into Old Town again. Dangerous place to be. We visited an olive oil bar and a spice shop. Needless to say, I bought some olive oil,  some vinegar, and some peppercorns. I didn't go too crazy because I am concerned about how the oil, especially, would travel. I suppose I could just pour it into the engine and drain it when I get home.

I did some paperwork related to the Miata event while I had access to a real computer, so thanks Lynn for that.

Tomorrow it's off to Pavillion, Wyoming to see my cousin Elsie and her pet jackrabbit.

Nebraska and Colorado

Needing gas, I stopped in a small town in Nebraska and found Burgie's Diner. Mission accomplished.

This morning started dark and stormy in Kearney, but after about 45 minutes, the skies cleared and it was lovelier all the way into Fort Collins. I cut a corner of Wyoming on my way, where the speed limit is 80. I'll be in Wyoming day after tomorrow so more of that anon.

After Burgie's, I headed back to the interstate, and on my way crossed Route 30. Now, Route 30 runs through Paoli, Pennsylvania, one block from my house. If I had turned right and continued on for 1,800 miles, I'd be home

I'm in Fort Collins, CO tonight visiting my First Niece, Lynn. We walked to Old Town and had a tasty dinner and two even tastier desserts at Enzios. We ate outside and were actually chilly by the time we were done. Fortunately, the walk home settled our dinners and warmed us at the same time.

Lynn echoed the thought that my friend Steve in Illinois had shared, that mine was not merely a cross-country journey in a Miata. It is also an impetus for people all across America to clean their houses. I must say, I am staying in some fine houses with some fine, fine people.

It's Still There!

Fort Kearney State Historic Site
For those of you who were fortunate enough to experience my design presentation during one of the NPS Web classes, it's still there! The "it" in question is perhaps one of the best examples of uninviting design anywhere. My son Jon took a picture of this in 1999, knowing how much I loved dreadful design. I don't recall what the original medium was, but it has been updated as photo etch on aluminum. It is good to know that they did retain the all-caps and the full, wall-to-wall justification from 15 years ago. After all, preservation is what historical sites are all about. All that, plus the deadly-dull text. Alas.

In other news, I wimped out tonight and am staying in a nice motel. Last night, rather, this morning, the six gentlemen in the next campsite had a rather long and lengthy discussion about whether one of them was, in his remarks, disrespecting another's daughter and his unborn grandchild. Neither had a very deep bench in terms of invective. They were pretty limited to F you! No! F YOU, MF!! Amazingly, this exchange of ideas began about 2:30 a.m. and lasted until about 4:00, at which point, they all got into their pickups and departed, sans tents. I assume that they'll return today to retrieve them, but they had not done so before I left. So I felt I owed myself a silent night. Besides, Nebraska this evening is warm and humid and did not augur well for a good night's sleep.

Yesterday Bergy turned 70 (thousand miles.) So here we are, two septuagenarians hurtling together through the heartland. Peace out.

Tenting Tonight

I'm all set up for tonight.  Prediction for thunderstorms.  How exciting! This is a beautiful spot. Now that the sun has gone behind the happy little clouds, it's cooled off and the breeze is picking up. My tent is staked down...! Don't know how to post pix to Blogger on my phone so you'll just have to wait. Besides,  since I am out in nature, I feel duty-bound to abjure technology for the nonce.

A Contest!

Now west of the Mississippi.

Spot A Miata!

As I've been driving, I've been wondering where I'll see the first other Miata headed for the Miatas at Laguna Seca event. The event is being held September 5 - 7 at Laguna Seca near Monterey, CA. 1,600 Miatas are expected, so, at some point as we converge, I'll start seeing them, I'm sure.

So here's the deal: In the comments section, tell me where I'll see the first Miata verified as going to Miatas at Laguna Seca. You can see a map of my planned route in the entry titles "The Plan" to give you a better chance. I only need a locationThe person closest will win a free T-Shirt from the event. All decisions of the judges are final. Employees of Proctor and Gamble are not eligible.

Illinois Fairy House

Today was a short drive geographically but a half-century emotionally. I returned to my alma mater, Lake Forest College, north of Chicago around the corner from Michigan City. As luck would have it, this was the first day of freshman orientation and the place was hopping with eager bright eyes and their misty-eyed parents. Took me back. I climbed to the top of College Hall where the college darkroom was back in the day. No longer. Because what's  a darkroom? The campus has grown, one dorm had sprouted a second story. Lots of rain and Philly-style humidity, but it was good to look around and remember back in the day.

Then I traveled a half-hour to the home of Steve and Suzanne, two friends from the aforementioned day. They had just met when I knew them. Now they've been married 50 years They are really lucky because, in their yard there is this really cool fairy house with a little door and a mirror. And the fairy keeps little trinkets like little horses and stars and hearts and diamonds and other things and the kids in the neighborhood come around and they know, because there is a little sign, and because their friends tell them, that they can take only one thing away every day. And the kids come around every day to check on things and to see what the fairy has left for them. Sometimes as many as 20 kids show up in a day. So yes, they are very lucky that they have a fairy in their garden and because they have eachother.

Michigan City

Brian and Warren After Dinner

Quick day today, 300-plus miles. Visited friends Brian and Warren in Michigan City Indiana. Brian took me on a tour of Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and Michigan City, both supremely cool places. We also had great dinner from Chef Brian and a peach and berry pie to die for.

Lots of rain and forecasts for more for the next few days. Honestly, I think I prefer that to broiling sun. I'm sure I'll get my fill of broiling sun before this trip is over.

Tomorrow, a short hop around the corner of Lake Michigan to visit my old college haunts and a couple of college friends. 

Newton Falls Ohio

Bergy resting at the EconoLodge, hard by the interstate

Bergy and Tom have left the state. Pennsylvania, that is. We left home about 8:30 and drove with the top down for most of the 7 hours we were on the road. After all, isn't that the idea? We did hit a good cloudburst around Somerset, PA. Stopped under a bridge and put the lid on. After about a half hour, we were topless again. The sharp-eyed Miatiste will see that the Cool Breeze Scoop was put on, indicating an increase in temperature post-burst. The 'Scoop is a cheap piece of plastic that gathers, yes, cool breezes, (don't run ahead) and directs them into the cockpit, making things much more comfy. 

We're safely ensconced in an EconoLodge and will go hunting and gathering supper shortly.

Bergy did very well today. I need to buy him a drink of high-test this evening. He drank a gallon every 28 miles today. Gas was a dime/gallon cheaper than I had budgeted, so it's filet mignon tonight!

Tomorrow!

Here's a look inside my "office" for the next six weeks. Now, if I can just get that red car out of the way....

I don't think I can get much readier. This adventure has been about a year in planning, and it's all about to happen.

I have been trying to keep things in perspective, however. Yes, I plan to drive about 7,600 miles in about 6 weeks. Pfft! A friend and NPS colleague, Kirsten Talken-Spaulding, has driven more than 13,000 miles! In eleven days! On a motorcycle! So again, I say Pfft! It's something called the Iron Butt Rally. Indeed. You can read all about it in her blog, KT'sRidin. The link is over there> I have been reading her blog for inspiration, and, as I said, to keep things in perspective.

Among the many things that she has on her blog is a tracking map showing her locations (obviously never too long in one spot.) Using something called Spotwalla and an Android app called BubblerGPS, I can let you follow me cross country. The link is also over there> It's called "Find Tom>On a Map." It'll go live tomorrow at 6 a.m. I have it set to update every 30 minutes while I'm underway (if all goes according to plan.)

Tomorrow promises to be one of my longer days at something over 350 miles. Pfft!

Why "Bergy?"

I have been asked by a number of people why I call my car Bergy. Back in the days before commercial sponsorships in auto racing, cars were assigned colors depending on their nationality. Italian cars were red, French cars were blue, German cars were silver, USA cars were white with a blue stripe, and British cars were green, like this stunning 1952 Aston Martin DB2.

One story holds that the first international race held in the British Isles was held in Ireland, since racing on public roads was illegal in England. To honor the Irish venue, the cars were painted green. That is one version of the story, and will do for now.

When Mazda created the Miata in 1989, it was conceived as a modern successor to the small British sports cars such as the MG and Lotus. To honor this legacy, Mazda released limited British Racing Green (BRG) editions in 1991 and 2001. My car is #771 of the 3,000 built in 2001.

Bergy is my pronunciation of the letters B, R, and G.

Soon!

It's a beautiful day in my neighborhood, and that is just the problem: I'm still in my neighborhood and not on the road. But soon. Soon.

I finally succomed and bought a GoPro camera, a tiny little thing that has a rugged case that I can mount on Bergy to record things as I pass by. It has a wireless remote control, so all I need to do is click the remote and 'tis done. Now if a locust (which I hear are legion between here and Monterey) should smack BergyCam right in the eye, I suppose that might necessitate a stop for remediation. FirstWorldProblem.

So I've been having fun learning the camera's capabilities and unique point of view. It's been a while since I was "into" photography. On my college-era cross-country dash, I took one roll of film. Then there was the 25 or so years of photographing and teaching photography before I got a real job. I'm hoping to document this trip well. I can't promise a raft of selfies. My training as a photographer was that the photographer was the observer, not the subject. I have a little trouble with the self-importance implied by the selfie. But you know, kids these days.

One thing I have been thinking about.... Minor White, one of my photo teachers and inspirations, talked about the importance of preparation, that to be receptive while photographing, you have to start with being thoughtful while getting ready and carry that with you as you photograph. That the act of phtographing begins with the preparation. He said it better.

We're all packed and awaiting Wednesday. 

The Plan

I spent today sitting on a hard chair at my dining room table finalizing my itinerary. I wish I was capable of more spontaneity, but I'm not. So be it. Now all that has to happen is for Bergy to perform flawlessly for 7,000 miles. What? Me worry? Nah, Bergy is a good little car, only 67,000 miles, and in very good shape. Piece of cake.

I've been using a nice little application called My Scenic Drives. Very handy for keeping things straight. 

I will be returning east on quite a bit of Route 66, or what is left of it. I'll be taking it more slowly on the return, since I have no Big Event that I need to arrive in time for. Hell, that spontaneity may happen after all....

I have been in touch with a group of three other Miatas that will be at the Big Event in Monterey at the beginning of September and then touring some national parks on the way to Chicago before returning to San Diego on Route 66. We've figured that our paths will meet on October 1 in Catoosa, Oklahoma, so we've planned to have dinner together. What larks!

Among other places, I've booked a night at the Wagon Wheel Motel in Cuba, Missouri. I'm really getting excited about this trip. Lots of sitting, but Bergy's seats will be softer than this hard chair.